Lincoln Mayoral Candidate Preview: Leirion Gaylor Baird
Leirion Gaylor Baird is a democratic candidate and during the Lincoln mayoral primary, she received the most votes.
Currently, she is on the Lincoln city council, and she believes that experience has led her to become the most qualified for Lincoln’s next mayor.
“So just a couple of years ago I identified resources through efficiencies in the budget that helped purchase this new picnic shelter and also to replace the toddler playground that you see in the background there, so I’m really pleased to have helped to get real work done that has real meaningful and service and enjoyment for our Lincoln families,” Gaylor Baird said.
Another main topic of conversation is how Leirion is going to improve the city’s infrastructure.
While she wants to tackle it head on she also is hopeful that a new tax collection system can help grow the capital city.
“Thanks to voters we will be working with new resources through our sales tax collection. About 30% of the funding will come from people who live outside our community. So we are fortunate to be looking forward to making about 78 million dollar investment in our roads and infrastructure should sales tax dollars meet projections,” Gaylor Baird said.
In downtown Lincoln, there are a lot of different businesses growing, and that is due to in part a tax increment financing system that allows major tax breaks for these businesses to succeed.
Which lead to a major question on if it’s truly worth the cost in the long run.
“So we have used this tool repeatedly and with unanimous votes of the council to do major work primarily in the downtown area and embellished areas when the market hasn’t necessarily been able to get projects across the finish line so those tools are vital for the success of moving our city forward,” Gaylor Baird said.
The mayoral election is being held on May 7th and if you would like to find Leirion’s campaign website you can go to https://www.leirionforlincoln.com/ for more information about her campaign.
