The city’s mayoral candidates addressed how each would respond to proposed state-aid funding cuts, the future of the Edgewater project and Madison’s historically high binge drinking problems at a candidate forum Monday evening.
Candidate and former mayor of Madison Paul Soglin said elections are about the future of the community and what each candidate would do with times he said were actually very complicated before Gov. Scott Walker’s budget repair bill created public unrest throughout the state three weeks ago.
“It’s not a simple process to make our government work and I don’t think that should be our desire,” Soglin said. “What it’s about is the city and the school district working together with the state and working with the nonprofits in a couple of very critical areas.”
Mayor Dave Cieslewicz said he has proven to Madisonians throughout the past eight years that he is capable of managing difficult times, warning citizens the future of the city would not be easy and would face many challenges, but promising Madison would come out stronger than where it started.
Cieslewicz said the key issue throughout the next several months will be dealing with Walker’s proposed $11 million cut in state funding for the city. He said local officials must realize the budget has not yet passed and Republicans in the Legislature might realize the impacts the budget could have and amend the proposal.
Cieslewicz also said the city needs to begin working immediately on its 2012 budget in order to maintain the city’s quality of life while continuing a strong fiscal management policy.
“I’ve asked the comptroller and the city attorney to look at a range of other revenue options we might have,” Cieslewicz said. “This is going to be the most inclusive budgeting process we’ve ever had – everyone is going to be engaged in this budget.”
Soglin said he would cut city positions in the mayor’s office, including the mayor’s spokesperson and city budget auditor, and would bring back the legislative lobbyist position to save the city additional spending. He said his proposed cuts would save the city $150,000.
Cieslewicz countered Soglin’s claims, saying all three positions were necessary for the city to face its upcoming budget issues.
Citizens also questioned what Soglin would have done differently with the Edgewater project. Soglin said the mayor’s role in the project should have been to help with the vision, identify any problems and work toward solutions instead of endorsing a specific design and project.
Cieslewicz defended his endorsement, saying the project was necessary to aid an economy where one of every three workers in the building trade were unemployed.
A number of citizens also brought up how each candidate would respond to the city’s alcohol abuse problems.
“Binge drinking and underage drinking are a serious problem in Madison,” Cieslewicz said. “We live in a state that unfortunately has a culture of pretty heavy consumption, and when you have a university it magnifies that.”
Cieslewicz pointed to the recent creation of a city Alcohol Policy Coordinator who works with the city and the University of Wisconsin to address underage consumption.
Soglin said he would rather approach the downtown campus area head-on, shutting down the “over-the-top” private parties and working with parents to address the roots of the problem.
