The race for City Council seats has not passed by John Thomas.
Thomas is running for the District C seat on the Iowa City City Council against Scott McDonough, both new to the council. Neighbors from the North Side, the winner will succeed Councilor Jim Throgmorton, who is running for an at-large position.
Thomas is a retired landscape architect who recently moved to Iowa City from the San Francisco Bay area. His wife, Sarah, attended the University of Iowa, and when deciding to retire to the Midwest in 2009, they chose Iowa City.
Thomas said while working for the city in San Francisco, he gained 23 years of experience designing parks and streets.
“That gave me a long opportunity to understand the public realm,” Thomas said. “Streets, parks, and institutions are the quality of our town.” Thomas said when he and his wife first moved to the North Side, the park in the North Side Marketplace was going through a redesign process, and he was asked to take part in the planning.
Thomas’ neighbor on the North Side Jackie Biger said she was grateful to have Thomas’ experience.
“I feel lucky to have John Thomas in my neighborhood, because he cares very much for all of the residents of Iowa City, and we all benefit from his energy,” Biger said.
Thomas said he was soon asked to be coordinator for his neighborhood association and then joined the Iowa City Planning and Zoning Commission.
He said his work on the commission helped expand his focus to the city at large, with an emphasis on planning and zoning.
“That’s what led me to run for City Council — this concern I had about the sense of place of Iowa City being altered by recent development,” Thomas said.
He said his main goals upon being elected would be striving for healthy governance, healthy neighborhoods, a healthy economy, and healthy streets.
Thomas said he wants to make the council more accessible by holding town-hall meetings in the different neighborhoods with city staff members to answer questions and discover what each part of the city is concerned with.
Thomas said he would like to encourage neighborhoods to actively solve problems and improve themselves by providing funding to their established organizations.
Concerning the local economy, Thomas said he would support development to increase the tax base, while staying sensitive to context. He also said he wants to encourage a diverse range of work opportunities, and use tax funds responsibly.
He said he would like focus on improving the safety of streets and bike paths, as well as improving the architecture of thoroughfares along neighborhoods.
Throgmorton said Thomas’ track record supports him.
“I’ve known and worked with John Thomas for four or five years,” Throgmorton said. “During that time, I’ve witnessed him serve very effectively as coordinator of the North Side Neighborhood Association.”