Untitled Document

Our agenda will be changed just a little because we need to start with mayor Anderson. Peter Corroon has been kind enough to organize this candidate’s night and he will be the MC.

We will pass out paper and pens to write questions for each candidate. We will ask each question to all the candidates. Judith Locke is helping out.

Mayor Anderson will speak for about 5 minutes or so.

Mayor Anderson: Great to be with you tonight. We were here not too long ago, but tonight is campaign night. We want to discuss issues that are on your mind. We have made tremendous progress these last 4 years. Have instigated a program “youth city”. We have fought in DC for funds to build up our infrastructure. We have remodeled the bldg at Liberty Park. Sorenson center was expanded. Are renovating Ottinger hall in memory grove. Work going on at Fairmont Park. We are partnering with U of U at Jordan Park. Truly going thru a renaissance of SLC –with the grand library, making that a wonderful town square. Have prevailed after a year and half and are generating housing in that area. Brings more open space to our downtown. Are seeing that now in groundbreaking the mini-square. Seeing affordable housing in SLC these last 4 years. Some of it is mixed with market housing. Where rancho bowling lanes were is a housing project by the city. Working to get UTA on 9th So. where there is a housing complex. We are also working on housing by the city center, North of 4th South. RDA has purchased property on East State Street for SRO units (120). Would be great for U of U housing and be great to get young people downtown. Could use light-rail. Tail-gaiting parties are happening downtown. Last week we had one. Last year alone we had 261 events at Gallivan Center. Thurs and Wed night events are most popular. Worked with Jerry Floor to start jazz festival. Would be free for 3 days to entire community. Lots of work but worth it. Musicians rave about this place. There is a lot of fault finding during an election year. Quality of life here –employment magazine ranked SLC is best of the West. Have most progressive environment programs-- are recognized nationally and internationally. Cleaning up the environment reverses trend toward global warming. Reduced greenhouse gas emissions by tons of carbon dioxide. Keep our eye on our goals. Have accomplished a tremendous amount.

Q: Are you concerned about impacts of increased recreation use on our water shed? Answer: Dept of public utilities have jurisdiction of what happens in watershed areas. We can help determine what goes on in those areas. We are protecting watersheds

If you had to do anything differently how would you support avenues in different or better way? One way, in which I worked very hard and was not successful, was closing Lowell elementary. School board’s analysis was inadequate. Board didn’t look at long waiting list for these schools. There was not a better school in SLC.

Rocky would never have sold that block of Main Street. Were dead wrong about consequences of that to traffic in neighborhood. Supports traffic calming.

Q: Discuss policy on guns in schools: opposed to guns in schools and churches. Answer: Should be able to regulate that. City should have authority to control gun control.

Q: What is position of FAA flights over Avenues? Answer: We vigorously oppose that. Was chaos in management of airport during 4 years before Mayor Anderson. Noise, quality of life, and safety considerations are issues. Attitudes are inconsistent with kinds of flight traffic we have had the last few years.

Q: Discuss Downtown Main street, Nordstrom, gateway, Main street plaza, 1st of all a lot of great things are happening. We face some unique challenges. New square footage of gateway created challenges for downtown. Light rail construction caused some closures of businesses. Have been filling empty spaces up. Grant program is helping to bring businesses into SLC. (He shared samples of businesses that have moved in downtown.) We are bringing good solid businesses into downtown SLC. Bike lanes developed from State and Main. Aiming to keep the same number of stalls on 2nd south. Need to do everything we can to see they stay in main street area. Wants to develop block of mall that will add interest in productivity to SLC. Next the Main street plaza topic: Explained his reasons for first proposal to define easement of main street. Less than perfect proposal but is the best possible proposal right now with this landswap which gives us 5 million dollars of leverage. Hope we can get this resolved. Years down the road people will wonder what was that all about.

Thank you to Mayor Anderson for coming.

A group working for city dept is doing a feasibility study and has asked if our council to give an affirming vote for a feasibility study to be done. This topic discussed at last month’s meeting. Motion we support the feasibility study. Seconded. Discussion. Who will pay for it? We will pay for it indirectly through taxes. Attempting to find grants but some will be taken by bonds etc. This is just for a feasibility study. All in favor please raise your hands. Those opposed—none. Just about unanimous in favor.

Back to the debate.

Frank Pignanelli glad to be here. This is old home week after representing avenues in the state legislature. No cause that was too small. Am here before you to tell you why I am running for mayor. Have 3 children. Wife Darcy Dixon is city manager of Murray. Last child is adopted and is married to a Muslim. Has twin boys. All named after ancestors. All get along with variety of members of family. Will offer a different way of doing things. Had some great fights about Salt Palace or keeping Courthouse of SLC. Need a change in management style. Am concerned about turnover in employees. SLC government was nurturing to employees but is a very much different situation in city hall—needs changed. Need to change the way decisions are made. Need to have a strategic plan. Need: Economic development, housing, transportation and opportunities for our children. Brings experience in business and legislature and role as private attorney. Bought computers for West High School. And helped low income and affordable housing. SLC has good bones. (to quote Palmer Depaulis) Needs ability to interact with rest of the state. Have the ability of working together to make SLC to be premier place to have business.

Maloni Hola moved here from Tonga when he was 6 years old. Moved to 4th north and 3rd west. In tonga, he saw one car. Was amazed when arrived here and saw so much. Went to Granite High, was a U of U football player, student body pres at U. Is a local businessman. Was not easy for Tongan Polynesian boy to overcome stereotypes. Why running for mayor. Has been planning this for 50 years. Would take this city in whole different direction. Has been able to find common touch. Vision of SLC is to be one no East side or West side—all equal. Create L plan from main on 4th So. to South Temple and down to gateway. And connect those to money generating entities. Now that we have gateway we have to work together to make it work. 12 years ago Denver had same problems. Got together and came up with 10 things to do. Heavy housing, to bring businesses in, let people see L plan and see city as one. Wants to bring east side and west side together. Beef up police program. Think we need a change of leadership style. Is a win-win guy, a deal saver.

Q: What can you do as mayor for avenues in particular? Pignanelli: traffic is a continual problem. Need thoroughfares in parts of city. Rehabilitate homes and make sure homeownership. Develop education and strong relationship between mayor and school board. Partner with schools.

Hola goal to work with police officers

Q: Discuss downtown main street, Nordstroms, plaza, touch on all those: Hola heard my L plan. Nordstroms, let’s do whatever we need to do. Would love to see them stay on main. Will find a place for them. Loves them. Need to move on past plaza.

Pignanelli – main street is better than it was 4 years ago. If main street has failed then what is not working in SLC – tangible symbol of concern as we go door to door. Has a 12 point plan. The key is people living on main street. Think of a trax line that would be a

regional draw. North end of main street needs to be business and financial district. 3rd and 4th S. corridor can succeed in restaurant/entertainment – Nordstroms are gone. Let them go to gateway but they would not take any businesses off main street. Get subsidies back. Plaza - no one has built in plan for on-going cost for Glendale center. How do we pay for it on an ongoing basis.

Q: Discuss FAA routing of flights over SLC – Pignanelli says FAA wants to spread carrier routes into airport to eliminate 2 air controller jobs. We will pay for that to keep things as they are.

Hola study shows that the capacity to gain more airlines and flights can still stay and not have any problems.

Q: Are you concerned about increased recreational use of mountains in water shed. Hola has no answer. Pignanelli says there is apparently a stack of conservation easements. City needs to be ready for environmental protection.

Discuss Gun control in schools and churches: Pignanelli had this debate in legislature but did not foresee what is happening? Need to do something about gun trade shows. Hola supports no guns in schools and churches.

Q: What is plan for old Hansen planetarium? Hola is supportive of fun places to do things. Pignanelli could see it turned into art museum. People will come to see art work and plays.

Q: How do you feel about the noise ordinance? Pignanelli supports cruising ordinance. Hola: Denver had a policy to flood city with housing and residents, and students moved downtown and they had issues. Denver found they had to have a policy for noise control.

Q: How do you feel about the Legacy highway: Hola would not have gotten involved in legacy highway lawsuit but would build it tomorrow if it were up to him. Pignanelli would not have gotten involved in lawsuit. Had a chance to make persuasive arguments but didn’t make use of the opportunity to bring people together.

Q: How to make life easier for walkers and joggers to destinations? FP doesn’t watch out for them. Teach those of us drivers to look out for bikers. Helps to unite city with trail opportunities. Put frank and rocky on bike and take picture and put on billboard and say don’t hit these guys. Declare day and have everybody ride bike to work. Increase advertising and say watch out for bikes.

Q: What about Water conservation – are people conserving, water rates going up. … Hola said city council passed rate hike and we need to keep advertising. It is important to conserve. Pignanelli said xeroscaping is great. Increasing that is one thing we can do. No easy answer to water conservation. Rates just have to go up. SLC needs to be committed to conserving water. People who have gone extra step should be considered heroes in community.

Q: What is attitude about building on foothills? No more of that was the answer from both candidates.

Q: What about further recycling of glass? Hola would need to study economical way of working with it. Pignanelli said his daughter has recycling day and we could do that with city hall and the school district

Q: Who are your Campaign contributors: Pignanelli has a broad spectrum—nobody from gateway. Log on to website and see his support people from across the city. No one has asked for commitment. Hola’s biggest contributor is his wife – also Fred Lampropolis, Jim Hansen, Nolan Karras, a few friends.

Youth programs – Hola wants to create best youth mentoring program. Is a result of best mentoring program. His Principal was great mentor. Every youth who needs a mentor should be able to have a mentor. Our Youth need mentors. Has a business plan that will be championed by mayor

Pignanelli shared concern about current youth programs. Boys and girls club is in existence. What we are doing as a city--we are competing with ourselves. He would go to these existing organizations and would work through them because they know how to do it best. Need to do a better job of pubic/private partnerships. Utilize existing institutions and have better collaborating with them

Q: Would you ban gifts from all city employees? Legislator had a lw had to register had very lax laws in city hall. Anyone needs to register with employees and legialture. So we all know what is going on and why people are there. Hola said no one should give gifts, lunches, food etc.

Q: How do you feel about the Patriot act? Holo supports current administration--supports it. Pignanelli doesn’t like some of it. Has concerns about encroachment of big brother.

How to improve fiscal policies of city? FP priorities olympic thing gave us a financial bump. City council has tried to be fiscally responsible. Hola concerned for all of us. Revenue base is decreasing and we have increasing costs. We will have a lot of problems here pretty soon. Need to ask what is worst case scenario? What do we need to cut? Revenues will not increase for 5 years. Revenue should be at 9% but is at 6%. Big concern.

Should city encourage more building when we have so many for rent signs downtown? Hola encourages more housing downtown. Should advertise to get students and residents to move downtown. Would favor a project or plan to move them there. Pignanelli said housing is a concern for next 5 years. The need is not for rent but for competitive housing so people will want to both own it and live in it. We can compete with West Jordan and Sandy etc. --need more occupied housing.

Q: Number of homeless has increased during last few months. What should be done about that? Pignanelli suggests single resident occupant dwellings--then more transitional housing. Hola said neighborhood housing authority has wonderful homes and will make them available to all-- will be a great help.

Q: What do you think about Liquor laws? Hola would not adjust liquor laws. Pignanelli After turning 21 you can get a drink in Utah. The band on 3rd and 4th South is good for entertainment & fine dining and makes a place we can do drinking there succcessfuly. Should develop an education process for our friends who don’t drink. Have an Entertainment region-place for tourists and others to visit.

Pignanelli wants to represent city in context of larger wasatch front. We have become an isolated entity. Everyday would meet with somebody to develop those relationships. Move state employees to main street & need strong relationships on west side Hola said SLC is not welcoming Davis county residents to come to city. Need a different leader with long-term vision and invite people to come back to capitol city. A lot of relationship building that needs to happen.

Q: What drives you to be mayor? Hola’s father instilled in him that although he was born in a hut he can make a difference. Has drive that he can make a difference. This city needs to go in a different direction. Loves the city. Doesn’t have political ties & is not beholding to anyone. Pignanelli was in the legislature for unusual reason. Established Martin Luther King holiday. May not win he will know King day was better than what was before. His children go to public school and secondly he grew up politically in profession. Nothing drives him more than wanting to correct stories of abuse in city hall. Place where employees are not treated well. Wants people at city hall to like their jobs.

Pignanelli: Wrap-up statement. Campaign is going great. This election will decide direction of SLC and the state of Utah. Vigorous debate ahead, loves avenues and looks forward to being your mayor. You are microcosm of how to make it work.

Hola closing statement: When said he would run, his father said no Polynesian has run for student body pres. Believes he can turn this city, particularly West side, into a better place. City is changing so much-- needs a leader that can bring this city together. Believe he is man to do it. That’s why he is running. Thank you for letting me come. Vote on Oct 7.

Thanks to Pignanelli and Hola for coming and wanting to help.

Committee reports:

South Temple Reconstruction – banners installed. More booths than we’ve ever had before. 23 food booths.

Gwen Springmeyer from Mayor’s office: loves her job. Farmers market includes artists crafts people, main street event is called mainly art on Fri night 4-10 pm Sat 1-10 2nd south on west side of street and any artist can bring art and exhibit and sell.

Legislative report – getting a new governor from Avenues.

Kathy Columbo wants to talk about community gardens. Moved here 1 year ago. Loves to garden. Had a garden club where she lived before. If you want to join a garden club come to the first meeting at 7 pm on Sept 17 at 756 Northcrest drive.

Remember street fair on new concrete downtown Sept 13.

Carrie Sanders will report next month but did want mentioned there has been a terrific increase in car prowls and thefts. Increase blew the staff away. Park off street.

Martin Backer of our community has been diagnosed with cancer. Please drop in and say hello.

Move to adjourn and seconded.

Adjourned 8:50