Most of the opinions they expressed on major issues were similar, but the discussion also highlighted some significant differences.

City Council Member Jay Benanav, for example, was the only candidate who replied with an unqualified "no'' to a question about whether St. Paul should subsidize a stadium for the Minnesota Twins.

Bob Kessler, a longtime city employee, was alone in his assertion that it will be necessary to increase property taxes to maintain adequate services. "You have to be honest with the taxpayers,'' he said. "There's no such thing as a free lunch.''

The six candidates seeking to replace incumbent Norm Coleman are Benanav, endorsed by the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party; Kessler, an independent; City Council Member Jerry Blakey, a Republican; and three other DFLers -- state Sen. Randy Kelly and former Council Members Bob Long and Bobbi Megard. They are among 16 people who will be on the Sept. 11 primary ballot; the two who get the most votes will advance to the Nov. 6 general election.

They appeared at an hourlong debate co-sponsored by Twin Cities Public Television and the Minneapolis-based Star Tribune at the Channel 2 studio in downtown St. Paul. It was an informal affair, without the usual rotation of candidates commenting on each question for up to a minute. The mayoral hopefuls had to be aggressive to get their turns before the camera.

The candidates generally steered clear of attacking Coleman, a popular mayor who chose to run for the U.S. Senate instead of seeking re-election.

One exception was Megard's comment during a discussion on leadership. "What Norm leaves with us is a culture of divisiveness,'' she said. Describing his technique as "divide and conquer, she said, "A united St. Paul is what we need.''

Long said neither the mayor nor the City Council has done enough to promote public transportation over the past eight years. An opponent of the planned busway on West Seventh Street, he said the city instead should work harder to get light-rail transit on University Avenue.

Kelly and Blakey had sharp exchanges on two topics, the Xcel Energy Center and racial profiling. Blakey, who voted against the arena plan, said the city has higher priorities.

"The arena has been absolutely a godsend for St. Paul,'' said Kelly, noting his role in getting state money for the facility. He said it has had a positive effect on "the spirit of the city.''

On the issue of racial profiling, Blakey, an African-American, said, "What happened up at the Legislature was absolutely shameful.'' He supports mandatory collection of data on traffic stops to determine whether police officers stop a disproportionate number of minorities.

Kelly defended the bill he successfully backed. It provides money for cameras in squad cars and training for officers.

Regarding a Twins stadium in downtown St. Paul, Benanav said, "The people have spoken'' by rejecting a sales tax increase to help pay for a ballpark in 1999.

Blakey said he could support only a limited subsidy for sewers and other infrastructure. The other four said they favor public help for a new ballpark; Long and Megard added that they could support user fees but not new taxes.

Asked whether the city should ban billboards, Blakey said such a move would be "anti-business.''

Megard took a shot at mayoral candidates' billboards and thereby prompted a retort from Blakey. "I've gotten a lot of compliments on mine,'' he said.

Virginia Rybin can be reached at vrybin@pioneerpress.com or (651) 292-1159.