News & Record (Greensboro, NC), October 2, 2005, Sunday

Copyright 2005 News & Record (Greensboro, NC)
News & Record (Greensboro, NC)

October 2, 2005 Sunday News & Record EDITION

SECTION: TRIAD; Pg. B1; None

HEADLINE: At-large hopefuls vie for 3 seats

BYLINE: BY MATT WILLIAMS

BODY:
Editor's note: Eight candidates are running citywide for three seats on the Greensboro City Council. The News & Record previews the last four candidates alphabetically: Yvonne Johnson, Joel Landau, George Subasavage and Don Vaughan. The first four candidates were previewed Saturday, and the story can be found under the Vote 2005 link at www.news-record.com
GREENSBORO - Most of the eight candidates running for Greensboro's three at-large City Council seats will survive to face each other in November.
But where they finish in the primary Oct. 11 will set the course for four weeks of campaigning for the prominent city posts.
Two of the three incumbents, Yvonne Johnson and Don Vaughan, are seeking another two-year term. In addition, Councilwoman Florence Gatten is running for an at-large seat after two terms as a representative in District 4. The five challengers are Sandra Anderson, Diane Davis, Dave Howerton, Joel Landau and George Subasavage.
The top six vote winners in the primary will advance to the general election Nov. 8.
With no single issue dominating the campaign, most of the candidates agree that the city's major challenges are attracting jobs and managing growth. But with different backgrounds and varying levels of experience, each has a different approach to dealing with those challenges.
Yvonne Johnson
Seeking her seventh term, Johnson serves as the mayor pro tem, filling in for the mayor representing the city. But more important, Johnson said, is her role of making council members consider the human element of their decisions.
"I try to get people to not just think with their heads and their minds, but also with their heart," she said.
Johnson said she was proud to have built support to expand bus service to nights and weekends and to forestall an increase in fares for the city's van service for the disabled.
If re-elected, she wants to move forward with plans to set aside land in east Greensboro where large employers can locate. Computer maker Dell considered building its new plant in the city but couldn't find land that was ready to build on with utilities.
"I think we need to do that rather than just talk about it," Johnson said.
Johnson also wants to tap into the city's colleges and universities, drawing expertise from professors and giving students more of a stake in the city. She proposes occasionally holding council meetings at the schools so students can be more involved in the process.
"Something we don't want to do is lose our brightest citizens," she said.
Joel Landau
The former owner of Joel's Natural Foods said he has always considered running for office. But this summer, when friends went to him concerned by the lack of "progressive" candidates, Landau said yes.
He has made environmental and growth issues the focus of his campaign, arguing for more energy efficiency and transportation options for residents.
To start, Landau thinks the city should expand its fleet of hybrid vehicles and expand the use of biodiesel in heavy trucks such as buses and trash trucks. He suggests that the city buy the organic fuel in bulk and resell some to private citizens who want to use renewable energy.
For residents, Landau wants to make the city more bicycle-friendly by mandating bike lanes when roads are built or widened. Developers can also be encouraged to build more high-density and mixed-use housing so people can bike where they need to go.
"We need to make biking a real option for people who want to do more than just pedal around the park on the weekend," Landau said.
Landau also wants to make information about city government more accessible to residents. He pointed to his difficulty in finding out which nonprofit groups are awarded grants and loans by the city government. The council approves those grants in each meeting, but information about the grants is not readily available to residents.
"You should be able to go to the Web site and find out where that money is going," Landau said.
George Subasavage
Like Landau, Subasavage is concerned that even the few people interested in tracking how their tax money is spent can't find anything more than the most basic financial information from the city.
As a former financial manager at a food manufacturing plant, he wants to get into the inner workings of city spending but can't really discern where money is spent within city departments. That makes it tough to know where there is waste.
"I'm not sure if anything's excessive," he said. "All of it could be excessive in some fashion."
If elected, Subasavage wants the city to start its budget from scratch instead of repeating last year's spending, a concept called "zero-based budgeting" also supported by fellow candidate Gatten.
This openness should also extend to public council discussions, he said. He agreed with other challengers that the council sometimes suppresses debate in favor of reaching consensus.
"If there's not a lot of talking and exchange, does that just mean that everything's being signed off on?" Subasavage asked.
Don Vaughan
When asked at a candidate forum last week whether he would ever run for mayor, Vaughan had a straightforward answer: "Hell no."
But he does want an eighth term as an at-large council member to continue the projects he helped start.
If given the opportunity , Vaughan said he wants to make sure that major changes to the city's development rules and water extension policy are completed.
The water policy, in particular, can help shape growth in the eastern part of the city while preserving capacity for existing residents.
But when asked to name an accomplishment of his in the last term, Vaughan could not name an issue where he played a leading role.
"Let me get back to you on that," he said.
As for the city's effort to recruit new industries, Vaughan said that cash incentives are a "necessary evil" to compete with neighboring communities. He said the city's policy does a good job of preventing abuse by companies because it only pays the companies after they invest in the tax base and create jobs that pay above-average wages.
Vaughan said he also wants to continue support for downtown businesses and carry out the Parks and Recreation Department's long-term plan for building new parks.
Contact Matt Williams at 373-7004 or mwilliams @news-record.com
DOUBLE-EDIT T hree incumbents and five newcomers are in the race for the City Council posts .

NOTES:
YVONNE JOHNSON (i) Age: 62 Address: 4311 King Arthur Place Occupation: Executive director, One Step Further Political experience: City Council member, 1993-present Civic leadership: Chairwoman, Bennett College Board of Trustees; co-founder, Summit House; board member, Delancey Street Foundation Education: Bachelor's degree in psychology, Bennett College; master's degree in counseling, N.C. A&T Family: Married, four children, six grandchildren Web site: None JOEL LANDAU Age: 54 Address: 6 Collwood Court Occupation: Home-based distributor of wellness products Political experience: None Civic leadership: Former member of the Deep Roots Cooperative; founding member of Citizens for Waste Reduction and Recycling; board member of Resources for Artful Living; former president, Brandywine Homeowners Association Education: Bachelor's degree in industrial and labor relations, Cornell University Family: Married, two stepchildren Web site: www.joellandau.com GEORGE SUBASAVAGE Age: 63 Address: 2109 Gate Post Drive Occupation: Retired financial manager Political experience: None Civic leadership: None Education: Associate degree in accounting, Ford School of Business Family: Married, three children, five grandchildren Web site: None DON VAUGHAN (i) Age: 53 Address: 2603 W. Market St. Occupation: Attorney Political experience: Council member, 1991-present Civic leadership: Member, N.C. Banking Commission; former chairman of Parks and Recreation Commission Education: Bachelor's degree, UNC-Chapel Hill; master's degree in public administration, American University; law degree, Wake Forest University Family: Married, one daughter Web site: www.votedonvaughan.com