Mayoral candidates incumbent Dave Cieslewicz and former mayor Paul Soglin spoke about student-related issues at the College Democrats meeting Thursday night.
Cieslewicz, a UW-Madison alumnus, said some of his accomplishments during his administration include opening more fire stations and lowering the crime rate.
Cieslewicz also spoke about the transformation of Halloween on State Street into today's Freakfest. He said the event no longer ends with pepper spray and riot gear as it once did.
""The idea that a tough problem is really a great opportunity,"" Cieslewicz said of the spirit he has tried to bring to the mayoral office in the past eight years.
Cieslewicz said he was elected largely on the student vote in 2003 when he was first elected as mayor of Madison.
""I won by 1200 votes and my margin on campus was 1200 votes,"" Cieslewicz said. ""So in a lot of ways I feel like I owe my elections to students.""
Cieslewicz said he wants to continue to work with students, encourage them to engage on the local level and invest in the community.
Soglin, also a UW-Madison alumnus, said community involvement is key in the creation new successful developments in the city. The development of the State Street Mall remains to be successful because of the community involvement, Soglin said.
Soglin said unlike Cieslewicz, he believes a mayor can enact measures to address the poverty level in the city. The city has the take responsibility to help the poverty level if no one else will, Soglin said.
According to Soglin, there are ways to build community centers even in an economic recession by using block grant money and getting financial contributions from businesses. These community centers help to build strong support systems that can make a difference in how successful people are, he said.
Soglin said he strongly recommends students to set the standard to move drinking primarily in bars and out of private parties.
""I don't buy for one moment that alcohol density works,"" Soglin said, in reference to the city's Alcohol License Density Ordinance, which limits the number of bars downtown.
