Victoria Szopinski

Born: April 18, 1956

Hometown: Toronto; New Hampshire; Wisconsin; and Michigan

Family: husband Steve Sullivan, son Harry Sullivan (11 years old)

Occupation: former director of Conference Services, part-time at Catt Center for Women and Politics

Prevalent Issues: Land development and annexing; Alternative energy to sustain growing population of citizens and students; More people being heard; CyRide; Increasing tax base; More collaboration between the city and the university

Changes: Bring balance: “I want to support developers, but we need to ask questions so it’s not an ‘I think’ by City Council.”; Enhance retail opportunity, specifically business in Campustown; “Clean energy is needed to sustain future business and our community”; Not “changing” the city, but enhancing and learning; Student participation: “I want to make sure that the voices of students are a part of the mix.”; “Looking into other ways to pay for CyRide verses increasing the bus charge, which leads to another reason why we need to increase retail.”; Encouraging clean energy

Why people should vote for Victoria Szopinski: “Because I am the more progressive candidate and I bring balance to the council. I am more collaborative. We need to be looking at alternatives; I am that person. I am not being supported by any particular business, the Homeowners Association, or Renters Association; I am independent in my connections and endorsements and am completely grass-roots.”