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Posted below are answers to questions posed to candidates in the race for mayor of the City of Birmingham during the 2007 campaign, including the two people competing for the chance to complete the term of former mayor Larry Langford – William Bell and Patrick Cooper.
Enjoy!
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What are the major goals of the your administration?
| Bell | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Bell goals.mp3] |
| Cooper | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Coopergoals.mp3] |
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As we continue to struggle with a transit system to move our city forward, what steps will you take to assure that the legislators and governor create the long term dedicated funding source for transit?
| Cooper | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Cooper transit.mp3] |
| Bell | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Bell transit.mp3] |
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How will the city pursue the objectives of the Comprehensive Master Plan, the City Center Master Plan, and Region 2020’s plans for the Birmingham area?
| Bell | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Bell plans.mp3] |
| Cooper | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Cooper plans.mp3] |
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Putting the master plan and dome project aside for a moment, what can you as mayor do to find solutions within the individual neighborhoods and districts within the city in regards to crime, lighting, and maintenance? How would you help motivate leaders and citizens in these areas to work together to make change, real change?
| Cooper | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Cooper issues.mp3] |
| Bell | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Bell issues.mp3] |
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Given the droughts that we seem to be getting on a more frequent basis, should the mayor and city council be working on ways to minimize future water shortages for the city? It’s something that is largely out of the mayor’s hands, but a plan for future city action could be set.
| Bell | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Bell drought.mp3] |
| Cooper | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Cooper drought.mp3] |
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The City has a recycling program but very few citizens seem to know it! What will you do as mayor to promote the city’s recycling program and other environmentally sound ways of living in Birmingham?
| Cooper | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Cooper recycling.mp3] |
| Bell | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Bell recycling.mp3] |
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As I understand it, the city allocates around $1 million a year to the neighborhood associations, yet you hear very little if any information as to how this money is used. The yearly meeting that neighborhood presidents and delegates go to is also in question to me. How can we measure if this trip is worth while and how can the public genuinely get a grasp of how our tax dollars are being spent? Just looking at many of our neighborhoods, it doesn’t appear to be helping at all.
| Bell | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Bell nhood.mp3] |
| Cooper | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Cooper nhood.mp3] |
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How should Birmingham’s next mayor go about forming a productive working relationship with other governments in the region?
| Cooper | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Cooper regional.mp3] |
| Bell | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Bell regional.mp3] |
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What is your vision for how Birmingham can be in the next 5-10 years?
| Bell | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Bell 5year.mp3] |
| Cooper | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Cooper 5year.mp3] |
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What issue would be your biggest challenge if elected mayor of Birmingham?
| Cooper | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Cooper challenge.mp3] |
| Bell | [audio:http://bhamterminal.com/audio/Bell challenge.mp3] |
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