League of Women Voters of California Education Fund
	Santa Clara County, CA November 4, 2008 Election
	Candidates Answer Questions on the Issues Council Member; City of Santa Clara; Seat 7

The questions were prepared by the Leagues of Women Voters of Santa Clara County and asked of all candidates for this office.     See below for questions on Experience, Important Concerns, Balance Needs Click on a name for candidate information.   See also more information about this contest. 1. What experience related to city government would you bring to the City Council? Answer from Ciaran Gerard O'Donnell, Ph.D: Two of our councilors are mayors, two are teachers, two others are public employees. As an engineer I bring valueable experience to a city with high tech. I know how to listen, analyze complex problems, and get people that have different points of view to move to consensus. Our city and state is changing very quickly. As I have lived in the United Kingdom, Canada and France for most of my life I can bring a unique outlook to the Mission City. 2. What concerns are of particular importance to the city and how would you address them? Answer from Ciaran Gerard O'Donnell, Ph.D: We are experiencing a population growth rate of three percent a year. House prices are down, at the same time some people are complaining about the cost of living in Santa Clara. To protect the environment and maintain housing affordable I favor high density housing. In a recession, we need to bring hope to our people and health is a good place to start where wealth is lacking. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. I support fluoridization of the water supply, and flu shots as well as festivals downtown and in the Rivermark area to just have good clean fun. There has been a significant loss of retail in Santa Clara, including the recent losses of Mervyns and K-mart as well as Albertsons. There has also been a significant loss of small business including bankruptcies. City staff should be more high tech savvy and have a more pro business attitude. Residents are complaining about ex convicts, criminals, and youths belonging to gangs using parks at night and spraying grafitti. For our police, this is a major issue. Access to energy is critical both to get to work and for our businesses. Coal and oil will not last forever nor are renewable resources ideal. I support a natural gas fueling facility for delivery vehicles and promoting nuclear power through Silicon Valley Power. 3. How would you balance the needs of the City as a whole with groups' interests? Answer from Ciaran Gerard O'Donnell, Ph.D: Right now at the Senior Center, staff do not speak other languages than English and Spanish. I believe we need to be more diverse including on our web site. We need to be more proactive when a conflict comes up, e.g. between a tenant and residents whether through working through project Sentinel or in other ways. Unlike some people, I believe in drawing the line on special interest groups and spending. Responses to questions asked of each candidate are reproduced as submitted to the League.  Candidates' responses are not edited or corrected by the League. The order of the candidates is random and changes daily. Candidates who did not respond are not listed on this page.