Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Salem residents hear from candidates
Related
roanoke.com/politics
Salem residents apparently won't get a break in their real estate taxes anytime soon -- not without giving up some of the services the city provides.
That seemed to be the consensus Tuesday, during a candidates forum hosted by the Salem Kiwanis. Each of the six candidates vying for three seats on Salem City Council -- incumbents Jane Johnson and Chris Clemens, and challengers Mike Akers, Vicki Daulton, Lisa Garst, Jane Johnson and Billy Jones -- answered questions about how many city council meetings they've attended, whether to renovate the Salem Civic Center and what they would do to lower the city's real estate tax rates.
An audience member questioned Salem's real estate tax rates, saying they appear to have increased disproportionately to housing costs.
In response to that and other questions raised during the forum, candidates repeatedly used the phrase "balancing act."
Many residents feeling the pinch from high real estate tax rates are retirees, Garst pointed out. About 17 percent of Salem residents are older than 65, she said. The high tax rates make it difficult for them to afford to stay in the city, and encumbers young people seeking to move to Salem, she said.
For the past six years, or three assessment periods, Salem property values have increased by about 6 percent annually.
Jones, Johnson, Garst and Daulton own businesses in Salem. Akers said he owns several properties in the city. Clemens runs a Salem law firm. The candidates said they too feel the pinch from taxes, but don't see how taxes can be decreased without cutting spending or losing some services.
The conversation on tax rates bled into other discussions of economic development in the city and whether to renovate the Salem Civic Center instead of addressing infrastructure needs. Some candidates offered suggestions to ease Salem's tax burden.
According to Daulton, a member of the Salem Planning Commission, it costs $222,000 a day to operate the city. One way to lower taxes and potentially pay for infrastructure improvements, said Daulton, taking a different tack than other candidates, would be to have more businesses in the city from which to generate more tax revenue -- including a civic center expansion.
2 more forums scheduled before municipal elections
Salem residents will have at least two other opportunities to pose questions to the city council candidates.
The candidates will participate in a forum at 7 p.m. Thursday, at Salem Wesleyan Church, 424 Chamberlain Lane.
The Salem Council of PTAs will host a candidates forum at 7 p.m. April 29 at Andrew Lewis Middle School.
Council candidate in running for district court judgeship
Chris Clemens finds himself in a unique position in the Salem council race: He continues to run for re-election while being in the running for a judgeship at the same time.
At Tuesday's campaign forum, Clemens was asked what he's going to do.
Clemens said he will accept the judgeship if it is offered to him. Clemens, a Salem lawyer, is a Republican nominee for a General District Court judgeship that serves Roanoke, Roanoke County and Salem. As of Friday, Roanoke Valley legislators still were deadlocked on the General District vacancy. If the General Assembly does not come to an agreement on filling the judgeship, circuit court judges in the 23rd Judicial District will appoint someone to fill the slot for at least one year.
Clemens' chief rival for the judgeship is Roanoke Commonwealth's Attorney Donald Caldwell, a Democrat.
Clemens told the Kiwanis members that whether he's on the city council or serving as a judge, he still is serving the city.
His answer was met with hearty applause from those in the audience, to which Clemens jokingly replied, "Are you clapping because you want me not to be on city council?"
Staff writer Mike Allen
contributed to this report.
