Franklin Candidate Forum notes: part 2

Part 2 of my notes on Monday's Franklin Candidate Forum concentrate on the Aldermanic races, with an emphasis on the match-up in the 3rd District, which is where I live. I have declared myself free to editorialize throughout, and my bias will be clear, I'm sure.

With all due respect to the incumbent of District 4, Pete Kosovich, I think that race belongs to the challenger, Steve Taylor. Kosovich was swept into his seat during turbulent times when a pro-development faction of the city organized to stack the council. His theme is, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Well, it's broke.

The format of the forum consisted of an opening statement by each candidate followed by a question that each candidate took turns answering. Each candidate was then given a couple minutes for a closing statement.

Here are some moments that stood out for me:

When asked how will your involvement make the city stronger, challenger Kristen Wilhelm spoke about getting her constituents more deeply involved, noting that she hears from people she’s talked to door-to-door that they’re exasperated by finding out about developments at the 11th hour rather than at a point where they might offer input.

Incumbant Alan Hammelman led off with his enthusiasm for proper development of 27th street, the first of many times he would mention that “golden opportunity.”

Asked about the appropriate balance of residential and commercial/industrial in the city, Hammelman again mentioned the 27th Street corridor and cited his goal to reach the “70-30 mix” (70% residential, 30% commercial/industrial). He touted his desire to create a pro-business climate to take some tax burden from homeowners.

Wilhelm pointed out that she’d like to find ways to encourage locally-owned businesses so money spent here can stay here.

How would each candidate involve their constituents? Hammelman’s response was particularly revealing and consistent with the current poor state of communication between Franklin city government and citizens:

“You’ll hear people say, ‘How come I didn’t know about this development on XYZ Street?’ It’s very difficult to make 500 outbound calls, know all the right numbers and so forth. It is imperative that our constituents take an active role by looking at agendas on the website and so forth. So, part of being in a democracy is being aware of what’s happening in your local government.”

Not particularly inspiring.

I preferred Wilhelm’s answer, which revealed a knowledge of the existence of the internet and email (“500 outbound calls"?). She also pointed out the city’s well-known deficiency in recording meetings for people who cannot attend them. (We live in a city where meetings are stopped so the cassette tape can be turned over and recording resumed; digital recording technology continues to elude us.)

A digression: Can it be possible that we have alderpersons on the present council who believe:

A) The primary means of relaying information to their constituents is via telephone,

B) Rather than make a point of creating better systems for communicating ongoing information to citizens, it falls to his/her constituents to sort through the tangle of menus and submenus on the city’s website to track an issue or project?

In Franklin, if you want to track, for instance, the Shoppes at Wyndham Village project, you have to check the individual agendas for every council, commission, etc. daily to see if that item might appear there. And the agenda can change at any time. Go to the City of Franklin website right now and try it!

Compare that insane mess to the way it’s done in Davis, California - - take a moment to check out their website here. Click "Cannery Park Project" under "Current Issues" - - magic! A complete, up-to-date and comprehensible summary of the entire project, including meeting digests, documents, and alerts for future meetings on the project. It's worth a screen grab - -

Now that's communication. That's how you can get citizens behind progressive, forward-thinking developments (like mixed-use commercial/residential) that may seem intimidating when viewed at the 11th hour.

"500 outbound calls," Mr. Hammelman? Will that be on a rotary phone?

Back to the forum:

When asked what is the biggest issue facing the district, "business-friendly" Hammelman inexplicably named "Sycamore Street." What is Sycamore Street? It's the proposed throughfare for the Wal-Mart expansion that the "business-friendly" council recently rubber-stamped. Suddenly Hammelman is in there swinging for his constituents - - a few weeks before the election.

In his comments, Hammelman also returned to his fixation,  TIF-magnet, Oak Creek-feeding 27th Street. (Is Oak Creek funding Hammelman's campaign?)

Wilhelm reminded Hammelman that, despite his boast of having recently "introduced a motion to prevent Sycamore Street from going through," the matter had been essentially settled long ago; the mayor asked the Wal-Mart developer if they planned to run the road through, and they answered "no."

NOTE: From the February 27th edition of Franklinnow.com: "Deborah Tomczyk, an attorney representing Wal-Mart.. said nearby Sycamore Street will not be extended, a major concern last year among residents that live near the Wal-Mart."

Meanwhile, Wilhelm continued, nearly every road that bounds the 3rd District has problems that are being ignored - - try carrying a bag of groceries from Sendik's to anywhere - - while Hammelman fixates on 27th Street and an already-dead issue. 51st Street is a death-trap. Access to the Oak Leaf Trail is extremely limited, which hobbles a potential amenity, etc.

Let's skip ahead to the candidate's vision of Franklin in 15 to 20 years.

Wilhelm talked about working to create a sense of community; a place where people are not isolated in "pods":

"Let's create public spaces where we can be comfortable walking and meeting each other. Quality restaurants, varied retail and shopping, a variety of housing opportunities; not just serving the high end and forgetting the needs of lower income people. Create something to really attract people here. Look at the town of Greendale and how people say it’s so wonderful - - it's just a little ice cream shop. We have nothing like that here in Franklin. You need something that will bring the people here."

Unbelievably, Hammelman again banged the 27th Street drum, actually leading off with "I envision some very wonderful things happening on the 27th street corridor." Then, as Franklin attempts to get a handle on our present infrastructure, he called for more expensive sprawl and more isolation: "I also look forward to putting sewer into the southwestern section of the city, so we can see some new development there."

Why? Because it's there, I guess. And there are still developers out there who having gotten their "dip."

In their final statements, Hammelman was up first and reiterated his "business-first, residents-second (hopefully)" vision: "This council and I have set into motion a pro-business environment that can provide some much-needed tax relief and increase the quality of life for our residents." He thanked department heads for their hard work, and then noted endorsements by Mayor Taylor, Casper Green, and Lyle Sohns.

Observation 1: If you note an endorsement by one member of the Common Council (Lyle Sohns), are you not calling attention to the fact that none of the remaining members bothered to do the same?

Observation 2: Casper Green is a tireless volunteer and community asset who works extensively with Franklin's elderly community, and undoubtedly helps them procure their absentee ballots. Well played, Mr. Hammelman - - that may be the only "endorsement" you need.

Wilhelm took the opportunity to note that she works well with others after years of experience doing so, but is still willing and able to speak her mind. She also pointed out that she is a hard worker, having been in a volunteer position for the city for the past 8 years, during which time she has become familiar with Franklin's various codes and procedures.

All in all, a productive forum; the candidates' differences were made clear.

Next up: The mayor's contest.

Comments

[Kevin Fischer]

John, weren't you all over Mayor Taylor about a spelling error he had on his website?

I'm surprised at you.

If you're on a mission to destroy Alderman Kosovich's chances, you should at least get his name spelled correctly.

It's KOSOVICH.

Sure hope your TV never needs fixing.

[John Michlig]

Mr. Fischer is evidently a bit irony-impaired, not seeing the difference between a candidate for mayor misspelling the word "government" and a blogger misspelling someone's last name.

Wow - now that I look back I see I CONSISTENTLY spelled Mr. Kosovich's name wrong in every instance I used it! Thanks for the heads up.

Mayor Taylor alerted me to the possibility that Basil Ryan has "Franklin" misspelled somewhere on his campaign site - he swears it's true. See, THAT might be amusing as well.

[Bryan Maersch]

I think the guy in your picture taking videos of the candidates is quite the handsome and intelligent guy. You can sense it from your photo.

PS. I was told that Hammelman did not ask all of the other Alderman for an endorsement, which I find even more curious.

[Greg Kowalski]

John,

You WOULD put that picture up! That's funny.

As for Kevin, it looks like you and him are going to be exchanging errors and mistakes for at least the next 2 months, all rude and inconsiderate-like.

Anyways, good review of that night. The voters sure can't say they didn't know enough about the candidates this year!

[Fred Keller]

John,

Another excellent piece on the Candidates Forum; great observations.

As for Hammelman's views on keeping his constituents, of which I am one, involved in city government, he might as well have said:

"What, are you all so lazy that you can't check the agenda on the city's website. I can't be bothered with that 'communication' thing, I have a Sheepshead tournament tonight. Sheez, contituents!"

[Kevin Fischer]

Hey, Greg, there was nothing rude about what I said.

John Michlig chastised me for days about fact-checking.

Well he neglected to fact-check, numerous times, and I couldn't resist needling him in return.

He should know better.

And John, k-a-t is always a spelling error, whether it's made by a Mayor or a blogger.

I'll say this about John, though. His writing is usually free of such errors. Greg, your stuff is a daily parade of spelling and grammatic butchery.

[John Michlig]

If I spell it wrong once, it's nit-picking. But I spelled it wrong approximately seven times, so that's not merely a typing error.

Misspelling my OWN last name would have been funnier, though.

[Kevin Fischer]

I tease, but the lengthy post does point out what happens when people get out from behind the campaign literature.

[Greg Kowalski]

Next time I'll remember that you have an apparent Masters degree in English, Kevin.

[John Michlig]

Greg, that would be better written:

"Next time I'll remember that you, Kevin, apparently have a Masters degree in English."

You have an indistinct modifier in your version, because the "Masters degree" is not "apparent"; it is Kevin's possession of same that you wish to describe as "apparent."

Apparently.