Katie Sheldon Hammler*

Office sought: Town Council Leesburg
Age: 42
Residence: Exeter North East.
Web site:
http://www.katiehammler.com
E-mail:
katie@katiehammler.com

* Incumbent

Occupaton: Corporate marketing professional, VeriSign; former captain, U.S. Army Reserves.

Education: MBA, George Washington Univ. (Beta Gamma Sigma); BA, Intl. Rel., Brown Univ. (ROTC scholarship); Certified Planner.

Elected offices/civic activities: Member, Leesburg Town Council, 2004-present; past commissioner, Loudoun Economic Development Commission; member, Loudoun Commission on Women; past parks and recreation liaison, Leesburg Cable and Environmental Commissions and Main Street organization Crossroads; past board member, Loudoun Convention and Visitors Association; past board member, Loudoun Abused Women Shelter; past coach, Leesburg Girls Softball.

Questions & Answers

Q: What is the most urgent problem facing your jurisdiction?

A: Our residential tax burden. I will continue to work vigilantly to reduce unnecessary town spending and ensure that the county and state responsibly provide back to us our fair share of our taxes required by these levels of government, such as for necessary services and roads. I will also continue my proactive efforts to increase nonresidential tax revenue. I have a successful track record of being actively engaged to create public-private partnerships that yield dividends. Making business connections is what I do for a living, and I will continue to bring this to our town to benefit all.

Q: How would you rate your town’s relationship with Loudoun County officials and what, if anything, would you do to improve that relationship?

A: I have strong established relationships with County officials. I'm actively working to provide responsible funding back to Town taxpayers for School Resource officers, our fair share of road dollars from the State, and Balch Library.

Q: Do you believe additional steps are needed to control the pace of development in your community?

A: I will say NO to sprawling residential subdivisions, and not fall victim to proffers that fall short of our infrastructure needs. I will continue to work to proactively bring high-quality investment to Downtown Leesburg.

Q: In March, the Virginia Supreme Court ruled the transportation package passed by lawmakers last year unconstitutional, endangering major projects across the region. What steps, if any, should the county, region and state take to address funding issues for transportation projects?

A: State elected officials must find no-excuse workable solutions to fully fund transportation projects in Leesburg, which suffers from regional gridlock, by fully completing Battlefield Parkway, the Flyover of Sycolin Road; and to widen Sycolin Road.

Q: Why should voters elect you?

A: I have the experience to make a dramatic difference; I will work to lower our residential tax burden, improve the business climate and reduce gridlock.

Your Thoughts...

With the current state of the economy, how have your finances changed when compared to last year?