Note: Reposted as a new
candidate has entered the race.
Candidates: James Kennedy , Lorraine Margeson
In the Post It's
Time To Go On the Record, I asked each registered St. Petersburg
candidate to answer seven questions:
1. Should the LENS come to a referendum, will you
support voting to stop the project?
2. Do you support closing the
Pier?
3. Will you move to end the red
light camera program?
4. Do you support the Rays
talking to anyone in Pinellas County or Hillsborough County about a stadium
site?
5. Do you support the
neighborhood association concept and what will you do to specifically help
rebuild this City asset?
6. Do you support hiring a new
Police Chief?
7. What specifically what will
you do to begin to reduce crime and improve the quality of life in South St.
Pete?
As candidates responded to Comments section of the Post has
become long and a bit difficult to follow; so I have set up a Post for each race
and copied , with no editing, the
candidate's responses to date.
Candidates who have not responded, may add them in the Comments section or
e-mail them to me and I will add those comments with no editing to the Body of the Post.
James Kennedy: No response
Lorraine Margeson:
1. Should the LENS come to a referendum, will you support
voting to stop the project?
We have our vote Aug.
27th, VOTE YES TO STOP THE LENS
2. Do you support closing the Pier?
The Pier must be re
opened ASAP, no I do not support that move to put upwards of 400 folks out of
work when this city knows quite well that the LENS is going down. The
Chamber of Commerce and the Mayor should be ashamed of themselves for
supporting this. Whatever happens after we defeat the LENS it will be years and
years before any replacement in whatever form. Re open the pier NOW on a
limited basis, maybe open the first floor to kiosk business in air
conditioned space (I know that several businesses who were just kicked out
would return in a New York minute), open the top to some small
bar/restaurant service, and instead of the $300,000 the city makes from the two
parking lots going into the general fund, use that to subsidize a partially
opened pier, keep floors two and three closed. The public would LOVE
THIS...........AND MAYBE A FEW MORE FOLKS WOULD BE PUT BACK TO WORK!!
Refurbishment should definitely be an option when the LENS is
defeated. The city is simply telling un-truths when they say that
refurbishment "is impossible"..the city is simply telling un truths
when they say it would cost 87 MILL to refurbish because IN THEIR REFURB
PLAN THEY WIDENED THE APPROACH BY 50 FEET, yep they sure adds a LOT of cost to
a pier approach rehab, that should be NARROWER not widened, what was this city
thinking????..look at the engineering reports to see the other side of the
truth on the possibility of repair and renewal. Refurbishment would be the
most environmentally friendly and likely the least costly option in the
end.
3. Will you move to end the red light camera program?
Absolutely
4. Do you support the Rays talking to anyone in Pinellas County
or Hillsborough County about a stadium site?
The Rays are a private
concern and can do whatever they want as long as contract issues are met with
the city and it's on their dime. We have far more important issues on the
table for this city than the Rays to address at this time.
5. Do you support the neighborhood association concept and what
will you do to specifically help rebuild this City asset?
Absolutely, paying
attention to the neighborhood association process would be helpful, it seems
that this important component of city support services has been ignored in this
administration. The Neighborhood Partnership department for the city used
to be very vital and very helpful, that department needs to have the resources
and support to once again be an effective outreach and support system to the
neighborhood association concept. Council members need to make regular
visits and NOT just to their district meetings, but go to meetings all over the
city, we must keep our ears to the ground in order to gauge the feelings and
desires of our constituents.
6. Do you support hiring a new Police Chief?
Since I hear that
Chief Harmon is retiring, of course!!!
7. What specifically what will you do to begin to reduce crime
and improve the quality of life in South St. Pete?
One of my priorities if I have voter support to sit on
council will be a focus on public safety issues and the
quality of life enhancement and economic development that a safe atmosphere
brings to a neighborhood or business district. From approximately
1996 thru 2001 I ran the 34th St Corridor Crime watch. We had a VERY
active volunteer group that worked successfully hand in hand with the St.
Petersburg Police Department and the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office, our
group carried out weekly anti drug marches along the corridor when
I still lived in that neighborhood before moving to my current
location in NE St. Pete. We helped establish nuisance abatement cases for
the police department to pursue, and recorded drug dealing and prostitution
cases for the officers to act on, neighborhood cleanups, the whole nine
yards. I participated in anti drug marches throughout the city as
well.............I know how neighborhoods can support each
other. That kind of partnering needs to come back strong to
create vibrant neighborhoods, neighbor helping neighbor in conjunction
with strong neighborhood policing initiative partnerships, economic development
AND code enforcement/nuisance abatement pursuits. Neighborhood watch
programs where telephone trees and regular communication is part and
parcel of the commitment along with regular visits with the crime watch
coordinator and the community policing officer/officers in charge are VITAL to
success along with the Neighborhood Partnership department at City
Hall.......just putting up signs is a useless pursuit. Volunteers keeping
watch with city government/law enforcement support is the formula that
will move a neighborhood to a safer situation.
e-mail Doc at: dr.webb@verizon.net, or send me a Facebook Friend
request.
Campaign Disclosures: Contributor to Darden Rice Campaign
No comments:
Post a Comment