VIDEO OF THE EVENT IS NOW AVAILABLE:

http://www.kvpt.org/news/april_2_debate_video.php

FLYP is proud to co-sponsor a series of candidate forums focusing on the important issues concerning downtown Fresno.

Mayoral Candidates Forum- Wednesday, April 2nd

Council Candidates Forum- Wednesday, April 9th

Get there early. The event starts at 5:00 PM with the forum starting promptly at 5:30 PM.

The Bankers Ballroom is located in downtown Fresno:
1058 Fulton Mall
Fresno, CA 93721

Here are the questions that will be randomly assigned to the candidates:

1. Imagine the City of Fresno has discovered a budget surplus of $5

million, and the Mayor and Council agree the money should be used for

Downtown. What would you do with the $5 million?

2. What are your top three Downtown-related priorities once in office?

3. Where do you stand on the various water feature ideas that have

been proposed for Downtown? And in the larger picture, what is the

proper role of bold, game-changing, "silver bullet" projects in

Downtown revitalization?

4. What does Fresno, as a diverse city and community, need from its

Downtown? Do suburban families, for instance, care if it is vibrant ?

and if they don't care, does it matter? How can Downtown be a vibrant

place that serves Fresnans with both urban and suburban mindsets?

5. Do you have a plan to help reduce homelessness in Fresno? If so,

does your plan address the perception of some ? fair or not ? that

Downtown Fresno is unsafe at night because of its homeless population?

6. What is the proper role of the City in supporting community events

in Downtown Fresno? Should the City (a) focus on hosting its own

events, (b) subsidize events hosted by others, (c) provide active

technical assistance to those hosting events, or (d) not intervene and

allow the demand for events to determine the supply?

7. Many people think the one thing missing from Downtown Fresno is

housing. If you agree, what would you do to increase the housing

supply Downtown? If you disagree, what other needs are more important?

8. There are numerous examples of Downtown buildings ? including the

historic Bank of Italy, J.C. Penney, and Helm buildings ? that remain

underused for years because owners are waiting to "cash in" when

development trends cause property values to rise. Such buildings

frequently become poorly maintained eyesores. What would you do to

spur the restoration, maintenance, and use of vacant buildings? Do

you support the use of eminent domain to wrest blighted, vacant

buildings from neglectful owners?

9. A number of redevelopment projects for Downtown have been proposed,

but to the public, there has been little apparent progress for years.

Such projects include Old Armenian Town, Historic Chinatown, and the

South Stadium area. Are you concerned about the pace of these "master

developer" projects? Are there steps you would have the City and

Redevelopment Agency take to prevent the economic "freeze" of these

areas for years while sweeping master plans are under consideration?

10. Forest City Enterprises has said that a City investment of

approximately $100 million will be needed to make the South Stadium

redevelopment project feasible. Do you support using public money to

provide incentives for this project and other redevelopment activities

in the Downtown area? Do you support the use of eminent domain for

Downtown redevelopment and specifically the South Stadium project?

11. How would you improve the permitting process for private Downtown

development? Are there other barriers to development that you would

seek to fix or remove?

12. Under ideal circumstances, anyone would prefer that Downtown

redevelopment incorporate the preservation and reuse of unique older

buildings (whether listed as historic or not) and good design quality.

However, these practices can make development take longer and cost

more. How do you weigh historic and aesthetic values against economic

considerations? Under what circumstances would you insist that the

City and private developers restore unique older buildings and

incorporate high-quality design?

13. Between sculptures, murals, and fountains, Downtown Fresno surely

has more public art than anywhere else in the Valley. Does public art

make Downtown a destination? If so, how would you support the

expansion of Downtown's public art collection? If not, what is the

role and purpose of public art?

14. Is Downtown Fresno "user-friendly"? Define the term however you

wish. What are your ideas for improving user-friendliness?

15. A number of new alternatives to private automobiles ? such as

street cars, light rail, bus rapid transit, and personal rapid transit

? have been proposed for parts of Downtown and other areas of Fresno.

Are any of these ideas viable? Do they deserve public support,

financially or otherwise?

16. Do you favor adding bicycle lanes on Downtown streets? What if

adding a bike lane requires narrowing an automobile traffic lane or

removing street parking outside a business?

17. There is a perennial debate over parking meters in Downtown

Fresno. The current administration has taken steps to relax metering

after 6 pm and built a new parking garage near the Convention Center.

What would you do about parking?

18. Where do you stand in the perennial debate about opening the

Fulton Mall to vehicle traffic? Are there other things the City could

do to bring more 24-hour vitality to the area?

19. Much of the debate about the Fulton Mall's future assumes that the

area is economically dead. Yet there is obviously a community

supporting the discount malls, jewelry stores, and vendor carts which

fill almost all the available retail spaces on the Mall, albeit at low

rent. Is it important to retain these existing economic uses as

Downtown Fresno revitalizes? Is it possible?

20. How do you view assessment districts as vehicles for enhancing

Downtown services? Specifically, where do you stand on the formation

of a Downtown property-based business improvement district (PBID)?

What would your role be, if any, in supporting, guiding, or

forestalling the formation of assessment districts?

21. The Chamber of Commerce has convened a "Downtown Task Force" to be

a voice of consensus about what needs to be done Downtown and

establish a "bridge" from the current administration to the next one.

Would you or your staff continue working with this Task Force? In

what other ways, if any, would you seek public and stakeholder input

about Downtown planning and projects?