The two Sacramento mayoral candidates destined to clash in the Nov. 7 run-off election debated in the University Union Ballroom Monday in attempt to attain the support of potential voters.

Councilwoman Heather Fargo and Councilman Rob Kerth addressed a noontime crowd of approximately 45 people and discussed the issues important to their campaigns.

Fargo, who has served on the city council for almost 11 years, stated in her opening remarks that public service has been her life and that she wants to apply her experience from her district, which is made up of Natomas and Downtown, to the city of Sacramento.

“I will work and continue working on improving the quality of life here,” Fargo said.

Kerth, who grew up in North Sacramento and has served on its city council for seven years, touched on the improvements he has made in the North Sacramento area; specifically sidewalks, gutters, and bridges.

The first question posed by moderator Bob Waste, chair of Public Policy and Administrative Programs, was what would the candidates do to improve public schools and continue the greatest legacy of the late Joe Serna, Jr.

Kerth said that Sacramento cannot be a successful city without higher-quality schools, and believes that the mayor’s role is important.

“Not a role of authority, but one of tremendous influence,” Kerth said.

Kerth recommended creating after-school programs and turning schools into parks. Fargo said that making changes to the educational system is difficult because there are nine school districts, excluding the community college districts, but offered another option, “making education and literacy part of our culture in Sacramento.”

The candidates were asked if they had a plan to cleanup the air in Sacramento. Fargo said that she takes air quality very seriously.

“The first and foremost thing to do, is to think about whether or not we can car pool,” Fargo said. “We need to continue expanding our light-rail system.”

Fargo added that bringing express buses back and instituting internal shuttle systems in neighborhoods would also help.

Kerth said that Sacramento has made headway in the battle for clean air, but that there is a long way to go.

He believes that it can be done by making the bus system more efficient. Right now the bus system is only great if you’re going Downtown.

“We can win the battle against the car,” Kerth said.

Sacramento State senior Karlos A. Santos-Coy told the candidates that one day he hopes to be up on the podium and asked them what kind of city he was going to inherit from them. Kerth said he envisions a city of small towns, each one providing special needs.

“We’re going to grow a million more people in the region over the next 20 years, we need to build new smaller towns,” Kerth said.

Fargo said that the solution to the tremendous growth is to manage it through internal growth.

“We need to manage the growth, so the results are positive,” Fargo said. “In 10 years we’ll have the Downtown that will be the envy of everyone.”

Sac State junior Andrea Clayton said the debate was informative.

“They drove home some points; I have an idea of who I am going to vote for,” Clayton said.