Sharon E. Pandak (D)

Office Sought: Supervisors Chairman
Age: 55
Residence: Lake Ridge.
Education: BA, history and government, College of William and Mary; JD, William and Mary Law School.
Occupation: Lawyer, Greehan, Taves, Pandak & Stoner.
Web site:http://www.pandakforchairman.com
E-mail address: sharon@pandakforchairman.com
Offices and positions held: Former county attorney, Prince William County; treasurer, Prince William Historic Preservation Foundation; development committee, Performing Arts Center; board of directors, Prince William Symphony Orchestra, Didlake Foundation, William & Mary Alumni Association; past member, board, Prince William Habitat for Humanity; past president, Local Government Attorneys of Virginia.

Why should voters elect you?

We need solutions, not slogans. From 15 years as county attorney, I bring experienced leadership to resolve growth, traffic, budget, environmental and illegal immigration problems.

What do you think is the most urgent problem facing your jurisdiction?

Prince William County suffers from a complete lack of leadership, which negatively impacts our quality of life. The current chairman focuses on slogans, not solutions. He has polarized the community on issues this year without providing any solutions to out-of-control growth, traffic gridlock, school overcrowding, a lack of teachers and emergency personnel, loss of open space and illegal immigration. We must assume a leadership role within the commonwealth and seek consensus for a better community. We must deal with issues directly, openly and across party lines. We need to restore honesty, integrity and professionalism to the chairmanship.

What is your plan to address the traffic problems in Virginia?

Traffic gridlock is destroying our quality of life. Development must pay for itself. Voter-approved road projects must be constructed on schedule. Traffic congestion leaves less time with our families, hurts our economy and threatens our public safety. A fundamental change is long overdue. It will be accomplished by a new dynamic with the state and local government and the development community. We must improve mass transportation with dedicated funding sources, instead of band aid approaches like HOT lanes, and reduce the demand on roads, or we will only build more parking lots. I will continue to work to expand VRE commuter rail, PRTC commuter bus and other public transportation, fight to bring Metro to Prince William County, and get our fair share of funding from Richmond and Washington. I will explore creative partnerships in order to provide innovative mass transit solutions. Finally, live-work communities will reduce commutes and sprawl.

Do you think current policies governing growth & development in your area are too restrictive, not restrictive enough or just right?

not restrictive enough

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