Candidates Forum

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=90 BGCOLOR="#0000BF" TEXT="#F7F7FF" bgproperties="fixed" background="044005a0exvipq.gif"> <div> <FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#FFCC33" FACE="Copperplate Gothic Bold" ><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Eastside Republican Club"><U><B>Home</B></U></A><B>  </B><B> </B></FONT><B>  | </B><B> </B><B> </B><B>  </B><FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#FFFFFF" FACE="Copperplate Gothic Bold" ><B>Eastside Republican Club</B></FONT></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="erc_meeting_dates.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Events"><U><B>Events</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="eastside_republican_review_summary.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="ERC Review"><U><B>ERC Review</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="michigan_s_13th_district.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Congressional District News"><U><B>Congressional District News</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="civic___governmental_links.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Links"><U><B>Links</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="erc_officers.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="About Us"><U><B>About Us</B></U></A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=210 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>Candidates Forum</B></div> <div> <A HREF="link_to_michigan_gop.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Michigan Republicans"><U><B><IMG SRC="05358580.gif" border=0 width="88" height="88" ALT="Michigan GOP" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="https://webapps.sos.state.mi.us/mivote/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="https://webapps.sos.state.mi.us/mivote/"><U><I><B>Your Sample Ballot</B></I></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="michigan_s_13th_district.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Congressional District News"><U><I><B>Congressional District News</B></I></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="erc_testimonials.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="What Theyre Saying About Us"><U><I><B>Read what they've said about us</B></I></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="erc_meeting_dates.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Events"><U><B><IMG SRC="81b871f0.gif" border=0 width="135" height="31" ALT=">>Events" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A></div> </td> <td valign="top" height=390 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div>  <A NAME="top_of_page"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></div> <div> <I><U>Open Enrollment Discussed</U></I></div> <div> <B>Local Council & School Board Races</B></div> <div> <B>Focus of Eastside Candidates' Forum<IMG SRC="1bffa7970.jpg" border=0 width="679" height="407" ALT="Stumping for support were a bevy of non-partisan local candidates participating in the Eastside Republican Club Candidates Forum held October 18 at the Grosse Pointe War Memorial. Among them were (pictured left to right) Daniel Clark, Robert Denner, Elizabeth Vogel, Greg Theokas, Lev Wood, Therese Joseph, Cheryl Costantino, Allison Secord, Art Bryant, Diane Karabetsos, Richard Shetler, and Kevin Ketels. Also participating in the Forum, but not pictured, were Daniel Roeske and Lois Valente." ALIGN="RIGHT" HSPACE="3" VSPACE="3"></B></div> <div> More than a dozen local candidates pressed voters for support at the Grosse Pointe War Memorial as Eastside Republicans hosted their Candidates' Forum on October 18, 2011.</div> <div> Voters got to see and hear the non-partisan candidates named on the municipal and public school board ballot in the upcoming November 8, 2011, election.</div> <div> “An important feature of our Forum was the opportunity for our members and guests to hear candidates answer questions posed on the spot,” said Farms resident Jenny Nolan, Eastside Republican Club chairman.</div> <div> ERC Board member Marie Hackleman of the Park agreed. “Having all the council candidates field questions together made for a great `Q & A.' I think everyone was delighted with that dynamic and the excellent discussion it generated between the candidates, and with the audience!”</div> <div> <I><B>Grosse Pointe School Board</B></I></div> <div> One of the hottest topics, judging from school board candidates Diane Karabetsos, Daniel Roeske and Lois Valente, isn't even on the November ballot.</div> <div> The three, none of whom are incumbents, are competing for two seats on the Grosse Pointe Public School System's Board of Education.</div> <div> They each expressed opposition to opening public school enrollment across district boundaries throughout Michigan, a measure not on any ballot but pending in the state legislature.<IMG SRC="1c012cc10.jpg" border=0 width="300" height="193" ALT="Daniel Roeske, Lois Valente and Diane Karabetsos, candidates for Grosse Pointe Public School Board of Trustees" ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="4" VSPACE="4"></div> <div> Popular support for quashing Lansing's move to mandate open enrollment has spawned the group, <FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="http://miclc.com/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://miclc.com/"><U>Michigan Communities for Local Control</U></A></FONT> (MCLC), co-founded by Katharine Barr of Grosse Pointe Woods, who offered an update on the issue at the Forum.</div> <div> She reported that the bill appears to be stuck in committee. MCLC is encouraged that Lansing seems to be getting the message. However, Barr admitted there is a lot of work to be done to ensure the bill remains in committee until December 2012. She announced MCLC's “Our Voice, Our Choice Kickoff Event,” a fundraiser, November 3, 2011, at City Kitchen. >><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Michigan-Communities-for-Local-Control-MCLC/248771021813300" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Michigan-C"><U><I>MCLC is on Facebook</I></U></A></FONT><I>.</I></div> <div> <I><B>Grosse Pointe Farms</B></I></div> <div> Therese M. Joseph, Joseph T. Leonard, and Lev Wood are the three named on Grosse Pointe Farms council ballot. Three Farms council members will be elected.</div> <div> Joseph, an incumbent, acknowledged that the Farms has suffered more than its share of losses, and assured residents that the council is committed to compensating those residents suffering losses due to recent basement flooding. She highlighted steps the city has taken to communicate with residents and to prevent future flooding.</div> <div> Wood, running for a first term on the council, has worked in civil engineering as a business development professional with knowledge of land survey and storm water management. He cited his background as a Master Citizen Planner. Wood also outlined the steps already taken by the council and said he would put his skills to work to further ensure protection of residents from any future recurrence.</div> <div> In the wake of the episodes of basement flooding in her city, Farms resident Elizabeth Vogel has mounted a write-in campaign for council calling for better communications between elected representatives and the voters. Coming forward after the filing deadline, Vogel outlined the write-in process at the Forum.</div> <div> <I><B>Grosse Pointe Park</B></I></div> <div> “People tend to keep up with national events, but local politics is not as well reported,” said Park resident and ERC vice chairman Mike Hennigan, a Park voter.<IMG SRC="1c03b4750.jpg" border=0 width="180" height="373" ALT="Greg Theokas is a candidate for reelection to the Grosse Pointe Park city council" ALIGN="RIGHT" HSPACE="4" VSPACE="4"></div> <div> “It's fascinating how people perform in front of a crowd -- sometimes very revealing, sometimes not so, but for political freaks like me, it was of great interest. I was quite proud of our Park candidates!” he said.</div> <div> He was referring to Grosse Pointe Park council incumbents Robert Denner, Greg Theokas, and Daniel Clark who presented their case for reelection. The fourth Park candidate, John Teodecki, did not attend. Three seats are up for election.</div> <div> Theokas, during the follow-up question and answer period, agreed that while working together and sharing resources between the cities should be pursued and could yield cost savings for all the Pointes, he said that Grosse Pointe Park is not waiting, but is cutting costs now. On the matter of consolidating the five Pointes into one city, he offered a note of caution, “As alluring as it sounds, it's not as simple as it sounds.” Theokas noted that if the Pointes were combined into a city of a population of 50,000, the dynamics of city government and accessibility to its services would necessarily change from what residents have come to expect and appreciate about their cities. He made the point that a larger city may prove to be more costly. </div> <div> <I><B>Grosse Pointe Woods</B></I></div> <div> “It was great hearing candidates talk about ways to keep Mack Avenue healthy -- maybe targeting a young demographic group is the way to go,” said Woods resident Robert Sheehy who serves as on the ERC board.</div> <div> Grosse Pointe Woods voters will choose three council members from four candidates, and then decide a separate race for the partial council term ending in November 2013.</div> <div> Kevin Ketels and Allison M. Secord are the two candidates running to fill the single partial term vacancy. Both made an appeal at the Forum.</div> <div> The four candidates filing for the three full terms on the Woods council are Art Bryant, Jill Jarboe, Michael Kuester, and Richard Shetler Jr. Both Bryant and Shetler took time to make their case to the Forum.</div> <div> Secord's primary issue was retail shopping on Mack Avenue. She would like to see more businesses that would attract younger people. She also noted that in recent years the city had paid for some recognition celebrations and raised property taxes.</div> <div> Ketels, who is relatively new to the council, observed that despite vacancies on Mack, retail is 94% occupied, with 10 new businesses starting just last year. Ketels stated that the duty of the city is to provide an environment in which good businesses can thrive. He emphasized the role that careful zoning enforcement is playing in encouraging desirable businesses. Ketels also noted that the Woods, after a line-by-line review, recently cut its budget by $522,000. </div> <div> <I><B>Harper Woods</B></I></div> <div> Cheryl Costantino, the only Harper Woods candidate to come before the Forum, noting the productive discussion generated between the council candidates by the combined Q&A, recalled that city officials from all the Pointes and Harper Woods used to meet together annually to discuss common issues and services sharing. The value of continuing such interchanges was obvious to both candidates and audience alike. Costantino promised to check into resuming these annual meetings of the cities.</div> <div> In addition to Costantino, two other Harper Woods incumbents are seeking reelection. They are Hugh Marshall, and Michael P. Monaghan. Three council challengers on the Harper Woods ballot are Mary J. Paglia, George Dritsas, and Charles Flanagan.</div> <div> Also in Harper Woods, Scott Campbell and Veronica Paiz are challenging longtime mayor Kenneth Poynter.</div> <div> <I><B>Redistricting</B></I></div> <div> Concerning the recent redistricting by Lansing splitting the five Grosse Pointes and Harper Woods into two separate legislative districts, both Park and Woods councilmen weighed in on the matter, discussing the feasibility of litigation and need for financial partnership in the effort.</div> <div> Ketels said the Woods was ready to support litigation if the final report by their legal counsel indicates a likelihood of prevailing. Councilman Clark noted that Park Mayor Palmer Heenan had won such litigation against a similar redistricting action the last time such a split was imposed.</div> <div> The City of Grosse Pointe has no contested municipal races on its November ballot.</div> <div> Due to a city council meeting in Grosse Pointe Shores, none of the Shores candidates were available to participate in the Forum.</div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="6" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="709" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="VOID" RULES="NONE" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" BGCOLOR=#FFFF80 > <tR> <tD VALIGN=BOTTOM HEIGHT= 65 WIDTH="695"><div> <I><B>View Your Sample Municipal Ballot Now!</B></I></div> <div> The Michigan Voter Information Center provides an assortment of information related to voter registration and election administration in Michigan, including an advanced look at a sample of your local, municipal ballot. >><A HREF="https://webapps.sos.state.mi.us/mivote/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="https://webapps.sos.state.mi.us/mivote/"><U><I>U</I></U></A><A HREF="https://webapps.sos.state.mi.us/mivote/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="https://webapps.sos.state.mi.us/mivote/"><U><I>se one of two search options for registration information or to view a sample ballot</I></U></A>. </div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <div> <A HREF="#top_of_page" TITLE="Candidates Forum"><U>back to top</U></A></div> </td> </tr></table></body>