Alderman Hastings: Thanks for Support in Recent Election

Editor's Note: The following letter was written by Alderman Rick Hastings, who was appointed to the Common Council in early 2010. He was elected to the seat April 3 to finish the term vacated by former Alderman Charles Lichtie.

Letter to the editor:

I’d like to sincerely thank everyone in District 12 for supporting me in the recent election and voting me back onto the Council.  I am honored and proud to have the opportunity to continue serving as your Alderman for another year.

Throughout my campaigning I spoke to many of you and stated that “I was passionate about helping resolve issues and concerns for my friends and neighbors”.  I want to assure you that this was not simply a campaign gimmick, it is the honest truth and it is very much who I am. I encourage all of you to reach out to me with any issues or concerns that you may have regarding the city and allow me the opportunity to assist.

I ran on a strong message of fiscal conservatism and in winning with 69 percent of the vote, I am confident that this is one of the core values for many of you in District 12.  As your alderman, I believe it is my duty to help provide the financial relief that you, as the taxpayers, deserve.  To do this, the city must become more efficient in the services it provides.  For 2012, I have been appointed to the Finance Committee and it is my goal to help drive these efficiencies prior to this year’s budget season.  The current committee has been doing a good job of generating ideas and I look forward to continuing and building on their efforts.

After a year in office, I felt it was important to do a self review of my performance.  In doing so, I believe there are a few areas that I can continue to improve on. One of the areas that I will be working to improve this year is my response time in helping all of you resolve issues. To ensure I am able to respond within a reasonable time frame, I now have access to additional mobile devices, which will allow me to access city emails when I’m away from home. This is a personal expense for me, but one that I feel will be valuable to the service I provide. Another area is in spending more time with and getting to know all of my neighbors in District 12. To do this, I’d like to encourage you to invite me to any neighborhood gatherings you may be having. Whether it is a neighborhood association meeting, a block party or just an informal meeting with your immediate neighbors, I would very much appreciate the opportunity to speak with all of you and assist wherever I am able to.

Again, thank you for your support and please let me know how I can help you.

Rick Hastings
Alderman – 12th District