I’ll be upfront and say I’m not a member of Progress for Columbia. I know specifically of a few people associated with the group and do trade emails back and forth with them. I have asked when their meetings are so I could attend and asked who the members are so I could get an idea of what they are about; both questions netted no answer in return. On the other side of things I have traded emails on occasion with the incumbent aldermen. I’ll discuss issues with just about anyone.
Where were all of the candidates? The incumbents were never formally invited? What!? I know for a fact that this is not true, they were formally invited on March 18th, a bit late in my opinion, and I let two of them know on March 10th a day after I was made aware of the forum. So for whatever reason Candace, Brad, and Fred had for not coming to the forum I can say that honestly they didn’t miss much.
If you took the time to watch the videos below that I have posted of the candidate forum you’ll quickly realize that while there wasn’t a wide spread smear campaign against the current aldermen there wasn’t really anything said that hasn’t been mentioned by candidates before.
The candidates who came to the forum believe that controlled commercial growth should accompany the residential growth of Columbia. They believe in having a well qualified city staff and that the utility tax should not be eliminated without a new funding source to take its place. They believe that their professional experience makes them qualified candidates. Some believe their life-long connection with Columbia make them a better candidate.
I’m not sure how much more general a question and answer session could have been. I think that these four candidates will work well with the other four aldermen who are not up for re-election this year. They share the same views and have a distinct belief that the incumbents they are opposing are holding things up in some way.
That sums up what I got out of the forum on Tuesday. I sent out the following questions to the candidates. I’ll post their answers to this website if the candidates reply. Hopefully they can get answers back to me over the weekend and people can have a few days next week to look them over. If the candidates would like to point people to this site to not only reference their reply but also their opponents that is welcomed.
1. What is the extent of your education?
2. How long have you lived in Columbia? If not a lifelong Columbia resident where did you grow up and where did you live right before you moved to Columbia?
3. Do you feel that the length of time you or your family has lived in Columbia makes you a better candidate than someone else? Why is this continually an election talking point? Many residents of Columbia, my family included, do not have deep rooted family trees in Columbia, is their opinion worth less to you when compared to others who have lived here for generations?
4. What is your occupation? How will it affect your serving on the city council?
5. Does your occupation make you a good candidate to serve as chairmen of any present city council committees?
6. How have you gathered your information regarding issues facing the city?
7. How many city council meetings have you attended in the last year? Two years?
8. If you support commercial growth in Columbia what specifically will you do to make that a reality? What types of commercial entities do you feel Columbia needs the most?
9. Does commercial growth belong in the bottoms in light of the current issue facing the certification of the levy? If the levy issue is resolved do the bottoms become a good place for development? Why or why not?
10. Alderman Stumpf has proposed the idea of having an economic development committee in order to field questions, comments, and ideas regarding any economic development opportunities that may present themselves to the city a number of times over the last year. Would you support this idea? Why or why not?
11. What types of incentives if any do you support to attract development to Columbia? Get specific, developers will know what they want.
12. Do you support the annual 4.99% increase in Columbia’s tax levy? Is this an “ethical” practice to the community and its residents?
13. Should the city vehicle sticker tax be re-instated? Why or why not?
14. Should city departments be allowed to carry their budgeted balances over yearly, rather than the end of year balance rolling back to the general fund? Why or why not?
15. Do you support the fire department merging with the rural fire district? How will the merger improve the department for city and rural residents? Does it benefit the city?
16. Will you vote for aldermen to receive a pay increase again in the next election cycle in light of the budget issues we face as a city?
17. Are there any pressing issues facing Columbia in regards to infrastructure you feel should be immediately addressed, other than the road by McDonalds leading past Firestone on the way to the Post Office?
18. Do you feel my questions are biased towards any one line of thinking or candidate in particular?
For Challenging Candidates
1. What compels you to run for city office? Do you have higher ambitions in politics?
2. Have you met with other candidates or community groups to discuss issues and the upcoming election? If so which ones?
3. Were you brought up to speed regarding city issues by any certain people?
4. Are you a “member” of Progress for Columbia? Did PFC or any of its members assist you in your candidacy in any way?
5. Have you ever met with or discussed issues facing the city with your aldermen? Specifically the one you may be running against? If not, why? If yes, did you find that conversation satisfactory?
For Incumbent Candidates
1. Name one thing you specifically “took the reins on” as a city council member.
2. What drives you to continue as a member of the city council?
3. Why do you deserve to be given a second chance at facing the challenges of the city given that the city continues to have budget concerns and that commercial growth seems to have become stagnant over the course of your term as aldermen?
4. Do you find my presence at most council meetings an issue?
5. What action or actions if any as an aldermen do you regret and how would you handle things differently in that situation given hindsight?
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