ADNA 2025 City Council candidate questionnaire

 

1. This four-part question will give our community an important overview of  the perspective you bring to your campaign.

 

1. From your perspective, what are the most important goals and priorities for Carbondale in the next four years?

2. Besides running in this election, what have you done recently to work toward those goals and priorities?

3. What role do you see for city government in accomplishing those goals? If you are chosen by the voters, what are some of the ways you will use your position?

4. If you are not one of the three candidates chosen by voters this year, how will you work toward your priorities outside of government?

 

2. Many in our community anticipate funding shortfalls via the federal government. This affects not just the city’s budget and planning, but also those of our anchor institutions, SIU and SIH. What are your thoughts on strategies to secure funding via current means or by finding new ones? Do you feel that budget cuts will be necessary in the event of funding shortfalls, and if so, what are your budgeting priorities? Can you identify any efficiencies which would allow government to accomplish meaningful goals with fewer resources? 

 

3. Carbondale has a strong tradition of civic involvement, with citizens and local organizations active in working with city government. Like many communities we have had challenges in maintaining this since the onset of the pandemic. City boards and commissions often have less participation than their structure allows for, which restricts the capacity of those bodies to contribute to strategic growth. What steps do you think the city can take to encourage citizens to participate in government? What role do you see, if any, for citizens’ organizations?

 

4. We recognize that city government does not have exclusive ability to act on many of the issues which directly affect voters. For example, state law and state agencies restrict our ability to make changes to our major streets, route 13 and route 51. Large institutional property owners SIU and SIH have their own decision-making structures, but their policies have as much influence on public life as government’s. Nevertheless, in both of these cases, the state and our anchor institutions have incentives which broadly align with the municipality’s incentives. How do you think the city can better interface with these entities? How can local government secure both investment and involvement from SIU & SIH in developing our central core?

 

5. Recently we have seen a significant rise in the number of homeless people in our community. This is also associated with a large number of disused and misused buildings and lots. Many people are concerned about the safety of community members, including not least the safety of homeless people in our community. What do you think are some of the causes of these problems, and how do you propose to address them? Do you think there are adequate shelter and transition services available, and if not, what do you think can be done to improve these resources?

 

6. In particular, we often see boarded up houses on major thoroughfares, for instance on Oakland at Walnut Street, and the complex at James and Mill across from SIU campus. Do you think that it’s appropriate to prioritize more highly visible areas? Why or why not? If so, what tools or actions do you think you can use in government?

 

7. What do you see as the role of public safety and law enforcement in the context of comprehensive planning and economic development? How do you think we can make our spaces more active, and therefore not only safer but more attractive to use?

 

With a population that has declined from its peak, and empty storefronts prominent around town, Carbondale feels hollowed out to a degree. The next five questions address issues related to housing and commercial vacancies.

 

8. We have zoning which concentrates small business commercial activity downtown. Many neighborhoods do not have pedestrian access to a grocery store. We also have a complex system of residential zoning. Do you favor changing our current zoning, and if so, how?

 

9. We often hear that existing or prospective small business owners find it challenging to navigate Carbondale’s regulations. Do you have ideas about how to simplify those regulations, or make it easier to navigate current ones? Are there policies or incentives you would advocate for to stimulate local economic activity?

 

10. Our downtown-adjacent neighborhoods should be among the most desirable in the region, but we see significant degradation of and lack of investment in housing stock in some of these areas. The city has taken several positive steps in recent years to incentivize reinvestment, particularly in encouraging home ownership. What further measures in this direction do you think are appropriate, if any?

 

11. The recently established housing trust has also been created in order to address this issue from a more comprehensive perspective. How do you think this trust should be structured, and what do you think its priorities should be? How do you view the relationship between the trust and city government? 

 

12. A significant factor affecting our neighborhood is inadequate maintenance of some rental housing. Recently, legislation has been proposed to address this issue by delineating rights and responsibilities of landlords and tenants, as well as remedies available to each. Do you support the goals of this legislation, and if so, do you believe it should be passed, or amended in any particular way before being passed? Do you believe that any additional measures, such as landlord licensing, should be considered? And how do you think such regulations can be effectively enforced?

 

13. Another way that our downtown and adjacent neighborhoods could be made more desirable is through improvements to transportation linkages, both to the rest of the city and the region. We often hear that existing public bus routes and schedules are inadequate to residents’ needs. What kinds of infrastructure and traffic flow would you advocate for; considering public transportation, bicyclists, and pedestrians as well as private and commercial vehicle traffic? What kinds of design do you think can support growth of and integration with SIU and SIH, as well as better business investment in our neighborhoods? And what role do you see for parks and recreational facilities as neighborhood anchors and connectors?

 

14. How well connected do you feel Carbondale is to the larger region? Are there policies or measures you would recommend to improve social and economic connectivity within Southern Illinois?