Three candidates for mayor in their first televised debate Tuesday night varied widely on the key issue facing Frankfort.
Gippy Graham said it's the city budget facing a possible loss of the occupational taxes from fewer state employees. Phyllis Liebman said it's what the city does with its money. And Lynn Bowers said what's most important is whatever's on the agenda.
The three, along with Doug Williams, Don Arington and Thomas Munn " all no shows " will be on the primary ballot May 20. The two winners will face off in the November election.
Graham, Liebman and Bowers also talked about their leadership style before an audience of about 50 and a panel who posed a series of questions. The candidates also took questions from the audience. The session was broadcast live on Channel 10.
As for the budget, Graham, a former state representative, said one of the major issues needing attention is the city's revenue flow.
"The present budget is $30.5 million and the revenue flow is $29 million," Graham said. "Revenue flow is critical."
He said 71 percent of the city's budget comes from payroll taxes and 52 percent of the payroll tax comes from state employees.
"The state budget calls for an anticipated loss of 3,400 state jobs," Graham said. If that happens, it will create a big drain on the city's revenue, he said.
He said there needs to be a "framework of operations in city governmentto address all types of issues with the public and bring about cooperation." The city needs to work with Downtown Frankfort, industrial development and tourism officials to "try to get a different type of revenue flow."
Liebman disagreed about immediately looking at revenue flow.
"I think Frankfort is blessed with revenue," Liebman said. "I feel we need to get back to some basics on how to spend that money."
For the first six months, Liebman said she would study "every service and make sure it is efficient and effective and the taxpayers are getting what they paid for.
"I wouldn't rush into addressing revenue flow until I had a clear picture. It's very difficult with the public budget the city provides today to tell exactly what is going on. I've asked for the 2008-09 budget and have been told it won't be available until sometime in June."
Bowers, a current city commissioner and mayor pro tem, said every issue that comes to the table "is the number one issue."
She said she would like Frankfort to become a "climate community" and give more support to the recommendations made by the Mayor's Task Force on Energy Efficiency and Climate Change.
"We can go for some of these energy conservation block grants that are going to be available in 2009," Bowers said. "I would like for us to be a model city with some pilot projects."
To help reduce emissions in the city, Bowers said public transit runs could be increased to evening hours and weekends.
Graham said he has experience in environmental issues and supports the efforts of the mayor's task force. However, whether a full-time employee can be hired to "carry out the recommendations" approved by the commission, "at this time, I do not know."
Liebman said she would need to study the budget before voting to hire a full-time energy coordinator. She said she once worked in a business of 5,000 employees, "where we made every individual an ambassador of energy conservation.
"I think that is a good start. Then we can try to find ways to avoid costs with fuel and other energy sources by combining with other local agencies."
Bowers, said if elected, she would like to have more frequent City Commission meetings, "and run meetings in a way that allows citizens to become more involved."
Graham, Liebman and Bowers said they could work with Bill May if he is elected to the City Commission. May is a candidate for city commissioner on the November ballot because he has reached the consecutive three-term limit as mayor and can't succeed himself.
Bowers said serving with May on the commission "would be a blessing. I would like nothing better than being in the mayor's chair and having someone serving with me that's been there before because I value experience."
Graham said he doesn't know May well. But if elected, Graham said he "would want to seek out each commissioner and talk with them. I will assume all commissioners care as much about city government as I do and that we will have things in common.
"So I see no problem. If we have the opportunity to work together, so the better. Still it takes three votes (by the commission to approve or reject agenda items)."
Graham said he "tries to be involved with people every way I can." He said he will set goals, rely a lot on the city manager and be out in the community getting citizens' input.
Liebman said she has a "very different style than Frankfort has experienced in the last 13 years. It has been a government of status quo. There has been no blueprint for growth, no blueprint to continually improve services to our people.
"The staff at City Hall, which takes its direction from the mayor, is not customer friendly. They have a way of intimidating people. People continuously tell me they walk away from there without answers and frustrated."
Bowers said the staff takes direction from the city manager, "not the mayor. The mayor is the chair of the policy-making body. The mayor doesn't have that kind of day-to-day power."
Liebman, in rebuttal, said, "The mayor is a leader and your leader sets the tone for everybody involved."
Regarding the downtown parking problem, Liebman said she would "be very aggressive about finding a solution." Before taking office she would put together a task force of stakeholders " including county government and downtown merchants and residents " to discuss solutions.
Bowers said she voted against the new Paul Sawyier Public Library "going in its current location (a former city parking lot) because I didn't want to lose parking. I wanted it to go down to the riverfront (on Wilkinson Boulevard).
"But parking being a problem is relative. I've lived in a lot of places and this is the easiest place to park in downtown in all the places I've lived. We can do better, but we're not bad."
Graham said he's aware the City Commission is working on solving the parking problem, but doesn't think there has been an assessment regarding how many parking spaces are needed.
"Any time you build a structure or tear down a structure, parking capability should be factored into that decision," he said.
The Frankfort Area Chamber of Commerce sponsored the forum in Investors Heritage Auditorium. The two top vote getters in the primary May 20 will be on the November ballot. The panel was moderated by Dave Weller, an executive a with A T & T. The panelists included John Zambenini of the The State Journal, Janet Meyer, with Forever Communications, and Tom Latek, with Channel 27.