Tara CDD — Seat 4: Valentina Hawks

Age: 46

Occupation: Civil engineer, cosmetologist, office manager, and financial coordinator

Hometown: Kalamazoo, Mich.

About: Hawks and her husband, Alex, moved to Tara Preserve in September, 2015 from Kalamazoo, Mich., where she worked for skin care production company. Hawks holds a master of science degree in civil engineering. In the past, she worked as an architect for five years, then, for three years as a manager at the Department of Production Engineering.

Why are you running for office?

During all of my professional life, I have worked with people and for people, having held a number of occupations and gained extensive knowledge and experience in all of them. Therefore, I believe that I will be a perfect fit for my community.

What experiences do you have that make you believe you are the right candidate for the job?

When I worked as an architect, I created residential and industrial designs.

When worked as a manager at the Department of Production Engineering, I managed 15 property management companies to ensure 170,000 residents received heating, water, gas, roof maintenance, elevator service, and trash service. When worked as an office manager and financial coordinator, I was partnering with businesses from over 15 States, Canada, Hawaii and Australia. I believe this experience would be extremely helpful when performing CDD office responsibilities.

What do you see as the biggest challenge the district faces and how do you plan address it?

The current challenge that Tara community faces lies within the lack of continuous communication between the office and the residents. The board and the community need to shorten the distance between each other and solve problems together. During the past few weeks, I was able to reach more than 300 Tara residents and was able to get their feedback on current issues that concern them. My goal is to create a network where residents and the office can have a continuous string of communication — a place where the residents can bring up current issues, challenges and concerns that the community faces.

Community aesthetics continue to be a concern for residents. What changes to the district’s policies, if any, do you think should be made to improve community aesthetics?

The most voiced concerns of the residents that have been expressed is the poor condition of the ponds and tree maintenance. As far as the ponds, I want to change our approach in solving this problem by doing a thorough analysis of them, followed by research of the results. We need to think outside the box, and maybe even look to our fellow communities for an answer that worked for them to find a long lasting cure. As far as tree maintenance, the CDD needs to know the current state of the situation and pay more attention to proper care of trees.

Do you foresee any changes to the amenities offered to Tara Preserve residents via the CDD? If so, what should they be?

The biggest concern of the residents, as far as the amenities go, is the area around the pool, as well as the area near the club house. This year, the pool area at the Tara Preserve was renovated. However, the project wasn’t finished. I want to ensure that the renovation is complete, finish landscaping, clean up the weeds around the pool area and the club house and make certain of frequent maintenance.

What do you believe should be other top priorities and why?

One of our primary concerns should be fighting against the Tara bridge initiative. Most of Tara’s residents agree that the Tara bridge project  — diverting main road traffic through neighborhood streets — is the wrong approach for a transportation plan. Building the bridge will disrupt the surrounding wetlands and its’ wildlife during the construction, and thereafter with oil and gas runoff from the road. We need to support The Citizens Against Tara Bridge, and unite together to oppose this project.