League of Women Voters of California Education Fund
Santa Clara County, CA November 4, 2008 Election
	John Inks Answers Questions Candidate for Council Member; City of Mountain View

The questions were prepared by the League of Women Voters of Los Altos/Mtn. View Area and asked of all candidates for this office.
Read the answers from all candidates (who have responded).

Questions & Answers

1. What strategies would you use to try to meet the fair share housing needs allocated to Mountain View for the new Housing Element currently under development, particularly the 571 units to be affordable to those earning less than 50% of area median income ("AMI")* and the 388 units to be affordable to those earning less than 80% of AMI? Please prioritize these strategies according to which you think would be most effective for Mountain View. *AMI is $106,100 for a family of four, so 50% of AMI for a family of four is $53,050 and 80% is $84,880.

Strategies to fulfill mandated units of housing for various income levels will be explored in the Housing Element update now underway. Realistically however, the city will only be able to provide opportunities for such housing through zoning and regulation. Actually fulfilling these needs would require land dedications and enormous subsidies. I will focus on minimizing administrative burden, expense and time to provide affordable housing.

2. AB32 requires substantial cuts in GHG emissions by the city and by the residents of the city. What initiatives do you think the city can take to meet these mandates?

Top two:
1. More widespread publicity to reduce fossil fuel consumption. Reduced auto emissions support AB32 requirements and leverages air quality, congestion and economy.
2. Reduced electricity consumption with modern lighting such as CFLs and electrical appliances.

3. What city resources do you think should be applied to improve the health of Mountain View citizens? For instance, describe how zoning can be used to improve the built environment and how recreation can be used to improve physical and mental fitness. Discuss other city services that relate to citizen health.

City resources are used to promote a number health and safety benefits. More can be done for pedestrian safety and convenience with access and design to better protect pedestrians from vehicle traffic. Mountain View's water quality is very high and the cost of that water is going much higher. We can better publicize the need for conservation to help maintain the supply of high quality water.

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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).

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Created from information supplied by the candidate: October 16, 2008 00:59
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