FORMAT:

The moderator will open and close the forum on time. A total of eight questions will be asked from the sponsors at the forum. A representative from each of the four sponsors will be allowed to ask 2 questions for each of the candidates to respond. All candidates will have 1.5 minutes to reply to each of these questions. Following this, thirty minutes will be allotted for questions from the general public and these questions will be submitted on cards to the moderator. A timekeeper will signal when each candidate has 30 seconds remaining, and campaign literature is welcome on the tables outside the auditorium.

All candidates must adhere to the format for the evening and no disruptions will be tolerated by either candidates or attendees. The moderator will have the right to adjourn the forum if there are any infractions to these rules.

QUESTIONS FOR THE CANDIDATES:

We are asking that all candidates submit a brief response to the following questions by Friday, August 14, 1998 so that we may produce a Community Development Voter’s Guide to be distributed to the general public on the night of the forum. This booklet will serve as a guide for the people of Washington DC in understanding the positions of each candidate on issues of community development. Our goal for this forum is simply to “educate”, and this Voter’s Guide will prove to be a valuable resource. With such a resource, we can rest assured that in November of 1998; DC voters will most wisely choose the mayor that will bring our city into the next millenium.

Housing and Community Development

1. If neighborhoods are our first concern, how do you plan to encourage private sector developers to work with community development corporations and other community based nonprofit organizations in joint efforts to improve neighborhoods?

Answer: The neighborhoods of Washington, DC must be stabilized, protected, served and developed. Our neighborhoods and the people who live there are the heart and soul of the District. Residents are our single largest source of revenue. Yet, major capital and economic development projects rarely leave downtown and benefit mainly commuters and tourists.

The goal of my administration will be to revitalize neighborhood commercial corridors by recruiting and retaining businesses desired by the neighborhood. We must face the reality that businesses succeed based on their ability to sell merchandize at a price in excess of their expenses. The first part of this equation — the consumers — are here: the majority of District neighborhoods provide a stable and growing customer base. We have to advertise this fact. The District must assist cost containment and ease of operation. I believe the tools provided by the National Revitalization Act and the Tax Increment Financing act will be critical to this end.

My administration will create a healthy, user-friendly environment for businesses — both large and small. Business operations overseen by the District — from planning to permitting — must be automated and under one roof. Through proper implementation of regulatory reforms, review of legislative, regulatory and tax burdens and frequent meetings with businesses and their representatives as well as the communities they serve, we will create viable commercial opportunities.

Determining the desires of the neighborhoods will involve the active participation of residents, Advisory Neighborhood Commission, neighborhood organizations, community development corporations and other community based nonprofit organizations.

2. The District paid part of the cost for acquiring the land for and constructing Lorton Penitentiary, which will close in 5 years. Will the District be reimbursed for its share of this cost? What will you do to prevent an outright land grab by Virginia-based development interests through their congressional and state government representatives?

Answer: The District not only purchased this land but it also paid for capital improvements to the land. As with all property, the value of this land has increased significantly since its purchase. At the moment reimbursement for its share of the cost is undecided. As Mayor, I will use every possible remedy, including litigation to ensure that the District receives fair compensation for the land and its capital improvements.

3. How would you more effectively and creatively use the housing resources already available and also leverage private funds to maximize production under your housing policy?

Answer: There is no question that housing funds have not been effectively used by the District. The Housing Authority which years ago was run effectively is now in receivership. As Mayor, I will appoint qualified people to these position!

Clearly, all funds allocated to the District for housing renovation and modernization should be used fully, effectively and promptly. I would never permit funds allocated for housing purposes, or any other purposes, to be returned unspent as has happened in the past! I support, and would urge the development of a combination of turnkey, leasing, use of HOPE VI grants, low income housing tax credits, Title VI funds and property disposition grants as programs that would effectively utilize housing resources and provide for the leverage of public funds with private resources.

4. What are your top three priorities concerning neighborhood revitalization?

Answer: We must better publicize the tax credits that are available for first time home buyers. Once these credits are understood many will realize that they can purchase homes or coops at a cost equivalent to today's market rents. In the area of public housing, my goal would be to return responsibility for public housing operations to the District. My goals for neighborhood housing revitalization include:

1. Renovate, modernize and repair housing in order to make the existing housing supply immediately available.
2. Develop partnerships, with the private sector, non-profits and national organizations like the Home Builders Association, in order to provide a mix of low and moderate income quality housing designed to revitalize neighborhoods.
3. Provide quality housing with new amenities including day-care centers, job training opportunities and educational and social service amenities for young people and the elderly.

5. A recent HUD report indicated that in the Washington area 68,000 families spend more than 50 percent of their income on rent and 45,000 people are eligible for housing assistance but can’t get beyond long waiting lists. If you are elected mayor, what will you do to alleviate this affordable housing shortage?

Answer: Coordinate a massive program with federal and local assistance, public and private initiatives to create low and middle income quality housing in all areas of the city. This effort will require the development of public and private partnerships utilizing all of the available resources of the federal and local governments with the goal of greatly increasing the supply of decent and affordable housing for all income groups in our community. A concerted and coordinated effort is the only way to alleviate the housing shortage and it must address the needs of low and middle-income families to be effective.

6. This city is in the process of revitalizing the downtown area to attract and benefit middle and upper income residents. This has a negative impact on low-income and homeless people, such as displacement and a lack of affordable housing. How do you plan to address these negative consequences?

Answer: We can not continue to base our economic development hopes on ethereal capital projects like the proposed convention center at Mount Vernon Square. With a projected cost close to $1 billion, the center promises only a “trickle-down” benefit to our neighborhoods and, more predictably, will have a long-term negative impact. I voted against the Convention Center at Mount Vernon. The Mount Vernon site would have been a perfect opportunity for mixed-use affordable housing. Such housing would help turn downtown into a community that would thrive both during the day and at night.

The revitalization of downtown and other neighborhoods has to be part of an overall citywide plan coordinated to accommodate low-income and homeless citizens. There are many lessons in the relocation and rebuilding of Southwest Washington. There was an attempt in that plan to provide housing for middle and upper income residents as well as low-income families. However, a lesson learned from Southwest was that as new housing was developed, many of the amenities needed for low-income families were lacking, as were units for large families. Proper planning is a key component for limiting the above-mentioned negative consequences and for ensuring successful neighborhood revitalization.

7. Would you consider requiring that all development projects on city owned sites or developments requiring substantial government assistance have a neighborhood community development corporation as a developer partner in order to enable CDCs to increase capability and be able to apply profits earned to development projects in their respective communities?

Answer: Yes and I would do all within my power to ensure that the CDC's are assisted in their work through access to quality professional assistance in order to benefit from the best practices used by successful CDC’s.

Economic Development

8. How can you improve licensing requirements and renewal of it for restaurant managers?

Answer: The licensing problems faced by restaurant managers are similar to those faced by all businesses located in the District. My administration will create a healthy, user-friendly environment for all businesses — both large and small. Business operations overseen by the District - from planning to permitting — must be automated and under one roof. Through proper implementation of regulatory reforms, review of legislative, regulatory and tax burdens and frequent meetings with businesses and their representatives as well as the communities they serve, we will create viable commercial opportunities. I am certain that working together we can make DC an attractive and profitable place to do business.

9. What, if any, plans do you have to insure that DC’s neighborhoods receive a fair share of private and public investment dollars?

Answer: I will achieve this end by:

1. Initiating more Hope VI sponsored projects through the use of CDCs created for this purpose;
2. Supporting the original plan for downtown requiring housing development along with business development downtown;
3. Decentralizing government services through neighborhood schools and non-profit service organizations to transfer public investments into neighborhoods;
4. Encourage the use of empty school buildings for affordable housing; and
5. Continue public support of housing programs benefiting from government incentive programs.

Low-income/Special Needs Population

10. If elected mayor, what are your plans, if any, to restore the emergency assistance and other human service funds to the DC budget? Emergency assistance funds are used to pay for rent or mortgages and utilities to keep families in homes. Since 1995 when these funds were eliminated, one in every 200 families in the District has applied for shelter.

Answer: This program is one of the first that I believe should be restored by the District government. Emergency assistance programs not only helped those in need of rent and mortgage assistance but also helped families in need of burial assistance. I intend to be a Mayor who shows compassion to those in need. I will see that this program is restored through either public funds or private contributions. I will accomplish this by:

1. Strongly enforcing the Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act as it relates to housing discrimination and equal access to housing.
2. Set up protocols for programs locating special needs housing in neighborhoods that encourages community input and a role for community governance in program administration.
3. Provide administrative support to ANCs to hold public hearings on proposed special needs housing to address possible opposition concerns.

11. How do you plan to address NIMBYism in the District in reference to low-income housing and special needs housing?

Answer: NIMBYism frequently occurs as a result of misunderstandings, fear and experiences with poorly managed government funded projects. The key to limiting NIMBYism is to involve and educate residents early in the decision making process and to insure that publicly funded and private projects are properly managed. I fully intend to include residents and community organizations in the decision making process when potential housing use is not allowed as a matter of right.

12. What efforts would you make to assure an adequate stock of affordable housing for low-income residents and the special needs population (for example: the mentally ill, people in recovery, people with disabilities, the elderly and youth)?

Answer: I will accomplish this by:

1. Supporting non-profit housing programs through low cost acquisition of land
2. Encourage empty municipal facilities to be used for affordable housing conversions;
3. Continue proven government housing programs;
4. Support governmentally backed low cost housing loans;
5. Encourage more support from Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae to use targeted private resources;
6. Support additional Hope VI sites; and
7. Support innovative partnerships through CDCs and other means for developing affordable, living housing.

13. What are your views on the elimination of the TAP (Tenant Assistance Program)? Do you propose any other forms of rental subsidies for low-income residents?

Answer: TAP is one of the most successful housing assistance programs tried in D.C. We need to find a way to continue and hopefully expand the program. We can only accomplish this by shifting housing priorities and redirecting funds from other more costly programs. TAP is an effective and efficient program and we must replace funding for it by restoring what was cut in the recent budget using a portion of our projected surplus.

14. How do you plan to address the housing needs of large low-income families?

Answer: In response to question 6, I mentioned that one of the lessons learned from Southwest was the need to properly plan for the housing needs of large families. In the past, new construction and renovation have based housing projections on one and two bedroom units rather than the needs of larger families. As Mayor, I will establish a goal for increased production of units for large families.

Education

15. Would you as a mayor be supportive of a referendum to set up a District of Columbia school tax to assist our schools with technology resources and improve the quality of education in the District? If schools are a priority, what reform issues are in place and is there a timeline and list of persons responsible to effectively carry out these tasks?

Answer: One of the biggest crises confronting the District government is the large amount of federal money received by the District that goes unspent and is later returned to the federal government. This situation is intolerable and will change when I become Mayor. Let me assure you that there are federal education funds available to assist our schools with technology resources and to improve the quality of education in the District. As Mayor, I will establish an office directly under the Mayor's control to ensure that all federal funds available to the District are applied for and used for the intended purposes. Performance measures and timetables will be established for those responsible for implementing these programs. Proper use of available funds should negate the need for a school tax.

16. Maryland and Virginia have both positioned their state universities as integral elements of their business and job creation efforts since 1980. Meanwhile, the district has slashed the University of the District of Columbia (UDC) budget by more than 50% since 1990. How do you propose to integrate UDC into similar public/private partnerships to generate business and job opportunities within the District? What will you do to help change the perception of UDC as an "expensive luxury" into a perception as an essential investment in the economic and social future of the District of Columbia?

Answer: As a Councilmember I have strongly supported the University of the District of Columbia. In today’s environment, a college education or advanced vocational training is not an “expensive luxury” but a necessity. It will be my goal to enlist businesses to become partners with the University of the District of Columbia and all DC public schools. It is my opinion that a businesslike partnership — not just good works and donations — must be established with the private sector to guide School to Work vocational programs. I intend to form these partnerships, not only with businesses but also with information industries and cultural, academic and professional institutions to both engage students and to support life-long learning for the larger community.