[0:28] e [0:58] e [1:28] e [1:58] e [2:28] e [2:58] e [3:28] e [3:58] e [4:28] e [4:58] e [5:28] e [5:58] e [6:28] e [6:58] e [7:28] e e [8:06] good evening my name is Rebecca Hawthorne and I am president of the League of Women Voters of the wetta [8:11] Plymouth area I'd like to welcome our candidates our audience and our viewers [8:18] on behalf of the League of Women Voters wetta Plymouth area the League of Women Voters is a 104 yearold volunteer [8:27] nonpartisan organization that encourages the informed and active participation of [8:33] citizens in government works to increase understanding of major public policy [8:38] issues and influences public policy through education and [8:44] advocacy the league does not support or oppose any political party or [8:51] candidate the views expressed in this forum this evening are those of the candidates not those of the League of [8:58] Women Voters it is our purpose in sponsoring Forum such as this to provide you with an [9:05] opportunity to hear candidates discuss face to face the issues that are important to [9:11] you this is a nonpartisan Forum we ask that campaign buttons and t-shirts not [9:18] be worn nor signs nor literature distributed in this room please silence [9:23] your electronic devices at this time and now I'd like to call on Judy [9:30] Johnson of the wetta Chamber of Commerce and our partner in this forum thank [9:37] you good evening everyone and welcome my name is Judy Johnson and I serve as the [9:42] Director of membership services at the greater wi Isetta Area Chamber of Commerce on behalf of the chamber and [9:48] Becky Pearson our president who could not be here this evening we want to thank the wi Isetta Plymouth area League [9:54] of Women Voters for their leadership and partnership in putting on this important mayoral forum [9:59] I've always believed that good government starts in our own backyards and to that end the chamber appreciates [10:05] its important relationship with the city of wetta over many many years our membership represents over 400 [10:12] businesses and organizations in the West Metro with about half located in the city of wetta our mission is to be a [10:20] positive force in communities connecting promoting and supporting our members and our vision is to be a place where [10:26] businesses and Community Thrive together tonight we will have an opportunity to hear from the candidates who wish to [10:32] lead this Fair City forward as our next mayor it should come as no surprise that the Business Leaders in wetta along with [10:39] the wonderful residents of wetta care deeply about your thoughts and plans to keep this community strong welcoming and [10:46] vibrant for decades to come the chamber appreciates each of the candidates past public service and your many years of [10:53] leadership in this community we also welcome future conversations on important issues to the business [10:59] Community as we work together again the chamber extends our appreciation to the League of Women Voters for all of your [11:06] dedicated work to encourage an active and informed participation of citizens at all level of governments so thank you [11:13] everyone for being with us here tonight thank you Judy and now I call in [11:22] tonight's moderator Jackie [11:27] Wells thank you good evening I'm Jackie Wells your moderator for this evening's [11:32] Forum I'm a resident of Plymouth and a member of the League of Women Voters of Golden Valley tonight's forum is [11:40] provided to give you the opportunity to learn about the candidates running for wetta mayor there's there's never enough [11:46] time to cover all of the issues in a setting such as this so if your questions are not addressed feel free to [11:53] contact the candidate directly the League of Women Voters posts complete unedited recordings of its forums [12:00] editing is authorized only for official media reporting only the full unedited [12:06] recording may be used by other persons and organizations the rules for this [12:12] evening's Forum are as follows candidates will be allowed an opening statement with a maximum of 1 minute to [12:19] State their experiences platform and objectives a question and answer period [12:25] will follow the opening statements the answers will be to confined to the to one minute unless designated by me [12:33] opening statements will be given in alphabetical order and questions will be answered in a rotating order after that [12:41] a 15-second warning will be given to the candidates the candidates will also be [12:46] given a two-minute closing statement candidates please finish your question [12:52] quickly when you see the stop sign or you will be interrupted no references of a personal [12:58] name nature will be tolerated a person's public record may be examined but not their character this forum is made [13:06] available to encourage the voting public to focus on the issues and not on [13:12] personalities we ask that there be no demonstrations in support or opposition to the candidates or their positions and [13:19] that candidates be allowed their fulltime to get their points across the public has been encouraged to [13:27] submit questions online in advance of this forum for those in the audience if you have a question write it on a note [13:34] card available from our volunteers and raise your hand to have have it picked up audience questions will be taken for [13:41] the first 30 minutes of the Forum the timekeeper will alert me when 30 minutes [13:46] has have elapsed questions that are unclear hostile or of a personal nature will not [13:53] be used those that fall in the same general area may be consolidated so the candidates running [14:00] for mayor of wetta are Jeff Buchanan Andy Mullen and Barry [14:06] pedet so now we will begin with our one minute introductory remarks starting [14:11] with Jeff [14:20] Buchanan here we go well thank you uh and good evening it's great to see [14:26] everyone here tonight and what a great turnout and thank you thank you very much for showing up first first of all I [14:32] want to thank the League of Women Voters for hosting this forum second I'd like [14:37] to thank my fellow candidates Andrew and Barry for signing up for this being [14:43] interested in the office of Mayor and and the courage actually to run and third I want to thank all of you for [14:49] showing up again it's a testament to this town it's an interest in our government and um you should be very [14:57] proud of yourself my successful business background as well as my recent experience with wisti [15:04] city government as a planning commissioner and a city council member makes me particularly [15:10] qualified to be mayor I look forward to your questions tonight I hope your answers our answers will help you better [15:16] Define our different points of view and guide you as you decide who will best be suited to lead wi that into the future [15:23] thank you thank you Andy Mullen uh good evening uh my name is Andrew M and uh [15:30] wetta is a great City but also a growing city and with that growth uh we have [15:36] some challenges that need to be addressed and uh in my view we need to have a steady voice to protect what [15:41] makes wetta special safety walkability quality infrastructure parks and public [15:47] space that are the Envy of many by background uh I actually still working um as an executive in the Aerospace [15:54] industry focusing on satellites um and uh as I said earlier [15:59] wetta is growing and we have to have the right leadership that's able to navigate our growth [16:04] responsibly it's much easier to admire our problems than it is to roll up your sleeves and find solutions to get the [16:11] job done I've been a resident of wi Isetta for 29 years I have 17 years of public service and to the citizens of [16:18] wetta and uh it's nice to see so many folks here this is the first competitive race for mayor in 25 years uh so that [16:25] means for the last 25 years the mayor's position has run unopposed and I think that's good for our community thank you [16:32] thank you Barry Pettit please okay I've got four parts to my campaign one is to [16:38] fix the challenges caused by our lak front Redevelopment the noise the traffic the parking The Reckless eikers [16:46] parking deck Behavior staggering maintenance costs safety safety safety safety two requiring a lean City budget [16:56] three we have transformed from a modest VIs V Village to a busy tourist [17:01] destination from charm to Urban I have the professional skills to help redefine [17:07] our future in terms of all the things we forgot about scale character and design [17:13] number four we have done a lot to help our retail and restaurants Prosper via the millions spent on the lakefront and [17:20] parking ramp shrinking our sidewalks for dining and public toilets with a view [17:27] now it's our turn it's our town and I'm focusing on the people that live [17:33] here thank you and you will be the first responder for our next question it's on [17:39] priorities the question is what is your top priority for wetta as a candidate [17:44] for mayor and how would you address that if elected I'm I'm next yes you are [17:51] time's up yet nope just beginning you know I think I I I really uh want to [17:58] spend time with our city government because if you think about it everything we do runs [18:04] through that group of people um the administrative side of it you whatever [18:10] the whatever the process is the the uh the city planners Etc and I I really [18:15] have to be convinced I really got to be convinced that we've got the right people we're running lean we've seen [18:21] budgets that have grown dramatically Beyond inflationary budgets over the past 10 years and I really need to get [18:28] to the heart of that it seems to be the core and once I can address that and understand that then it's going to be a [18:33] lot easier to Branch out from there thank you Andrew Mullen please uh in my [18:40] view what I've heard from residents most often is fiscal responsibility um an accountability um so focusing on uh our [18:48] needs and not wants um our city budget has ballooned in the last 4 and a half years by 40% and we just approved uh the [18:56] council and mayor just approved another 8 . 76% increase so we got to get that back [19:03] into a responsible area and I think that's done by trade-offs not by um you [19:09] know just rolling forward and saying we have to do everything um within that Public Safety is number one in terms of [19:16] resourcing our police and fire are underpaid we have retention issues and we have resource issues around Public [19:23] Safety in community uh policing So within that again it's budget framework [19:29] fiscal responsibility and accountability get it back in line thank you Jeff Buchanan please um [19:36] thank you um obviously I have several priorities uh and they're all very [19:41] important to me uh to differentiate I guess from my colleagues here one thing [19:47] that's fallen off the Strategic priorities in the city is a protection of our natural resources and um um I was [19:56] involved in the Solar effort and um we can talk about that later but I think [20:02] one thing I'm I'm most concerned about or curious about is how we use water and and how we protect Lake [20:09] minaka um so I I guess natural resources uh as a point of differentiation from um [20:16] my colleagues is what I would focus on thank you uh Andrew Mullen be the first [20:23] person for our next question it's on finance what are your ideas for managing [20:28] City revenues and expenses so it's going to sound repetitive from my first uh priority but [20:35] I mean I think we get to get back to essential Services again because of the growth we've experienced um petty crime [20:43] noise loitering um these are things that need to be addressed and we need to [20:48] invest further into police uh to be able to do that and so how do you get at [20:53] fiscal accountability first of all I wouldn't support raising the operating budget by more than 3 or 4% % each year [20:59] and you do it by trading off what's not necessary now and trading off wants not [21:05] needs and that's how you get it back in line and then you find creative ways to finance the wants much like we did with [21:12] the lakefront project uh like we've done to restore historic buildings in town so it's trade-offs and accountability and [21:21] it's about making you sure you hold the line on our budget thank you Jeff Buchanan uh thanks [21:28] um so this budget has come up a number of times already and what people need to [21:34] realize is there are seven public meetings that discuss the budget every [21:39] year um and available to every one of you and my colleagues here to comment [21:47] and and um and help Define what's important um I've been through four of [21:56] those I have yet to see any public comment on the budget it's a perfect opportunity to really take charge and to [22:04] give give the council and staff um some valuable feedback and [22:11] input thank you Barry pedit please you know the budget thing is is [22:19] is difficult because it has grown excessively Beyond um Beyond inflation [22:26] but likewise we've also occurred a lot of additional things in this town by virtue of all these dramatic changes and [22:34] when we talk about safety that's police police get expensive so if we want to solve that on one side we've got to come [22:41] up with the money to solve that and that goes antithetical to the idea of cutting cost so I think it's a complicated um I [22:48] think it's going to be a complicated solution uh not impossible but it's really going to take some drilling down [22:55] from the city staff to help us understand help me understand exactly how they have laid out their plan [23:01] because it does seem that we have uh become excessive in areas and maybe not [23:06] uh done as good a job and some others thank you and you get to be first [23:12] for this next question again uh this one's on development what is your vision [23:18] for development in y Zetta and what types of uses and structures would you [23:26] support you know for me development is an interesting as an architect I look at the world through a lens of design I [23:32] look at almost everything as design you know the clothes you're wearing the cars you buy the pencil you buy the glasses [23:37] you wear and I think the same thing is is is true with with uh the development [23:43] of a town and and it was so interesting in the in the comprehensive plan which wasn't done that long ago at a great [23:49] expense one of the key words repeated multiple times with charming Charming [23:55] Charming charming and I haven't seen anything Charming Charming Charming Charming Charming somewhere along the [24:01] way we've got to disconnect with the kinds of things we want with the kind of town we wanted to be and what we really [24:07] have become so for me there's a high priority on the design [24:12] side thank you uh Andrew Mullen please uh thanks so in general calm it [24:20] down uh growth needs to be planned for appropriately um and we need to be proactive um and Shifting the [24:27] discussions away from units per acre into scale mass and design and uh [24:34] kandidate petted actually is responsible for a lot of the you know large buildings in downtown wetta during his [24:40] tenure um and so you know I agree with him on focus on design but um uh and the [24:46] other thing is small town character one way to define small town character is you don't have big city problems um and [24:53] so we have a couple of big city problems that are creeping into town that need to be addressed and I think if if you focus [24:59] on responsible development Calment down and remove the big city problems we'll [25:04] meet meet the goal thank you Jeff Buchanan please thanks um so um I think [25:12] it's time to take a little bit of a pause take a breather digest what we have accomplished and um but I want to say [25:20] that I sat on two committees I sat on the zoning standards committee and I also sat on the design standards [25:26] committee which have really reworked and provided guard rails for future development uh a lot of work went into [25:32] that a lot of community feedback and actually the document is [25:38] incredibly good so I do think future development will um have to stand the [25:43] test of those uh guidelines that we've uh put out and and I as I say I think [25:48] they're remarkably good thank you uh oh you are first up for our next [25:54] question on business growth there is significant empty retail space in the [26:00] city of Yetta what do you see as the greatest challenge to starting or growing a business in Yetta what if [26:06] anything should the role of city government be in supporting businesses yeah well great question um yeah I think [26:15] particularly the empty spaces in the pre homes development um I personally have [26:21] called the leasing agent and and I'm lucky I get a call back several weeks [26:27] later they seem to be very disinterested in renting the space they have there it [26:33] is expensive um I guess the time would be to to actually have the mayor talk to [26:40] the management and the and the Pres homes uh senior leaders and try to work [26:46] out how do we get things accomplished there because Mid America clearly is getting in the way of the ability for um [26:55] those spaces to be leased thank you Barry pant [27:00] please you know it's it's an interesting question because you're you're dealing [27:05] with Market forces and Market forces have to respond to what a business costs [27:11] and if you're going to live in a town like we Zetta that is becoming as expensive as it is for example wet's [27:17] left and the and the rent on their new space didn't fit their proor at all and [27:22] it's not uncommon that's just the Catch 22 of wetta that everyone is caught up in uh I'm not sure we can do much more [27:30] for our businesses than we have as I mentioned earlier we've we've invested you know almost $34 million uh in ramps [27:38] and uh activity on the lake to bring people in at some point uh I'm sort of a [27:43] more laay fair on that uh and I and I do believe it's it's an interesting comment [27:49] in the Presbyterian Homes I look at that as a planning problem if you don't have people driving by your front door you [27:55] don't have retail it's that dirt simple thank you Andrew Mullen could you repeat [28:01] the question again sure there is significant empty retail space in the city of wetta what do you [28:09] see as the greatest challenge to starting or growing a business in wetta and what if anything should the role of [28:15] city government be in supporting businesses sure so just a comment on background I mean uh our city businesses [28:21] pay 40% of all the bills in town right police fire water streets um so they're [28:27] an important stakeholder ER but I I actually agree with candidate Pettit that it may be a little overcooked particularly in the downtown area with a [28:33] th000 restaurant seats 18 independently own restaurants you know I think that's thriving part of retail across the board [28:40] hard Goods retail um is struggling everywhere right not just in wetta so I [28:46] think it has to be experiential retail unique independent terms of the role of government around it I think there's [28:52] limited things that can be do done um but right now I think the business Community is thriving compared to 10 [28:59] years ago or 5 years ago or 3 years ago and I I don't look at it in terms of is is the space empty I look at it as you [29:05] know the businesses here are thriving and I am actually the only one up here that owns a business in wetta so um I [29:11] think I have you know some some real experience by living here and owning a business in [29:16] town thank you and you're up first for our next question the topic is short-term rentals what is your view of [29:24] short-term residential rentals in y Zetta their positive or negative impact [29:30] on the city and the need if any for regulation sure well so so uh I think [29:36] what we're referring to is Airbnb and vbo so folks that can go online and you [29:41] know sort of rent out their property I think there's 18 in town um they're not regulated today they should be we have [29:48] regulation on our long-term rentals and I don't see how short-term rental should be exempt from that um it's about being [29:55] a good neighbor it's about having safe tenants whether they short-term or long-term and I think we already have a model that can be easily applied to uh [30:03] allow short-term rentals but to allow it responsibly thank you uh Jeff Buchanan [30:09] please great thank you I know this issue came up at a workshop I believe and uh [30:15] recently and I believe this the city is permitting uh asking permits for [30:20] short-term rentals and I believe council member senson had a great idea in [30:26] limiting uh um short-term rentals the owner must be in The Residence at least [30:32] 6 months during the year in order for them to be able to rent uh their space out I [30:38] like the idea I think having some restrictions is important uh and uh but I know the city is working on that uh uh [30:46] as we speak thank you Barry pedit please you know what seems that the the town one of [30:52] the the things that's always fascinated me is the the term unintended consequences and um it seems we've got [30:59] so many things we're trying to put together so many hiccups right now through a lot of the growth that's happening in town I'm just not a favor [31:06] of adding one more into these the equation right now it may be fine for another time but it just seems to me [31:13] there are too many moving parts to these these kind of ideas and uh they're too [31:18] easily um I think too easy for other problems to come up and I just keep [31:25] thinking to myself don't need to do that right now it's too easy to do any time you want just don't need to do it right [31:32] now thank you and you get to start on our next question with the topic of [31:38] Public Safety what matters of Public Safety if any do you believe require Change in [31:45] city policy ordinance or funding such as Police recruitment and retention or [31:51] pedestrian safety measures Etc well you know what's interesting because [31:56] virtually every morning I would sit with a couple guys that have coffee on Lake Street and it really um [32:03] uh I will admit some of these guys that can do the wheelies on their electric bikes are pretty fascinating uh but it [32:10] we're seeing more and more that kind of activity and it you talk to people that have almost been hit by these these [32:17] folks and it's it's again the idea you start bringing more people and you get these unint unintended consequences so [32:24] that's Lake Street specifically just needs more police surveillance and not [32:30] surveillance but consequences there nothing matters if there are no consequences and so I think that's where [32:36] I'd put put the energy for right now and if it requires more police uh unfortunately it's more money but that's [32:42] one of the early investigations with the city staff trying to understand how we uh reconfigure the budget to make sure [32:49] that we're safe thank you Andrew Mullen please yeah so Public Safety is is very [32:55] important um and ensuring that our First Responders our fire and police have the tools to do the job uh we need to keep [33:02] them independent we need to keep local control and not be a shared service to another community and for me the missing [33:09] part of this for safety is what I would call community policing so it's not the 18 now that we'll have next year of [33:16] police and cars with guns it's actually feed on the street not with a gun you know enforcing noise loitering um uh [33:25] traffic um parking that's what is causing you know this this introduction [33:30] of what I you know big city problems and in order to do that we need to have competitive pay we just lost a CSO to a [33:37] $6 more in another city we're paying our firefighters to start $14 an hour and so [33:43] we have retention issues so we need to Resource them appropriately to retain what we've got and we need to invest [33:48] more in community policing which is an addition to the 18 cops on the street thank you Jeff Buchanan please [33:57] yeah well this is an easy one because uh we have invested my last time on Council [34:03] we authorized uh two new police officers it took takes 18 months to get them um [34:10] and um so we are investing in our our [34:15] protection um the one thing I would also say is I think it's important when it comes to [34:21] fire um by the way they've recruited eight more firefighters so now we're going to be at 29 which is one short of [34:28] what is ideal and that's a terrific work but I would say that what I would like [34:33] to do is invest in a a full-time Fire Chief and um and that's the actually the [34:39] recommendation from the current one so um I think that would be important thank you and you are first [34:47] for our next question on the topic of cannabis under current law cannabis [34:53] production facilities and dispensaries are legal in Minnesota the city of wetta [34:58] is currently evaluating four separate scenarios developed by7 Consulting for a [35:05] municipal dispensary plan for cannabis what are your thoughts regarding a [35:10] municipal dispensary for cannabis in Yetta interesting question and certainly [35:16] one um that I'm sure people have U an opinion on um at first when I heard [35:23] about Municipal I wasn't I didn't think it was such a great idea but in talk talking to staff and um I feel like it [35:30] could be a revenue Source the city cannot refuse people license it's against the state law so it seems best [35:38] that we control um that aspect and also as a revenue source which will help keep [35:45] um our property taxes in line thank you Barry pedit [35:51] please you know again it goes back to the same thing of all the things that I think we need to work on this is a [35:57] another one of those classic unintended consequences and we're getting in over our head on this and we can do it [36:03] anytime we want we don't have to immediately get into this I need to settle things down in this town and [36:09] resolve so many of these current active problems the idea of going into the Cannabis thing I think again is is going [36:16] to cause more hiccups I think it's going to be more struggle for the police and then somebody says hey now we need more [36:21] police I think we're going the wrong direction and again we can get into that business anytime we want it doesn't have [36:29] to be now thank you Andrew Mullen please yeah [36:34] I mean this is a turkey one you know because marijuana is now legal across the state but I I'm a skeptic um for the [36:41] city getting into selling and uh Distributing marijuana um we can't prevent someone from opening a store [36:47] here but why not get into the business it'll cost a couple million bucks to build a facility to be able to do it or [36:52] to find rent um that couple million dollars of capital I think it be put to better use to Barry's point we if we so [36:59] choose to do it later we can there's much lower hanging fruit to generate fees or Revenue than marijuana I think [37:05] we need to focus on where it can be used or consumed um just like booze and and [37:10] where it can be sold is regulation not getting into the business uh as [37:16] Government thank you and you are first up for our next question which is on [37:22] housing what measures would you support if any to address housing needs in in y [37:28] Zetta okay so I mean that could go a lot of different ways um are we talking about affordable housing are we talking [37:34] residential versus commercial I'll try to answer it in two ways um and address affordable housing affordable housing is [37:41] tricky to do in a town like wetta because of the cost of the land and the high taxes and so if we need more [37:47] affordable housing I think we should focus on the multi-unit stock that we have and repurpose it and make it more [37:53] affordable but before we even do that I think we need to focus on Workforce housing for our fire we now have a [38:00] 10-minute rule meaning they can live as much as 10 minutes outside of town why does it get pushed further and further [38:06] out because our Rank and file Poli uh firefighters can't afford to live near town so Workforce housing for our staff [38:14] for Public Safety comes first for me um and I guess I'm going to get clipped so I'll leave it at that thank you Jeff [38:22] Buchanan I just want to make one comment we um it's the off a mayor has to be [38:28] able to handle a lot of and juggle a lot of things at the same time we can't kick [38:35] everything down the road and in business I always talked about all the spinning [38:40] plates and we have to be able to manage those there are there are a lot coming at you but the mayor has to be able to [38:45] do that as far as housing goes I think we need to keep up what we have and also look for [38:54] ways to um to build new affordable housing there are ways to do it I [38:59] wouldn't give up on it thank you Barry peted please you know it's interesting I've [39:06] had a different spit on that for for a lot of years and and one of it is is the best thing wi Zetta does better than [39:13] anyone is pay taxes and I'm not sure people appreciate the number I think the property tax per capita from the city of [39:20] y z is hovers around $8,200 Edina [39:26] $3,100 uh I remember telling the the uh uh met Council a long time ago about affordable housing said leave us alone [39:33] we pay taxes better than anybody and uh given the nature of the town that we are [39:40] and and the uh increasing cost of of property Etc it is just not a wise place [39:48] to venture into the affordable housing that that kind of a market um and I [39:53] think it's just inherently difficult with who we are we don't have the space we don't have the land uh we again we do [40:01] a great job of paying taxes thank you and I think you know the [40:07] pattern so you're up first for our next question the topic is communication and community [40:12] outreach what information about Council activities do you think is important to share with wetta community members what [40:20] in your opinion are effective ways to communicate that information oh man [40:28] I'm not sure if I shy away from the from the notion of transparency but there I'm taking this a whole different direction [40:35] there is sort of the idea of the representative government and that's why you have elections because there's a lot [40:41] of information to council people on the council try to assimilate and it's very [40:47] very difficult to get that equally out to everybody in the city so you're sort of relying on your Council people to do [40:54] a good job and if they don't you don't elect them again but as it works right now between the uh the community [41:00] television and the portal paper I think wetta does a a fine job at trying to [41:06] communicate uh and people and I think uh I think as as it was said earlier is people have to go seek out stuff you [41:13] know I I don't think we're going to come up with a system that knocks on your door and says you make sure you understand everything that's going on [41:19] it's a two-way street in this responsibility of communication thank [41:25] you uh Andrew Mullen yeah so I think uh wisata has uh become [41:31] very effective about communicating decisions after they've been made where we need to improve is engage citizens [41:36] before the decisions are made and I have a commitment to be more open and out there to engage the community before [41:43] decisions are made I think the second uh suggestion that I would have to our governance structure is our boards [41:49] commissions advisory groups um are well-intentioned but I don't think we're clear enough on the charter of what [41:56] advice they need to bring to the council and I'd flip the order right now we have a staff Lea Zone representing these [42:02] groups I would flip it to make a citizen representing the groups to engage the council with support from staff a little [42:08] bit the uh tailes wag and the dog here a little bit you know Community First staff implements what community wants [42:15] thank you thank you Jeff Buchanan yeah thanks transparency is really important to me um I spent a lot of time thinking [42:22] about this and you know there's a lot available on the website um but it's not [42:27] so easy to find so I would make make that easier but one thing I would do is [42:33] have a mayor's report a regular mayor's report that would link to Parts first of all report on what's going on of [42:40] importance to the community and link to those spots on the website so people can [42:46] easily find the information is there but it's not so easy to find I'd make it easier thank you and just to let the [42:53] audience know 30 minutes has passed ending the time for us accepting new questions and we will carry on and the [43:01] first person to respond is Andrew Mullen the topic is working with others please [43:06] give examples of how you have been able to work productively with those who do not share your views sure uh the role of [43:13] Mayor really uh is mostly ceremonial uh they have the same equal uh powers to [43:19] other Council people and it takes three people or sometimes four to get anything [43:24] done so one you have to start with building consensus with at least three and sometimes four of your colleagues up [43:29] here second is engaging boards and commissions in a responsible way and I've already articulated what I think [43:35] needs to change there but bring those commissions forward in more of a charter of advisory and less about just sort of [43:42] reporting out what staff says and so in terms of accomplishments probably the prodct accomplishment I served on [43:48] Council was breaking a 30-year impass of streets and water in Holdridge and boy [43:53] did that take working together with the community with Council with lawyers with [43:59] you know assessing you know and that that issue had been kicked down the road for 30 years I actually build a [44:04] consensus in the community to actually move that forward for the first time in our community so that's a track record [44:09] of getting it done thank you uh Jeff Buchanan great thank you um throughout [44:15] my career I built relationships it was the key to my success and the Hallmark of building a [44:22] relationship is listening to people and you listen and I always tell [44:28] my my team my staff is you have two of these and one of these there's a reason [44:34] listen to people and um and you will learn an awful lot so I think that's how [44:41] you build relationships that's how you can um get over any conflict or or the [44:48] divide that might exist between people thank you Barry petett I've always been [44:55] fascinated by the the aspect of asking questions and it's amazing because it it [45:01] if if it's done well uh you're coming from a point of view of not a point of [45:07] view but trying to seek what the other person or the other group is saying and it's fascinating how you keep asking the [45:13] questions in drilling and sometimes ideas get much more solid and sometimes [45:18] they start to dissolve but it's always been the way that I've I've uh uh addressed uh all the work that I've done [45:25] is I need to get question because sometimes when you drill down uh ideas get better or sometimes they dissolve [45:33] but it seems to be at least for my formul it's worked pretty well thank [45:39] you and you get to be first for this next question um this pattern yet I know [45:46] random numbers are kind of funky um as mayor how can the city and the Chamber [45:52] strengthen their working relationship even more throughout the year to benefit the local [46:01] economy uh you know I've Al first of all I think the chamber does a great job um [46:06] you know they've got couple great events that have been going on for years now and so one assumes that that always um [46:14] is institutionalized uh brings in lots of people in the town so in terms of an introduction to uh the city whether it's [46:21] Chile open or the James J Hill days uh those are pretty tough to beat um I know [46:27] the chamber would like to see the fees lowered that the city charges them for their events and they get to be pretty [46:33] pricey um you know it's it's a it's a group that I've known them for a long [46:39] time and I I think they do a nice job um I think it would probably have to be an [46:45] issue of saying is reversing it and coming to the city and said what do you need from us and I think that would be [46:52] uh an interesting line of questioning to find out where they're where there may be some frustrations or where we can [46:58] build on some better ideas but I think you know all in all I'm I'm pretty uh I'm pretty proud of the work that they [47:05] do thank you uh Andrew Mullen please I mean I think generally the relationship [47:11] with the chamber is fairly strong um I think they are heavy on more um events [47:17] than they are maybe um advocating in for specific local business issues but I can bring it a perfect example of how we [47:24] could strengthen it and how we could engage our business community better the current Administration went to lobby at [47:29] the capital to push a sales tax on restaurants and businesses Without Really Consulting them and Consulting [47:35] the chamber and to me that's just sort of a perfect way that you know before we're going to take action on something [47:41] as big as that consult the business community and don't surprise them by a lobbyist at the capital thank you and Jeff Buchanan so [47:50] um I've been a businessman for a long for many years 30 years plus um I'm a [47:55] member of the chamber I think regular conversations with the chamber leadership and asking what is it that uh [48:03] what obstacles do they face and how can we help in alleviating them would would make senses but again relationship and [48:10] having a good conversation thank you and you will be first with our next question [48:16] we're going to jump back to development what lessons would you draw as wetta mayor from the ongoing panaway [48:23] lakewalk and Community docks project that might guide future development [48:29] decision making well it's a big project and I think uh throughout the project uh the [48:35] city learned that they needed help in managing the construction I think at phase one they learned that they needed [48:42] experts on the ground I think that worked out well um I think again that [48:48] was a lot to digest a lot to swallow I think uh I don't I think we have to be careful as we uh embark on projects of [48:56] that that size again thank you uh Barry pett development development development [49:04] you know it's interesting with that specific project there there's sort of two parts to it one is the concept the [49:10] idea and the other is the execution and those um great projects bring them both [49:16] together and I think the hiccup that I see with a lakewalk etc all the all the [49:22] Lake Street design is the detail I think it's very marginal I I would not give it [49:28] a great grade in the detail again the concept I get but when I look at the way that it works when I look at the results [49:35] that uh seemed uh folks didn't think through clearly um uh that's that's what [49:42] I struggle with because everything is about the detail uh how we wind up with [49:48] a toilet seems to be a big detail but we did so that's what I that's what I would [49:54] argue is that concept versus execution thank you and Andrew [50:01] Mullen uh so with regard to that project I think your question was is what can you learn from it to to to change in the [50:07] future so um I think we got community engagement right we did 10 years of it we engaged the community deeply um I [50:14] actually share a little bit of what what candidate Pettit said um controlling scope and cost because we traded off [50:22] things or made decisions based on not having enough money which is why the bathroom ended up where it is because [50:27] you had to spend 500k more to get the conduit across the way or back over to the parking ramp which is where the [50:32] bathroom should have been in the first place so we need to get tighter on construction management on managing [50:39] scope and then not trading off things that disappoint residents by and large [50:44] though um I think that project is done done fine I think it's a community amenity and it and it gets good marks [50:50] generally but Details Matter and scope and and making sure that you're you're managing that and managing cost you [50:57] don't have to trade things off is what I would have learned from that project thank you excuse me and you'll be first [51:03] for our next question if a constituent comes to you requesting a change in city [51:08] code how would you go about making a decision on that matter interesting well I I've got an [51:15] example that a dozens if not more than a hundred people have asked me why don't we change the ordinances to have a fine [51:22] for more than 30 bucks for noise um it's 125 in the state statute the first thing [51:27] I would do is have a community meeting to open the book and review all of the ordinances read them aloud find out [51:34] where the gaps are and determine and prioritize what needs to be done first so I think there's lots of folks asking [51:40] for ordinance changes right now and they relate to noise um uh traffic violations [51:46] um loitering all of that needs to be addressed and so uh let's open the book let's roll up our sleeves let's get in [51:53] this room let's read them let's up the findes let's get them changed and let's get them implemented thank you uh Jeff [52:02] Buchanan well if a citizen came to me it' be great I'd love to have conversations um and I'm a terrific [52:09] Problem Solver I um would have to understand the scope of what the the the [52:15] comment was and and and then um take it to the appropriate internal party staff and or [52:22] um Planning Commission depending on what what the issue was but I love the ideas I love people coming [52:28] forward and I welcome it thank you and Barry petted H you know it it it's interesting [52:38] because people come forward with an idea and there are times that that really is an interesting thought hav't thought [52:44] that one through and it kind of is inspiring and uh you run with that and [52:50] then there are times people come with ideas that aren't so inspiring and I think that's the number one lit l [52:56] litness test on these is um uh because you are going to get a a um uh a sample [53:04] of both of those so that's where you have to start out uh but it is interesting when people do do have ideas [53:11] and if you start to massage it and again ask more questions about it often you can come up with some pretty interesting [53:16] Solutions uh there's a lot of people out there a lot of people see things we don't see I have different experiences [53:22] so it's it's a it's a nice way to get some input uh in a pretty easy [53:28] fashion thank you and the next question will be the last question that we can fit in and yes you get I'm I'm getting [53:35] this now if elected mayor how will you work [53:41] with and use the views and recommendations of the city's [53:46] commissions you're saying all the Committees the Planning Commission what however you choose to uh consider the [53:54] question commissions you know it's it's actually fascinates [54:00] me the number of groups that we do have in the city and there is inherently when [54:06] you put together a commission or a committee they seem to move up the food chain uh and they want to be they assume [54:13] that you you you've um put this group together because there's some value there and they're going to bring [54:18] something to the table I often think that it adds more complexity to the [54:23] situation um so I'm a I'm one of the reviews I would like to go through is [54:29] what do we do with these other groups beyond the traditional Planning Commission and the city council to make [54:34] sure we're lean there because remember commissions committees cost money some staff person has to be involved in they [54:40] got to Communications etc etc etc um the critical thing I like with commissions [54:46] is come up with an idea whether you like it or not come up with an idea don't be afraid of an idea because again every [54:53] once in a while there's a great gem that comes forward and you say you know never thought of that that's an interesting [54:58] way to spin that so that's really what I I think those uh groups bring to the table thank you uh Jeff Buchanan please [55:06] great thanks um I sat on the Planning Commission um these commissions are made up of citizens and that's the these [55:13] people represent different neighborhoods different ideas and I uh I value that um [55:20] Planning Commission goes through a lot of hard work these these development applications are enormous and they're [55:26] comp complex we lean on as a council we lean on the commissions for for information [55:33] giving us good uh advice and insight these are the citizens um they don't [55:39] cost any money these are volunteers and um I would work very [55:44] closely with them I think they're terrific and again I've sat on uh at least three and uh it's great work they [55:52] do thank you Andrew Mullen please oh thanks I think think I addressed this in one of my earlier comments but I'll I'll [55:59] just restate I mean I think these boards and commissions are extremely valuable going back to my comment about getting [56:04] input before decisions are made that's the best proxy people serving on those commissions I've served on many of them [56:10] are actually citizens and so again I would focus on giving them a tighter Charter of what the council seeks input [56:17] on and what they could help us guide on making decisions inform on decisions and [56:23] second uh to reiterate what I said before each of these little commissions has a Staff leaz Zone becomes the interface to the council I'd flip that I [56:31] would uh lift up a citizen to be the leaone and to communicate and engage with the council and I think with all of [56:37] that input we'll get to better decisions um and that's it thank you very much now [56:45] is the time for your closing statements and each of you will have up to two minutes for your closing [56:51] statement and the first person for this is Jeff Buchanan first again thank you [56:58] um thanks again for attending tonight uh I hope you learned something about each of the candidates and you now have a [57:05] better idea who has the ability the personality to lead wetta for the next four years it's important that you [57:13] select a candidate that has the temperament to lead the council as it confronts the issues we will face as we [57:19] move forward it's been many years as Andrew pointed out since you've been offered a [57:24] choice for mayor this year I believe your choices are clear my vision for [57:30] wetta Embraces the successes we have enjoyed and leverages them for our [57:35] future we are truly a blessed community and we have a lot for which to be [57:40] grateful if elected I intend to make a difference I intend to make a difference by listening to [57:46] you I intend to make a difference by creating more transparency I will make a difference by [57:53] protecting our natural resources and I will make a difference by continuing to invest in your security [58:00] I'm an optimistic person and I believe in us and what lies ahead please vote [58:05] for me on November 5th I will not disappoint you thank you for your time and attention tonight I really [58:12] appreciate it thank you uh next is Barry petett [58:18] Oh okay don't start yet I'm going take a deep breath it's okay okay okay the pan [58:26] manway and the lakewalk have changed y Zetta forever we are an official tourist destination the consequences are [58:32] emotionally and financially consuming our town and be prepared for the hundreds of kids in yellow buses [58:38] resulting from the upcoming phase three we have also become a a free Regional [58:44] playground pickle ball the skating ring softball field swimming beach children's playground tennis court dog park shaver [58:50] Park panaway lakewalk and our beautiful Lakefront toilets 90% of the users are not from Isetta and yet we pay 100% of [58:58] the cost for all of these it's simply not fair it's time for a pay to play it [59:03] was interesting the exceler city manager told me 110 parking meters in exceler yielded a half a million dollars a year [59:10] in Revenue I'm very frustrated that a town has become a random po per of designs we [59:16] need to develop a ytic character while many believe it's too late I see several Redevelopment projects in our future [59:22] Walgreens The Village Shops Colonial Square the series of buildings East of Cove East uh Wisa Boulevard the Crispen [59:29] Green Building basically every one-story building in this town is a strong [59:34] candidate for redevelopment I'm excited to lead the aesthetic uh revisioning of our town [59:39] it's long overdue the past cannot be prologue our population is not growing [59:44] and our road sewer and Waters remain constant and yet eight city employees were added in the last three years with [59:50] another eminent hire this is puzzling and may be completely Justified but for the sake of you taxpayers I need to be [59:57] convinced essentially we need to fix a long list of nagging hiccups caused by our new popularity and we will urgently [1:00:04] deal with each one with no new commissions no new committees and no new Consultants your city council has four [1:00:11] talented people and together we will fix stabilize and reinvent Yetta thank you [1:00:17] thank you and Andrew Mullen please okay we're almost done so thanks for uh [1:00:22] coming tonight uh your engagement and willingness to be here and online is great for our community and uh you've [1:00:28] heard a number of different ideas and contrasting Visions here for wetta um in [1:00:34] my view most residents want the same thing whether you live on the lake or in the central uh District or on the north [1:00:40] side of 394 where 20% of our electorate live in Holdridge I'm sorry Margaret [1:00:45] Circle um you know Harmony Circle Hollybrook they want uh fiscal [1:00:50] responsibility safety real solutions to our traffic and congestion citizen put [1:00:56] before decisions so we need a leader who's going to address those issues with proposing and implementing Solutions and [1:01:03] a candidate attitude without raising your taxes every year or compromising the quality of life for those who have [1:01:09] come to love Zetta that's what I've done my entire career in business uh and in the public sector so the issues again [1:01:16] I'm hearing are fiscal responsibility Public Safety alleviating congestion putting the public back in public [1:01:22] service uh not allowing the budget to balloon in 4 years by 40% um I do [1:01:28] believe that visitors do need to pay a share of of where Wisa is and i would support a referendum for a sales tax I [1:01:35] would support uh charging for parking at least three times a year but I'd have an exemption for all residents they don't [1:01:41] need to be charge for parking um another thing that I think is important for constituents to consider as you make [1:01:47] this choice is your mayor should live here full-time and not winter in another state um and you should have access to [1:01:55] your leaders at all time of the year um and as I said in my opening statement I [1:02:00] I'm the candidate that will roll up his sleeves and be a trusted independent voice for uh wetta to address our [1:02:05] challenges to listen to our residents um and the people V Isetta deserve that uh [1:02:11] I'm Andrew Mullen I'm asking for your vote whether it be tomorrow early voting starts tomorrow or all the way to [1:02:17] November 5th and thank you for being here tonight uh we appreciate I and we all do thank [1:02:23] you this concludes the wieter mayor candidate Forum we close with several [1:02:28] thank yous first on behalf of the League of Women Voters please join me in thanking the candidates for being part [1:02:35] of the democratic process by running for office and being willing to serve the [Applause] [1:02:45] community thank you also to the League of Women Voters volunteers our audience here and those viewing the this forum [1:02:52] virtually for your participation in this candidate Forum thank you thank you to the Yetta City staff for supporting this [1:02:58] event and for broadcasting live live streaming and recording tonight's Forum [1:03:03] OnDemand viewing can be accessed at lwv swpa.gov [1:03:15] 411.org the League of Women Voters awardwinning One-Stop shop where voters [1:03:21] can register to vote find their polling place view candidate form recordings and learn how candidates stand on the issues [1:03:29] please remember to vote in the November 5th election by absentee ballot or in person on the November ballot Minnesota [1:03:38] voters will be asked to reauthorize or end a constitutional amendment [1:03:43] allocating 40% of State Lottery proceeds to the environment and natural resources [1:03:50] trust fund more than 50% of Voters must vote Yes to approve con institutional [1:03:56] protection of the system leaving the question blank counts as a no vote [1:04:01] please beer excuse me please be sure to look for the amendment on your ballot and vote early voting begins tomorrow [1:04:10] here at Yetta City Hall September 20 your vote is your voice League of Women [1:04:15] Voters welcomes new members both women and men and again visit lwv swpa.gov [1:04:26] [Applause] [1:04:54] all e