Ray Allen

On streetcars: "We are not supporting the trolleys at all. At $15 to 20 million a mile, it's too expensive. Our focus is going to be on making the bus system better."

On how to improve downtown safety: "We need to add more police officers. It just doesn't make any sense to have City Hall spend $300,000 to study trolleys, while we are only spending $100,000 on downtown safety."

On the city budget: "City Hall needs to set priorities so we can make sure that important city services, like public safety, are fully funded."

On how to improve safety on Allied Drive: "City Hall has taken a property management solution to what is really a quality of life problem on Allied. We really need to bring educational job training opportunities … to Allied Drive."

On Halloween: "The problems with Halloween begin when the bars close and thousands of people who have been drinking are in the streets. I would like to lobby the state Legislature for a one-night exemption on Halloween — we would lobby them to exempt us from the 2 a.m. bar time."

On the bar ban: "I don't think limiting the number of downtown bars is the answer. We can make downtown safer by investing in more police officers, detectives and district attorneys to solve the crimes that are occurring downtown."

On how to make Madison more environmentally friendly: "The first thing the city can do is to make environmental data, especially water-quality data, more open and accessible to residents. There's no reason residents should be kept in the dark about the safety pertaining to their drinking water."

On how to make housing more affordable: "As mayor I would make a commitment to the Madison Affordable Housing Trust Fund. It would help out renters because you would have renters' assistance; it certainly would assist with the homeowner's education program, so it provides a variety of options."

Mayor Dave Cieslewicz

On streetcars: "It's something that we need to study. Dane County is facing 100,000 more cars in the next 20 years, and I think that streetcars could be part of the answer to deal with that."

On how to improve downtown safety: "It has to be a comprehensive plan that includes more than just police presence. We need to continue to work closely with students, neighborhood leaders and the university administration to keep downtown safe."

On the city's budget: "In my four budgets, we've had the second-lowest property tax increase of any administration in the last three decades."

On how to improve safety on Allied Drive: "We need to continue our comprehensive approach, which includes more policing but also includes (an) after-school program, job training initiatives and help for families."

On Halloween: "I think if we keep the same basic plan but work with students to improve it further, not only will we have a successful Halloween, but we'll start to build broad public support for the event for years to come."

On the bar ban: "I think it's one possible strategy to address the high number of alcohol-related incidents downtown, but it's not the only answer."

On ways to make Madison more environmentally friendly: "The most important environmental issue facing us now is global climate change, and we're working on a plan to make all 200 of our city-owned buildings more efficient."

On how to make housing more affordable: "It needs to be not just affordable, but secure and well-maintained, so we need to continue policies like lock ordinances, more building inspections, inclusionary zoning and fair-housing testing."

Peter Muñoz

On streetcars: "Streetcars is not the answer. The answer is we need to make sure that the Metro system is improved."

On how to improve downtown safety: "What we need to do is ensure that we have community policing downtown … and we need to increase not necessarily the number of officers — we need to increase the number of detectives so crime can be examined."

On the city budget: "What we need to do is ensure that the increased tax base that all the development is creating is used to make taxes more affordable — (and) make sure the housing is affordable."

On how to improve safety on Allied Drive: "We need to concentrate on being tough on crime on Allied Drive. We need to ensure that the Allied Drive neighborhood has a very high percentage of home ownership."

On Halloween: "Halloween is a wonderful event for Madison. We need to welcome it. I would work with the students to make sure they have input and that they participate during the event."

On the bar ban: "I think that is a simplistic solution. I would not put a cap on the alcohol venues."

On ways to make Madison more environmentally friendly: "The best thing that we could do is go back to 2003, when I had all the environmental initiatives that the mayor has stopped, eliminated or diminished."

On how to make housing more affordable: "We have to do a concerted effort to reduce the tax burden. Most people don't realize that has a direct relationship with housing, even when they're renting because the landlord pays the taxes."

Will Sandstrom

On streetcars: "I'm totally opposed to streetcars. Those cities where trolleys have been built are boondoggles. Organized crime has been involved in these projects. It's sad, but it's the way it is."

On how to improve safety downtown: "Thirty new policemen, and then 15 new detectives to back up the policemen and their investigation. And cameras, as they have in Helsinki, Finland, the safest city in the world."

On the city budget: "I would be very careful about spending city monies. I would do all I could to get the federal government to enact the Franklin Roosevelt humane progressive tax system that they had from '44 through '61."

On how to improve safety on Allied Drive: "The first step to improving on Allied Drive is to attempt to get monies from the federal government, and not tax the property owners."

On Halloween: "I would do more or less what was done this past Halloween, and try to have more cameras and more policemen, and also possibly raise the entrance fee."

On the bar ban: "Absolutely in favor. I don't think a university should be a booze university, I think it should be a scholarly institution."

On ways to make Madison more environmentally friendly: "[We need to] not attempt to bring into this city ever more people, forcing them to live like sardines."

On how to make housing more affordable: "Let's not put the stress on the property tax payer because if we start trying to have affordable housing at the expense of taxing property tax payers, if the property tax goes up, then they have to raise the rent to cover the property tax."