League of Women Voters of California Education Fund
Santa Clara County, CA November 7, 2006 Election
	Althea Polanski Answers Questions Candidate for Council Member; City of Milpitas

The questions were prepared by the Leagues of Women Voters of Santa Clara County and asked of all candidates for this office.
Read the answers from all candidates (who have responded).

Questions & Answers

1. What experience related to city government would you bring to the City Council?

I have served my first term on the Milpitas City Council and served the citizens of Milpitas for 19 years on the Milpitas Unified School District Board of Trustees.

I was successful in bringing Measure T, hillside protection, to a vote of the people. I also promoted ethics and an open government ordinance. I opposed Measure I, Charter City, an expensive ballot initiative we defeated in June.

The experience I gained working with regional leaders on transportation, education, hillside preservation and open space make me uniquely qualified to continue to serve on the Milpitas City Council.

2. What concerns are of particular importance to the city and how would you address them?

Ensuring our citizens continue to receive a high level of police and fire services, maintaining our streets and parks during tough economic times is a major concern. There needs to be a balance between the needs of our employees for higher wages and benefits and the needs of our citizens. I do not support continuing to raise fees on our residents to maintain higher compensation packages for employee groups and will continue to vote no until we can control costs.

Transportation is always a concern in Milpitas and by approving the Midtown Specific and Transit Area Plans, the city will provide housing, retail and businesses along a transit corridor. I believe this will assist with the traffic impacts our residents face on a daily basis.

3. How would you balance the needs of the City as a whole with groups' interests?

The City Council has 13 commissions consisting of members of our very diverse community. These commissioners provide valuable advice and guidance when I am making decisions for our city. I will continue to be open to listening to all sides of an issue before making a decision. I believe I have made decisions on employee compensation that are not popular with these groups' interests but for financial stability for the city as a whole over the next 20 years, it is critical.

---

Responses to questions asked of each candidate are reproduced as submitted to the League.  Candidates' responses are not edited or corrected by the League.

Read the answers from all candidates (who have responded).

Candidate Page || Feedback to Candidate || This Contest
SmartVoter Home (Ballot Lookup) || About Smart Voter

---

Created from information supplied by the candidate: October 3, 2006 15:45
Smart Voter <http://www.smartvoter.org/>
Copyright © League of Women Voters of California Education Fund   http://www.lwvc.org
The League of Women Voters neither supports nor opposes candidates for public office or political parties.