{"id":12339,"date":"2026-09-25T19:07:48","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T19:07:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/candidates\/joshua-parks\/"},"modified":"2026-09-25T19:07:48","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T19:07:48","slug":"joshua-parks","status":"publish","type":"candidate","link":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/candidates\/joshua-parks\/","title":{"rendered":"Joshua Parks"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-e44e021b wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-h-4-font-size\">Previous Offices Held<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-left is-style-short-red\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Currently serving first three-year term as Ward 2 city councilor. Unsuccessfully sought Saco School Board seat in 2020.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-e44e021b wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-h-4-font-size\">Top Three Priorities<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-left is-style-short-red\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My three priorities would be: 1. to continue fighting for the best interests of my ward with every matter before the council, 2. to continue the work I\u2019ve already started with cutting the budget so Saco citizens don\u2019t feel priced out of their community and 3. protecting Saco from the increasing threat of data centers that have already plagued other communities across the country.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-e44e021b wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-h-4-font-size\">Why are you running?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-left is-style-short-red\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Ever since my daughter was born, I\u2019ve been asking myself what kind of city I\u2019ll leave behind for her \u2014 not just from a policy perspective on council, but also more broadly. I\u2019m running because I want to make sure my daughter has a city she can be proud of. And that comes with thoughtful, insightful and proven leadership.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-e44e021b wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-h-4-font-size\">What is the biggest challenge facing your town\/county? The biggest opportunity?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-left is-style-short-red\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One of the biggest challenges plaguing Saco is the perception that we\u2019re not business-friendly. One thing I&#039;ve learned on council is that with challenge comes opportunity. I believe if given the privilege to serve another term with this council and administration, the next three years will bring the opportunity to turn that perception on its head. I&#039;d also be remiss to highlight the new schools and the opportunity they will bring as well.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-e44e021b wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-h-4-font-size\">If you could change one thing about how the town\/county functions, what would it be and why?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-left is-style-short-red\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One thing that I want to see change \u2014 and I\u2019ve spent 3 years actively working on it \u2014 is cutting items from the budget. We have a tax base that feels completely overburdened, and I find that unacceptable. So, every budget season, I look for anything that can be cut, and I will continue to do so if reelected.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-e44e021b wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-h-4-font-size\">Do you support more development \u2013 i.e. more housing construction and business building in your town\/county? Why or why not?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-left is-style-short-red\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I support smart, strategic and calculated development. I don\u2019t support development for development\u2019s sake.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":7175,"template":"","meta":{"voter_guide_candidate_first_name":"Joshua","voter_guide_candidate_middle_name":"David","voter_guide_candidate_last_name":"Parks","voter_guide_candidate_suffix":"","voter_guide_candidate_race_id":12337,"voter_guide_candidate_age":33,"voter_guide_candidate_hometown":"","voter_guide_candidate_occupation":"Produce associate at Hannaford","voter_guide_candidate_bio":"Husband and father. Dedicated public servant with a proven track record of results from my time as a statewide advocate for disabled residents during my two terms as president of the SMCC Student Senate.","voter_guide_candidate_education":"Studied political science and human services at Southern Maine Community College","voter_guide_candidate_years_in_municipality":"","voter_guide_candidate_headshot_url":"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/open?id=1JBOxm7DBXAhWc3GFVgEjppo8gTzJFho5","voter_guide_candidate_date_filed":"","footnotes":""},"vg_party":[466],"vg_residence_municipality":[],"class_list":["post-12339","candidate","type-candidate","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","vg_party-independent"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates\/12339","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/candidate"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates\/12339\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12340,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates\/12339\/revisions\/12340"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7175"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12339"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"vg_party","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vg_party?post=12339"},{"taxonomy":"vg_residence_municipality","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vg_residence_municipality?post=12339"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}