This November we will have two open seats for Clinton Township Trustees.  There are three candidates. Aliena Sword,  Wayne Newman & Carl Reardon. All three received the same questions.  Their responses are posted in full, as received.  The UVCA does not endorse any candidate.

UNIVERSITY VIEW CIVIC ASSOCIATION (UVCA): What is your connection to the township?  

ALIENA SWORD (AS): My name is Aliena Sword I will be asking the citizens of Clinton Township to allow me to serve as one of our Township Trustees in the upcoming November 7th, 2017 election.

I take pride in the fact that I’m “Locally Grown.” Clinton Township has been “home” for nearly my entire life, both of my parents were born and raised here too! My husband Jason and I bought our home on Case Road in November of 2003 shortly after the birth of our son. I am a happily married 34 year old mother of two (Jason Jr. age 14 & Jade age 8).

UVCA: What experience (personal or professional) do you possess that would be of benefit to the community?  Education?

AS: I’m a Columbus Public School Graduate where I obtained my Certified Pharmacy Technician Certificate at Fort Hayes Metropolitan Career Center. I’ve worked as a PTCB (Nationally) Certified Pharmacy Technician for 20 years advancing my career in Sterile Pharmaceutical Compounding focusing on GMP and USP 797/800 Compliance.

I have been enhancing my qualifications to be your trustee over the past several years as follows:

• I have become familiar with Township procedure – I attended a large majority of Trustee meetings, including many committee meetings relating to various issues.

• For professional preparedness, I ordered and studied the Ohio Sunshine Laws 2017 Training Manual required each elected term.

• I have also been self-educating on topics such as public record retention, ethics and budgeting of small localities.
• Recognizing the growth of bordering neighborhoods, I have also collaborated, attended and kept up with other area commissions, neighborhood block watch groups, and civic associations.

To become more involved, and most importantly to bring our community together:

• My husband and I founded the Franklin County Land Bank’s first Community Garden on Case Road.

• I Co-Chaired the Clinton Township Police Levy Committee.

• I am proud to have founded and co-funded Pumpkins with Police.

• I have attended many community discussions such as the “Big Table” held by The Columbus Foundation (See the front page of the Columbus Dispatch, 5/18/17)

• I was offered and accepted a position as Parent Consultant at North Linden Elementary School for the 2017-2018 school year to enhance and develop a stronger bond between our community and the school.

UVCA: Describe what you believe is the greatest challenge for the township?

AS:  I believe thoughtful deliberation and “line by line” review of our annual budget to ensure quality neighborhood services are delivered to our residents economically is paramount to maintaining and enhancing the quality of life in our Township. Continuing to explore how we wish to invest in our own economic development and protecting the character of our neighborhoods, is important to our future direction. In addition, I believe we need to continue to actively encourage further economic development by creating a plan of action, focusing on the retention of our existing local businesses, and insuring additional revenues.

We need a more open relationship with each other. One that is inviting and accessible to everyone. One that inspires our residents to pursue new ideas and share different viewpoints.

UVCA:  What would be your top 1-2 priorities while in office and how would you finance them?

AS:

• Start conversation on how to better our zoning and code enforcement process to protect our property values.

• Increasing communication to all township residents via quarterly newsletters including both east and west side news, current events, hot topics and positive stories. These newsletters would be printed in house and distributed with our trash bill, saving the cost of postage. Also, enhancing and updating our web presence by upgrading the current web page format for easier browsing and mobile friendly use.

I look forward to speaking with you about my goals and about yours as well. I hope to meet you during the campaign as I canvas our neighborhoods. Please feel free to contact me as well! You can find my campaign page at www.facebook.com/swordfortrustee

Recognizing the growth of bordering neighborhoods, I have also collaborated, attended and kept up with other area commissions, neighborhood block watch groups, and civic associations.