Mike Cashman: Candidate profile
Bio
Party: Democratic
City: Chicago
Office sought: Commissioner for Metropolitan Water Reclamation District
Age: 38
Family: Single, no children
Occupation: Teacher and Coach
Education: Northwestern University B.A. History
Civic involvement: Volunteered on numerous campaigns and over the years, I have been an active member in the Irish Fellowship club of Chicago, Mercy Home for Boys and Girls and Misericordia
Elected offices held: NA
Incumbent? No. If yes, when were first elected:
Website: www.cashman4mwrd.com
Twitter: cashman4mwrd
Facebook: cashman4mwrd
Questions and Answers
1. What special knowledge or experience do you have that particularly qualifies you for this office? If you are an incumbent, describe your main contributions. Tell us of any important initiatives you've led. If you are a challenger, what would you bring to the board and what would your priority be?
I have spent the last eighteen years of my life in education as a teacher and a coach. If elected, I will take all of the experience and lessons that I have learned while working in the classroom to provide a new and fresh perspective to the board.
2. How do you view the role the district has played in controlling flooding and what, if any, actions need to be taken to improve things?
The District has been forward thinking when it comes to flooding. In the 1960s and 1970s the district began developing the Tunnel and Reservoir plan, a massive and innovative idea at a time when many cities did not have a plan for flooding.
Forty years later, the District has built the world's largest reservoir in Thornton, which will soon be the world's second biggest reservoir when McCook Reservoir overtakes it in a few years. But massive reservoirs and the deep tunnel can't alone handle the large amounts of stormwater the region gets. We need to use green technologies to complement the gray technologies as well as the necessity to use smaller, local projects to go along with large, regional ones.
3. What changes in technology, equipment or infrastructure are needed to improve management of the region's water supply.
The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District does not deal with the management of the region's water supply. The agency was created to keep sewage out of Lake Michigan. At its core, the district's mission is to protect the water environment. With that said, I do support such things as using disinfection technology at our plants but before committing to a plan that would cost millions of dollars, I would ask the District's engineers to conduct a feasible study to assess how this task can be completed in the most coast efficient and effective way.
4. What is the role of the district, and of district commissioners, in promoting conservation of resources?
The District advocates for resources by implementing resource recovery initiatives in their operations, and I think the District should be setting the standard for how the waste water industry can become more sustainable. The Commissioners, as conduits to the public, should be highlighting the important work that the agency does to recover resources. It is my belief that the Commissioner's role should be one of an educator and educate residents on sustainable practices that can be achieved at home.
As a teacher, I know firsthand the difference between handing someone information and empowering them with an education. I would like to start a two part community outreach program to educate our communities at large and, in the classroom, to introduce these concepts to children as early as 2nd and 3rd grade.
To achieve this, I want to partner with the EPA and the Department of Education. My hope is to not only educate for a better understanding but also spark an interest in the rapidly growing field of green jobs. I truly believe the more the public understands the problems we are facing the more invested they will be in solutions.
5. How do you rate the MWRD on transparency and the public's access to records? If you consider it adequate, please explain why. If you think improvements are needed, please describe them and why they are important
Transparency in government is simply put just good government. The creation of the Inspector General, broadcasting the commissioner meetings live on the web, and archiving those meetings on the MWRD website for future reference have all been steps in the right direction.
As a commissioner, I will work with the Better Government Association and the Inspector General to find the best practices that would enhance District transparency, especially when it comes to procurement and contract awards. I will also work to adopt an ethics reform to limit how much contractors can contribute to a commissioners' campaign fund.