Candidates Questionnaire - Denise Simmons

1. Many residents feel that their property taxes are  too high, and that because of this they cannot afford to buy a house or rent an apartment to stay in Cambridge. How can we make sure that property taxes keep the city affordable while providing the city with the tax base it needs?

a) Tax major institutions and their affiliates in a progressive manner

n) Lobby the state to adopt 1 of our 4 current proposals that would generate tax relief to property owners

c) Manage the city budget

Assist city subsidized programs in seeking alternative funding (i.e. grants and fundraising from other sources)

Initiate a gift and grant-seeking mechanism within Community Development whose sole purpose is to seeking funds to offset the cost of programs and services on the city budget

2. How can we make public transportation better in Cambridge and what can the City Council do to encourage residents to use public transportation?

Encourage continued dialogue with the MBTA on ways to improve public transportation.

Invite them to come speak with the City Council and Residents on current services

Proliferate the EZ Ride

Get the MBTA to do a better job of posting schedules

Get the MBTA to put up more bus shelters (particularly in areas near seniors)

Have as much information about the merits of public transportation available to the public

3. What can the city do to make sure that future negotiations with the city's unions are fair to workers?

Demand that the city adhere to fair labor standards

Better transparency of information between Cambridge Government and Unions on areas of interest to workers (i.e. up-coming development projects)

 4. Cambridge is one of the centers of high-tech innovation in the country. What can the City Council do to encourage innovation and take advantage of new technology while keeping the city affordable for its residents?

Cambridge is a leader in encouraging new technology with its prestigious universities and approximately 100 companies in biotech, high-tech and medical devices.

Collaborate with major universities to create more environmentally conservative housing with cheaper long-term costs (i.e. utilizing solar energy)

Invite major technology savvy businesses and universities to discuss a long-term development plan for the proliferation of technology for the benefit of the city

5. What will you do to take advantage of the unique educational resources provided by the Cambridge's universities while preventing university development that threatens working families? 

Create a development plan for university services in collaboration with city departments that address city needs

Currently as universities continue to expand in our city each development must include, where possible, a plan for affordable housing (rental and/or ownership).

To prevent threats to working families the City Council is currently seeking to safe-guard university workers through discussions with local unions.

6. What can City Council do to ensure that future development is not environmentally harmful?

Revisit and comply with previous reports (such as Green Ribbon and Open Spaces report of March 2002) on environmental issues facing the City of Cambridge.

-- Denise Simmons