Welcome to the Lynne Simonds for District 4 Blog

We are changing the nature and the way you can express your opinions on the blog as we get closer to Election Day, Tuesday, November 6, 2007. We will cover a different topic every two weeks and I will reply to your comments. Plus, we can cover topics of interest to you rather than random newspaper articles.

Here are the topics that have appeared of interest on the Blog to date. You are welcome to add to the list.

The List: The Airport, Treatment of Business (especially small business), Trash Program, Condition of Parks, Closing of the Pools, Taxes & Fees, Council Pay Raise, Economic development (downtown & in neighborhoods), Budget Process, Housing Policy, Retirees Increased Health Care Costs, Transportation, and Casino Gambling.

We will begin with the topic of the Retirees Increased Health Care.

How do you feel about the vote to increase it? What is your opinion? If we get a dialogue going we will keep the topic up for two weeks adding a new topic every week.

I look forward to your participation in the Blog through your opinions and comments. Thanks, Lynne

Campaign update

Well - its been a while since we posted here - but summer is here, and the election is around the corner. A few business agenda items:

1. signs - they're here, and they are green! let us know if you have any locations in the district where you'd like one.

2. the campaign - we are always welcoming new volunteers to the effort to get Lynne elected. Email us to get involved.

There has been a lot of activity in the district and city over the past few months since we last posted - a new taskforce on homelessness was enpaneled by the City Manager, the city is struggling to deal with a significant deficit, and the pools, again, struggle to remain off the cutting board. All of these issues - homelessness, a solid deficit plan, and pools/youth programs are strong suits for Lynne Simonds with her background in opening youth programs, managing and balancing budgets for her own businesses, and looking at ways to balance the needs of neighborhoods for transparency and accountability from social services with the issue of poverty and homelessness that plagues the district. Contrary to published reports, Lynne does not support "siting at will", whatever that means.

Instead, as she articulated at an Elm Park neighborhood forum, she strikes a balance between responsibility of social service agencies to be good neighbors, and the need to provide citizens of the district who are homeless with the right level of services.

With regards to the $21 million deficit, it is important to remind readers that Lynne would reject the pay raise and put the funding instead into an account for District 4 improvements.