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Mansionization laws were passed more than a year ago in the Town of Chevy Chase, but it was still a hot topic during a forum for candidates for the Town Council on Thursday evening, along with budget surpluses and future spending on the Purple Line.

The four candidates, current Councilwoman Linna Barnes, Pat Burda, David Eason and Deborah Vollmer answered wide-ranging questions from moderator Charles Duffy, host of the "Political Pulse" TV show on Montgomery Municipal Cable Channel 16. The candidates also asked each other questions during the Thursday night forum before an audience of about 30 to 40 people.

Current Council Vice Mayor Rob Enelow declined to run for re-election, leaving two seats open for the four candidates. The election is set for Tuesday.

Barnes focused on her six years of council experience, knowledge of town issues like storm drains and the Capital Crescent Trail, and relationship with local officials, and seemed to be in agreement on several issues with Burda, the chair of the Long-Range Planning Committee. Burda, meanwhile, stressed the work she had done opposing the Purple Line on the trail and her work on long-term plans for the town.

Eason took a more conservative stance on a few issues, calling for fewer town regulations and less restrictive ordinances. He also said the town's anti-mansionization regulations limiting home size should be revisited in the future, saying that the issue had become extremely divisive in town.

"We have to be careful not to go too far," he said.

But Vollmer advocated strengthening the current anti-mansionization rules, telling the audience that without further restrictions on development, the town's more historic homes, green space and tree canopy would soon be either mostly or entirely destroyed.

"It's not enough to protect people," she said.

Barnes and Burda both favored letting the current regulations stand, with Burda advocating only minor "tweaking" where necessary.

Vollmer also drew the most audible audience response of the evening when, discussing whether or not term limits for council members was a good idea, she said term limits for individual council members in certain elections should be considered. In a subsequent interview, she clarified that she was against "arbitrary" term limits and wanted voters to decide the fate of long-time council members.

Eason said he favored a six-year term limit for council members, followed by a five-year period wherein they could not run again, while Barnes and Burda opposed term limits altogether.

Discussing the Purple Line, Eason said he was against spending more money opposing the proposed 16-mile light rail line from Bethesda to New Carrollton. But Barnes and Burda said they would wait to hold a public hearing on the matter before deciding, while Vollmer said she was for wisely spending more money to fight the project. Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) is scheduled to pick the state's preferred project mode and alignment soon. The County Council and Planning Board have both endorsed light rail along the Capital Crescent Trail.

"I think this is still a fluid situation," Barnes said.

On the issue of security, Burda said she did not believe a police force for the town was necessary, while Barnes opposed a police force. Vollmer advocated using common sense because of the difficult economic times, while Eason said he favored hiring a person with a police background to consult on town security issues.

Discussing the town's budget surplus, Eason said he recommended giving some back to the residents on certain occasions as a kind of "personal stimulus," but Barnes questioned the legal ability of the town to do so and said there could be difficulty in returning surplus to residents in a proportional way.

"I like to have money in the bank," Burda said on the surplus issue.