Janesville City Council Candidate Frank Perrotto Answers Our 5 Questions

Question 1: Rock County currently ranks #1 in the state for unemployment. Much of this is due to business closings and layoffs in the City of Janesville. What will you do to bring jobs back to the City of Janesville?

First and foremost I would recommend we continue to pursue, as aggressively as possible, the stimulus money available. We have numerous infrastructure projects that have the potential of putting more people back to work.

I would work with our existing business owners to find ways to assist them in expanding their businesses.

We must begin working on a plan to explore how we can use the GM facility to our best interest.

We need to do a comprehensive analysis of other industries out there where we could be a good fit and work with Forward Janesville and our neighboring municipalities to form an economic cooperative partnership. This helps to pool our resources to solicit new business opportunities.

We need to work with the state to use the various tax exceptions, credits and incentives more creatively to attract, retain and support new businesses.

We need to explore high speed rail, a 4 year university, and continue expansion of TIF districts.

Question 2: Janesville is known for its automotive heritage, however, much of that industry is now gone. If you were to define Janesville’s heritage for the next 20 years, what would it be?

The one thing that the GM closing has taught us is that we should “never be dependent on one industry for your survival”. If we look over the next 20 years I see Janesville becoming the model for diverse business opportunities. Make no mistake about it; manufacturing will always play a major role in our economy. However we must find ways to develop versatile infrastructure that makes Janesville conducive for new industries like the technology, biotech and health care areas to consider Janesville as home. At the same time we will not forget the value of agriculture and its part in expanding our representation and prominence in the food industry. Our cultural and educational advances will add mightily to our heritage as we become a major gateway for other destinations within the state and to other locations in the Midwest.

Question 3: During the past year, several projects surfaced and were met with a great deal of public debate: the bike tunnel, the childrens' museum, the aquatics center, and the ice arena. Please explain what guidelines you will use to make decisions on projects such as these.

I have built my campaign partly on two premises. First, we must have a clear understanding of Needs vs. Wants. Second, we must have a vision based on Investment vs. Return. At first glance one might say that these positions conflict with one another. However, that’s not true. In fact these are my guidelines for looking at any project on its own. In the financial crisis we are in amenities have to be looked at in terms of immediate and look term economic impact. Let me make one thing perfectly clear, if we were in a position where we had a healthy budget situation with an excellent prognosis for future years, one could look at possible amenities, because “they would be nice for Janesville to have”. This is not an environment we can afford to adopt such a cavalier approach. You will be able to understand my guidelines by looking at my analysis for some of these projects.

• Bike Tunnel – What is the “demonstrated” need and is there a realistic alternative? Does the need, if any, justify the cost? (i.e. Public safety)
• Children's Museum - Is this clearly a need or is it a want? Does the investment have the potential to justify the need for dollars? Does it have sustainability and viability? What economic benefit will it have for Janesville?
• Ice Arena - As it relates to the hockey team, is this need or is it a want? What economic benefits will we realize? Will it enhance the downtown? Why spend $200,000 in repairs for an operation that may or may not make it? In addition, why spend money on an amenity where 95% of the population will never watch?

As it relates to the repairs, why spend $200,000 now when you are looking at spending $1 million in repairs in the future. Moreover, what happens if you have to undo some of the $200,000 repairs? If we need to spend $1 million plus in repairs, don’t you think we should at least look at the feasibility of a brand new ice facility? Our facility is 30+ years old.

Question 4: What steps should the City of Janesville take, if any, in redeveloping the downtown area?

First, my vision for downtown is shops, boutiques and restaurants. I would like us to incorporate a 4 year university within the matrix of the downtown. The development cannot happen without a commitment to rejuvenate the 4th ward. We must also have a river walk - complete with more shops and restaurants, condominiums and a small hotel would be part of the plan.

We have done plenty of studies. What they say is we will need millions and millions of dollars to redevelop and revitalize the downtown. How do we do this? The must important first step is to get a “buy in” from the private and public sector. Without this, there is really little hope for the downtown. The money, or a substantial portion of it, must come from the people and private sector. Whether that is in a form of taxes (i.e. sales etc), assessments, outside business investors, or donations. The “buy in” is the key. We must embark on a massive education program to show concretely and succinctly what the benefits are to the people and business owners of our community.

So what are the benefits (investment of community money and their return)?

• A plethora of new business
• Good paying professional and manufacturing jobs
• Increased property values
• Lower real estate taxes
• High quality of life

Question 5: Explain your approach to budgeting and taxation: do you start with adding the expenses up and then setting taxes based on those expenses? Do you start with setting a cap on taxes and then working backwards? Do you strike a balance in between? Please explain.

Budgeting and taxation is a function of not only expenses but “income” as well. My approach is first to target expected/potential revenue. The city is essentially dependant on three main sources of revenue, taxes, state shared revenue and service fees. I would start off first by analyzing the potential from all sources of revenue, next look to what needs to be done or could be done to reduce expenses. The goal would be to maintain current tax levels.

I want to make something perfectly clear. Janesville’s future will be very dependant on a spirit of cooperation and partnership. This must exist between the people who work here, and the people that live here. It is in this spirit that people will be able to handle reduced services to save on taxes, or accept higher taxes in order to keep our quality of life high. There is just so much budget cutting you can do before it affects public service and safety.