Issue Stances

Property Taxes
We need to keep a lid on raising property tax while maintaining high quality city services.

Monroe Commons
I am pleased to see the Monroe Commons project is moving along with the inclusion of a grocery store.

Minimum Wage
I support a minimum wage increase and am pleased to see Madison as a driving force behind progressive legislation.  We should encourage a state-wide increase for the betterment of all and to ensure that our city does not portray an aura of isolation.
 
Halloween
The Halloween celebration is deeply engrained in Madison culture and shutting off the city will only incite an "us vs. them" attitude. A possible solution would be to extend bar close until 4:00 A.M. to allow for a more orderly dissipation.

 Growth and Development
I think the construction boom in Madison is good for the local economy and is a positive reflection on Wisconsin as a whole. At the same time, we must not lose sight of environmental concerns and refuse to sacrifice development at the cost of Mother Nature.

 Downtown Density
Downtowns are meant to be densely populated and the near west side will maintain its neighborhood integrity if high rises are built in the center of Madison.

Transportation       
A regional rail, as proposed by County Executive Falk, is a great start to transportation issues facing both Madison and the surrounding areas. From my observations in Amsterdam, a city with very high density, citizens made excellent use of the swift light rails that ran through the streets.

 Smoking Ban
In its current form, the smoking ban is slightly too restrictive. Businesses should have the option of sectioning off an interior area via a physical boundary or apply for a special permit based on previous tobacco sales.  I do see this as a public health issue but also as an opportunity to be fair to the businesses who keep the Madison bubble from popping.

Inclusionary Zoning
IZ is rooted in good intentions; however, I'm concerned as to whether or not it will scare off potential developers.  There must be a balanced attack to provide the optimal amount of affordable housing.

Comments

[Sarah]

You can't compare Amsterdam to Madison!

[Moga]

That's true on many levels; however, Amsterdam was included as an example in light of the Mayor's statement regarding his concern with light rails. I personally thought they were very efficient and well worth the slight noise pollution they cause. In addition, the rails can be built right into existing roads which make them practical to implement.

[Arthur]

Ben, running on a platform of bringing back smoking to the bars won't be very popular with your 80%+ non-smoking constituency. Also, since developers basically wrote and endorsed inclusionary zoning, I sincerely doubt they'll be scared off by it. Stop spreading such silly misconceptions.

[Ben Moga]

I am not a smoker and am personally pleased that bars will be smoke free in July. However, there are businesses that have based their atmosphere around smoking, such as the Casbah which is a hookah bar on capitol square, that will obviously be adversely affected by the ban. This is why I believe an exemption should be considered. When I say section off an interior, it means an actual physical barrier like one might see in Perkins. Even though I don't smoke and do see it as a public health issue, I respect that smokers are people making a choice.
To say developers "basically wrote and endorsed inclusionary zoning" is quite an off the mark comment in my opinion. I would be interested in you following that up with some research where you would find a substantial number of developers who would agree to that statement.
As for the final comment, the blog aspect of this site is meant to encourage intelligent communication. It is not a site for ranting and raving and I have control over what comments can be posted or not. If these kind of "add-ins" are in future comments, the comment will be promptly deleted.
Thank you for your time and input.