Both sit on the City Council. They favor giving the moribund downtown a boost by infusing it with more viable businesses. Boyd and Daniels support expanding city services - the library and recreational opportunities, among other things - by growing the tax base instead of by raising taxes. They also want to lure businesses to the 800-acre Gateway near the Interstate 15 Pleasant Grove interchange.

Given their similarities, both are stressing their different leadership styles.

"I'm good at pulling together people, volunteers, [city] employees and citizens," Boyd said. "I'll run the city as someone who worked their way up through city services. [Daniels] is coming from a CEO-type mentality. He's more top down, I'm more [about working] from the bottom up."

Daniels counters that he is a uniter who knows how to bridge the cultural divide between Pleasant Grove old-timers and newcomers.

"She tries to use that as a wedge to further divide the city instead of unite it," Daniels said. "It's important that we don't threaten the legacy of people who grew up here, but that we also embrace newcomers."

Lots of newcomers are slated to call Pleasant Grove home. According to Boyd's campaign literature, about 18,000 are expected over the next three decades. Daniels says growth in Utah County is spreading from Lehi southward and Orem northward and will soon "meet in the middle" at Pleasant Grove.

"We're the last frontier," Daniels said, adding the city must decide what it wants to be and start planning now for the expected influx of residents.

One problem is the library, which both candidates say needs expansion. Pleasant Grove also needs a new recreation complex and fire station. The problem, Daniels explained, is the money is not there to fund them without passing a general-obligation bond that would almost double residents' property taxes. He wants to tap new businesses - not residents - to pay for new services.

Daniels said he represented the city in its bid to to bring Cabela's and Costco to Pleasant Grove; both stores elected to locate elsewhere. But the city had better luck landing a BMW dealership. Boyd says she also helped woo businesses.

Cindy Boyd

* Age: 53

* Career: Former Alpine School District office manager and business administrator; now sells life, health and disability insurance

* Political experience Current City Council member; former Planning Commission member

* Fun fact: Great-great-grandfather, John Greenleaf Holman, was one of the original seven pioneers who settled Pleasant Grove

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Michael W. Daniels

* Age: 45

* Career: Director of electronic production for MyFamily.Com, Inc; has experience as CEO and manager of several national and international firms

* Political experience Current City Council member

* Fun fact: Proud of his ethnic heritage; his mother is Japanese and his father Jewish

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Where they stand

How would you revitalize the downtown?

* Boyd: Wants to expand the downtown beyond its current two blocks. Favors rezoning parts of it and bringing in new business. Supports the R/UDAT (Regional/Urban Design Assistance Team) study of downtown. Also wants to link the downtown with new businesses planned for the Gateway area - an 800-acre area near Interstate 15 slated for commercial development.

* Daniels: Supports R/UDAT study. Says study will help city form a vision for downtown Pleasant Grove. Wants to preserve historical buildings worth saving, but also bring in niche businesses to make the downtown more economically robust.

Council candidates

(two at-large seats)

* Mark K. Atwood (i)

* Jeffery Wilson (i)

* Lee G. Jensen

* Joseph A. Spencer