O'Neill makes bid for city council

EDITOR’S NOTE: Mark O’Neill is running for City Council District 1. He supplied the Bulletin with this personal profile.

Mark O'Neill, a Las Cruces resident since 2006, has a background in education in both public and private schools, worked as a park and recreation specialist, and was a successful business owner.

Much of his experience can also be attributed to his commitment to public service and civic engagement in the community, including  these appointments in Las Cruces:

Parks and Recreation Advisory Board (eight years); Capital Improvement Advisory Committee (four years); Chair of the County Labor Management Relations Board for five years and currently serves on the J. Paul Taylor Governance Board.

His other affiliations include Elevate Las Cruces, Film Las Cruces, Coalition Against Bullying (CAB), Suicide Task Force, Opioid Crisis Group. He attends internet courses regularly regarding behavioral health issues and is preparing a series of enrichment and awareness classes for Generation Z (ages 13-26) to be made available in the community.

In addition, Mark is a freelance writer, coached high school football and baseball and was a sports official and assignor.

O'Neill attends City Council Meeting regularly, researches the issues and if elected will be a good listener to the concerns of the area residents as well as businesses. He has prepared budgets, set policy and done strategic planning.

His innovative approach, ideas and sensible solutions to the many challenges this city faces will be an asset on the City Council.

Following are some of the topics O’Neill considers priorities for the city and for his district.      

1. Keeping residents safe, at home, at businesses and on the road by: A) Keeping criminals accountable and mitigating property crimes with increased late night patrols and enforcing of ordinances. B) Improve advocacy and restitution for victims. C) Making sure the LCPD, receives the resources they need for best hiring practices, training, databases, and adequate pay to retain good officers. LCPD leadership and officers, must also be held accountable for their actions. D) Keep roads safe to mitigate accidents by addressing obstructions, faded or non-existent lane lines, stop lines and speed bump markings and of course dangerous potholes. Also, better engineering of lights at major thoroughfares and intersections. E) Keep residents, especially seniors, safe from phone, on-line and e-mail scams.
2. Ensuring businesses can thrive and survive.
3. Ensuring responsible growth, with adequate low and medium income housing, green spaces and plenty of activities, especially for our youth and seniors. Provide a workable plan for reducing blight in the community, including weed- and junk-infested lots and abandoned buildings.
4. Better addressing mental health issues, including addiction and the high degree of suicides in the community.
5. Providing a "Step up" process for the unhoused where treatment and counseling will be provided if needed, however, if provided housing or jobs, it comes with some responsibility by following tenant guidelines and curfews. It must be a cooperative effort to allow opportunities for recovery and/or integration back into society.