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2009 Candidate Survey
Responses & Voter Guide
Candidate for City Council: Gordon Smith
1. What are your top three policy
priorities for your term, if elected?
My top three priorities are 1) Passing and
implementing the Affordable Housing Plan of 2008; 2) implementing new energy
efficiency standards; and 3) creating a dedicated funding stream for
multimodal transportation infrastructure.
My position on Affordable Housing is available at my website, and I describe
it in more detail in question #7.
Raising the bar on energy efficiency in our new developments while
incentivizing the retrofit of existing buildings can create a great deal of
work for our talented construction industry while supporting the growing
renewable energy manufacturing companies in the area. Living up to our
environmental aspirations will also continue to attract green industry to
our area.
Implementing a multimodal transportation infrastructure offers everyone the
chance to save money and choose sustainability. We must protect our public
transit funding, increase the number of bike lanes on our roads, fight to
ensure that a future I-26 connects West Asheville to downtown, and work to
implement our Greenways Master Plan. We can reduce air pollution, traffic,
and the need for new parking structures.
2. An estimated 16-20% of Buncombe
County’s children and youth live in poverty; a number expected to rise
during this recession. What role, if any, does council play in addressing
the impact of child poverty (e.g. hunger, health, nutrition, education) in
the region?
Council has a very important role to play in
addressing poverty. As a practicing Child and Family Therapist, I see the
struggle that impoverished families face.
First we must help to create more affordable housing in Asheville and ensure
that our current public housing is safe. We can do this by passing the
Affordable Housing Plan of 2008 and working towards HOPE VI Grants to
improve our public housing options.
The success of the Asheville Project ought to spread to our schools. Health
and wellness can be a part of every child’s education, and including
families in this education is vital to our children’s ability to focus and
succeed in school.
Also, the city can maintain its commitment to the 10-Year Plan to End
Chronic Homelessness. As outlined in a recent New York Times story on the
subject, too many families are not able to meet basic needs. The 10-Year
Plan offers a roadmap to meeting those needs in a just and compassionate
way.
3. How effective has the City been in
addressing youth crime, including gang-related activity? Are there other
intervention and prevention strategies the City should invest in?
I believe there are a number of areas that we
can look at to help our youth find healthy alternatives to gangs and crime.
Helping to re-open the Burton Street Community Center was a major stride
towards that neighborhood reclaiming its health and safety. Ongoing
community garden projects in Burton St. and Pisgah View are building
community and helping to offer wholesome options for families.
The Weed and Seed program has been very effective in encouraging
coordination between community leaders, neighbors, financial aid services,
and law enforcement. Just as I saw when doing community reconciliation work
in Belfast, Northern Ireland, we chart a path forward by offering people
opportunities to achieve common goals.
Gang activity and crime are problems we must expect to face now and in the
future. Collaborations between the City, private partners, and non-profits
can help create safer streets and possibilities for successful futures free
from drugs and violence. Asheville’s Green Opportunities is providing an
excellent model in how to transform children’s lives.
4. What is your assessment of the City’s
public transportation system? Would you propose changes?
Asheville’s public transportation system
needs continued improvements such as more frequent service and Sunday
service. We are expecting a final draft of the Transit Master Plan sometime
this month, and I look forward to seeing the results of this collaborative
effort between stakeholders and the City’s Transit services.
To serve unmet public transportation needs, I would like to see more
frequent shuttle services in smaller fleet vehicles used on our busiest
transportation corridors. Reduced congestion will increase safety for
pedestrians, cyclists, and drivers alike, and improve air quality. Our
existing fleet could cover the remaining areas, focusing on the needs of
existing transit users.
In addition to buses, it’s important that we look at our transportation
system as a whole. Adding a multimodal transportation infrastructure to our
existing options will provide a new array of affordable, sustainable
mobility options for our citizens.
Greenways, riverways, bike lanes, and sidewalks are crucial to moving away
from an automobile-centric transportation system. The resulting
infrastructure will be beneficial to our health, environment, safety,
tourism, and attractiveness to potential industry.
5. The Asheville-Buncombe Living Wage
Campaign calculates that a single person needs to earn $11.35/hr to have
economic self-sufficiency in Asheville. Should the City ensure that all City
employees and contractors make a living wage? Why or why not?
Yes. Hard work on behalf of our city and its
residents is an honorable, valuable contribution that ought to be respected
and justly compensated. I would add that adopting domestic partner benefits
for city employees is a necessary step forward for equality. Equality
measures raise the standard of living for all members of a community.
Living wage is about sustainability and economic justice. By ensuring a
living wage for all its employees, Asheville boosts their ability to support
our local economy all year round. In addition to being the just action for
our government to take, maintaining a living wage for city employees is a
crucial part of recruitment and retention of qualified personnel.
Until we’ve emerged from our current budget deficit, moving towards
mandating a living wage for contractors will be cost-prohibitive. However,
we must look at this as soon as financially possible.
6. What further role, if any, should
council play in the I-26 Connector debate?
Citizens and Council alike must continue
advocating for an I-26 Connector design that is just and offers lasting
benefits to our community. Council ought to fight for an I-26 Connector that
preserves our neighborhoods, connects west Asheville to downtown, provides a
22 acre development district on the west side of downtown, reconnects
Hillcrest to the city, and uses the least amount of land possible.
The Asheville Design Center’s original design for Alternative 4B did all of
these things. The NCDOT has since altered the design, making it a plan that
doesn’t serve our community in the way we need.
When NCDOT resumes its efforts on the I-26 Connector, it will be vital for
Asheville City Council to partner with community groups to demand a design
that fits our city.
7. Describe your vision for increasing
affordable housing options in Asheville. How do the existing locations of
the Housing Authority of the City of Asheville fit your vision?
My vision for increasing affordable housing
options in Asheville begins with passing the Affordable Housing Plan of
2008. This plan will help create mixed-income, mixed-use communities by
adding urban density and integrating with transportation options. Further,
housing must be affordable now and in the future, so incorporating energy
efficiency into every development is crucial.
Second, Asheville ought to apply for HOPE VI funding to remake Lee Walker
Heights and Aston Tower. The resulting mixed-income housing will improve the
health and safety of our community.
Third, we must recommit to successfully implementing the 10-year Plan to End
Chronic Homelessness. This project will streamline available services, put
people into housing, and ensure that anyone experiencing homelessness will
receive the help they need.
Fourth, we must restore the Affordable Housing Trust Fund.
Lastly, a strong jobs market increases the likelihood of affording housing.
By increasing construction starts through the Affordable Housing Plan of
2008 and jumpstarting our renewable and alternative energy economy by
raising the bar on energy efficiency, we can fuel more and better jobs for
Asheville.
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