Meet the candidates: St. Paul City Council, Ward 3

St. Paul's Ward 3 City Council 12-year Representative Pat Harris is not running for re-election this year, leaving his seat open to newcomers. Ward 3, which includes Macalester-Groveland and Highland Park neighborhoods, has four candidates in contention for Harris' former spot: Eve Stein, Tylor J. Slinger, Chris Tolbert and John Mannillo. The Mac Weekly got in touch with Eve Stein, Tylor J. Slinger and Chris Tolbert and compiled quotes from John Mannillo's interviews with the Twin Cities Daily Planet and the Pioneer Press in anticipation of the Nov. 8 election.

The Mac Weekly: What are the key issues facing St. Paul that you hope to address if elected? How do you plan to address those issues?

Eve Stein: Money: how to get it; how to spend it. Local Government Aid (a.k.a. the Minnesota Miracle) reimbursed the city of St. Paul for the goods and amenities it provides to the region. Over the past 8 years, the state has gradually stripped tens of millions of dollars in income to the city. The city has had to make up the difference by raising property taxes and slashing services. This is not a sustainable policy. To address this we must work with our state representatives to try to retrieve some of the funding.

Tylor J. Slinger: The loss of Local Government Aid and increase of property taxes is a major issue we face as a city. My solutions to fixing this are pretty straightforward and just require a councilperson with some backbone. We need to stop giving millions away to "generate" business/jobs, it doesn't work. Many businesses are going to come to town with promises of growth and they're going to demand huge economic handouts in the form of subsidies, preferential regulatory changes or tax abatements. These so called growth strategies are unsustainable and leave the poorest of us worse off. The other major issue facing our area is the re-development of the Ford plant property. I advocate implementing a new land-use model for the city that focuses on decentralizing authority to our local communities. Specifically, we should use community-driven, property owner-friendly, approach that focuses on mitigating the impacts of development rather than prescribing what should go where and when.

John Mannillo: (in the Pioneer Press) The Ford plant redevelopment is a historic opportunity for our neighborhood to come together, grow new jobs and enhance our community. I'll use my redevelopment experience to encourage a partnership between the city and Ford that shares costs and resources and allows the community to help guide the redevelopment process.

Chris Tolbert: 1) Development. Both the potential redevelopment of the Ford Plant site in Ward 3, and also the development of other city projects like the St. Paul Regional Ballpark. 2) Building a workforce that attracts job growth through educational support and working to align education and training with what is needed in the future job market. 3) Working to fund essential city services that keep St. Paul a city that people want to live in, businesses want to do business in, and people want to visit.

TMW: What's that "special something" you'll bring to the city council?

Eve Stein: Of all the Ward 3 candidates, I am the only woman; the only Independent; the only parent; I have a solid financial background; my education is in urban planning, public administration, and labor relations; I have 25 years of service to this community. All of these things give me specialized skills and knowledge to help me succeed on the council and in representing my community.

Tylor J. Slinger: Even though I'm the youngest of the candidates at 24, I have a background in the real working world. My background in the financial services industry and working hard manual labor jobs gives me a bottom-up perspective that is people and community focused. My ideas for changing the city have long term affects that would put us center-stage in the national economy and make us competitive in the global market. Moreover, I'm not beholden to any special interests, but to the individuals that live here. I'm the only candidate that's agreed to cut my pay and set term limits.

John Mannillo: (in the Daily Planet) I have more than 30 years of real-world business experience and community involvement in a number of roles. As a local business owner, I've balanced budgets and met payroll to provide for my employees in challenging economic times. I think rubber-meets-the-road experience guided by real concern for our community is exactly what the council needs right now. I'm committed to being a strong independent voice for my neighbors in Ward 3. While I firmly believe that a candidate and councilmember should speak with everyone and hear concerns and new ideas, I have either turned down endorsements or chosen not to seek endorsements from a number of groups. I believe that the best way to serve everyone is to not be beholden to anyone.

Chris Tolbert: I believe the mix of my skills, values and experience make me the right choice to be our advocate at City Hall. I would be the only attorney on the Council and my legal experience representing taxpayers would be an asset as our community works to redevelop the Ford Plant site. My energy and inclusive leadership also sets me apart. Since this campaign began I have knocked on thousands of doors in Ward 3–and it's my pledge to bring that level of constituent service to your door as a Councilmember. Lastly, my ability to bring people together and build consensus. I'm proud of the broad collation of support I've been able to build from the DFL, labor, police, fire and the chamber of commerce.