JONATHAN MANN

GENERAL QUESTIONS:

1. Who are you? Describe yourself in 100 words or less.

I am 59 years old and have run for Santa Monica City Council 6 times. I've had a very interesting life, including several careers - US Navy
Musician, Parole Agent, Teacher and Flight Attendant. I marched with Martin Luther King in 1963 and continue to be active in civil rights and
the anti-war movement, having attended every anti-Vietnam moratorium, Kent State, the Battle in Seattle, Million Moms' March, etc.

Since the late 1980s I have been passionately engaged as an Internet Activist and advocate for participatory democracy, to hold government accountable and significantly reduce the domination of out side influence and conflict of interest in local politics.

2. What is your favorite book? Movie? Food?

I do not have a favorite book, movie or food, but I read a lot, including hi tech, near future, cutting edge fiction such as "Earth", by David Brin. Most recently I enjoyed Fahrenheit 9/11; another favorite is "Johnny Got his Gun". I avoid fast food and enjoy international
cuisine.

3. How long have you lived in Santa Monica?

I have lived in Santa Monica since the late seventies, was a renter for most of that time and lost my 800 square foot home at 2449 Oak
Street, because of the difficulty in getting permits in this city.

4. Describe your history of community involvement, if any, in 75 words or less.

I became involved in local politics in 1989 through the Public Electronic Network, (P.E.N.). I formed the Pen Users Group to organize a group of netizens to interface with local government in an effort to empower residents' input with the City Council.

MULTIPLE CHOICE

Please choose the statement with which you agree most. Feel free to explain your answer in 50 words or less.

5. Tourism is one of Santa Monica's most important industries and has been almost since the city's founding. Yet, especially in the summer and on weekends, Santa Monica can appear downright crowded. Ignoring the economic benefits, with which statement do you agree more:

A. Tourism creates a major inconvenience for Santa Monica residents.

Another no brainer. Tourists are already attracted here because of the beach and the city thrives on the revenue. We have a huge budget for a city of less than 100,000 and most of that money is wasted by a bloated bureaucracy, an arrogant City Council and a public service industry that is looting, rather than serving the public interest.

When it comes to traffic:

A. The most important thing is to protect neighborhoods by slowing down and discouraging cut-through traffic.

B. The most important thing is to find ways to speed up the flow of traffic.

When it comes to traffic the way to protect neighborhoods and reduce traffic is to replace the City Council, which is directly responsible for traffic congestion and parking chaos that is created by people who do not live here.

7. Over the past decade, more than a thousand apartments have been built or approved in downtown Santa Monica in response to City incentives. With which statement do you agree more:

A. Santa Monica needs more housing to be built, downtown is the best place to build it and the City should encourage more housing to be built there.

B. Downtown is too crowded already and the City should do what it can to discourage more housing development there by increasing regulations and/or downzoning.

Santa Monica needs more housing to be built, that is affordable to maintain our diverse community, which is rapidly becoming upscale, so it will be possible for people who work here, to live here.

8. It's generally acknowledged, within and without City government, that navigating the building and development permit process in Santa Monica is a nightmare for developers and homeowners alike, and much more complicated and time-consuming than in other local jurisdictions. With which of the following statements do you agree most:

The major cause of the problems with the building process in Santa Monica is:

A. An incompetent bureaucracy suffering from high turnover and bad training and supervision.

B. The Planning Commission, which has demoralized planning staff and made them fearful of approving projects and has slowed down the approval process itself by applying vague and varying standards.

C. The City Council, which over the years has enacted an overly complex set of laws governing zoning, environmental review and building standards.

Navigating the building and development permit process in Santa Monica is a nightmare for homeowners due to a corrupt and incompetent City Council and a complicated and time-consuming bureaucracy.

9. Preferential parking districts are controversial in Santa Monica. With which statement do you agree more:

When it comes to street parking in residential neighborhoods located near commercial districts or boulevards,

A. The rights of the residents come first, and no resident should have to compete with a non-resident for a parking space on a resident's street at any time of day.

B. In designating preferential parking districts, the City needs to be more cognizant of the needs of employees and customers.

C. The streets belong to everyone, and the City should get out of the business of designating preferential parking districts.

When it comes to street parking in residential neighborhoods located near commercial districts or boulevards, the rights of residents come first, and no resident should have to compete with a non-resident for a
parking space on a resident's street.

10. True or false: The Third Street Promenade has become primarily a destination for visitors and does not cater to local residents. Explain in 50 words or less.

The Third Street Promenade has become primarily a destination for visitors, duh. In a city already overflowing with tourist attractions our City Council is bent on attracting more business, recreational, and shopping options in order to increase revenues at the expense of lifestyle.

11. Pick one and explain in 50 words or less:

A. The City’s policies attract an influx of homeless who would not otherwise come to Santa Monica.

B. The homeless come to Santa Monica for reasons outside the City’s control.

C. It is federal policy that has people in the parks.

The City's policies attract an influx of homeless who already come to Santa Monica for a variety of reasons. The City Council spends millions of dollars a year enriching public agencies serving between one and two thousand transients, succeeding in only making the problem worse
and fostering dependency.

12. With which of the following statements do you agree most. Santa Monica's traffic problems are the direct result of,

A. City policies approved by the SMRR majority, including traffic calming, the development of the Promenade and the fostering of tourism.

B. Major developments -- such as the large office complexes in the city's industrial corridor -- approved in the mid-1980s by councils controlled by non-SMRR pro development factions.

C. Regional growth outside the control of the City Council.

Santa Monica's traffic problems are the direct result of City policies approved by the SMRR majority, AND policies that cater to the interests of major developers.

13. With which statements do you agree. You can choose more than one.

Affordable housing:

A. Creates blight.

B. Pays back hotel and restaurant union workers for their political support and creates more tenants to vote for Santa Monicans for Renters' Rights.

C. Addresses a legitimate need, especially in Santa Monica.

Santa Monica needs more affordable housing that does not create blight and attract gang activity. We need to maintain our rich cultural diversity without fostering crime and dependency. Instead of subsidizing housing, government needs to subsidize ownership and pride in achieving the American Dream by supporting hotel and restaurant union workers; providing them the means to enter the housing market instead of paying off the mortgages of wealthy landlords.

14. With which statements do you agree. You can pick more than one. Community input in planning and building design,

A. Improves Projects

B. Is overly skewed towards pleasing nearby neighbors as opposed to meeting the interests of the community as a whole.

C. Unreasonably slows the process and is a way for opponents to eliminate new development.

D. Needs to be streamlined.

Community input in planning and building design needs to be streamlined and designed to meet the interests of the community as a whole and to eliminate new development that serves the interest of real estate speculators.

15. With which statement do you agree most. Santa Monica tenants in rent-controlled units,

A. Need more protections from harassment by landlords eager to re-rent units at market rates.

B. Are being subsidized by landlords who can't charge fair rents and make
a profit.

C. No longer need strong rent control policies because vacancy decontrol has given landlords more opportunity to make a fair return.

D. Should not have majority control of the City Council.

Santa Monica tenants in rent-controlled units need protections from harassment by landlords eager to re-rent units at market rates.

16. In the past two years, the number of laws passed by the City Council has increased from 32 in 2002 to 41 last year. This is:

A. A reasonable response to the concerns of residents.

B. A council that tries to please everyone.

C. A council that believes it knows what's best for the City and likes to impose its will.

GENERAL QUESTIONS

17. What would you do to improve Santa Monica? (50 words or less)

If elected I would immediately create an internet interface that would allow netizens to monitor the Council and audit the budget online to determine waste and inefficiency in government as well as how millions of dollars in revenues are being spent. I would streamline the bureaucracy and eliminate public services that are not productive, require agencies prove their merit and reward those that are effective.

18. What is your "wish list" for Santa Monica? (Maximum of 5 items)

My wish list for Santa Monica is to replace the City Council, resurrect the Public Electronic Network, change the name to People's Electronic Network, eliminate the stranglehold that special interests have on policy decisions, streamline the bureaucracy and audit the budget online.

19. What is the best thing about Santa Monica?

The best thing about Santa Monica is the progressive citizenry.

20. What is the worst thing about Santa Monica?

The worst thing about Santa Monica is the City government.

21. What is your favorite place in Santa Monica? Your least favorite place? In 30 words or less give your reasons.

My favorite place in Santa Monica is the beach, returned to its pristine paradise without all the crowds and litter. My least favorite places are the tourist and business establishments that are destroying the ambience and diversity of our City.

22. A measure on the November ballot calls for increasing the City's hotel bed tax. Do you support or oppose the measure?

Support

23. Do you support the $135 million Santa Monica College bond measure on the November ballot?

I support the $135 million Santa Monica College bond measure on the November ballot, SUBJECT to audit and review.

24. An analysis by The Lookout found that Santa Monica spent $1,906 per resident to provide basic services in fiscal year 2003-04. By comparison, Culver City spent $1,349; Pasadena spent $1,244 and Torrance spent $1,005. Do you think the City can cut back on its spending or is spending the right amount? (See analysis)

The City can cut back on its spending, but more important it needs to redirect its resources to benefit the residents as the higher priority.

25. Over the course of more than a century, Santa Monica has had many personalities, usually more than one at any given time depending where you are standing. A tony resort and haven for the rich and beautiful; a honky-tonk beach town known for the Pier and P.O.P. and Muscle Beach for everyone else; a blue-collar factory town and arsenal of democracy; the wide-open "Bay City" of Phillip Marlowe; a "leafy suburb"; a working-class city of dingbat apartments and little bungalows; a conservative bastion run by real estate and business interests; the "Peoples' Republic of Santa Monica"; and other historical realities you can probably think of, not to mention today's reality of regional center for retail, entertainment and white-collar employment. What historical era or personality of Santa Monica do you most identify with, and how does that relate to your vision of Santa Monica's future?

I identify with the portrayal of Santa Monica as the "Peoples Republic", although it has never really lived up to that image. I cherish some aspects of our history and would preserve the Pier and Muscle Beach. I would support blue-collar workers and grass roots democracy; a working-class city rather than a conservative bastion run by real estate and commercial interests that have created a new reality and regional center promoting business, tourist and developer interests.