FeedsNoricks seeks to expand commitment to Canton
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Joan NoricksJoan Noricks said she wants to kick it up a notch.
The long-time Canton resident is running for township treasurer as a way to expand her community service, she said, and further develop her commitment to her hometown.
“Being involved in the community is about the best thing you can do,” said Noricks, who will face township Trustee Melissa McLaughlin in the Aug. 5 primary. “It is what I am. I really view it as an extension of my previous experience.”
Noricks has lived in the township for 28 years. She has been active in numerous community groups—from the schools to churches and charitable organizations. She is currently on unpaid leave from her position as head of the Canton Community Foundation. She took over as president of the 501©3 in 1994, when it had assets of only $1,500. Last year, the foundation met the national standards for community foundations and boasted assets of more than $1.8 million. She said it has given back more than $2 million through the years, including nearly $500,000 in scholarships to students.
“I feel like I have a unique skill set and the community at heart,” she said.
She said she would focus on budgetary issues, making township policies more friendly to small business owners if she’s elected.
With the budget, she said the township has to be careful with expenditures in the light of an economy that is bringing in reduced revenue to township coffers.
Canton is still seeing a lot of commercial development, she added, but that may not always be the case.
“We’re going to have to look at what is essential and what is expendable,” she said. “We have to look like we’re tightening the belt as much as the residents in the community.”
Among the issues she’s heard while campaigning are complaints that township zoning ordinances may hinder expansion from small businesses.
“It’s just not friendly,” she said of the process and added that she talked to some small business owners who chose not to expand because they were afraid things like brick color would be dictated to them. “I know zoning regulations are important, but there has to be a balance.”
She said her background—she has a degree in business management to go along with her experience with the foundation—makes her well-suited to the role, as well. She was heavily involved in the financial aspects of the foundation and steered it through 14 successful audits. The added requirements of working with donations means she’s well suited to being responsible with taxpayer money, she said.
Other aspects of non-profit work would translate well, too, she said.
“I’ve worked with every sector of the community,” Noricks said. “When you’re in the non-profit sector, your strength is in pulling people together. I bring that skill to government. We have to partner with all sectors of the community.”
