It took 50 aldermen and an entrenched mayor to get us into this mess. A single alderman alone cannot get us out of it,
but I can lead by example. I will reduce my salary and office costs to 2007 levels. I also know that we can merge some
city council committees and save tax dollars. I feel that some city departments can reduce their costs, for instance, the
office of special events can look for sponsors, not privatization, but sponsorship of festivals and events that can lead to
less spending by the city. I also know that we can merge some city departments into others without a negative effect on
city services. Regarding pension liability, I feel that the city has made some bad investments with the pension funds,
and instead we can look for some higher grade investments there. Additionally, for pensions, we can work with new
hires to move them to a personal savings plan, and we can prevent fraud. I will also work toward TIF reform, and
request that outdated TIFs be shut down. I will also hold city managers accountable for costs and services.