ANN ARBOR, MI – If yard signs are any indication, there’s a fair amount of interest in this year’s Ann Arbor mayoral race.
Many signs for Mayor Christopher Taylor and opponent Anne Bannister now dot lawns across the city ahead of the Aug. 2 primary, in which voters will decide which of the two Democrats advances to the November election and likely becomes mayor of the heavily Democratic city for the next four years.
Taylor and Bannister, a former City Council member from Ward 1, were on opposite sides of many issues during their time together on council in recent years.
But where do they currently stand on the city’s top challenges and other matters? Continue reading to see what both had to say in their responses for the Vote411.org voter guide provided by the nonpartisan League of Women Voters of Michigan in partnership with MLive / The Ann Arbor News.
Note: All responses in the voter guide were submitted directly by the candidates and have not been edited by the League of Women Voters, except for necessary cut if a reply exceeded character limitations. Spelling and grammar were not corrected. Publication of candidate statements and opinions is solely in the interest of public service and should NOT be considered as an endorsement. The League never supports or opposes any candidates or political parties.
Number of years as resident
Bannister: 48
Taylor: 32
What in your education and experience make you the best qualified candidate for this position?
Bannister:
I’m running for mayor to make a positive difference in the lives of residents, and in the words of John Lewis, Be Good Trouble. I’m a lifelong democrat and proud graduate of the AAPS and UM. My career in personal finance and my training as a Certified Financial Planner ™ gives me a lens of high quality service to others, and an understanding of ethics, transparency, and accountability. In 2009 I became involved in local politics, serving as Treasurer and Co-Chair of A2DP, and Treasurer for Yousef Rabhi when he was County Commissioner. From 2017 – 2020 I served as a Ward 1 City Councilmember, and began to see the public frustration because people have been shut out of a process that makes changes without listening to their voices. The people deserve a choice for mayor, and I want to use my skills and experience at listening and problem-solving to help improve the level and impact of community engagement.
Taylor:
I’ve earned a BA, BMA, MA, and JD at UM and have served as Mayor since 2014. Ann Arbor has a Council-Manager form of government, and so service as Mayor is not a full-time job. Professionally, I’m a lawyer at a small firm, where my practice focuses on estate planning and local business representation. This work requires a lot of listening. I work to understand clients, their family or business dynamics. I work with them to clarify their goals. I try to help. As Mayor, you don’t supervise employees or balance the books. You help make policy. You work with people. You listen and learn, you consult with residents and staff experts, to make the best decision you can for Ann Arbor in a world with conflicting interests, incomplete information, and always insufficient resources. You think through issues with a practical, even-tempered mindset, always guided by values, even when it’s not popular. I believe that I have the experience, temperament, and judgment for the job.
What are your goals should you be elected and how will you work to accomplish them with current resources?
Bannister:
My goals include to “sharpen pencils not knives” to problem-solving together on the many complex and interrelated issues facing our city. I will provide opportunities for listening and true dialogue with all community members. I will use existing tax dollars to provide better basic services, and will keep residents informed of progress on issues from road repairs, to clean up the Gelman plume, to carbon neutrality, land stewardship, and protection of our woodlands and ecosystems. I will address the organizational and cultural inefficiencies within City Hall, which left unaddressed, will significantly hinder our ability to meet our long term goals, from housing affordability, to more diversity among city staff and city leadership. In all cases we need more transparency, feedback loops, and data-driven decision making. If elected, I’m committed to ensuring inclusivity for everyone, and a welcoming and efficient experience when people engage with local government and City Hall.
Taylor:
My priority has been to improve basic services and enhance quality of life with the progressive, practical policies that Ann Arbor demands. Clean drinking water. Financial stewardship. Better roads for all users. Public Safety. Affordable Housing. Beautiful Parks. Flood Reduction. Climate Action. Ann Arbor residents are front and center with everything we do. But there is more work to be done. First and foremost, we need to maintain the financial strength of the city. Within our means, we must continue to improve our roads and infrastructure, especially our neighborhood streets; we need to provide an unarmed response because not every call to 911 is an emergency; and we must act now for carbon neutrality to save money and reduce harm for future generations.
What do you think is the greatest challenge facing the city today and what steps will you take to meet this challenge?
Bannister:
How we prepare for and respond to climate change is our # 1 challenge, among many complex and interrelated issues. Climate change will impact whether the city can be an affordable, inclusive, and sustainable place for a wide range of people to call home and be long-term members of our community. If we continue to make irrevocable mistakes with our zoning, land use, and protection for our mature trees, woodlands and ecosystems, we are creating a future where the community pie is shrinking, and our collective wellbeing and diversity declines. To meet these challenges, I will use my skills to facilitate a robust community engagement process in everything that we do. I’m confident that by listening to the community and working together, we will find solutions and implement systemic change that will help us plan for and meet all of our future challenges.
Taylor:
We need better roads, beautiful parks, clean water, outstanding police and fire services, more housing, storm water improvements, and ever vigilant financial stewardship. I am committed to all these things, but our # 1 local, state, national, and global challenge is climate change. Our A2 Zero Plan calls for community-wide carbon neutrality by 2030. We can’t solve the climate crisis alone, but we must do our part. Our participation is a moral imperative. I will work tirelessly to fund and implement the A2 Zero Plan, which will provide equity-focused savings and services to residents today (expanded recycling / composting; steep discounts for solar panels and electric appliances; 1000s of new trees; energy efficiency programs, EV charging; and clean, local power) and bring our community to carbon neutrality by 2030. Our A2 Zero staff is amazing, our residents are committed, as Mayor I will do everything I can to make A2 Zero a success.
What is your opinion of the current rate of development in the city? What would you like to see changed?
Bannister:
Rather than the rate of development, residents are concerned about the type of development. Transit Corridor Zoning (TC1) and other zoning changes are being enacted by Council and staff from the top down, and benefit an elite group of landowners and developers, rather than being supported from the grassroots up. An issue with the proposed Transit Corridor upzoning is deciding whether developers need an irrevocable blank check to increase our housing supply, or do residents want to require community benefits, such as affordable housing, parking, green space, mixed use shopping and retail, and an expectation that the development we want actually occurs. Also, the proposed TC1 upzoning should be required to advance our A2Zero goals, including the use of green energy and greater stormwater management provisions. If elected, I’m committed to including the citizen input we’ve already received on community benefits, and having rigorous citizen input on future decision-making.
Taylor:
I came to Ann Arbor in 1985 and loved it immediately. Borders and Shaman Drum. Drake’s. Middle Earth. Jacobson’s. Seva on Liberty. Eastern Accents. Klines. A lot of that Ann Arbor is gone and I miss it. But successful cities change. They grow. Ann Arbor is no exception. For me, development is about affordability. We have a housing shortage. Supply and demand is merciless and real. This means that rent and home prices increase much faster than inflation, squeezing residents and giving rise to economic and racial segregation. To meet this challenge, we have allowed greater density in our downtown and look to build 1000+ units more of new, permanent affordable housing. We have also up-zoned areas by Briarwood to enable 1000s of new residents to live in apartments there, on transit corridors – so that new residents can come in and out of the down town the AAATA. We need this housing to put a dent in rising prices. If you work in Ann Arbor, you should be able to live in Ann Arbor.
Read more Ann Arbor-area election coverage.
MORE FROM THE ANN ARBOR NEWS:
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Ann Arbor mayor, council candidates lay out platforms in 3-minute videos
Ann Arbor mayoral candidates differ on city’s growth and development
How to watch Washtenaw County candidate forums ahead of Aug. 2 primary
Overreaching or transformational? Debate over Ann Arbor-Ypsilanti transit tax heats up
