Wrap-Up: Candidates’ Night at the Belmont Library

It was standing room only in the Belmont Library’s Taube Room last night as city council and clerk candidates answered questions scripted by Belmont Chamber of Commerce and took questions from audience members.

The event, co-sponsored by the Belmont Chamber of Commerce and the Friends of the Belmont Library, brought together candidates running for election in the city council, city clerk and city treasurer races.

Four of the five council candidates were present for the forum: Paul Brownlee, David Braunstein (incumbent), Eric Reed and Christine Wozniak (incumbent). Candidate Michael McGuinness did not attend the forum. There are two seats open on the city council; all are four-year terms.

Both candidates for city clerk were present: Terri Cook (incumbent), and Dave Warden. There is one seat open for city clerk; it is a four-year term.

Also present was John Violet, incumbent city treasurer who is also up for re-election, however his race is uncontested.

According to chamber president George Burgess, the candidates were given the questions prior to the forum, and were provided documents to be used in their research.

(Note: Belmont Patch received an email yesterday from candidate Michael McGuinness, who did not attend the forum, stating he did not receive any questions or documents from the chamber. Patch contacted George Burgess who replied in and email that all questions and documents were sent to the email address McGuinness has on his website. According to Burgess, McGuinness did not respond to those emails or to phone calls.)

Chamber member Adele Della Santina was moderator for the event, the focus of which was economic development in the City of Belmont.

Differing opinions on the role of city clerk

(The following are excerpts from the candidates’ answers/comments)

The question posed to clerk candidates asked them to compare and contrast the positions and responsibilities of an elected versus an appointed city clerk.

Incumbent city clerk Terri Cook stressed the importance of having a full-time, elected clerk staffing the office whose main role, according to Cook, “is to be the eyes and ears of the public at City Hall.” She added that her job is administrative in nature as opposed to policy setting like a city councilmember.

There are currently two full-time employees in the clerk’s office, Cook, and a deputy clerk.

Challenger Dave Warden stated that he was running for city clerk for two reasons: financial accountability and innovation. “If you elect me, I will save you $500,000 over the course of my four-year term. And I will make this office more efficient and more transparent.”

Warden is proposing having just one full-time employee in the clerk’s office, and making the elected clerk position more of an overseer than a full-time employee.

“You don’t need two full-time people in the city clerk’s office,” he said. “There are a number of full-time administrative employees in City Hall that are well paid, well educated and are very anxious to help people out.”

Cook feels that by eliminating one full-time position, the service would be diluted. “There are a lot of things that take time—documents, minutes, navigating the public through various tasks. We do a lot of sharing as it is between departments. We are about as lean as we can go.”

When asked how they expect to bring about change to the clerk’s office, Warden stressed the need for more technology. “We need the government to be able to get the information to us to tell us what’s going on. It’s about reaching out to the public using things like electronic devices to cut down on all the paper we use.”

Cook put the responsibility for communication with the public back on the city council. “The city council is in a position to change direction. If these ideas were brought up, I’d be happy to implement paperless anything.”

Council candidates: “Greenie Meanie vs Greenie Weenie”

(The following are excerpts from the candidates’ answers/comments)

Questions directed to council candidates asked them their views on Village District Amendments (located along El Camino Real and Old County Road between Harbor Blvd. and Middle Rd.).

Paul Brownlee: “I don’t think it’s good to push as policy removing people from their private cars. We don’t need to be a greenie meanie town. I would like to see a cut-through from Harbor Blvd. behind Twin Pines Park and out near NDNU to get people up Ralston Ave. toward 92 more efficiently. We have to do something to get people off Ralston.”

David Braunstein: “I would like to see us use high quality building materials, and increase the floor/area ratio and units per acre to encourage developers to come to Belmont. We need more public spaces, like courtyards and plazas, public art, and consistent architectural design.  I’d also like to see a gym for younger kids, and wider sidewalks.”

Christine Wozniak: “I wouldn’t change the plan. I would take into consideration what the developers need. As far as traffic, I’m a greenie weanie—I’d make it more pedestrian, more bikeways and have a cut-through for safer access for bikes. I’d also like to see more restaurants come to Belmont. Restaurants are good for our tax revenues and a place like Dave and Buster’s would do well here.

Eric Reed: “Developers want a clear road map and developer and zoning standards, which is why I like the current Village Plan.  We also need to streamline regulations; right now there are too many CUPs (conditional use permits) required for different types of businesses. As far as traffic, I’d consider closing Waltermire and Emmett off to vehicle traffic.

Other issues

Although the focus on economic development was the overarching theme of the forum, a question about the fairness of Belmont’s tree ordinance sparked the most reaction from audience members.

The ordinance states that a resident must obtain a permit to remove a tree, pay a fee and have a city inspector to say yes or no to the removal.

Woziak: “I agree with the current tree ordinance.”

Reed: “I don’t support needing a permit to remove anything greater than 10 inches, even if it was planted by the homeowner. This tree ordinance smacks of over-regulation.” 

Reed’s comment drew applause from the audience.

Braunstein: “I voted for it because there is a one-year review built into the ordinance. But we need to hear from you—if you don’t like the ordinance, contact your city council and things can be changed.”

Other questions from the audience centered around the permitting process, sewer lateral testing, communication with the public, and unfunded liabilities for elected and city officials. Due to time constraints, not every candidate had an opportunity to address every question.

In closing, each candidate summed up his/her qualifications for office.

Reed: “If you think you’re over-regulated and if economic development in Belmont has not lived up to your expectations, then vote for me."

Brownlee: “I would like to take city council in a different direction. We need to stop high speed rail, which would put us into an economic depression for the next 10-15 years."

Braustein: “I won’t seek out attention on the council—I will be there to listen to your concerns and apply that information to policy."

Wozniak: “I have shown proven commitment, taken a leadership role in my 30 years as a Belmont resident. If you want someone who shows up, vote for me."

Cook: “This election for city clerk is about continuing this position the way it has for 85 years. Not having a full-time city clerk would be a disservice to the people of Belmont.”

Warden: “You guys are the hiring managers for this job. I’ve given you a choice and I will make sure the work gets done and the office runs smoothly—and I’ll save you half a million dollars.”

All of the candidates’ statements are available at www.belmont.gov under the City Clerk tab.