How Things Could Be Different

I admire and appreciate who Alderwoman Maria Hadden is, which is a kind and decent person, we disagree on some things but we also have a lot of the same priorities and objectives.

Participatory Budgeting

I am committed to the Participatory Budgeting (PB) process I believe PB could benefit from shorter time commitment for volunteers and shorter turn around on winning projects through maintaining a close working relationships with sister agencies.

The last few cycles have seen a sharp decline in residents voting despite easier access to voting online and over a longer voting window. The last PB vote under Alderman Moore was close to 3,000 votes and the last PB cycle under Alderwoman Hadden had fewer than 900 votes. We need to shorten the PB cycle time so that this volunteer commitment does not take up all of our community volunteers time. If we have a set 3-5 month window for the PB process we would likely attract a wider array of neighbors especially those of us who are heavily engaged in our schools, parks and other volunteering missions. Volunteering in PB cycles should not be an all-consuming never ending process where we burn out volunteers and consume so much time that those volunteers become disconnected from the neighborhood. If we limit the time for PB cycles we can open up the process to more neighbors who are better in tune with the needs of the community and would be open to a manageable time commitment.

Additionally the 49th ward office needs to keep sister agencies in the loop and foster positive working relationships so winning projects can be implemented quickly within a year of the vote so residents can experience the benefits of the PB process and trust in the validity of their votes and see the projects they championed come to fruition.

North Side Housing Shelter Special Use Permit

North Side Housing will likely become a neighbor at the proposed Clark Street location. The 49th ward office should do all we can to help North Side Housing continue their success. We have many group homes and shelters in the ward but they are concentrated on the north and west side of the ward, this is not equitable and there should be a moratorium on new shelters locating within 5 blocks of existing shelters. If we concentrate too many shelters in and around Howard Street then that will negatively impact the many women and minority owned businesses and the core of the black and brown community in the 49th ward.

Education

Education does not end when students leave school for the day. The 49th ward office should be focusing building up youth employment and after school activities. We need robust after-school programs as part of a multi-faceted plan to keep trouble away from the 49th ward’s youth.

We also need a comprehensive all in approach to recruiting and retaining teachers and other critical school staff. There needs to be a plan to mentor and support new teachers, and we need more of our neighbors to step-up and be available for substitute teaching, mentoring students, coaching sports and helping out with school trips. Education should be a concern for all of us not just those of use with children in our lives.

Neighborhood Safety

Alderwoman Hadden and I both agree that public safety is not achievable with policing alone, we need to build up a robust system of mental health and other social programs to help people in crisis and to prevent crime by tackling social problems before people are forced into desperate situations that can lead to bad outcomes.

Expanding accessible Housing

Alderwoman Haddedn and I are both committed to increasing the number of accessible housing units in the 49th ward and the city as a whole. All of us will need accessible housing as we age or experience life events that can impact our mobility. We need to have more housing that can accommodate seniors and our neighbors who have physical limitations.

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