Democrats look to gain majority

By THOMAS GREENBERG
Posted 10/17/18

By THOMAS GREENBERG As Election Day nears, the three Democratic candidates for Citywide Council are out in full force campaigning on Cranston-wide issues including zoning, schools, infrastructure, and commercial industrialization.

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Democrats look to gain majority

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As Election Day nears, the three Democratic candidates for Citywide Council are out in full force campaigning on Cranston-wide issues including zoning, schools, infrastructure, and commercial industrialization.  In addition to the issues, the Democrats would also like to take back the majority on the Council in this year’s election.

Sarah Lee served as a Citywide Councilwoman from 2013 to 2015 and is a resident of the Edgewood area.  She said that although the City Council “sometimes feels like a bad soap opera,” she enjoyed being on the Council and trying to get things done in the city, which is why she’s returned to run again.

Steve Stycos, who has served the last four terms as Ward 1 Councilman, said he decided to run Citywide because he wants to take the Council majority away from the Republicans and make it “Democratic, with a small d also.”  He asserted that Council President Michael Farina has “stacked the committees” so the Republicans have full control over any proposal that goes through, and it’s created an unfair advantage for whatever party holds the majority.

Political newcomer Gail Harvey, a Cranston resident for 12 years who moved to the city from Brooklyn, New York, said she was asked to run by the other Democrats and wants to “learn more about Cranston” through doing this.  She also said she wants to see more women in official positions.

Zoning across the city, especially at the two major commercial sites in the middle of the city – Chapel View and Garden City – is a key issue that the Democrats are focusing on in the election.  Stycos said that he believes the Republicans have given a “very wide authority” to the developers of those complexes to do what they want without a plan, and he thinks the approach should be different.

“I’d say, okay, what do you want to do that requires a zone change,” he said.  “Then negotiate with them and say in return for the zone change, if it’s reasonable, here’s some things that we want.  You make an agreement, then you do the zone change.”

Stycos used the example of a proposal by Garden City to build a 75-foot high building, which he said they were given the authority to do without being clear about the details, like what it would be used for and where exactly it would go.

Harvey lives close by the Sockanosset Cross Rd. area, she said, and she thinks that congestion has become an issue.  She pointed to the Citizens Bank location as a key spot that will be changing in the coming years, and she said she wants to be a part of the decision-making for it.

“We need tax revenue, but we also need residents living in a safe environment,” she said in regards to zoning and the environment.  “It’s not that we don’t want revenue or a facility for people to use, but the people who live there are terrified, and they pay the taxes.”

She added that there shouldn’t be any “blank checks” given out, and there should be a high level of transparency between developers and the City Council.

Lee echoed Stycos’ assertion that the Republican majority has been “quick to move forward with business plans” and said they’ve allowed proposals to go through without completely vetting them with the residents of the area. 

She said that she doesn’t want to see the land in the city “degraded” in order to develop businesses, and added that she believes “businesses do better if the neighborhoods do better.”

School funding, school safety, and school construction are key issues on the minds of all the candidates in this year’s election, and all three believe that city funding of the schools should be increased.

Lee said that she “understands the budget issues” and that it would be expensive to fix the buildings because they’re so old, but updating them would be “a worthwhile payoff.”  She said that it would help foster a better school atmosphere for the kids now, and upgrading the buildings themselves would help the city in the long run as well.

“It’s expensive to maintain schools, but the city needs to maintain them nonetheless,” she said.  “They still own the buildings and if they’re going to be reused they need to be maintained.  You can’t sell them to a developer if they’re in bad shape.”

Harvey said that she believes in more money for schools as well, though she wants to see transparency and oversight on how the money is spent.

“Public schools are the strength of our communities,” she said.  “If we aren’t investing in children, who are we investing in?”

She said that she worries about the amount of money that Cranston would be dealing with if the $250 million bond is approved, and she’d especially want to see increased oversight if the bond is approved by voters and Cranston gets a slice of the pie.

Stycos said that he would rely on the School Committee to come forward with a list of what’s needed for school construction upgrades, and the one thing he’d encourage is energy conservation measures when changes do happen. 

He also said that the school’s operating budget should be more than it is, as most of the new money in recent years has come from the state rather than the city, and he believes that’s hindered the schools, as he said he’s talked to teachers who have had to raise money on their own for classroom supplies.

In terms of school safety, all three candidates are running on the platform that guns should be banned from schools unless they are in the hands of police officers.  Harvey said she believes in talking to other school districts to learn from them about how to deal with school safety situations, while Lee said that she didn’t like how Republicans only banned guns when there was “community outpouring against it,” and thinks gun control issue is a “big one.”

Although zoning and schools are two of the major issues concerning the three Democrats, each of them have other issues they want to address if elected.

Lee said that she wants to continue an effort she started when she was Councilwoman to make a dog park in the city, in addition to the Beachmont Park currently being constructed, which she said has been “moving very slowly.”  She also said that infrastructure, including sidewalks and city buildings, needs to be upgraded and better maintained.

Lee also said that it’s important for the City Council to work together despite any partisanship if they want to get things done.  She said she’d like to a joint effort to create a smart budget and “make sure things are done fairly.”

Harvey said she will “bring energy and an inquisitive mind to the Council.”  She said she wants a lot more transparency in City Hall as well, making sure to publish every decision and discussion online to keep the residents well informed. 

“We should hold people in the city accountable to do what they’re supposed to do,” Harvey said, adding that infrastructure, including street paving and snowplowing, should be done better.

Stycos said that although he’s been Ward 1’s representative for the past four sessions, he’s been able to do citywide projects such as helping redesign the traffic pattern at Cranston West, spearheading the construction of the Knight Farm walking trail, and planting trees. 

He said he’d like to change the makeup of the City Council so that the minority party, which is currently the Democrats, appoint its own members to committees, rather than the Council President doing so.  He said that the two most important city committees – finance and ordinance – only have one Democrat currently and they are never able to get motions seconded.  He also thinks the system has felt rigged at times, such as during the panhandling discussion when, according to him, people could only talk for two minutes rather than four.

Overall, the three Democratic candidates for Citywide Council are optimistic about their chances at winning, and Stycos said he’s glad there are three young candidates – under the age of 40 – running in the wards and that there are three women candidates as well.

An article on the Republican Citywide City Council candidates will be published in next week’s Cranston Herald.

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