ANC5B-06 Candidates Sound Off On Priorities

Thursday night, the four candidates vying for the ANC5B06 seat gathered to share their ideas and motivations for why voters should elect them to the local Advisory Neighborhood Commission. The candidates, George Jackson, Tontalya Terceiro-Wright, Thalia Wiggins and Bernice Hall-Gates were given five minutes for their political elevator pitch, followed by an opportunity for Q&A.  The candidate forum was held in advance of next Thursday’s special election to fill the seat vacated by long-time member Wilhelmina Lawson.  Residents of 5B06 are encouraged to come out and vote at that meeting, January 21^st, 7pm-8:30pm, in the gymnasium at Joseph H. Cole Recreation, 1200 Morse Street, NE.  Previous information about the election can be found here.

ANC Chairperson William Shelton (ANC5B01) welcomed residents to the forum and noted that this is the ANC’s second special election, but it’s the first time four candidates have stepped up to run for an open seat.  All the candidates have long-term ties to the neighborhood and are active in the community.  Each expressed optimism for a future Trinidad that would continue to evolve and improve. They were also eager reinforce the many personal and professional activities that make them qualified but were quick to say that they will all be supportive of whomever wins the race.

George Jackson will be first on the ballot so he was given the opportunity to kick things off (which he ceded to the ladies in the room).  Styling himself a “proven leader and a person who can deliver for the community,” Jackson has held a number of leadership roles over the last 15 years, such as PTA president, vice chair of Joseph H. Cole Recreation, co-chair of the Ivy City Affordable Housing Task Force and was also previously elected to the ANC.  In response to a question from a resident about how candidates think local initiatives should be paid for, Jackson made this point: “our community lacks organization.”  In his view, a better-organized citizenry could result in more power directing the appropriator’s pen.  He continued, ”If we can tap into talents for organization, a lot of things can get done.  A strong PTA and strong ‘Friends Of’ groups are lacking.”  He then closed with this statement: “I’m not a supporter of the government, not a supporter of developers. I’m a supporter of my community.  That’s how I’d operate as a commissioner.”

Next to appear on the ballot will be Tontalya Terceiro-Wright, also a former ANC Commissioner.  Her primary theme for the evening was “structure”.  She said she is particularly motivated by her experience with women and children to work on building community support structures, such as making kids aware of job opportunities. In response to a question about how to get citizens more involved, Terceiro-Wright pointed out that individuals can take the lead but there are also simple, community-based activities that can pave the way for involvement.  She said, for example, “I started a non-profit in the neighborhood to support the neighborhood.  We can also get the community more involved with things like beautification, which is something all communities love to do.  We can have a beautification day where everybody in the community gets together.” But she also pointed out that Commissioners shouldn’t work in a vacuum.  “People in our community have lots to offer.  [They] … need to be responsive to us as much as we are responsive to them; so I know exactly what I need to be saying because you’ve given me the information I’m asking for.  All I ask is: Are you going to respond to me when I try to help you?”

Third spot on the ballot goes to Thalia Wiggins, owner of a dog-walking and pet-sitting business and the youngest of the four candidates.  Wiggins tended to take a more grassroots approach in her platform.  “We [the candidates] are all established in the community, but it’s not about where you’ve come from, but where you’re going.  My concern is with the blending and coming together of long-time and new residents.  I have a job where I can knock on doors.  It’s all about going the extra mile; being young with drive, will and the ability to go the extra mile.”  She balanced that with a desire to build on the work of former commissioner, Wilhelmina Lawson.  When a questioner asked how the candidates planned to work strategically with other government partners, Wiggins responded, “I would literally take a page from Ms. Lawson’s book – her address book – and call her contacts to get to know [them]” while drawing on her own existing community networks and establishing new ones.

The fourth and final candidate is Bernice Hall-Gates, who said she has lived in the area providing social services for the past 30 years.  “I have helped arrest, helped release, helped reintegrate many adults in this community.  I’ve worked with many leaders, and put together welfare and reentry programs.”  Her motivation to run stems from seeing missed opportunities.  “I’ve watched so many tools not be utilized in the Trinidad area.”  It has made her want to “come from behind the scenes into the forefront.”  Hall-Gates, who only fell 15 votes shy of winning the seat in 2008, believes the time is ripe for transforming the way people think in and about Trinidad.  When asked what the candidates see for the neighborhood in the next two years, she responded that it is time to “repair the mindset of families we have here, to encourage families to invest in community, in children; to start with their own families and get businesses involved” too.  She sees the challenge as one of “repositioning the thinking and mindset of people in the community.  We want something new, but we need to rebuild the foundation of what we already have.”

Polls open next Thursday, at  7pm  in the gymnasium at Cole Fitness Center.  Ballots will then be counted, the result will be announced and the winner will take office that evening.  Registered voters are strongly encouraged to come out and cast their vote.  THIH has asked each candidate if they would like to share a brief position statement.  Any statements we receive will be posted prior to Thursday’s election.