What actions would you take as a city official to resolve the problems at the Ridgewood Apartments?
I would continue to issue citations for health and building code violations as they are reported by residents, reach out to residents to help them understand both the code citation process and the new rent abatement ordinance, insist that any redevelopment project for the site provide as many affordable units as it does now, ensure that current residents have the first opportunity to rent the affordable units, and continue to look for additional ways to improve the housing for residents of the area.
Do you support a Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) program for Fitchburg?
Yes! Citizens and professional planners would produce a map of city areas to be developed and to be preserved for all time. New rules would require developers to pay landowners in areas to be preserved for permanent conservation easements. Everyone wins. All landowners could receive some benefit from their land. Landowners in areas mapped for preservation would receive compensation, and could keep and enjoy their land. All residents would benefit from nearby agriculture and open space. Developers would benefit from a predictable approval process.
Where in Fitchburg would you like to see development permitted?
We should develop urban centers along transit corridors, with large wedges of agricultural and open land reaching deep into the urban area. Transit nodes for future commuter rail could be at the Isthmus, the University, Hilldale, and Middleton, and south to Fitchburg's future Green Tech village and the Village of Oregon. I favor compact, transit-friendly development along our eastern rail corridor and U.S. route 14.
Where should it be prohibited?
We must defend the right to farm. We should permanently preserve agriculture and open space in the south and west of the city, especially the Stoner Prairie and along the future Badger State Trail.
Do you support a Fitchburg library?
Yes! A Fitchburg library would loan books and media, but also provide a place to learn, to store and display the knowledge and artifacts of our heritage, and to gather as a community.
If so, where would you site it?
The library should be sited along north Fish Hatchery Road, perhaps near Bowman Circle, or in the Ridgewood redevelopment project area or the Fitchburg Ridge shopping center. It would serve as a powerful and obvious force for the revitalization of the area, and be within walking distance for some of our least mobile citizens.
Do you support inclusionary zoning as a means to address the affordable housing issue?
Yes! We need to foster economic integration, adding higher priced housing to redevelopment projects and affordable housing to new projects. Inclusionary zoning can address the latter with requirements that are more predictable for developers.
What other methods would you use?
Planned development districts should have a mix of housing types and sizes, to create housing opportunities at a range of price points. Exclusively residential subdivisions of single-family homes should be discouraged. Transit-friendly housing, with less resident parking, and thus lower cost, should be planned for areas served by busses and future commuter rail.
Will you come to a candidate forum in March to discuss these and other issues?
Yes!
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