5) Short haul/long haul?  My wife Cathy and I plan on living here the rest of our lives.  As a matter of fact I wrote an article in the Council's Corner of the September 2004 edition of the Victoria Gazette supporting the development of a city cemetery in Victoria that would be available to all residents regardless of religious affiliation.
6) Occupation.  I have worked for Hennepin County Court Services for 32 years.  I am a Career Probation Officer.  In this capacity I provide pre-sentence criminal investigations for the courts and supervise a caseload of felons.  Also, I initiated and currently direct a cognitive skills program for referred felons.  I own Richard A. Tieden, Consultant, over the last 15 years and have provided investiga-tive and chemical health evaluations for law firms and the court.
7) Family/fun.  Cathy and I are cele-brating our 25th wedding anniversary on October 6th.  She and I have two children, Michael and Annie.  Mike is a freshman at the University of St. Thomas.  Annie is a senior at Chaska High School.  Cathy owns and operates two companies here in Victoria, Two Plus Two and Inside Out Gardens.
Our family travels extensively.  We love road trips.  Sports provide us with many hours of enjoyment.  We boat, downhill ski, and golf as a family.  I love to run and try to do so on a regular basis.  Cathy introduced me to tennis (she played on the first University of MN Women's Tennis Team).  Our family likes being together.  We go out to dinner and the movies on a regular basis.  We attend plays, concerts, and sporting events.  W go to museums and art galleries.  We go to church.  We sit in the hot tub and bubble.  We take walks and bike rides.
8) City gov't in your life.  I first became involved with city government over the construction of County Road 18 in Victoria.  I attended a number of City Council meetings, met many concerned residents, and learned a great deal during the process.  I ran for the office of Coun-cil Member in 2000 and was elected.
As I drive through Victoria I see lots of changes.  New buildings and roads have been built.  Existing businesses have renovated and remodeled.  New buildings are under construction.  New develop-ments and projects are underway.  I feel very proud and personally satisfied to have worked with people who have made this growth and change possible.  The rewards for serving as a councilmember for Victoria have been many.  My family and I have learned the value of giving to our community.  It has come back to us tenfold.
9) Spending $10 million.  The $10 million would pay off the Victoria Field House debt.  It would pay for the new Water Treatment Plant and Fire Dept. renovation.  The $10 million could be leveraged in partnership between the city and a builder in the development of a new City Hall/Public Library and a Retail Businesses/Senior Housing Complex.
A single councilmember cannot de-cide how to spend $10 million.  However, a single councilmember can represent the community at large with a single vote.  It is up to the residents of Victoria to let me know how they would like the money to be spent.  I will respect their suggestions.  I will respond to their suggestions.  I will be accountable for my performance.  In the meantime, this would most definitely be an interesting subject for the City Council to debate.
10) Cutting $200,000.  That amount represents approximately 7% of our current budget, and such a budget cut would require action by the City Council.  I would offer for consideration that each city department review their individual budgets with the expectation of cutting their budget by 7% through elimination or attrition, and that they would submit their findings to the Council for review and dis-cussion.  I would invite residents to make recommendations.  After careful consider-ation, the City Council make the appropri-ate decisions and cuts.

Jeff Winship
758 Oak Drive
Victoria, MN 55386
Ph:  952-443-2377
jwinship@sihope.com
1) Why running?  I am running for city office because I have been a resident of Victoria for over 10 years now.  During this time the population has more than doubled.  Because of this continual in-crease, I feel it is important to be more in-volved with the decision making of our community.  Finally, I view civic duty as an honor and a privilege to be part of the true "roots" of government.
2) Length of residency.  Ten years.
3) Origin/attraction.  Prior to living in Victoria, my wife Judy and I lived in Maple Grove for three years after our marriage.  Judy is originally from Cologne and I am from Eden Prairie.
Several factors drew us to Victoria.  First, Victoria was close to our parents.  This was very important to us because our families are actively a part of our daily life.  Finally, what drew us to Victoria was its small town charm.  I have always told friends and relatives that Victoria is a suburban setting with a small town feel.
4) Education/background.  I graduat-ed from Eden Prairie High School in 1985.  I was drawn to Crown College in St. Bonifacius to continue my education.  I recently graduated with an associate's degree in general studies.
5) Short haul/long haul?  Our family is firmly grounded in our neighborhood.  We can't imagine living anywhere else.
6) Occupation.  I am a Senior Mort-gage Consultant with Guardian Mortgage in Burnsville.  I have been in both the mortgage and banking industry for over six years.  Prior to that I was a commodi-ties merchandiser, a furniture salesman, and a retail electronics store manager.
7) Family/fun.  My family is amaz-ing!  My wonderful wife of 13 years is Judy.  She is my constant support system.  Without her, I would have never got through school with a family and a full time job.  We have four children -- Brooke, 9; Faith, 6 ½; and twins Kaleb (boy) and Kendall (girl) who will be 4 this month.  Friends and family will tell you I refer to them affectionately as "wild king-dom."
8) City gov't in your life.  Our city government in a multitude of ways has impacted us, most of which appear seam-less to the average individual.  We have a water system, parks and trails, a recreation and skate facility, and an upcoming new elementary school.  All of these attributes display the necessary vision of our past and present city councils.
9) Spending $10 million.  If I had a $10 million windfall for the city, I would examine the city's greatest needs first.  Because of the rapid growth of Victoria, i would look at our administration first.  Do we have the people in place for our con-tinual growth?  Or are we working on a shoestring budget with a minimal staff?
With the annexation of Laketown Township and the number of housing de-velopments that will take place over the next three to five years, this must become a priority to our city's development.
The next area I would review is safe-ty and security.  With this continual growth we need to have the processes in place for increasing our police presence from Carver County.  Thankfully, thanks to Sheriff Bud Olson and the city council, we will have police presence in 2005.  Finally, in the event of a sudden windfall, all areas of the city would be reviewed and it would be distributed by a needs basis as well as create points for discus-sion.
10) Cutting $200,000.  Budget cuts are always the most challenging decisions city councilmembers face.  However, true leaders look beyond personalities and hurt feelings.  They are always looking out for what is best for the community.  My main objective would be to look at what areas would be the least impacted or could be delayed as a result of a budget cut.