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Councilman Andrew Podleski has announced his candidacy for mayor in he April elections, having filed the petitions required to seek the office. He’s one of the two current councilmembers running. (the other is Tom Schneider) .

Podleski ran against incumbent Mayor Robert Lowery in 2007, getting 40 percent of the votes.

Why is he running again? “I’m all for fiscal responsibility and openness in government,” Podleski said. “I’d like more transparency.” Podleski said the budge method the city uses was out of date. “Other cities do a better job with transparency, and we could, too.”

A significant challenge facing the city is the economy, resulting in reduced income for the city, Podleski said. “With less income, it’s important that we do a better job of projecting expenses,” he said. “We also need to make sure we have the right people in the right jobs.” As an example, Podleski said, “We can’t control the price of gas, but we can control how we use it and look at ways to reduce our use.”

Florissant’s strengths include its neighborhoods and people, Podleski said. “We have a mixed population; older, young, racially mixed.” He said he would like to get more residents involved in city government.

When asked why someone should vote for him, Podleski cited the need “to bring everyone to the table.” He added, “we need to change things up. So often, I hear, ‘we’ve always done it that way,’ – I’d like to know why we’ve done it that way and see if there might be a better way.”

“I’m not connected to the old government. I’m not afraid to question why we do things,” Podleski said. He also cited the need to attract new residents and keep existing ones. “We need to attract more young people and get them involved.”

(The Independent News has printed bios and candidancy information in previous isssues on Mark Behlmann, Tom Schneider , Michael Spreng, plus Mayor Robert  Lowery

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