League of Women Voters of Ohio Education Fund
Hamilton County, OH November 8, 2005 Election
	John Cranley Answers Questions Candidate for Council Member; City of Cincinnati

Questions & Answers

1. What are your Qualifications for Office? (50 word limit)

Elected twice, I have led efforts to add police officers to the street, reduce property taxes, spur job growth, and assist the poor. I founded and practice law for the Ohio Innocence Project, which uses DNA evidence to insure that the innocent are free and the guilty are not.

2. What plans do you have to address your top three priorities? (100 word limit)

I will push to make the recent dramatic increase in police walking and bicycle patrols--which I started this summer--to be a permanent part of our safety strategy. The police have noted that these walking patrols are reducing crime and improving police community relations.

I will spur job growth throughout the city by working with the county to finish the Banks, enhance downtown and uptown, and connect these jobs with job training programs that help people who need to work.

Cincinnati is the only local entity that pays for the Metro Bus system, which is why our current system is inadequate. I will lead an effort to give suburban areas more say in Metro in return for their financial assistance that will, in turn, make more public transportation opportunities possible.

3. What steps would you take to ensure that all public facilities are accessible to people with disabilities? (100 words limit)

I will make sure that public facilities are built in conformity with the ADA. Over two years ago, I led an effort to start a partnership with the Inclusion Network, which is a non profit organization that advocates for access to buildings for people with disabilities. Together we are looking at our existing facilities to ensure that access is available to all.

4. What specific steps will you take to expand recycling services in your community? (100 words limit)

I led the effort to save recycling from being cut in the last budget cycle and will do so again, if necessary. Given the situation in the Middle East as well as the loss of oil supplies from Hurricane Katrina, it is more important than ever not to waste energy and to enhance conservation and recycling activities.

5. What steps would you take to provide affordable housing for all residents of your community? (100 words limit)

I wrote the anti-impaction housing ordinance, which seeks to improve the quality of low income housing and opportunities for people in low income housing by not allowing an over-concentration of low income housing to stifle economic growth in the any neighborhood. It also prioritizes the preservation of existing affordable housing units and allows them to be renovated to accommodate families, for which there is often a great need.