Issues that matter to Johnson City.
Dave doesn't run on slogans. He runs on specifics. Here's exactly what he's committed to and why.
Rebuild Community Trust
Only 33% of residents say city government is transparent. That's more than a simple optics problem.
Dave has lived that frustration firsthand. He published the 2024 Community Survey after the city held it back. He published the Bar Hours ordinance to give impacted workers time to react. He moderated a town hall when City Hall stopped engaging residents.
As commissioner, Dave will ask the uncomfortable questions. He will make sure residents know what their government is doing before - not after - decisions are made.
Dave is committed to regular roundtables, an overhaul of the public comment process, and proactively involving impacted residents in deliberations.
Commitments
- Recurring community roundtables
- Reduced barriers to public records and information
- Streamlined public comment opportunities
Strengthen Small Business
Johnson City's local hospitality and small business community deserves data-driven policy.
The debate around last call hours and weekend operations shouldn't be driven by moral instinct or political convenience. As with all major decisions, it should be governed by robust data that takes all possible variables into account.
Whether revisiting burdensome rules or considering new partnerships and initiatives, Dave will bring the same data-driven approach he applies at work to local policy.
Commitments
- Partnership programs rather than pure regulatory burden
- Reduced friction for new business formation and permitting
Address the Housing Crisis
Working families in Johnson City are being priced out; short-term rentals are completely unregulated. That must change.
Tennessee HB 2623 created a framework for attainable housing initiatives; Johnson City hasn't adopted it. Dave will push to implement these tools at the local level to help boost the supply of attainable housing.
Short-term rentals (Airbnb, VRBO) are currently unregulated in Johnson City. No data, no accountability, and no excess revenue to earmark toward the housing shortage they help create. Dave will move to establish a registry, basic regulation, and tax allocation to ensure short term rental revenue feeds back into the housing ecosystem.
Commitments
- Implement Tennessee HB 2623 Attainable Housing Initiatives
- Create registry of qualified preservation buyers (nonprofits, housing authorities)
- Ensure common sense rules (e.g. primary home Owner Occupancy) for ADUs
- Regulate Short-Term Rentals (basic accountability and licensing)
- Earmark STR tax revenue for affordable housing programs
Professional, Trusted Law Enforcement
Johnson City can have a police department that every resident trusts, but that requires honest assessment and real accountability.
With great power comes great responsibility. Dave has reviewed department reports, engaged in ride-alongs, and discussed concerns with leadership as a private citizen. As commissioner, he will follow through on ensuring that our officers are accountable to citizens - and that our city is accountable to officers. Zero tolerance for unbecoming actions, rewards for exemplary actions, and proper benefits to recruit those ready to hold to a higher standard.
Commitments
- Unfreeze and complete all Internal Investigations that are currently in abeyance
- Produce a thorough, unredacted timeline of the handling of Sean Williams-adjacent investigations
- Opt in to Bridge Retirement Benefits by Fiscal Year 2030
- Rebuild downtown Community Policing relationships
De-Flock Johnson City
We didn't vote to be surveilled 24/7 by a private company.
Johnson City has deployed hundreds of AI-powered cameras under a 10-year program known as the Safe City Project. This includes ALPRs, PTZ cameras, and - coming soon - Autonomous Drones.
This happened without meaningful public input. As we have seen nationally, a majority of Americans - of all stripes - do not consent to warrantless, AI-powered dragnets.
As departments across the country continue to make headlines for misconfiguration, security concerns, and explicit misuse, Dave's stance has remained clear: Take. Them. Down.
Commitments
- Remove Flock from the budget, saving taxpayers $970,000 annually
- Ban AI-enabled surveillance technology
Tell the City your stance
Set the Rules Before They're Here
When the city asked residents about a data center coming to Johnson City, more than 5,000 of roughly 6,000 respondents said they were extremely concerned. Dave was doing something about it before the survey existed.
Northeast Tennessee has already lived this story. In Limestone, a rezoning request for a 'blockchain data center' turned out to be a 25-megawatt Bitcoin mine. Neighbors only found peace when a lawsuit forced shutdown via a settlement agreement. When the same playbook put Buffalo Mountain in the crosshairs, Dave joined nearby neighbors to act. The pressure worked: BrightRidge paused all potential data center projects in May 2025, and the city passed a moratorium while kicking off a lengthy rulemaking process.
Now, the clock matters. The moratorium has been extended through the end of 2026, and the new ordinance is expected just after the election. The planning commission approved first-draft zoning in June, with a list of questions left unresolved. Your choice in November will help decide whether those protections get finished, get teeth, and get carried out with the vigor the community intended.
Commitments
- Finish the data center ordinance with full protections in place: maximum setbacks, upfront impact data, and fast-acting authority for noncompliance
- Keep the community in the decisionmaking process for any potential development
- Require a decommissioning plan and bond upfront, so we are not burdened by unsuccessful speculation
- Ensure any potential development pays its own way, does not negatively impact utility infrastructure, is a good neighbor, and provides a local benefit
Do something about it
Questions about the platform?
Dave would rather talk to you directly than let his words sit on a web page. Schedule a coffee chat.