The Vanguard is going to be asking questions of the five council candidates.
It is our intention to fill in gaps in questions – that means instead of asking the same questions that come up in every forum, it is our intention of asking questions no one else is asking and hoping to fill in those gaps.
In so doing, we would like to solicit questions from our readership. However, there are rules and stipulations that come with this.
First, we make no guarantee your questions will be asked, this is feedback and input only.
Second, questions that are or imply personal attacks are out of bounds.
Third, questions about comparisons of past voting record to current statements are permissible.
Fourth, it may be that we ask the same question of every candidate. It may be that we ask a different question to every candidate.
Fifth, any post on here demanding a candidate answer a certain question will be removed.
I got a question. When a candidate has shown a history of voting for or being in favor of peripheral development and is now running on a platform of supposedly being totally or partially against it why are we now to believe them?
Another question would be how do the candidates stand on the plastic bag ban? Should we have a ban at all? Should we just ban the plastic bags and charge 10 cents for paper or still let the stores give out the paper for free if they so choose?
How do the candidates stand on the fireplace smoke issue?
We have a large and growing deficit with regard to road & sidewalk repairs and maintenance. How do you suggest we go about tackling this problem? Should we consider a new tax dedicated to repairing this infrastructure?
What are your thoughts on the following youth/ adolescent/ student related issues:
1) The internal possession proposal
2) The student proposal for changes in party regulation ( as in advance notice and noise level, not political party)
3) The possibility for developing a more integrated and proactive approach with the university to issues surrounding joint concerns including
student protest, student safety at public events, student participation in policy decisions …..
Do you support continuing with the JPA in developing surface water supply with Woodland?
How do you feel about commissions? Their roles in governance; should we consolidate them or expand them? Do you know anything about how much they are costing the city? How can the city cut the costs of commissions without eliminating commissions, or is this even possible? How do you feel about a youth commission; transportation commission? Are there any commissions you would like to see created?
How do you feel about city processes? Where are the hiccups, and how would you address them? To what extent does city staff control city processes, and would you like to see that power balance changed? How would you make changes to improve city processes and the power balance?
What is your position on the issue of the surface water project? Do you believe surface water is necessary? If not, how would you address water issues? If yes, how do we move forward for the future in light of a troubled economy?
How would you address our city budget problems, in light of the need for massive layoffs, which will have a detrimental effect on our city services, as well as impact those laid off, who are likely to find it difficult to find work?
Should the city weigh in on state or national issues that do not directly effect the city, in light of heavy workloads on local issues. Why or why not?
How could the City Council improve its time management skills, to avoid various problems such as late night meetings into the wee hours, staff reports at the dais, etc.?
What are your views on economic development? Do we need economic development, and if so, what type? How do we go about luring business to our community, if you believe we need it? Where should it go? What part of the Cannery should be business park and why?
How do you feel about citizen advisory committees? Do you think they are helpful? Why or why not? Should we have more of them?
Should more money be set aside from the arts funding for historical preservation of buildings?
The proportion of students who commute by bicycle in Davis has dropped substantially in recent years.
o Do you think it is important to recapture the historical student bicyling proportions?
o Would you be in favor of metering the whole parking lot between Veterans Memorial Auditorium and Davis High School, with validation for visitors to the Vets Center and students with disability needs?
o What specifically would you do to make the bicycle a more viable transportation mode for everyone, and increase the fraction of bike trips to school and work?
What would you do to address the following issues facing the Davis Downtown area that compromise its sustainability and vibrancy:
o Awkwardness of transportation connections to and from campus cultural resources, particularly Mondavi Center events, Aggie games, etc.
o Making available sufficient parking in quantified terms (hours/spaces/fees/locations) to promote longer, heavier use of Downtown before and after the close of daylight business hours.
Many people say that the future success of the City of Davis is closely related to forging a Win-Win relationship with UC Davis.
o What do you see as the ideal City/UC Davis relationship going forward?
o What specific steps have you taken in recent years to to achieve that ideal relationship?
o Given Mrs. Katehi’s goal of adding 5,000 students to the UCD enrollment, what vested interest in providing rental housing in Davis for some proportion of the additional students?
If Tiger Woods is out of it, do you still watch the last couple of hours of the Masters?
Mrs. Katehi??
[quote]I got a question. When a candidate has shown a history of voting for or being in favor of peripheral development and is now running on a platform of supposedly being totally or partially against it why are we now to believe them?[/quote]
Corollary: If a candidate has close ties to someone who has supported peripheral development in the past (e.g., Brett Lee and Bill Ritter or Lucas Frerichs and Don Saylor) why should we believe they are against peripheral development?
Should the Davis City Council pass resolutions on foreign policy issues, such as the US presence in Afghanistan, Guantanamo Bay, etc. ?
rusty49 said . . .
[i]”I got a question. When a candidate has shown a history of voting for or being in favor of peripheral development and is now running on a platform of supposedly being totally or partially against it why are we now to believe them?”[/i]
Interesting question rusty, do you propose it be asked of all five candidates?
[quote][/quote]Corollary: If a candidate has close ties to someone who has supported peripheral development in the past (e.g., Brett Lee and Bill Ritter or Lucas Frerichs and Don Saylor) why should we believe they are against peripheral development?
Just because a person is a supporter of a candidate doesn’t mean that the candidate and the supporter are in total agreement on issues.
I personally worked with Brett Lee on the No on X campaign and I know he was opposed to the Covell Village proposal – as was I. On the other hand, I was a supporter of Measure P (Wildhorse Ranch) but Brett was opposed. I think a better question would be to ask him how he feels about The Cannery (another peripheral development). And ask the other 4 candidates the same question.
“I think a better question would be to ask him how he feels about The Cannery (another peripheral development). And ask the other 4 candidates the same question.”
The Cannery doesn’t fall under Measure R jurisdiction. It’s going to get built one way or another, the only issue is whether it’s going to consist of more housing or business. To me peripheral development would be projects that would be subject to a Measure R vote.
“Do you favor rezoning the old cannery site for residential development?”
“If you favor rezoning the old cannery site, what percentage mix of residential and business zoning would you support?”
“Do you favor the ConAgra project presently before the council?”
“Do you support or oppose the parking/retail structure that was proposed?”
Great questions here. I agree that a question about parking downtown is in order but I favor Matt Williams’ approach more than Don Shor’s “yes/no” question about the recent proposed project. To me the issue is broader than that project though discussion should include it.
By the way, Davis Bicycles! and the Davis Bike Collective (formerly the Bike Church) are sponsoring a candidates’ forum on Monday, May 7th from 7-9 pm at Bike 4th (near the corner of 4th and L Streets). While it is sponsored by two bicycle-focused organizations it will be a broader “transportation” forum. The format will allow for public questions. We are sending out (today perhaps) a set of 5 questions to the candidates about transportation issues–one of which concerns parking in the downtown. David, would the Vanguard be interested in posting the questions and candidate responses once we get them? We will be posting responses to these questions on our organizations’ websites.
(Note to Matt Williams: we have never met but I hope we can do so soon. I appreciate both your questions and the issues you are raising in them. I would value a chance to meet and talk about them. If you want, contact me at robbbike@me.com)
The council recently voted to give members of the council a 50% pay raise. At the same time, the council voted to give members of the council a new $500/month deferred compensation/retirement contribution benefit if they have other coverage and therefore opt out of the city’s benefits program.
This occurred in the context of the current significant budget crisis and during contract negotiations with employee unions where all indications are that due to the unstable state of the city’s budget, the city is asking for concessions from its employees.
For current members of the council, please explain the rationale for your votes on these issues. For those not on the current council, please explain how you would have voted on these issues and why.
Excellent question.