JEFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ) Erica Choinka is a member of the Jefferson City Parks and Recreation Commission and a candidate for Jefferson City Council Ward 3. Choinka's campaign focuses on improving the city's parks and recreational programs, supporting economic development, impr oving public safety and protecting taxpayers from unnecessary spending. Choinka is a communications specialist in the Missouri Senate and was previously a legislative director for the Missouri House of Representatives. Choinka will be running against Derek Thomas. Marie Moyer: Why are you running and what are your qualifications? Erica Choinka: I think my reason for running is pretty simple -- I'm a mom with two young kids that cares a lot about the future of Jefferson City. By the time that my 1-year-old and 3-year-old graduate high school, I want Jefferson City to still be a community where people want to move to, they want to work in and they want to raise their families. I also have been working in state government for almost a decade and I'm currently a member of the Jefferson City Parks Commission. For those that don't know, that is the only ... commission in Jefferson City, other than city council that's responsible for allocating tax dollars. So I'd like to bring that experience to city council so I can really be a voice for the young families that don't really feel like they're being represented right now. Moyer: What improvements do you think are necessary for Jefferson City's infrastructure? Choinka: Something that I've heard a lot while talking to people during this campaign is the need for more parking downtown. And I think if you talk to any resident in Jefferson City, they're going to say that they want to see our roads maintained regularly and taken care of, we always complain about potholes and things like that, and those are really things that when people are considering whether or not they want to move to Jefferson City, those are things that they look at. It's not just about housing availability. It's about what the city has to offer and how it takes care of its infrastructure. Marie Moyer: How will Jefferson City address the affordable housing shortage? You kind of mentioned it. Erica Choinka: Yeah, so Jefferson City is definitely facing a housing crisis right now. Not just affordable housing, but housing at every level. We need to have apartments available for young professionals that want to move here so that they don't have to live in Columbia or Ashland, because that's the only place where apartments are available for them right now. We also need housing available -- housing availability like starter homes for young families. We need options for people that want to come move here and retire. So we really need to look at the broad range of housing options in Jefferson City and see where we're falling short. Moyer: I guess kind of a follow-up to that. You were kind of stating what is kind of a need. So what are things that Jefferson City can do aside from noticing what the need is? Choinka: I think we all recognize that need. And if you've noticed in recent city council meetings, pretty much every proposal that's come through with the intention of increasing housing development has been approved almost unanimously. I think. So we really are just trying to attract more people, attract more developers who want to come and invest in our community so that we can provide those housing options for families. Moyer: And how should the city government trim its budget to pay for increasing health insurance costs? Choinka: I think any time that we're talking about budget decisions, it's all about give and take, right? Just like when you're at home with your family, at your kitchen table and you're preparing for upcoming expenses, you're looking at things that you're going to need to cut that month to pay for it. And so if elected to city council, I definitely want to be really involved in that. I want to dig in and find out maybe where some areas that are duplicative or waste that we can cut in order to pay for that. But that's something that I really need to dig in and learn a lot more about before I can provide an actual answer for that. Moyer: And what are your thoughts on the conference center project? Choinka: I'm really excited about the conference center. This is something that's been a really big topic, this campaign, and I think with any project, residents are a little hesitant at first. They say they're excited about it, but they're like, "How much is this going to cost me?" And so with the conversations I've had with local leaders and the people involved in the project, it does sound like their current financial plan is not to raise any new taxes on residents, which I think is really important and I think a lot of people in Jefferson City are going to be excited about that. But I'm really excited about this proposal. I love the idea of bringing more people to show off our capital city to. The post Interview with Erica Choinka, candidate for Jefferson City Council Ward 3 appeared first on ABC17NEWS. ...read more read less