• Name: Linda Armstrong
• Age: Declined to state
• Occupation: Data entry operator/computer research
• Marital status/children: Single
• Your neighborhood? How long have you lived there?: Declined to state/20 years
• Your mode of transportation/model, make and year of your ride?: Bus/bike
• Own or rent? Rent
• Do you support Measure Y, the half-cent sales tax increase? If so, do you think half of the money generated by the increase should go to local public schools?
Yes to both.
• What are you reading?
Sue Grafton: “U is for Undertow.”
• Do you believe there is enough parking Downtown? If not, what do you plan to do about it?
We need light rail, more Tide buses.
• Now that the Broad museum is out of play, what should City Hall do with the Civic Center Parking Lot?
Relieve parking scarcity.
• When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
An astronomer.
• Local businesses provide the majority of the city’s general fund revenues, yet Santa Monica has a reputation for being a difficult place to do business. How would you entice more businesses, different businesses, to open up shop? How can City Hall help those businesses that are struggling in the current economy?
Streamline licensing process. Subsidize living wage.
• L.A. recently greatly reduced patients’ access to medical marijuana. Do you support medical marijuana dispensaries in Santa Monica?
Yes.
• Should smoking be banned within apartments?
No. Smoking is legal. There should be no restrictions. Possible smoke-free sections of restaurants, at the discretion of restaurant owners.
• What would you do to make Santa Monica more bike friendly?
Bike lanes.
• What’s the biggest threat facing the quality of life in Santa Monica?
The recession; unemployment leading to homelessness.
• Downtown properties owned by City Hall. Should parking be the top priority or should housing come first?
Housing.
• Do you support the closure of Santa Monica Airport in 2015? If so, what would you like to replace it with and how would you make up for the loss in revenue generated by airport operations, lease agreements?
Not closure. Only banning of jets except for emergencies.
• Do you believe in pension reform and should Santa Monica employees contribute more toward their healthcare and retirement benefits?
Yes.
• When it comes to getting public benefits from developers, what should be the top priority: affordable housing, public art, cash money, bike lanes or carpooling?
Affordable housing, then public art.
• Would you support placing a limit on the amount of time council members can speak on a particular item during meetings?
Yes.
• When was the last time you rode a bike or took Big Blue Bus?
Today.
• Does the housing-first model work for addressing the homeless issue or should we focus on building more emergency shelters to get people off the streets immediately?
Shelter is an immediate need. Housing first helps one percent of the homeless population.
• Free form: What’s putting a burr under your saddle?
The City Council’s banning smoking while ignoring real emergency situations — minimizing the plight of the homeless.
