Candidates for Charlottesville City Council spoke about a range of local issues during a debate held Thursday evening at the University. The forum was hosted by the Washington Literary Society and Debating Union and was moderated by Politics Lecturer James Todd.
Democrats Heather Hill and Amy Laufer and independents John Edward Hall, Kenneth Jackson, Paul Long and Nikuyah Walker are running for two open seats on City Council. Each candidate was allowed one minute for an opening statement with two minutes each to respond to five questions submitted by the Society.
Among the issues discussed by candidates were economic development in terms of improving the Downtown Mall, affordable housing, University-city relations, City Council transparency, race relations and unity within the local community after the events of Aug.12.
Many candidates spoke of the racial disparities in the Charlottesville community regarding affordable housing and the development of the Downtown Mall.
“We need to talk about Charlottesville and how to make it a more inclusive place,” Walker said. “Locally we see that there are some … Major class issues and we see that in the representation of who is on the [Downtown] Mall. People [should] understand that everybody belongs in every space and we just haven't done a very good job of doing that.”
Jackson criticized the city for specifically catering to higher-income residents.
“Charlottesville has to stop building for this elite class,” Jackson said. “We got to sit down and get serious about which direction are we taking, are we going to cut out anybody [with an income] under $100,000?”
Hill emphasized the importance of communication with Charlottesville’s racially diverse neighborhoods and uniting as a single community.
“I'd love to reach out to all the communities and understand what are the barriers preventing people from just a few blocks away that represent a very diverse population in our community,” Hill said. “I think it really starts with getting us all out of our comfort zones and coming together as a community.”
Long attributed the city’s affordable housing crisis to the expansion of student housing into the Charlottesville community in recent years.
“I think one of the reasons we have such a severe housing crisis … Is because of the amount of buildings to accommodate U.Va. students,” Long said. “I believe any future U.Va. student housing should be built in Albemarle County. If I’m elected to City Council I’m going to vote against any proposal to build further U.Va. housing in the City of Charlottesville. I think the City Council should be very aggressive about this and not just be a tool of the University of Virginia.”
Laufer also talked about the impact of the growth of student housing on the Charlottesville community.
“We have to remember U.Va. is here and many of you [students] … Are probably living in the city or the county, and it really eats up a lot of our space for residence,” Laufer said. “That is a concern that raises our property values.”
The candidates also discussed various solutions to mitigating racial inequality in Charlottesville, especially following the events of Aug. 11 and 12.
“We have to create a climate in Charlottesville where all people feel welcome and that hasn't happened since its inception,” Walker said. “I think it speaks to the work that we have to do in the city as a whole in terms of why people of different races and economics don't think that … the Downtown Mall is welcoming.”
Walker also said that racism has long existed in the Charlottesville community and will persist if the city does not acknowledge its ongoing presence, a statement which was met with applause from the audience.
“What we come up against is white people who have been very comfortable in an America that has been created by them, for them,” Walker said. “Before we can get to reconciliation, we need to acknowledge and be truthful about where we are. That is something we are going to have to be willing to do or our kids will be having these conversations 50 years from now.”
Hill also emphasized the need to acknowledge ongoing racism in the local community and called for the city to stand up to white supremacist groups.
“I believe it really starts with each of us as individuals and being honest with ourselves about our own implicit biases,” Hill said. “We need to be pursuing proactive and legal policing measures that make it clear to white supremacists and others coming to our community that we will not be their punching bag.”
Laufer too noted the importance of recognizing one’s own racial biases and working together to combat them.
“I think it's really upon ourselves to look at our biases that we probably have but may not realize and it's not just one person that's going to solve this issue, it's going to be all of us,” Laufer said. “I think it's really important that we talk about all these different segments of our population.”
Jackson said that racism could never be completely eliminated from the Charlottesville community.
“Can you stomp it all out? No, because you cannot get inside a person’s mind or heart and make them change,” Jackson said.
Jackson also criticized other candidates for claiming to have spoken to many of the members of the city’s lower-income neighborhoods.
“You [candidates] want to do something great?” Jackson asked. “Start going into these neighborhoods and talking to people. I was in Prospect last night and they said they don't see half of y’all over there yet you claim you're fighting for them.”
Echoing a statement he made at a candidate forum Wednesday night, Jackson emphasized the importance of participation in local government and politics in his closing statement.
“People should be more into their local government and not just run out to an election every time the president comes up or the governor,” Jackson said. “This local body controls your immediate future and they've done a lousy job so far.”
Elections for Charlottesville City Council — along with other statewide offices in Virginia including governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general — will be held Nov. 7. The deadline to register or update voter registration is Oct. 16 and registered voters can request absentee ballots until Oct. 31.
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