We asked and you answered! After asking followers on facebook which candidates for local races they would like us to reach out, the five races that generated the most excitement on social media were: Fitchburg Mayor, Madison District 10, Madison District 11, Manitowoc Mayor, and River Falls City Council.
We sent all of the major candidates in each of these races a short questionnaire to help us understand why they think they are the best candidate in their race to address environmental concerns in their communities. There are many offices up for election this upcoming Tuesday, April 4, and while we realize that we did not reach out to all of them, we hope that the sampling of candidates that we did reach out to will help you make a more informed decision at the polls on Tuesday.
This process has been in no way an endorsement by the Sierra Club for any candidate. Throughout the process, each candidate was treated equally, given the same questions, been sent a follow up email, and given equal amount of time to respond to the questions that we posed. The purpose for reaching out to candidates was only to help engage and educate Sierra Club members and members of the communities that these candidates are running to represent. Thank you to all the candidates who participated!
The questions and candidate responses are available for each selected race below:
Fitchburg Mayor:
Candidates: Steve Arnold and Jason Gonzalez
In terms of environmental issues, what sets you apart from other candidates?
Steve Arnold:
My academic background is in aquatic ecology and population ecology. I understand the short and long term effects of perturbing our human and natural systems. I work on root causes, not gimmicks that kick problems down the road. This is illustrated by my work on land use and transportation for Fitchburg, on city fiscal issues, and on climate change adaption for the Wisconsin DNR.
Jason Gonzalez:
I can see the forest through the trees on practical issues affecting our environment. While he means well, my opponent is unrealistic about important environmental impacts such as transportation in the Madison suburbs and Dane County’s suburban cities. In Fitchburg, we have only a few routes that merit full-sized Madison Metro buses, while we need alternatives like ride-share or van transit services that can take individuals or smaller groups of passengers on less frequently travelled routes or on first/last mile to/from their destinations. I have consistently voted to support a hybrid or smaller vehicle approach while my opponent votes against and stubbornly clings to the idea that expensive, Madison Metro buses are required. According to a US Dept. of Transportation, 2010 study of public transportation, #’s of CO2/passenger mile is typically 3 times higher for bus transit than for van pool. Vans are more efficient/less polluting even when both vehicles are completely full;
Furthermore, I walk the walk, living in a large apartment complex in the dense, northern part of our city, proximal to the Capitol Square, while my opponent lives in a large-lot, suburban home, at the most distal end of Fitchburg’s Urban Service Area. He likes to talk about the New Urbanism, but doesn’t live it himself.
What aspects of your personal history, accomplishments, and personal philosophy make you the best possible choice for environmental voters in this election cycle?
Steve Arnold:
I have worked on the Common Council for ten years and as mayor and commissioner on the Capital Area Regional Planning Commission for two years. I brought the regional planning principles of Professor Emeritus Phil Lewis (designer of the Wisconsin state park system and the Lewis Dane County E-Way) to Fitchburg, where they were incorporated in our Comprehensive Plan in 2010. I introduced the SmartCode development and zoning code for traditional neighborhoods and transit-oriented development to our city, where it was adopted in 2010 and now controls development of nearly 700 acres of future urban mid-rise development in northeast Fitchburg, providing walkable urban neighborhoods, saving farmland, and providing outstanding return on Fitchburg’s investment in services and infrastructure. I promoted world-class bicycle infrastructure throughout our city for over twelve years, resulting in bronze Bicycle Friendly Community recognition in 2012 and silver BFC recognition in 2015. I have tirelessly promoted public transit, equity in the delivery of city services, integrated water management, and planning to enhance public health for over twelve years. I can give many more examples, but will stop with these.
Jason Gonzalez:
I am a Millennial, less than ½ the age of my opponent, and far more practical. I fully understand what Chief Seattle said about ‘borrowing the land from our grandchildren’, because my Mexican grandmother taught me to be close to the land, by gardening, composting, and eating the ‘food less travelled’ from our local farmers market. Until I graduated from Law School I walked or rode my bike to school, always living within 2 miles of my home, from grade-school (St. James), to high-school (Edgewood), to UW (Undergrad’ & Law School). I plan to pass this philosophy on to my own children, and in the meantime have already done so as a Big Brother, through Dane County Big Brothers/Big Sisters.
What do you see as the most important issue this election in terms of protecting clean air and water?
Steve Arnold:
Water and soil protection is not a top issue for candidate debate in this cycle, but it comes up as different development philosophies. My opponent is talking about “affordability”, and sees the solution as getting the local government “out of the way of the private sector”. By contrast, I remind residents that with every new subdivision or commercial project, the residents, through their local government, make a perpetual promise to provide services and maintain infrastructure. Without smart planning, allowing private landowners to build whatever they want, wherever they want, the cost of our four main infrastructure systems, water, storm water, sewer, and especially transportation, will spiral out of control. Even now my opponent is probing city staff for “flexibility” in the 50-year development boundary established by our Comprehensive Plan. Planning for sustainability (“making things work in a healthy way long into an uncertain future”), resiliency, and equity for humans in the context of their natural and built environment leads to a host of benefits in health, climate protection, safety, community, clean water and air, and fertile soil. Strongly believing these things leads me to support philosophies like Strong Towns, the Original Green, and New Urbanism.
Jason Gonzalez:
Hiring a new, full-time Environmental Engineer for the City of Fitchburg and giving him/her the latitude to operate; continuing to support the work of several of my predecessors through the U.S. Conference of Mayor’s Climate Protection Agreement, and Fitchburg’s ‘25x25’ pledge, through the state of Wisconsin’s Energy Independent Communities initiative.
What would you do to ensure the community you hope to represent is a livable community?
Steve Arnold:
I will keep to my plans and hope new Council members are more interested in the quality of ideas than in their source. Specifically, I will
Continue emphasizing new, urban mid-rise neighborhoods along our eastern rail line,
Work to implement cross-city fixed-route public transit between our transit-rich Verona and Fish Hatchery Rd corridors and the civic center,
Establish a sustainability management system, such as the Natural Step, for city government,
Establish an equity and diversity task force to diagnose and address the root causes of systematic barriers and implicit bias,
Met our goals of 25% renewable power for city government operations by 2025, beginning with 375 kw of solar power in 2017-2018,
Continue to build out bicycle routes throughout the city, and safe walking routes throughout its urban service area, for everyone, aged 8 to 80,
Preserve our agricultural land to grow food, capture energy, and collect and purify water, emphasizing infill and urban development, and
Implement integrated water management (“One Water”), including potable, used, storm, ground, and recreational water, in Fitchburg and our downstream neighbors.
Jason Gonzalez:
Make it affordable, with community centers and/or green space accessible from all neighborhoods.
If money were no obstacle, what is one project you’d like to see the town/city/county move forward on?
Steve Arnold:
With twelve years of city government experience, I find it difficult to answer questions beginning with “If money were no obstacle…”. However, since you asked: I would provide public financing for every elected office. Implicit in this is the constitutional amendment declaring that money is not speech, and corporations are not people with constitutional rights. This would go a long way toward removing the motive agents that are destroying our democracy and undermining our civilization.
That done, I’d outlaw private education and insure everyone went to economically diverse public schools. An educated public is key to the support of such important institutions as the Affordable Care Act, the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts, and the National Environmental Policy Act.
Jason Gonzalez:
Two new, zero-net energy community centers (North and West), connected through smart, micro-grid technology to the rest of the city’s campus/municipal buildings, receiving 100% of their power from locally-sourced clean energy.
Madison District 10:
Candidates: Maurice Cheeks and Steve Fitzsimmons (Steve Fitzsimmons did not respond to our questions.)
In terms of environmental issues, what sets you apart from other candidates?
Maurice Cheeks:
I’m proud to have supported the City of Madison’s recent commitment to transition to 100 percent clean, renewable energy across all sectors including electricity, heating, and transportation.
What aspects of your personal history, accomplishments, and personal philosophy make you the best possible choice for environmental voters in this election cycle?
Maurice Cheeks:
President Barack Obama, addressing the threat of global climate change, once told our nation, “Let that be the common purpose… A world that is worthy of our children.” His wise words resonate as I seek to make our community the best place it can be for all of us. As a local elected official, my purpose is to build a Madison worthy of the next generation. As a new father, my goal is the same for my daughter. Let that be our common purpose in Madison. And in order to make a community worth of our next generation, we’ll need to ensure we’re making good environmental decisions in order to sustain our community for the next generation.
What do you see as the most important issue this election in terms of protecting clean air and water?
Maurice Cheeks:
Madison’s commitment to try to reduce salt usage in the winter is an important issue that is within our control, however fighting back against state and national attacks on regulation of our water and air are going to be one of the most important things that we need our community and local leaders to be doing for the next several years.
What would you do to ensure the community you hope to represent is a livable community?
Maurice Cheeks:
For the past four years I’ve been working on issues related to livability. Affordability, walkability, safety, health, sustainability, and educational and economic opportunities are all essential aspects of livability that I have been and will continue to strive for.
If money were no obstacle, what is one project you’d like to see the town/city/county move forward on?
Maurice Cheeks:
A biodigester for a robust organic waste program city (or county) wide.
Madison District 11:
Candidates: Bradley Campbell and Arvina Martin (Arvina Martin did not respond to our questions.)
In terms of environmental issues, what sets you apart from other candidates?
Bradley Campbell:
What sets us apart is experience. I work directly on environmental issues - and other issues. I am the only candidate that can speak from real experience and commitment on this.
Professionally, I work to evaluate utility-scale energy efficiency programs around North America, ensuring that they are delivering on the efficiency savings they are committed to.
I am a member of the Sustainable Madison Committee, and one of the sub-committee authors of the 100% Renewable Energy and Carbon Neutral goals for the City of Madison. We have put Madison on the path to stop our contribution to Global Climate Change.
I have walked the talk.
What aspects of your personal history, accomplishments, and personal philosophy make you the best possible choice for environmental voters in this election cycle?
Bradley Campbell:
I have made Energy Efficiency and Energy Conservation my career. I evaluate energy efficiency programs to ensure that they are effectively encouraging efficiency and truly meeting goals in order to reduce energy needs - thus protecting the environment.
I have dedicated my personal time to making a real difference right here in our city as a member of the Sustainable Madison Committee, addressing Climate Change directly with our goals for 100% Renewable Energy Goals. Madison is only the 24th city of any size in the United States to do so. I am proud to say that I was a member of the sub-committee that wrote the plan - I have helped lead the city to a future where we are no longer harming the environment - and I am not even Alder yet.
Imagine what I can do for the environment and sustainability in general in Madison if elected.
What do you see as the most important issue this election in terms of protecting clean air and water?
Bradley Campbell:
Clean air and water - as separate from Global Climate change, I am assuming.
We require Sustainability thinking, a systems approach to all policy. We can better protect our air and water through development policy (zoning, siting, construction code, multi-purpose developments with transit, employment, mixed housing).
We can protect our groundwater by reducing the amount of road that we need to salt - working against sprawl, updating street clearing policies, citing necessary services nearby (as they get priority salting) or finding alternatives.
We can protect our surface water through policies big and small - from permeable lots, rain-gardens, leaf collection policy (as leaves contribute phosphorus to the lakes), or working to remove inefficient water softeners.
We can protect our air by moving to 100% Renewable Energy, now our stated and official goal as a city, no longer burning coal or even gas-powered plants.
We can protect our air by transitioning to emission free transit, and higher density transit (light rail, busses), no longer using fossil fuels in our transportation that emit both particulates and GHGs.
There is not a single most important way - we must think about sustainability and the long term effects of all our actions.
What would you do to ensure the community you hope to represent is a livable community?
Bradley Campbell:
I have already worked on this as a member of the University Hill Farms Neighborhood plan. We were able to do much of that:
We built in walkability and bikeability and encouraging public transit, ensuring that people would have non-car options in the future.
We built in the plan to have an increase in park space as density increases.
We planned out livable spaces and place-making opportunities.
We worked to demonstrate that our schools are recognized as the jewels of the area and that they are always kept in mind for new decisions and we identified that there are many elderly who must be remembered as new policies are considered.
We encouraged redevelopment within the area, asking for increased mixed income housing and more options for everything from housing to restaurants to services and shopping.
I also co-founded our Hill Farms Good Neighbor Program (just changed from Neighborhood Watch) to support the idea that the community is essential in safety, that through education and collaboration we can keep our community safe and therefor livable.
I currently work on the Sustainable Madison Committee, currently engaged with the City of Madison comprehensive planning process - mapping out our plan for the next 10-20 years. There I am working to ensure that Sustainability goals are incorporated into all elements of our city's guiding planning document.
Sustainability thinking is not a single issue like a department - it is not energy or transportation, roads, fire or policing. It is a lens that we look at all issues through. 100% renewable energy in order to protect the air, water and climate, yes - and that cuts through all departments. Walk-ability and bike-ability is important not only for some, but for reducing traffic problems, improving quality of life, improving health outcomes and even improving our sewage budget (a healthier city has less prescription drugs to filter out of its wastewater - an expensive process!).
If money were no obstacle, what is one project you’d like to see the town/city/county move forward on?
Bradley Campbell:
If we had a blank check - I would want a 100% Renewable Energy Solution installed today, in its entirety. Not just as our goal and stated policy to achieve, but installed and running. We wrote the plan to include not just electricity, but all sectors, including transportation as well. The reasons I want this going are twofold:
- First, for the environmental reason that we would no longer be contributing to global warming through our energy and transportation systems.
- Secondly, the long term savings from this project will be immense. Being able to have renewable energy will result in lower costs for the city, thus allowing us tens of millions of dollars per year to address our other critical issues, such as homelessness, racial disparities, affordable housing, water and more. Renewable energy is long-term fiscal responsibility, one that we are not talking enough about.
Manitowoc Mayor:
Neither Candidate (Barry Nelson or Justin Nickels) responded to our questions.
River Falls City Council:
Neither candidate (Diane Odeen or Aaron Taylor) responded to our questions.
A brief note: candidates were only given a 4 day window to respond to the questionnaire, so this may be the reason that so many did not respond.