For our weekly supervisorial question, we received a reader-submitted query wondering how the different candidates for District Nine would improve communication with their constituents, since readers often say they wish their elected officials were more responsive to local concerns.
How will you handle communicating with the people of District Nine? Will there be an avenue for small, local issues to be promptly addressed by the supervisor?
Respuestas en español aquí.
Hillary Ronen, chief of staff for Supervisor David Campos
I’ve spent the last decade of my life living and working in District 9, and am now a mom raising my family here. I know what it’s like to have to answer a three year old’s questions about homelessness, or to have to sweep trash off your sidewalk every morning, or to worry about your car windows being broken.
Making sure that District 9 gets the resources it deserves will be my number one priority as Supervisor. My office will be laser focused on legislation that addresses the root causes of problems facing the district – like homelessness, crime, pedestrian safety, cleanliness – while strongly negotiating with city departments to make sure we are getting our fair share of resources.
Melissa San Miguel, education advocate
I have lived in this community my entire life – I’ve gone to school here, taken the buses, and walked the blocks of our neighborhood for as long as I can remember. The small issues make up a big part of living in the neighborhood. It’s unfortunate that our current elected official and his staff are not responding to the needs of the community, but that is one of the reasons I’m running. Our community needs a voice in government who understands their duty is to serve US, someone who is focused on making our everyday lives better. As Supervisor, I would especially emphasize constituent services. My staff will be in the field everyday at community meetings to ensure the flow of information is constant. Together, we can solve the smaller problems and tackle the larger issues impacting our great city.
Joshua Arce, community liaison for Laborers Local 261
Every day I hear stories about the lack of responsiveness to basic neighborhood concerns in our community, including homelessness, property crime, affordability, shootings, fire sprinklers, small business matters, and even general inquiries from our supervisor’s office. Phone calls aren’t returned, emails get no response and now his Chief of Staff wants to be our next supervisor.
The status quo has failed us at every level. Communication between local residents and our supervisor’s office has been sporadic, disappointing, and ineffective.
Just last week I talked about a father whose young daughter had been assaulted in the street, yet our supervisor did nothing to help them. We must demand better from our leaders.
During the decade of disappointment our community has gone through we’ve seen City Hall fail us on big issues, like building affordable housing or community safety and on smaller issues such as responding to day to day concerns like street lighting or keeping our streets clean.
Our community is fed up, and they want to see real change in November.
If elected supervisor, I promise to work for all of you at City Hall. I will build the housing we need and I will keep our community safe. Our job doesn’t end there, we have to do more. I also pledge to respond to the day to day concerns of our residents and be there to deal with the the local issues which affect people’s lives every day.
Iswari España, training officer with the San Francisco Human Services Agency
It will be a policy for my administration to regularly meet with neighbors and listen to their issues as an advocate and not as a spectator. Our current administration claims that the mayor’s trickledown policies are to blame for our chaos, yet they continue to offer residents the same treatment. As supervisor, these practices will end; there will be no issue too small. It is a matter of respect, people deserve to be listened to, and local issues should be made a priority. I have 16 years of public service experience, with nonprofits, and governmental agencies, and I have never forgotten my responsibility to serve my community.
43 Questions is a weekly series — started 43 weeks before Election Day — to question the candidates running for District 9 supervisor. Send us questions to info@missionlocal.com and let us know in comments or in an email if you think candidates have answered as asked.
Please pose specific communication questions, such as will you hold regular Question Time sessions at City Hall and in the community, fixed day and time open-door drop-ins at your office, write a monthly bulletin, operate a web site where comments can be left and addressed by you and your staff, are a few questions I’d like answered.
None of the candidates really addressed direct communication and how they would accomplish it. We need to remember just how terrible a communicator Campos has been and his lack of holding meetings he organizes to hear from the community.
It’s not ok if a Supervisor only attend meetings _others_ have organized. The next Mission Supervisor needs to pull together her or his own forums once in office.