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7) What are your favorite leisure activities and hobbies and why do you enjoy them? “My primary leisure activities are centered around my family. I have been active as a coach on my daughters’ softball and soccer teams. In addition, we enjoy water skiing, tubing, and swimming. We also make the occasional trip to the driving range and I am a casual golfer. In the winter we try to snow ski. These are opportunities for us to spend time having fun and building skills and confidence in a variety of settings.”

8) What are you going to give up so you can attend and prepare for city council and committee meetings and workshops? “As my children age, their sporting activities are increasingly coached through the school, reducing the opportunity for me to participate. I also have greater flexibility in my work/travel schedules.”

9) What are the latest movies you’ve seen and enjoyed? “We do not get to the movies very often. However, ‘The Blind Side’ was a great story of selflessness and achievement.”

10) Name a couple of your favorite books or authors and why you like them. “I have read a couple of James Patterson books in the last year and enjoy John Grisham as well. Both are good adventure/thriller writers. On the more serious side, ‘The Good Life,’ written by Charles Colson of the Nixon administration, describes the journey to finding worth in life after losing all that he thought was important.”

11) What are your personal goals in life? “To be a person of good character for my children to witness and to provide them with a solid foundation in their lives.”

12) Victoria continues to do remarkably well as a residential community with a small central business district, better than many cities with a substantial commercial and industrial tax base. Why do you believe this is so? “Victoria is a community that supports its local businesses and has a tradition of welcoming new residents. This allows us to grow without losing our close knit culture. I also believe that careful management of our city resources allows us to make investments that serve the citizens without excessive risk to taxpayers.”

13) A prediction in a recent League of MN Cities publication is that many Minnesota cities will be bankrupt by 2015. If that dire prediction became true for Victoria, where would you make cuts to help us survive? “I appreciate the basic wording of this question. It assumes that cuts are the first response, and not increasing taxes. I would carefully scrutinize any existing or proposed expenditure and measure it against the core purpose of government -- assuring public safety and orderly growth and not fund activities that fall outside of these areas.

“I would also do the same things that families do every day -- measure the costs maintenance against replacement of aging assets. I would also explore ways to partner with our neighboring cities to leverage each other’s capabilities and share the costs.”

14) Every level of government has long fingers that reach into taxpayer pockets to pay for things beyond necessary government services. What, exactly, do you believe are the necessary services that city government should provide? “Public safety and orderly development. This includes police and fire protection, zoning, quality schools, safe water supply, and transportation routes.”

15) What, exactly, do you believe are secondary services provided by a flush city budget? “When possible, funding can be provided in ways that enhance the quality of life for city residents, thereby protecting and increasing our property values. Some examples include parks and recreation activities and facilities that reinforce a strong community, services to seniors and handicapped persons, and creating an environment that attracts businesses to our community.

“All of these must always be balanced with the opportunity to reduce the tax burden on our residents. With the support of the voters, I look forward to the opportunity to serve the people of Victoria.”