MORGANTOWN — Mark Downs has a list of priorities and areas of focus he’d like to dive into should voters place him in Morgantown City Council’s 6th Ward seat on April 29.
The non-exhaustive list includes — in no particular order — strengthening neighborhoods, community safety, housing solutions, zoning reform, arts, recreation and environmental projects.
But the success and sustainability of those initiatives, and all others originating from city hall, are largely dependent on a healthy bottom line.
Downs said he’s spent significant energy in his campaign trying to wake people up to the fact that city revenues, when adjusted for inflation, have been trending downward for more than a decade and currently sit some 22% below where they were in 2014.
He believes the problems are self-inflicted to a degree.
“Look at the competitive landscape. It’s hard for us to compete with development outside city limits when you know there’s a lot of red tape to deal with to start a business [in the city],” he said, citing two recent examples in the city’s downtown — one a restaurant that spent months waiting on a permit to hang drywall and another, a bookstore, forced to hire an architect to design a bathroom.
“B&O [business & occupation] revenue is down. B&O construction revenues are down. Businesses are locating elsewhere. They’re going to the Suncrest Towne Centres and the University Town Centres of the community and I think some of that is because we’ve made it unreasonably hard,” he said. “We’re not talking about big business with deep pockets. We’re talking about our neighbors and friends who live in this community and have taken the risk to chase their dreams and make our quality of life better.”
The state provides municipalities with limited tools for collecting revenue, “so we’ve got to be a force multiplier for taking full advantage of those tools rather than a boat anchor,” he said.
According to Downs, these restrictions extend beyond the downtown business district and into the neighborhoods due to an outdated zoning code. He said current code not only prohibits the creation of the kind of popular small businesses found in his Greenmont neighborhood due to regulations like minimum parking requirements, but also disallows the construction of any type of multi-family housing, which restricts the city’s housing supply and keeps prices high.
“Those kinds of neighborhood amenities make the neighborhood stronger. They make it more vibrant and I think they ought to be encouraged,” Downs said. “Our community starts in our neighborhoods. It’s pride that’s born out of those neighborhoods. That’s where the fire in our bellies for Morgantown and our community starts.”
Supporting and strengthening neighborhood associations and documenting the history of the city’s history through the formation of its various neighborhoods would also be money and time well spent, according to Downs.
When asked about a couple of the more high profile council topics of late, Downs said he doesn’t support a camping ban because they’re generally ineffective in that they don’t address root causes, like lack of housing or mental health support.
Further, he said he’s not a fan of the city’s standalone election and would support moving the election onto the county’s ballot.
Downs, 51, is a small business owner with previous leadership roles with the federal government. He’s a lifelong resident of Morgantown and recently served two terms as president and economic vitality chair for Main Street Morgantown.
So, why should voters pick Mark Downs to represent the city’s 6th Ward?
“Morgantown is special to me. I grew up here, went to WVU, raised my family and built a career. My whole life’s been here … I understand our challenges. I know our community and bring an unmatched passion for Morgantown. In terms of council, I’m ready to hit the ground running. My experience with the city, relationships with current council members and relationships with key stakeholders at the county, state and WVU are already strong,” Downs said. “I love my hometown. It’s great, but I really believe it can be so much greater. We’ve got so much potential.”
