Hanceville City Council Place 3 debate

0:28 Hello and welcome to the beautiful Bailey Center auditorium on the grounds of Wallace State College in Hansville.

0:34 Thank you to our gracious hosts Wallis State College and Dr. Vicky Carlos. The

0:39 2025 Tribune debate series and Q question and answer forums continue today with municipal elections, more

0:47 specifically the Hansel municipal elections. These events are designed to give the public more unfiltered answers

0:54 with the questions uh without the questions ahead of time, direct comparisons, and meaningful

1:01 conversation. Today we focus on candidates running for council place 1, three, four, and the mayor. But now we

1:10 move on to place three with Kim Newman Brown, Joe Twist, and Elena Kennedy in

1:19 all that being said, we'll get on with it with rules. Rules for candidates, no

1:25 electronic devices permitted. questions will alternate so no candidate will always answer the first question first

1:33 or last. Uh opening statement is limited to 60 seconds and may be a prepared

1:39 statement. Time allotted per question is 2 minutes. Closing statement is 90 seconds and must be spoken without

1:48 notes. One rebuttal per question, but only if a candidate calls out the other

1:55 and is set for 45 seconds. Facts only, no accusations without proof. This will

2:02 allocate additional time to your opponent. Voters deserve substance over slogans. Talking points won't be enough.

2:10 So, let's begin. We will begin with Miss Elena Intricen. Is that correct?

2:23 Okay, we'll start. >> Okay, question one, city challenges. What's the biggest challenge facing your

2:31 area of the city right now and how would you tackle it? Um I think the biggest um challenge that

2:39 we're facing right now is um transparency in the government. Um and I think the best way to tackle that is to

2:49 have everything in a place where our citizens can access all of the information that they so desire. Um I

2:58 believe that we should stream our council meetings. They should have papers that um that we are going over.

3:06 Our agenda, all of those things should be accessible to all of the pe the

3:11 citizens in Hville. Um and I believe that they should be allowed to ask us

3:17 any questions that they have. We should be an open book. I mean, we are here to

3:22 work for the citizens of Hansville. That is literally the statement of the job.

3:28 It is to work for the citizens of Hville and they should have a say in in what we

3:33 are doing. >> All right. Thank you so much. Uh we will move on

3:39 to candidate Kim Brown. The same question. What's the biggest challenge facing your area of the city right now

3:46 and how would you tackle it? >> The biggest challenge facing the city of

3:51 Hansville right now is public safety. Um people want our police department back. They want it back in a way that's

3:58 transparent. And our citizens aren't feeling as safe as they did. They should feel safe in

4:04 their homes when they're driving on our streets when they go shopping. Our businesses should feel safe. They should

4:11 not worry about breakins or vandalism happening in their businesses. While I am extremely grateful to Sheriff Gentry

4:20 for what he has done for us, it's not enough. It doesn't protect our citizens

4:25 as well as our own department will. And I fully believe that when our department

4:29 is back up and running, it will be back up and running with very qualified

4:33 officers who've been extremely vetted. It will be running with new rules and policies and procedures in place. It

4:40 will also have disciplinary policies in place that will be rigidly followed with work evaluations in a regular manner.

4:48 And I think that will make us stronger and better and more able to protect our

4:53 citizens and give them what they deserve here in Hansville. >> All right, thank you. Um, we'll move on

5:01 to Joe Twist. The same question. What's the biggest challenge facing your area of the city right now and how would you

5:10 tackle it? >> Well, our biggest issue Is this mic on? >> Yes, ma'am. You just have to

5:15 >> All right. The biggest issue actually facing us is public safety and accountability, you know, both within

5:22 the council and within the police department. When we rebuild the police department, and we will be rebuilding the police

5:28 department, we need to do it differently than it was done in the past. We need to

5:33 find people that are qualified. For example, the police chief needs to be somebody who has come up through the

5:39 ranks in their own department, who is next in line for the police chief in

5:43 their department and is move, you know, looking to move up but can't in their

5:47 department. And all the police officers that we hire need to be what? 100%

5:52 vetted before they ever spend a day on the force. and accountability. You know,

5:57 there needs to be that accountability within the police department and the oversight from the council members to

6:03 make sure that the police department does not become corrupt again. >> Thank you so much for that answer. And

6:11 uh we'll move on to question number two and Kim, you will be first on this one.

6:16 Uh this is citizen input. What specific ways would you gather feedback from residents before voting on major issues?

6:27 >> Uh, I'd like to echo something Elena talked about, which is having all of our

6:31 meetings online and streamed, having all of our agendas and previous minutes posted online so that our citizens can

6:38 see what's going on and ask questions. Um, I do believe that we should

6:42 reinstate the committees that we once had. The committees are head headed by a

6:46 council person for each different committee. But it also has two to three citizens on that committee which gives

6:52 them input into things like public safety, uh the street department, parks and wreck, um the budget, all those

7:00 things need to be out where the citizens can participate. I also think that we

7:04 need to have a state of the city address every year where each department head

7:08 talks about what they've accomplished in the year, what they want to accomplish in the new year. And I also think we

7:14 need to have two community forums every year where it's open to all of our

7:18 citizens so that they can come ask questions and be have those questions answered by whe a department head, the

7:24 mayor or the council so that they know what's going on and don't feel like

7:28 they're in the dark. >> Thank you for answering. Uh Joe, we'll move uh on to you. Um your mic is a

7:36 little sensitive, so you will have to hold it up just a little bit higher. Um

7:40 same question. We are looking at what specific ways would you wait. >> Yes, I'm sorry. Uh citizen input. What

7:54 specific ways would you gather feedback from residents before voting on major issues? >> Okay. First of all, this the council

8:03 meetings need to be moved to a time when your average citizen can attend them.

8:07 Most citizens have a 9 to5. The council meetings are held at 5:00. There's no

8:12 way that they can be there. Their agendas need to be posted online well in

8:17 advance of the meetings so that the citizens can review them and do their

8:21 research on what's going, you know, coming up on the on the issues and at

8:26 that point they can come to the meetings, they can stand up, speak up

8:29 and have a voice. you know, we don't need them to think, well, oh my gosh,

8:35 you know, I I have to watch it online because if you're just watching it

8:39 online, you don't have a say in what, you know, what's going on. You can't

8:42 stand up and speak up if you're just watching it online and you can't, you

8:46 know, they can't show up at the meetings or at 5:00. So, those meetings need to

8:50 be pushed out. We need to have the agendas posted online well in advance of

8:55 the meeting so that citizens can see them. And we need to have the um minutes

9:00 from the prior meetings posted online so that the citizens can actually do their

9:04 research on how you voted in the past. All right. Thank you so much for that

9:10 answer and we will move on to Elena. Same question. What specific ways would

9:18 you gather feedback from residents before voting on major issues? I will go um and echo a little bit of

9:27 what Miss Kim Brown said. I think community forums would be such a good

9:31 thing um made at a a time, you know, that citizens can attend where they can

9:37 come and they can present their their questions and their concerns to us or

9:43 the mayor or whoever it is. um and they can ask those specific things and we can

9:48 kind of have a group discussion about the upcoming, you know, important things that are being voted on. Um I will 100%

9:58 advocate for agendas being posted online. It is so important for our citizens to see what we're looking at,

10:05 what we're trying to accomplish, what we're discussing during our meetings. I agree that they should be able to come

10:13 and speak up and if they have questions and if they have concerns, we should be

10:18 willing to listen to them. Um, I think that there also could be um definitely

10:26 committees that have citizens on them so they can submit those concerns um on

10:32 that committee. that committee head can kind of put it into a whole, you know,

10:37 group thing and be like, look, this is the concerns I'm hearing from the people

10:40 that I'm actively talking with on a daily basis. >> All right, thank you all for those

10:47 answers and we will move on to question number three with uh uh neighborhood

10:54 safety. Joe, you will start first on this one. What initiatives would you propose to improve public safety in the

11:03 area? >> Well, first of all, we need to rebuild the police department because with you,

11:10 Hansville is growing. Whether we like it or not, Hansville is growing and we're

11:15 going to need our own police department. The initiatives are building a police department that we can trust. you know,

11:24 it doesn't do us any good to have a police department that's not on the up and up. So, the

11:32 initiatives would be basically just to rebuild our police department, make sure it's functioning, make sure it's, you

11:39 know, they're being honest and open and doing their job and not just sitting out

11:45 doing speeding tickets. They need to be policing. They need to be interacting with the citizens, you know, they need

11:51 to be checking on the businesses. they need to be um open so that citizens can

11:56 feel you know comfortable going in and sitting down and chatting with the police department.

12:02 >> Thank you so much Elena. We will move to you. Same question. What initiatives

12:09 would you propose to improve public safety in the area? >> I think it's going to have to start with

12:16 transparency across the board. Um, we're going to need to be more open and more

12:20 transparent as an entire unit of municipal government. Um, Miss Twist made really, really good points about

12:28 the police department needing to be built from the ground up. And there need

12:33 to be trainings and vettings a thousand% for our police officers before they ever even work on the force.

12:43 There need to be leadership, someone established in the law enforcement community who who has been a leader and

12:50 can come in and lead our police department once that gets rebuilt. But I

12:56 I really believe that it starts with transparency across the board. We need to be open about the decisions we're

13:02 making in hiring the people for the police department so that our citizens have trust in their government officials

13:09 again because I feel like that's one thing that HZville is lacking severely is they don't trust the people who are

13:16 in who are in the government right now and who are in leadership positions.

13:20 Once we reestablish that trust with our citizens, it it becomes a little bit

13:25 smoother to transition to rebuilding the police department and making sure they're checking on businesses and the

13:32 businesses and the homes, you know, people feel safe again. But it really starts with just rebuilding that trust.

13:39 >> All right, thank you for that answer. Uh Kim, we'll move to you. Same question.

13:45 What initiatives would you propose to improve public safety in the area? >> Obviously, um rebuilding the police

13:54 department is first and foremost. However, we also need to remember that our fire department runs so many calls

14:02 and they have to write grants for so many of their resources. We need to make

14:06 sure that they're well funded, that they have everything they need. Our fire department, you know, does advanced life

14:13 support. We need to, you know, celebrate what they've done and how they have

14:17 grown, but we need to make sure they have all the things they need. They

14:22 train other departments. We need to make sure that that continues and that we

14:26 grow partnerships with other communities and other fire departments the same as we will the police department. I know

14:34 the city of Cullman has offered when we reestablish our police department to help us do any training that we need so

14:41 that we don't have to go off and pay to train somewhere else. Obviously, we have

14:46 to follow the letter of the law and make sure that all our officers are

14:50 apostertified, that they have complete background checks, and that they are the very best. If they have ever been let go

14:57 from a department, they don't have a place in ours. We need to make sure that

15:03 we give our citizens the very best. We also need to make sure our parks are

15:07 safe, make sure that they're well lit, and that there are officers patrolling them when the police department is back.

15:13 Public safety entails so much. We need to make sure that we address all those

15:17 pieces. >> All right, thank you for that answer. Uh we'll move on to question four. Elena,

15:24 we will begin with you. Uh this is on local business support. How would you

15:29 help small businesses in the area thrive while also encouraging new investment? >> Well, I think that begins with bringing

15:38 more um people to our area. I know that if you begin to pour into the parks and

15:47 making sure that those are safe and they are wellmaintained and they're good environments, then you bring in so much

15:54 when you do that. You bring in people, you bring in revenue, and when you do

15:59 that, that helps our local businesses. It helps our local restaurants, our local shops. It helps all of them. And I

16:06 think that the way that we continue to help our local businesses while also

16:14 increasing growth is just by really increasing the amount of people that are here and just helping them with

16:22 maintaining their safety, making sure they're safe, making sure it's a good environment that people want to be in,

16:28 and helping to drive people to those businesses. In order to drive people to

16:33 your businesses, you have to bring people into your city. And to do that,

16:37 you have to have safety. You have to have well-maintained parks and wreck. You have to have all of

16:43 those things. So, I think it's just like a tiered option. Once we start doing

16:46 those things and bringing more people in, it's going to help our small businesses tremendously. And then, you

16:53 know, you can start reaching out to other businesses to bring them into Hansville.

16:57 >> All right. Thank you for that answer. Uh Kim, we will move on to you. Same

17:02 question. How would you help small businesses in the area thrive while also encouraging new investment?

17:10 I think obviously we have to support the small businesses we have. We have to

17:15 continue investing in them as a city. We have to support the festivals and things

17:19 that they bring in. And we have to do more of those things. We have to make

17:24 sure that our parks are available for festivals. We have to support our downtown. Nolan has done an amazing job

17:32 investing in the downtown and building it up and we need to continue to do

17:36 that. And we need to find other people who want to do that. We need to have a

17:41 police department that's community present and that's present with our businesses that go in and talk to the

17:47 people that are there that talk to them, get to know them, bring those people

17:53 together. We need to use our planning commission and our industrial development board to

18:00 seek out new businesses so that they come into our city. And of course, we

18:04 need to have the tax incentives ready when some of these businesses come to to

18:08 ensure that they come and that they stay. >> Thank you. Um, we will move on to Joe.

18:16 Same question. How would you help small businesses in your area thrive while also encouraging new investment?

18:25 >> You know, it's interesting. I've talked to a couple of small business owners

18:28 because I would love to see all of the buildings in downtown Hansville filled

18:35 with small localowned businesses. And I've talked to several of the um small business owners and said, you know, why

18:42 not Hansville? Why can't you come to Hansville? And what I continually um get

18:46 back from them is lack of traffic. Well, I would love to build it, you know, have

18:51 my business in Hansville, but there's a lack of traffic. So, what we need to do

18:56 is sit take a step back and figure out how are we going to get that traffic

19:00 into Hansville? How are we going to get that traffic to stop instead of driving

19:04 through Hville? And you know, like with the festivals where we have those festivals, I look at them and they're

19:11 like one or two streets. We need to expand those festivals so that when

19:16 people are driving down 31 that they decide they want to stop and attend

19:20 these festivals and not just the local people in Hansville. And it wouldn't help if we actually gave you know re

19:27 rebates or betman you know tax um advantages I guess I don't know what the

19:31 word is to local businesses small businesses to get them to want to come

19:36 to Hansville. But, you know, literally we just need to figure out how to get traffic to stop

19:44 and shop in Hansville versus driving on through to Colina, you know, and, you know, I would love to see a

19:52 couple of small owned restaurants, you know, here in Hansville cuz I don't cook, you know, and I'm getting pretty

19:59 tired of having to drive to Cullman every time I want to go out to eat. And

20:04 we've got a couple of empty restaurants here. if we could just get some small,

20:08 you know, some chef that wants to make this a destination. And I know that

20:13 sounds silly, but a destination place to come for this chef's food. So, >> all right. Thank you all for those

20:21 answers, and we will move on to question five. Kim, we will begin with you. This

20:27 is on public works oversight. How will you monitor and advocate for quality in road, sidewalk, and drainage

20:37 projects in the area? >> I think first of all, I want to say that

20:43 our public works department over the last several years has done a great job.

20:48 If you look at all the sidewalk projects they've undertaken, if you look at the

20:52 ditching they did going up Highway 31 to make that area safer, um the director of

20:58 the public works gives the council a detailed report every council meeting of what has been done so that we know what

21:05 he is doing. But there are streets and things that we need to focus on. We're

21:09 waiting for the bid to be let for the 3191 turn lane. That is a desperate need

21:14 that we have been working on for the last couple of years. There are streets

21:18 like Elm Street that need to be paved. We had to work on the bridge that's by

21:22 the civic center. There are lots of things that we need to look at. As a

21:27 council member, if I am the council member that is the liaison with public

21:33 works, I can talk to them and find out what's going on. But as one council

21:37 member, I can't tell public works to do anything. That would be an ethics

21:41 violation. So, we have to make sure that we are connected to the people that are

21:46 in that department and that we can ask questions and that we know what's going

21:51 on. And we need to ask the citizens what priorities are. And that is why the

21:55 sidewalks were built. People wanted a sidewalk where they could get on the sidewalk close to Wallace and come

22:01 downtown or go from downtown all the way to the grocery store and be safe. And I

22:06 think we've accomplished that. >> All right. Thank you for that answer. And we will move on to Joe. Same

22:14 question. How will you monitor and advocate for quality in road, sidewalk, and drainage projects in the area?

22:23 >> Well, we can look for grants to begin with so that we can get more

22:26 accomplished without using the taxpayers's dollars. But I will say that I think that they've done a pretty good

22:31 job so far in Hansville. I call Hansville a walkable community because there's so many sidewalks where

22:38 you can walk. Streets need to be paved though and that's something where I think right now

22:44 we have a grant to upgrade the sewer system and we could look for grants to

22:49 upgrade the you know the roads to get the roads paved and to add more

22:53 sidewalks you know because there's a couple of side streets I walk on that

22:56 don't have sidewalks you know and you have to walk out in the road but I

23:01 personally think that our the department's doing a great job of what they're doing with what they have just

23:07 need to look for grants that's all you know basically just get somebody out

23:11 there and let's sort of start figuring out how we can get more money into the

23:14 city to spend on that. >> Thank you for that answer and we will

23:20 move on um to Elena. Same question. How will you monitor and advocate for

23:27 quality in road sidewalk and drainage projects in the area? >> Well, it goes back to creating

23:34 relationships. I think that you have to have a good relationship with the public

23:39 works department and the head of the department. You have to be able to, like

23:42 Miss Brown said, ask questions and kind of discuss with them, where they're at,

23:47 what they're doing, you know, the detailed list of what's been accomplished every council meeting is an

23:52 amazing thing to have. And I also think that you need citizen input. if if they

23:58 feel like their road has, you know, more potholes and and things like that, there

24:02 should be a community forum where they can come and they can let us know so

24:06 that we're aware of that. So then we can go back to the public works department

24:09 and be like, "Hey, let's let's have a chat about how we can fix this and what

24:13 we can do." Miss Choice is right. We can look for more grants for it. We can also

24:17 look at the budget and see if there's any way possible, you know, to add

24:21 things in or take things away. Which one, you know, comes priority over the

24:25 other? Thank you for that answer. And we will move on with Joe with

24:34 question number six. Regarding prioritizing limited funds if the city budget couldn't cover all

24:42 proposed projects, what decisionmaking project process would you use to set priorities? Can >> you repeat that question?

24:52 >> Yes, ma'am. If the city budget couldn't cover all proposed projects, what decisionmaking

25:02 process would you use to set priorities? >> First of all, you'd set priorities based

25:09 on the needs of the citizens. Number one is going to be public safety.

25:15 You know, number two, I would say, is is the infrastructure. Then you just kind of trickle down to

25:22 what's the last thing that you need. You know, you need your roads, you need

25:27 your, you know, you need your your utilities, you need the public safety. what you don't need, you know, like you

25:34 do need, but what could be put last is things like parks and recreations, you

25:40 know, and I know that sounds bad because there's so many people that have

25:43 children here. But if you're looking at I only have x number of dollars and how

25:48 am I how can I best spend it? You need those high ticket items first. You know,

25:53 the ones that are going to affect all of the citizens, you know, the most and not

25:57 the ones that are just going to affect some of the citizens some of the time.

26:03 Thank you for that answer. And we'll move on to Elena. Same question. If the

26:09 city budget couldn't cover all proposed projects, what decision-making process would you use to set priorities?

26:18 >> Well, as one council member, there's not a whole lot you can do by yourself. Um,

26:22 I think that first the decision-m process needs to include everyone who's involved. The entire council needs to

26:30 sit down, the mayor, even heads of departments possibly need to be in on

26:35 this discussion so that we can see what exactly needs are for each department

26:41 because there may be something you can cut out of one department and cut out of

26:44 another department that you know will bring in extra funds for something that we deem super important. Public safety

26:52 obviously is super important to the town, the business owners, the residents here. So that is going to be at the top

26:59 of that list. But I also think that we need to be considerate of the next

27:05 generation coming um underneath us because we're trying to make a foundation for them. This is not just

27:12 about us. This is about the future of Hville. This is about the people coming

27:16 up and those people are our children and other people's children. So, I think

27:21 that if we invest in our children, and if we invest in everyone else's

27:26 children, we're investing in the next generation, we're investing in the people coming into HZville. We're

27:32 investing in the people who want to put roots down here and who want to start

27:36 that business here and who, you know, want to run for city council here, who

27:41 want to, you know, raise their children here. So, I mean, and it might just mean

27:47 my own personal belief, but I think we definitely need to emphasize on public

27:52 safety, but I also think that it's a group effort. It's going to take

27:56 everyone on the council with all of their ideas coming together as one and

28:00 saying, "Hey, look, here's what I think is priority. Here's what you think is

28:04 priority. Here's what, you know, the mayor thinks is priority. How can we come together and make sure that all of

28:09 these priorities are getting met with whatever whatever the budget is that we have?

28:14 Thank you for that answer. And we'll move on uh to Kim. Same question. If the

28:21 city budget couldn't cover all proposed projects, what decision-making process would you use to set priorities?

28:30 >> First of all, I want to say I'm having a very proud teacher moment sitting next

28:34 to my former student and hearing her answers. Um what I try to do when the budget is

28:42 presented and what I think we have tried to do in the past, we ask the department

28:46 heads to meet with us when we have the budget presented and we question them

28:51 about each line item. It is not pleasant for everyone. It is a very long meeting.

28:57 It usually takes two meetings. But we ask them, can you cut such a percentage?

29:03 Instead of saying, oh, let's just take all of this out. Maybe we can cut

29:06 percentages from different departments so that we can still meet all the needs. Obviously, public safety is important.

29:12 Parks and wreck is important. Public works is important. But we need to make

29:16 sure that when we look at cutting the budget, we cut it in a way that is fair

29:21 to all departments and all citizens. Making sure that we cover their needs and making sure that we meet what our

29:27 requirements are. >> Right. Thank you for that. And we will move on to question seven with Elena.

29:35 This is on growth management. How would you handle a controversial development proposal that residents

29:44 oppose but could benefit the city financially? Well, I think that is um something that

29:53 goes back to just being transparent um and letting the citizens know, you know,

29:59 this is how we think this is going to better our community because sometimes

30:04 you form an opinion based on just, you know, the very initial thought of a

30:10 development or the very initial um projection of a development, you're like, "Oh my gosh, no." But then when

30:16 you sit down and you really talk to the council and they kind of tell you and

30:19 present to you how this could benefit your community, you kind of understand where they're coming from. I think that

30:25 that really just goes back to being transparent with our our citizens. We need them to know where we're coming

30:31 from and what we think and why we think it's going to benefit our community. And

30:35 we need to know why they think it wouldn't. I mean, it's a group effort.

30:40 The city council works with the mayor's office. The mayor and the city council

30:44 work with the citizens of Hsville. That's what this whole thing is for. So,

30:49 if we're not taking their advice and their concerns to heart, there's a problem there. They need to know where

30:55 we're coming from and why we think that it's beneficial financially. And we need

31:00 to know why they think that it wouldn't benefit our community because they may

31:04 have some knowledge that we don't and we may have some knowledge that they don't.

31:08 And that's just working handinhand with the citizens of this community so that they feel like they have a voice and a

31:16 place on the council as well. >> Thank you for that answer. Kim, we'll

31:21 move on to you. Same question. How would you handle a controversial development proposal that residents oppose but could

31:30 benefit the city financially? >> I think first of all, I'm going to do my

31:34 research. I'm going to make sure that I understand what the development entails. I want to understand the economic

31:42 impact, the environmental impact, and I want to understand what the neighbors and the people around the development

31:48 feel. Um, we hold public hearings so they can come and discuss those issues

31:53 with us. And we need to be very open and transparent as to why we think this

31:57 development is good for the city. But we also need to make sure that we check our

32:01 emotions when we start these projects so that we understand that we're looking at

32:07 it rationally. We're looking at dollars and cents from the city side so that we

32:13 can hear what the citizens have to say. Many people are going to have strong

32:17 emotions if you want to build something next to their neighborhood. We need to

32:21 understand why they have those emotions. if there are environmental impacts, if there are traffic impacts, if it's going

32:28 to make their neighborhood more busy, if it's going to create problems with their

32:32 children out to play, we need to look at all those things and take all that into

32:36 consideration and sit down and have conversations with those groups of people who are opposed and then talk to

32:43 the developer and say, "How do we address these issues? What can we do to

32:47 alleviate the concerns that the people have so that we can move forward with

32:51 this development that's going to bring income or people or jobs to our community?

32:56 Thank you for your answer and we'll move on to Joe. Same question. How would you handle a controversial

33:06 development? Um, how would you handle a controversial development proposal that residents oppose but could benefit the city

33:15 financially? >> Okay, this is where transparency comes in and also with giving the citizens a

33:22 voice. If you know when you're coming in with a new development, you're looking at

33:28 reszoning that area and the citizens that should know that this resoning issue is coming up and they should be

33:34 able to come in from the very beginning and say, "Hey, why is this being

33:39 reszoned? What do you plan on putting there?" You know, and then yes, we're

33:44 for it. No, we're not. Let's think about it. How is it going to affect my

33:47 housing? How's it going to affect the roads? How's it going to affect, you

33:50 know, the the, you know, the the ambiance of the neighborhood? If you're used to

33:56 having an open field in your backyard and all of a sudden you're going to have

33:59 a building there, Yeah. that's going to affect not only just your house prices,

34:03 but that's they need a voice. The citizens need a voice from the very

34:09 beginning. from when you first start talking to that developer to the reasonzoning of it to laying the plans

34:16 for it, they need to be able to come to the meetings and speak up and let you

34:22 know how they feel about it because I personally wouldn't want a giant development all of a sudden in my back

34:28 door and I didn't know anything about it at all. So we just need to be a lot more

34:32 transparent and give the citizens a voice so that they can actually come look and feel that they have a say. That

34:39 way, you know, they'll they'll start to understand the city's point of view and

34:44 the city will start understanding their point of view and hopefully the between you you guys can come to, you know, we

34:49 can come to like a happy medium where the development, okay, we want the

34:53 development, but the citizens think, well, wait a minute, let's make these changes and then we'll be okay with it

35:01 versus, well, we're going to develop it and surprise, you know, like it or not, it's going to come in.

35:08 So, >> all right. Thank you all for those answers and we will move on to Kim for

35:15 question number eight. This is ethics and office. What policies would you support to prevent conflicts of interest

35:24 for council members? I think anyone in public service, anyone who's ran for office, you already have

35:32 to fill out the ethics form and you have to disclose your personal connections,

35:38 your family's connections, your husband, your children. And I think those policies are great because I don't think

35:43 we should benefit from our office. We are here to serve the citizens. We are

35:48 here to make sure that our citizens have everything they need. and with the

35:53 council and with my job with the state. I have to file that ethics report and I

35:58 have to attend ethics classes and it's very important that we understand the least little thing that might be an

36:06 ethics violation. And if someone is looking at a development that they might have an interest in or that someone in

36:13 their family might have an interest in, we have to abstain and we have to be

36:17 very clear as a council who's supporting the developments, who's involved with them, so that we know how to vote, so

36:25 that we know um what ethically might be entangled in with it. And I think the

36:30 state has now made sure or especially the city of Hansville, we're all going

36:34 to be given new ethics classes. It's going to be a requirement of the new

36:38 council and it's going to be a lengthy discussion with the ethics commission and it's going to be a lengthy process

36:45 to make sure that we understand all the ethical pieces that are required of a

36:49 council member and a public servant. >> Thank you for that answer. And Joe, same

36:56 question. it. Uh, what policies would you support to prevent conflicts of interest for council members?

37:05 >> H ethics. Funny question. All businesses have ethic, you know, clauses in your

37:11 contract when you sign them. And it's it's not just well, are you going to

37:17 gain from this development or it has more to do with your job performance? you know, are you ethical

37:27 in your job performance? So, we need policies in place that are very specific

37:33 as to if you do this infraction, you know, that's an ethics violation. If you

37:38 do this, that is an ethics violation. And when somebody is caught in one of

37:44 those situations that it's dealt with right then, right there, and not, you know, just turned a blind eye to. I

37:52 think that's kind of what got us in the position we're in right now.

37:56 So we need a documented ethics policy listing every possible scenario that can happen. And we also need to train our

38:07 employees, you know, and the council members as well, you know, attending the ethics classes and knowing, you know,

38:15 what can get you in trouble. >> Yes. >> May I say something? um only rebuttals

38:24 or if it's directed and pointed at you. >> So, >> no clarification point.

38:30 >> Uh no ma'am, you can do that in the closing statement. >> Okay.

38:35 >> Um and we will move on to Elena. What policies would you support to

38:41 prevent conflicts of interest for council members? >> Well, I think that everyone taking an

38:47 ethics class or two would be wonderful. Um and I think that definitely needs to

38:51 be put in place. Um, it really goes back to integrity and uh doing what you know

38:58 is right even when no one is looking at you. Um, I think that the policy should

39:03 outline, you know, what is considered an ethics violation. However, I don't think you

39:09 can list every single possible scenario because there's probably a bunch of them. Um, but you can definitely list

39:15 those and and it needs to be gone over the council members need to attend those

39:19 ethic classes. Possibly even like offer a certificate for for attending all of the ethics classes and that sort of

39:27 thing. Um, I I definitely think we need to work with the ethics commission on

39:32 anything that they want us to do. and you should disclose any way you could

39:37 possibly gain anything because like Miss Brown said, this is a public service office. You're not here to gain

39:44 anything. You're here to serve the citizens of Hville. That is what this office is for and that's what it should

39:51 be for. Um, you should be here to be the hands and feet to make sure that they are taken care of

40:01 and they have a voice. That should be what you gain. you gain the head the

40:05 citizens of Hville having a voice in what's going on in their city. Um, so I

40:10 definitely agree with ethics classes for everyone. Even the employees who are going to be heads of departments or even

40:17 working in those departments um should have to attend those ethics classes so they kind of know what's expected of

40:23 them and how to go about if something were to arise, there needs to be

40:29 policies put in place for disciplinary action and how to go about any ethics

40:34 violation that there may be. >> All right. Thank you so much. And for

40:40 question nine, we it's an audience question, Joe. This will start with you. It's kind of a lengthy question.

40:51 >> Will you make a commitment to be at each and every community event as a city

40:56 council member from grand openings, business milestones, events, and so forth. And if you cannot make it,

41:08 make a public statement as to why you will not be there and follow up with a

41:13 local business when you're available. >> Absolutely. Um I'm very fortunate in that I have an

41:20 employer that is willing to work around my schedule, you know, when I'm elected

41:25 for to the council. So if there's a business opening, you know, or a um

41:32 festival or whatever, then I can adjust my work schedule to be there with that.

41:38 And it's very important as a council member because if you go out to these

41:41 events like to the festivals and things, you're giving the citizens a chance to

41:46 approach you in a way where it's in a more relaxed atmosphere where they're they don't feel like they're

41:54 intruding on you anything. And business openings are so important. Those ribbon cutings that is saying to this

42:02 businesses, we welcome you and we will support you. And to not show up is is,

42:08 you know, it's just not a good face to have. So yes, absolutely. I will be at

42:13 every opening, every festival, and every event that I need to be at. >> Thank you for that answer. Elena, same

42:21 question. Like I said, it's a little lengthy. Will you make a commitment to be at each and

42:26 every community event as a city council member from grand openings, business milestones, events, and so forth. And if

42:36 you cannot make it, make a public statement as to why you will not be

42:40 there and follow up with the local business when you are available. >> I I absolutely will do my very best to

42:50 be at any festival opening that we have. I may have a few children in tow, but I

42:56 will be there. Um, I love this community so much. I have no problem making a

43:01 public statement if I can't be there. Um, majority of the time I'm free. I do

43:08 have two little ones that come with me most of the time, but I am gladly

43:14 willing to be approached even with my children there um, and to discuss anything that anyone has. It is so

43:20 important that we support the festivals, the tournaments, the grand openings in this community because again, we're

43:28 setting a foundation for our children to use and to grow and to to better

43:34 Hansful whenever it comes their time. So, I will definitely make every effort to be at anything that I possibly can.

43:44 >> Thank you, Kim. Oh, yes. Sorry. You don't have to read it again.

43:49 >> Okay, you're good. Okay, >> I'm good. >> Um, I will commit to being at any

43:54 festival and grand opening that it's publicly possible for me to be at. If

43:58 not, I will definitely make a statement explaining why I can't be there. Most

44:03 likely those statements will say something about my role as a school principal and I'm taking care of 450

44:08 other children. Um, but the festivals are very important and it's a very important time for our community. Um,

44:15 and it's not just the council that is there. Um, you'll see the high school

44:19 cheerleaders attend. You'll see the football players attend. And that is so great for our kids and for our

44:26 community. And it's great to walk those streets and see those kids interact with

44:30 those other children. And it is very important to support the businesses we have. I was so excited when Valerie

44:37 opened reopened trinkets and traditions because those are things that are wonderful for our community and we need

44:44 to support them and I will do my very best to support them in any time that I

44:49 can and if not I will most definitely make a statement as to why I wasn't

44:52 there. >> Thank you so much. Thank you all three for answering these questions. We're now

44:58 going to go into closing statements. I believe I skipped the introductions. So, we are going to give you three

45:06 minutes on closing remarks. Okay, Elena, you will be first. >> Well, I would just like to say it is an

45:16 honor just to sit up here and have this opportunity. I'm so thankful that I live

45:21 in America and in a country where young people have have a chance to, you know,

45:28 use our influence and our education and things like that to to have a voice on

45:37 councils in our city. Um I would also like to say that I'm just I'm super

45:43 excited and interested to see um how this election plays out. Um we have some

45:49 really really amazing people running for all of the the candidate um positions and the mayor position. And so I'm I'm

45:57 really interested to see because again I live in this city. I love this city. I'm

46:02 raising my my family here. And so I'm interested to see where Hsville goes and

46:06 I hope that I get to be a part of of moving Hville forward. It's made such an

46:11 impact on my life. Um and I've been here most of it. So I'm I'm so excited to

46:17 watch Hanceville grow and to see all of the the new um and amazing things that

46:22 we can do. It's gotten such a backlash here lately and it's a great place to

46:27 live and I want people to know that and I want them to remember that Hville is a

46:30 good place. Um there's been a lot of bad publicity but we are good people here

46:35 and we're willing to do whatever it takes to to move HZville forward. >> Thank you.

46:43 >> All right. Thank you so much and we will move on. Uh Kim, you have three minutes.

46:51 I am so honored to be able to sit here um again and I'm a lifelong resident of

46:58 Hville. I grew up here. My parents bought the house that I was raised in in

47:03 1963. I was born several years later. I went to high school here. I raised my kids

47:09 here. My grandkids, all but one, are being raised in this town. This town has the values and the people

47:17 and the moral integrity that I want my children and grandchildren to have. You know, this town taught me to care

47:28 for the people around me, to help my neighbor, to be kind to the other people

47:34 around me. If someone was in need, to help them. If you think back to the

47:39 tornadoes, we all pulled together. You know, we're feeding one another. We're sharing houses where people are washing

47:46 each other's clothes. This town has so much to offer, so much wisdom in our

47:53 older generation, so much youth that's wanting to serve our community. I am just so amazed at the possibilities that

48:02 are here in Hansville. And I don't think I'm finished. I believe that there are

48:07 things that have happened in the last two years that it's my responsibility to

48:13 stand up and say, I need to help fix that. I need to help this get right

48:18 before I walk away and res and and retire from the council. I want to have

48:24 a good five-year plan in place, a 20-year plan so that we know where we're

48:29 going, so that we know what we're doing. And I want us to do it with integrity.

48:35 And I want us to do it with compassion. And this town is a wonderful place.

48:40 Wallace State brings so many young people into our town. So many opportunities that we need to capitalize

48:48 on. I want a chance to make all that happen. I want the next four years to be

48:54 the best four years for Hansville. I want us to be forward thinking and not

48:59 looking backwards. And I hope I have the opportunity to be a part of that.

49:05 Thank you for your answer, Joe. >> All right, like these other I am really

49:10 honored to be up here to be running for Hansville. I've only lived in Hansel for

49:15 two years and I really like this community. It has so much going for it.

49:23 The downtown area, I you know, it's just it's a quaint little downtown. It's a

49:29 historical little downtown and it needs to be developed into a historical little downtown and I want to be a part of

49:36 making Hansville downtown a historical area. I want to be a part of making

49:41 Hansville grow and you know developing Hansville, developing the parks and you know building bigger parks and I know

49:49 that there on my priority list you know public safety comes first and and it

49:54 kind of the trickle down effect but I have dogs and I go to the dog park all

49:59 the time. I go to that the Veterans Memorial Park all the time and I when I

50:05 walk there I look and I think, "Oh man, you know, there's so many things here

50:08 that could be fixed." When I go downtown, it's like, "Oh man, there's so

50:11 many things here that could be fixed." And I want to be a part of that

50:14 solution. You know, where I came from, I was part of a solution. Where I moved

50:18 from before I came to Hansville, I was part of a solution. And I want to be the

50:22 same here as I want to be a part of the solution. I want to see the city grow. I

50:28 want to see it grow in a controlled way and I want to see it become what it can

50:34 be, this wonderful little bedroom community. Thank you. >> Thank you so much. Uh again, I want to

50:43 thank uh Dr. Vicky Carlos and Wall State for allowing us to be here today. I want

50:49 to thank all three candidates for coming and answering all the questions. Thank you so much for that. I want to thank

50:55 everyone in the audience and everyone watching at home um you know because it

50:59 is important to stay involved in your government. And with that this debate is

51:05 over and we will look forward to the next debate coming up for place four.

51:11 Thank you so much.