ThisWeek Community Newspapers

Thursday, October 25, 2007

JENNIFER NESBITT
ThisWeek Staff Writer

Four Republican candidates and a write-in candidate will challenge four Columbus City Council incumbents, all Democrats, for four seats in the Nov. 6 election.

Council members Hearcel Craig, Andrew Ginther, Mike Mentel and Charleta Tavares are hoping to keep their seats. Republicans Paul Bingle, Bill Brownson, Jim O'Grady and Larry W. Thomas and write-in candidate Joshua Williams also have thrown their hats into the race.

Williams was certified as a write-in candidate but didn't return a questionnaire and couldn't be reached for comment.

Craig, 58, has been a member of the community for 50 years. He was sworn in as a council member in April. He graduated from Franklin University in 1978 with a bachelor's degree in business administration. He earned his master's degree in administration from Central Michigan University in 1997 and currently is studying for a master of divinity degree from Ashland Theological Seminary.

Craig said he's running for council in order to continue Columbus's progress. He said his main concerns are neighborhood safety and job growth.

"In 2008, I will keep focusing my efforts on the safety of our citizens," he said. "We must continue funding safety strategies like the Summer Strike Force and anti-truancy programs."

Ginther, 32, a lifelong Columbus resident, is a graduate of Whetstone High School. He holds a bachelor of arts degree in political science from Earlham College. He has been a council member since January. He works as a community relations coordinator for Triumph Communications Inc.

Ginther attributes his success and opportunities to the Columbus City Schools and said he is running for council to give back to the city.

"I am running for Columbus City Council to give back to the community that which it has bestowed on me, and to continue my work to ensure the opportunities that were available to me are expanded for the next generation," he said.

Ginther said he wants to work to make sure city government is accessible, responsive and accountable to its constituents.

Mentel, 45, is a lifelong Columbus resident. He graduated from Bishop Ready High School and holds an undergraduate degree in political science and history and a law degree from Capital University.

Mentel has served on council since January 1999 and currently serves as council president.

He said he believes that the city has made a great deal of progress during his eight years on council and said he is running because he believes his leadership will help to continue that progress.

"I believe my leadership role on council, as well as the strong relationship my colleagues and I have developed with the mayor, will allow for us to continue to move this city forward," Mentel said.

Tavares, 52, is a Columbus native. She is a graduate of Eastmoor High School and attended Spelman College and The Ohio State University. Tavares serves as executive director of the Multiethnic Advocates for Cultural Competence.

She was first elected to council in 1999 and was re-elected in 2003.

Tavares said she is running for re-election to continue her work in the areas of housing, health, human services and workforce development. She said she also would like to work toward improving the quality of life in Columbus by focusing on the arts, entertainment, culture, economic vitality, safety and education.

"My work and community service is not complete," she said. "I have several innovative ideas and strategies to expand housing opportunities, protect the health and safety of our children and expand health care services in Columbus."

Bingle, 53, has lived in Columbus for the past 34 years. He serves as chief executive officer and executive director of Earth Share of Ohio.

He is not officially affiliated with a political party, but he is endorsed by the Republican Party.

Bingle said he has worked on several city projects over the last 23 years and is running for council because he believes that experience will help him to serve as and "activist" member of the council.

"My analytical approach to issues, my habit of engagement of multiple views at the consensus development table, my fiscal conservativeness, my 'green-issue' attention and my commitment not to make a career out of public service allow me to tackle the issues of the city with a differing, yet complimentary manner that will increase the public's interaction with City Hall and that will yield better policies and outcomes from city council," Bingle said.

Brownson, 43, has been a Columbus resident for 25 years. He has a bachelor's degree in business and a master's of business administration from The Ohio State University.

Brownson works as wealth advisor for JP Morgan and said he believes his financial and business experience will lead to greater success in City Hall.

He said the city needs some new voices and he plans to commit to long-term visions and will focus on economic and job development.

"While Columbus is not without progress, the most important initiatives require a multi-year vision and strategy along with the focus and support of both the administration and city council," he said. "Ideas of the month and strategies that constantly change don't produce their planned results (e.g., City Center and the 315 corridor)."

O'Grady, 37, is a Columbus native. He earned a bachelor's degree from Ohio Dominican College and a law degree from Capital University Law School. He works in the Franklin County Prosecutor's Office as an assistant prosecuting attorney.

O'Grady said he is running for council because a new voice is needed.

"For over six years, there has been only one party in control at City Hall, which breeds complacency," he said. "I want to be active, engaged, and I believe in asking questions."

ThisWeek submitted a questionnaire to all council candidates. Neither Thomas nor Williams responded by ThisWeek's deadline.

What can be done to reduce crime within the city?

Bingle: We must increase the number of eyes and feet that are on the streets that are looking for crime and by their presence are serving to thwart crime. Even if stretched city funds weren't preventing our hiring additional police, we should additionally fund the expansion of the Community Crime Patrol and organizers for Block Watch programs as well as restore youth programming in our recreation centers. Where we deploy our police merits constant reevaluation and appropriate reassignments. Ensuring that our officers have the best of tools must remain a priority. Yes, Columbus needs more police on the streets.

Brownson: City council needs a stronger cross-disciplinary approach to crime. Every council committee and each budget council approves must reflect this responsibility. In high crime areas, lights should be added; code enforcement should focus on buildings that attract crime; zoning decisions should complement crime fighting; surveillance cameras should be considered and used where appropriate. Given the large portion of the budget safety consumes, we must continually review policing methods and all department expenses. Council must continually challenge the police department and the administration to make spending decisions that result in our ability to keep more police on the streets.

Craig: There is no magic bullet to reduce crime. Yes, we must support more police classes to make up for planned retirements, and we must fully fund innovative programs like the Summer Strike Force, which produced very positive results. Recently, I had the opportunity to sponsor legislation to digitize arrest records so that the officers on the street could have immediate access to them. Constant improvements and innovations like this must be applied across the board, not just in direct police work, but in after-school programs, drug prevention and job creation for our most vulnerable residents and communities.

Ginther: We must continue to support the exceptional efforts of the Columbus Division of Police by investing in the expansion of innovative crime fighting strategies like the Police Summer Strike Force, Anti-Gang Initiative and Community Crime Patrol, and by providing police with the technology and tools necessary to proactively fight crime. We must maintain support for school resource and community liaison officers and build partnerships with neighborhoods to empower residents to take back their communities. Finally, we must continue to partner with Columbus schools to develop an educated workforce, provide youth with alternatives to crime and jobs for underemployed citizens.

Mentel: Having a full complement of well-trained police officers with the best equipment, the best access to information and the best tactics is the first step, and one to which I have devoted much of my time on council. These initiatives must be balanced by an equally strong strategy to deal with the underlying causes of crime in the first place: poverty, broken families, drug dependency, teenage dropouts and the lure of gang culture. In order to actually lower crime rates, we must effectively support and fund programs to improve the conditions that impact every urban area.

O'Grady: Work to get more police on the street and be more aggressive with entry-level crimes such as vandalism, such as graffiti. I think what Rudy Giuliani did in New York is a model that can be emulated in Columbus. I also believe in intervention programs for young persons; you have to intervene early to prevent youths from trekking down the wrong path. I am also an advocate of programs in the courts, such as the mental heath program in the Municipal Court.

Tavares: Our police department receives the largest share of the city budget in recognition of the council and mayor's highest priority: the safety of our communities' residents. They cannot do their job alone. To reduce crime even lower requires us to avoid the usual clich?s and think deeper about neighborhood blight, drug/alcohol addiction, poverty, education and employment opportunities and family dynamics that can contribute to crime. I have focused my service on providing leadership on council to: help our young people, revitalize neighborhoods, strengthen families, and improve access to education, training, jobs and careers. Otherwise, we will continue to lose more youth to gangs and negative behaviors they will ultimately pick up through incarceration.

What role should council play in revitalizing City Center?

Bingle: It is appropriate for the city to leverage its land ownership to orchestrate the second generation of life for this central city facility. The city depends on wage income taxes to fund city services. Creating partnerships that can turn the City Center back into a job center for a thousand people is a role that the city should take and should support, provided that the cash returns on the investment are reasonable. Columbus has the wealth of business talent to develop the right mix of ideas to return economic vibrancy to the building. Council should nurture and grow those ideas.

Brownson: Now that the city owns City Center Mall and the land, it must take the lead in revitalizing City Center. Council should provide the oversight our city charter demands. Council should ensure that the mayor and the administration establish an open process that explores a wide range of possible uses. When the best use is determined, an open process for developing it should be followed that ensures no sweetheart deals are awarded. A public dialogue is important for the results to have the credibility this important part of downtown needs among the taxpaying public.

Craig: I agree with experts that City Center most likely will be rebuilt as a mixed-use project with an emphasis on office, housing, entertainment and convenience retail for downtown residents, office workers and visitors. Incentives and any public investment must be made available only after input from the private sector and the general public has been fully considered. The project should be open to the street, avoid blank walls, have 18-hour activity and provide uses for all citizens. Preserving part of the retail mall as a day- and nighttime education center is an exciting option that I would favor exploring.

Ginther: Council has and will continue to play an important role in revitalizing City Center and has already taken the first step by approving the plan to regain control of the property and work with leading developers to return City Center to productive use. Council's most important role will be to ensure any redevelopment plan is economically viable and self-sustaining, meets the diverse needs of our city and complements the many downtown commercial and residential developments by connecting vital parts of our downtown and truly serving as the center of activity in Columbus.

Mentel: Council must first help the general public and potential investors understand that City Center represents a tremendous opportunity, not a problem. We are already successfully "reinventing" other abandoned properties throughout the city with exciting new developments: Gowdy Field, the West Edge Industrial Park, the Gateway Project, the Jeffrey site, Harrison Park, the Dakota Building in the Short North, the Buster Douglas project and many more. In each case, council made available an array of incentives, including TIFs, capital expenditures, state Brownfield funds and limited tax incentives. With these tools and partnering with private investors, City Center will also be reborn.

O'Grady: I think the recent decisions taken by Mayor Coleman are moving in an appropriate direction. While I wish both the mayor and city council had moved sooner, I think that taking an active role in looking for and promoting top notch mixed-use development is where city council can exercise real influence over what amounts to the heart of the city.

Tavares: City council supported the mayor's acquisition of City Center, passed legislation to create new parking garages in the area, funded the design for the nearby Scioto Mile Park and provided the leadership for placing caps on the nearby 70/71 freeway reconstruction project. Along with council member O'Shaughnessy, I am prioritizing the use of the vacant Trautman building adjacent to the mall as a live/work space for artists with the Artspace program. This will produce the synergy necessary combined with the other arts venues including the OSU Gallery in the Lazarus Building, Vern Riffe Gallery et.al to redevelop City Center as an exciting mixed-use location for housing, limited retail, office, and entertainment through our continuing attention to this important project.