Candidates for mayor, City Council speak at forum
Posted: 8/29/02
by Erin Johnson
Staff Writer
Twelve Eagan candidates spoke at a forum conducted by the League of Women Voters Wednesday to get their message out before the Sept. 10 primaries.
The two mayoral candidates and four City Council candidates with the most votes will be placed on the ballot for the Nov. 5 election.
Four candidates have filed for mayor and eight have filed for two open seats on the City Council. Mayoral candidates include Elaine Eyre, Pat Geagan, Gary Huusko and Kenneth West Jr. Candidates for City Council include Duey Bendt, incumbent Peggy Carlson, Margo Danner, Rob Kane, Alice Kreitz, Mike Maguire, Ron Miller and Greg Wilken.
Candidates made opening and closing statements and answered audience questions about light rail, open spaces, accountability and affordable housing.
Mayoral candidates
Eyre, an affordable housing advocate and former MICAH board member, said she has maintained a strong commitment to the community through her work with such groups as the PTA, Cub Scouts and the American Cancer Society.
ìMy community involvement has revolved around my desire to be a good parent, a good neighbor and a responsible community member,î she said. ìMy main reason for running for mayor is to make the political process in Eagan more democratic.î
Eyre said that in issues such as the Copeland proposal, the golf course at Patrick Eagan Park, the effort to widen Dodd Road, the Cedar Grove redevelopment area and affordable housing, the citizens of Eagan have been prevented from participating in decision and policy making.
She said she is in favor of light rail because Eagan is a part of the metro area and traffic is a problem.
ìTraffic is only going to get worse,î she said. ìI donít believe in building wider roads or adding more roads. I donít believe thatís the solution. Iím open to the different types of modes of transportation.î
She also supports the countyís open spaces referendum, she said.
ìI believe itís important that we not build up all the land thatís there. I think we need to preserve open space for our generation as well as future generations,î she said.
Accountability is one of the things that prompted her to enter the race for mayor, Eyre said.
ìOne of the main reasons Iím running is for a more democratic political process,î she said. ìItís something that our city unfortunately has not had for quite a while. We need to be accountable. People need to trust us.î
Eagan has not done enough to address the affordable housing need, she said.
ìOne of the issues Iím running on is a strong, vibrant business community,î she said. ìLarger businesses, they need workers. They have issues with transportation and affordable housing.î
Geagan said his experience as chief of police for Eagan together with his leadership on a host of charity and civic organization has given him the management experience and skills to lead in the coming years.
ìI have experience with big picture thinking and considering the broader impact of decisions made today on the citizens of tomorrow,î he said. ìI have experience managing through crisis, whether it is a community organization dealing with mergers and a lack of funding or the immediate challenge of a natural disaster. I feel like I am part of Eagan and Eagan is part of me.î
The biggest issues facing Eagan are taxation and financial management, transportation gridlock and the new airport runway scheduled for 2005, he said.
He said he has concerns about light rail because he doesnít believe it will have a significant impact on traffic moving through the community.
ìBuses are more flexible, and I think there could be more done with bus service at a cheaper cost than light rail,î he said.
He said he has concerns about how much of the open spaces referendum money would come back to Eagan.
ìWe have a number of fine parks in the community right now,î he said.
Geagan said he is personally very accessible and easy to contact if people want to get a hold of him.
ìMy telephone number has been in the book for 30 years,î he said. ìI think thatís what we should all be after. If we communicate with the community, we should not have that issue.î
He said the city has to be very careful about how it addresses the affordable housing issue. When he first moved to Eagan it was because he couldnít afford to live in Minneapolis where he worked, he said.
ìItís a tough issue to deal with, especially considering weíve just been served a lawsuit,î he said. ìSo whoever up here is elected is quite likely going to be one of the people dealing with this lawsuit.î
Huusko, a patent attorney and chair of the Eagan Advisory Planning Commission, said he has experience and is an effective leader in the community. He is the current president of Eagan Foundation, a volunteer coach for the Eagan Athletic Association, a volunteer parent at Woodland Elementary and is active in the Northern Dakota County Chamber of Commerce.
ìMy priorities as mayor are to ensure open communication between the mayor, City Council, citizens and businesses of Eagan, to keep property taxes low, to broaden the tax base and carefully scrutinize city expenditures,î he said, ìand to develop Eaganís remaining limited land resources and redevelop those areas that are in need of redevelopment.î
Light rail, he said, is a very expensive alternative.
ìThe Legislature ought to be looking at other ways to spend our money to move people around,î he said. ìThat being said, light rail is a reality. ... There are rumblings that it could be extended to the zoo, and if thatís the case, the city of Eagan would be foolish not to have a transit hub or a transit station.î
Huusko said he is not a proponent of raising taxes for anything, including preserving open spaces on a county-wide basis.
ìMaybe the tax money raised by the people in Eagan would be going to save the farmland or the green spaces in other cities, so just on that basis I would be against it,î he said. ìEagan has done a very good job of preserving green space and adding parks.î
Accountability is a serious issue with the current mayor and City Council, he said.
ìOne of the things that I would do is be responsive to anybody who wants to talk to me,î he said. ìYou can stop me anytime you want to talk to me. Iím very open.î
Historically, Huusko said, he thinks the city has done a pretty good job at providing housing opportunities.
ìEagan has a pretty good mix of housing opportunities for its residents,î he said.
West said Eagan is an attractive city with a lot of wonderful parks.
ìI plan on taking care of parks, make sure park equipment is safe for kids to play on, and I plan on keeping parks clean and up to date,î he said. ìI plan on keeping the city open. Anybody is welcome to live in this city, but they have to pay taxes just like the rest of us.î
The city does a good job with crime, he said, and he plans on staying the course.
He also said heís not a proponent of light rail.
ìI believe in bus service. Itís cheaper for ridership and the routes are flexible,î he said.
West said he would not want to see the county raise taxes to preserve open spaces.
ìI believe the tax burden on citizens is already high enough,î he said.
He said he likes the word integrity better than accountability.
ìIf you donít like what I stand for, please donít vote for me. My yes means yes; my no means no,î he said.
Affordable housing is a political tool used to drive a wedge between citizens, he said.
ìIíve talked to a lot of citizens. Itís really not on their radar screens,î he said.
City Council
candidates
Bendt said he grew up on a farm and learned a lot about logistics, which is something thatís going to come up in the next three or four years.
ìWe know that weíre going to see revenue shortfalls in the next four years. We know weíre going to need a lot of decision making,î he said.
He has management experience from his almost 40 years at Lockheed Martin, he said.
ìI really think itís vital to have that kind of experience in the next four years here in Eagan,î he said. ìWe've had the good times, and I think the next four years are going to be a little bit different.î
Light rail is a neat alternative, he said, but we wonít see people waiting in line for that train.
ìWe need more lanes of highway in Minnesota,î he said.
Bendt said green space is not going to be the cityís biggest issue in the next four years.
ìWeíre going to be worried about basic services, in my humble opinion,î he said. ìThose are the kinds of issues weíre going to make decisions on.î
Bendt said that putting together the Shelter Corporation project, which included some affordable units, was fairly painless and more of that needs to be done.
ìThereís a lot of information available on the subject and we need to take a look at it, because Iím not proud of someone filing suit with my city,î he said.
Carlson, a current City Council member, said her passion, besides serving on the City Council, is volunteering in the community through civic groups and youth athletics.
ìMy goals will be low taxes, redevelopment, thoughtfully, and enhancing our communication efforts,î she said.
Carlson, whose background is in incentive marketing, said communication enhancement has been a two-year process for the council.
ìI would like to serve four more years to make sure that that vision stays on track,î she said.
Carlson said she agrees we need more roads, but since light rail has already been approved by the Legislature, to fight it would be counterproductive.
ìNow that itís been approved, we have to ensure that it is effective and it works,î she said.
She said everyone enjoys green space, and itís good the issue is going before voters to decide whether they want this.
ìI have problems with the levy in general, because if it does pass, there are no guarantees that Eagan will see any benefit from it,î she said.
She said her phone rings four or five times a day from constituents, and she really enjoys that part of the job.
ìAccountability has to do with where your taxes are at and where your services are at and what your quality of life is,î she said. ìIíve always been wide open.î
The city of Eagan should not become a housing developer, she said.
ìYou have to be fair and unbiased when plats come before you. We have met all the requirements of the Livable Communities Act,î she said. ìThe problem is, we have such a desirable community, everybody wants to live here, and you can reap the benefit when you sell your house. Government officials shouldnít tell people what they can sell their house for.î
Danner, a member of the Eagan Parks Commission, said volunteer work is important to her, too. She has volunteered at schools and church, acted as an advocate for senior citizens, served as an election judge and a member of the golf course task force.
ìI want to keep Eagan the best place to live and financially stable, the way it is now,î she said. ìI will not spend taxpayer money on a whim. I would improve the communication between staff, the council, the citizens, the commissions and all the community. As a council member I would re-evaluate our policies, procedures and processes.î
She said her concern with light rail is the cost.
ìWe are a city of cars,î she said. ìBuses around Eagan would be a better way to spend our money.î
She said it should be up to Eagan to preserve the last green spaces the city has, such as the McCarthy and Caponi properties.
ìWe should preserve a lot of that land, and hopefully not with taxes. We should look for some options,î she said.
Danner said that accountability is very important, and to ignore the public is not the way to go about being a council member.
ìI will always answer questions as best I can,î she said. ìWe need to be better at notifying people about projects; the council needs to respond.î
Affordable housing hasnít really been defined in Eagan, she said, but the city has a lot of multiple housing.
ìEagan is a prime location right now. Prices are high to build here,î she said. ìI have no problem with low-income housing if people need help, but we do need to be able to control the element of people that are in the subsidized housing. We donít want to get back to a project like Wescott Square where we have a police substation.î
Kane, a member of the Eagan Charter Commission, is attending law school at Hamline University and works with the Dakota County Attorneyís Office.
ìI wish to serve the city of Eagan to promote the sense of community that was instilled in me over the past 25 years since Iíve lived here,î he said.
He said he supports light rail in general, but right now it might be too expensive.
He also said he supports the Dakota County referendum to preserve open spaces.
ìI lived in Los Angeles for a short time ... and one of the reasons I enjoy Eagan is the green space,î he said. ìI donít want to see Eagan turn into a Los Angeles, with strip mall after strip mall after strip mall.î
Kane said technology, such as the Internet or e-mail, could be used to keep the council more accountable and get citizens involved.
ìYou do more than the minimum standards when youíre going through any process, whether taxation or assessments,î he said.
He said a lot of his friends were unable to afford to live in Eagan after college, and affordable housing would encourage people to move to and stay in Eagan.
ìI do support affordable housing. As far as low-income housing, Iím afraid I donít have enough information on that right now,î he said.
Kreitz, a member of the Minnesota Taxpayers League, said she has served on the Airports Commission and was a City Council member in Arlington, Texas.
ìMy signs say it all: ëAlice Kreitz for lower taxes,í î she said. ìThatís what I stand for. Thatís the reason Iím running.î
Light rail is the ìbiggest boondoggleî that ever came to Minnesota, she said.
ìEvery single person that gets on that light rail is subsidized by our tax money to the tune of five to six times what they pay when they get on,î she said. ìMore buses, wider highways. Weíve got to keep our cars moving.î
Kreitz said people will have the opportunity to vote on the open spaces referendum, but the countyís efforts in many areas have been far too liberal, and citizens should know who their commissioner is and how to contact him/her.
She said communication is important for the city, and to be more accountable there should be a mass e-mail system for those who are interested.
ìI do think itís important that we talk to our neighbors and come to city council meetings,î she said. ìIf you get involved, it does make you more aware of whatís going on.î
Kreitz said the affordable housing lawsuit against the city is politically motivated and will be dropped.
ìThe Met Council has crossed over the line in more than one case, and I just donít feel warm and fuzzy about the Met Council,î she said. ìI have several friends who live in $300,000 homes in Eagan and theyíre blue collar workers.î
Maguire said he has concerns about whether the City Council represents all neighborhoods.
ìAs Iíve been out talking to people in Eagan, Iíve been hearing that people really want to see a change in the City Council,î he said. ìAnd they want to see a council that represents Eaganís neighborhoods, that responds to Eaganís citizens and that manages Eaganís resources responsibly. And those are things I want to do as a City Council member.î
He said he supports light rail because our roads are congested, have been that way for 10 years and theyíre not going to get any better.
ìWe canít build our way out of this. One of the benefits of light rail people underestimate is the economic development potential,î he said. ìI think weíve got to look at ways to bring light rail in and to integrate it into a transit system that is part of the metro area. If light rail is convenient, people will use it.î
Maguire said he needs to learn more about the open spaces proposal, but he has heard the concerns of citizens regarding the cityís rapid growth.
ìPeople are amazed at how much Eagan has grown over the last 10 years and worry about how much it might grow over the next 10 years,î he said. ìWe are 90 to 95 percent built up. We need to protect the land and resources we have.î
Accountability of the council is particularly important at this time, he said, so he would propose either broadcasting the listening sessions on cable or moving the visitors to be heard section of the agenda back to the beginning of council meetings.
ìRight now, if you want to talk to the City Council and you want to hold them accountable, youíve got to be up until almost 12 at night to do it. I think that is just terrible,î he said. ìOur City Council hides from the citizens so it isnít accountable, and thatís exactly what I would not do.î
Affordable housing is not an easy problem, he said, because a lot of people think affordable housing is synonymous with low-income housing.
ìWhen I look at affordable housing, I look at whether or not there are reasonably priced homes or reasonable rents for people who make a reasonable income,î he said. ìAs a city, weíre outpricing our work force. A City Council can make Eagan more attractive to developers who do have an interest in affordable housing.î
Miller, who owns a small insurance business, said he wouldnít allow splits in the City Council like those that have occurred in the past because he would focus on improved communication.
ìWhen we have people standing 50 deep out in the hall complaining about an issue, obviously there are things that havenít been explained properly. I would bring to the City Council the knowledge of how to work with people, I work with businesses and I work with their employees, and how to communicate with people.î
He said he doesnít support light rail because of the cost factor and because he doesnít believe people will use it, especially in Eagan.
ìWeíd be better off improving our roads,î he said.
He said he is concerned with the cost involved in buying additional green space.
ìEagan does have a lot of parks, and I support keeping those parks and keeping the green spaces we have,î he said.
Accountability is very important, as is communication, he said.
ìPeople need to be able to come forth to the City Council and be heard,î he said. ìWe need to make sure people have an opportunity to speak before these decisions are made.î
Affordable housing means different things to different people, he said. But the city shouldnít get involved in telling property owners what they should build on their property, he said.
ìAs far as affordable housing is concerned, thatís market driven. We have a city that everybody wants to live in. We canít take from one and give to the other,î he said. ìWe have a constitution in this country and that has to be abided by.î
Wilken, an attorney, said he has three priorities if heís elected: to support the Eagan business community, to streamline city government and to strengthen Eaganís families.
ìI believe I have the best experience, the best qualifications and the strongest commitment to the city of Eagan,î he said.
Light rail is an issue being debated at the Legislature; the council should focus attention on transportation issues in Eagan, he said.
ìI donít see that light rail is going to solve that problem,î he said.
Wilken said he is not a big fan of raising taxes, but if the citizens want to support the open spaces plan, the council should listen.
ìIf it came before the council, I would advocate not raising taxes. But if thatís what the people want, then itís our obligation to do that,î he said.
Accountability is one of the most important values a council member can have, he said.
ìAt this level of government, thereís no more important value that you could have,î he said.
The affordable housing issue is best left to the free market, Wilken said.
ìI think to the extent that the City Council can help provide the economic climate for companies to come to Eagan and for employees to live close to where they work in Eagan, thatís a good thing,î he said.
Erin Johnson is at eagan.thisweek@ecm-inc.com.
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