Candidates share ideas for city 

Reprinted from The Gazette, Wednesday, October 17, 2007, page 2B

By Adam Belz
The Gazette

CEDAR RAPIDS — At a forum last night, City Council candidates agreed that young professionals in Cedar Rapids should be active in civic life and as volunteers. The problem: Only a handful of young professionals were there to hear it.

Access Iowa, a non-profit organization committed to attracting and retaining young professionals in the Cedar Rapids/Iowa City area, held an open forum for City Council candidates from 7 to 9 p.m. at CSPS, 1103 Third St SE.

All the candidates except for two were there. Of the crowd of 20, perhaps eight fit the description of ‘‘young professional.’’

The candidates made do, answering questions about what they’d do to revitalize the downtown, how they’d deal with Westdale Mall, whether they’d sell part of the Twin Pines Golf Course and whether they’d support a smoke-free ordinance in Cedar Rapids.

Picked at random, here are some of their responses to questions: At-large challenger Larry D. Sharp, 68, of 3614 Sue Lane NW, said he’d like to close Second Street SE between Second and Third Avenues to make a year-round pedestrian mall.

‘‘I get excited just thinking about it,’’ he said.

Monica Vernon, 49, 326 23rd St. Dr. SE, a District 2 challenger, said it’s important to have retail on the first floors of downtown buildings and to encourage downtown growth. ‘‘None of this is going to happen, absolutely none of it, unless you pick people who know how to make things happen,’’ she said.

At-large incumbent Tom Podzimek, 50, of 1044 Maplewood Dr. NE, said the city has the right and responsibility to ensure smart development at the Westdale property by setting conditions for whoever buys it. For instance, the city could require that whatever is built be pedestrian- and environmentfriendly, he said.

District 4 challenger Kathy Rickertsen, 59, 148 Cherry Hill Rd. NW, like several of the other challengers, thinks the moratorium on development at Westdale should be lifted. She also said that young professionals should get involved in clubs and non-profit organizations.

At-large challenger P. Thomas Larson, 50, of 225 29th St. Dr. SE, wants to focus on public safety, public transit and clearing the alleys downtown. The city should not sell any part of Twin Pines, he said.

District 2 incumbent Sarah Henderson, 33, of 118 Teakwood Lane NE, thinks the Twin Pines issue has helped the city think about the larger problems with its golf courses, but right now she doesn’t want to sell the land. District 4 challenger Chuck Wieneke, 63, of 2191 Wes Ct. NW, said it’s up to young professionals to push for issues important to them.

“You need to have your representatives at the council meetings, making sure the issues that are important to you stay out front,’’ he said. District 2 challenger Robin Tucker, 43, of 275 Tomahawk Trail SE, said he wants to specifically represent his district, and ensure the new form of city government puts decision-making in citizens’ hands.

‘‘I want to see citizens on the front-end of policy-making,’’ he said. At-large challenger Nancy Bruner, 64, 2612 31st St. SW, and District 4 incumbent Chuck Swore, 64, 2609 Iris Ave. NW, were not at the forum.