Ward 7 Democratic Town Committee Co-Chair Christine Kim will be her party’s nominee for alder, after 25 East Rock/Downtown Democrats voted to endorse her to run in a special election to fill the empty seat recently vacated by Eli Sabin. Committee members took that vote Wednesday during a speci al meeting held virtually over Zoom. Sabin announced his resignation on Jan. 1, less than an hour before he was set to be sworn in to a new two-year term. Wednesday night’s ward committee meeting was announced on Monday, as ward co-chairs Kim and Polly Russell Gulliver worked to abide by the City Charter requirement that a special election be held within 45 days from date of vacancy. Around 40 people attended the Zoom call. The special election for Ward 7 alder will be held on Feb. 17. Early voting dates are from Feb. 11 to Feb. 15. The two candidates up for consideration at Wednesday’s ward committee meeting were Kim and disability-rights advocate David Agosta. Russell Gulliver moderated the meeting. Agosta, who has run for alder once before, began his pitch for candidacy by thanking Kim for “offering to step up and take this thankless job. I wasn’t sure if anyone would.” He then pointed to the CTtransit ticket sales outlet’s move from the kiosk on Chapel Street to a non-handicap-accessible storefront on Church Street. Agosta, an outspoken critic of the move, said that there are now no accessible routes to CTtransit’s customer service center and that this was a “can of worms” that would fall onto the new alder’s lap their first day in the position, due to what he described as violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act. “I nominate myself to serve as Ward 7 alder for as long as it takes for me to kill the worms that the next alder is inheriting, and I will provide ample notice of my resignation date, and we can conduct a better process than finding someone now,” he said. Kim, who has served as ward committee co-chair since March 2022 and was nominated by Ming Thompson, introduced herself as a longtime New Haven resident and mother of two young children. As the board chair of CitySeed, a board member of Urban Resources Initiative, and a founder of AAPI New Haven, she said that her work has always been grounded in “bringing people together.” “I never imagined running for public office — ask anyone,” Kim said, laughing. However, she said that she believes it’s time for “all of us to step up.” “Ward 7 sits at the heart of New Haven,” she said. “It deserves leadership that listens.” She said that she wants to build on the “open communication” established by former alders. Kim described her priorities as alder as ensuring a downtown that is welcoming, a New Haven that remains affordable, and a city government that is responsible, transparent, and accountable. Russell Gulliver then asked questions that residents had submitted for the candidates, ranging from their visions for the ward to how they might address its unique challenges. Agosta continued his pitch for an accessible ward and city, from improved ramps for city buildings to a Pitkin Plaza that is no longer a “sea of trip hazards.” “We do a lot of dangerous things that are going to cost us a lot of money if we don’t fix them,” Agosta said in regards to inaccessibility. Kim emphasized her position as a political newcomer who will prioritize listening to her constituents, boosting transparency around the civic process, and reaching out to all local businesses. She said that she plans on walking every block in the ward, introducing herself to every business, and sending out a regular newsletter, drawing inspiration from East Rock/Fair Haven Alder Caroline Tanbee Smith. Kim also invited Agosta to collaborate. “The more we work together, the more we can find solutions,” she said. Attendee Robert Narracci said that he has been supportive of large housing developments in the city, but that he believes the city’s 2022 Inclusionary Zoning (IZ) ordinance puts historic houses at risk by encouraging “poorly executed gut renovations of small buildings,” and that it puts aggressive developers in competition with young people hoping to purchase homes in the city. He asked if the candidates have thoughts on the subject. Kim said that, despite IZ being intended to create more affordable housing, it has led to a freeze in new developments. “I would like to revisit the Inclusionary Zoning laws, and I know there’s some interest in doing so.” She said that she appreciates the Downtown For All legislation passed with the help of Sabin and that she will be keeping a close eye on every development that is approved. “If we aren’t witnesses to how it gets folded out, it just won’t be done — either well or with inclusivity.” “Real cities have big buildings, and we have to accept that we’re a real city,” said Agosta. “We also have to do historic preservation.” He said that he wants to put benchmarks in place to abide by the city’s Vision 2034 housing plan, which he said is “very well thought out.” Agosta also said that he would continue Sabin’s efforts to boost tenant protections. Regarding solutions to homelessness, both candidates advocated for tiny homes. Kim said she knows that the Unhoused Activists Community Team (U-ACT) is in support of tents and that the city has cleared encampments, and she wants to know why that is. “Someone died on the Green,” Agosta said, emotional, referring to the recent death of 65-year-old Abdulah Kanchero as temperatures dipped below freezing. “We can’t have people dying.” Jack Thomas, who is president of the board of the apartments at 85 Church St., said Ninth Square has a “real issue with safety.” “The shooting on Halloween happened right outside my doorstep, and this is the second year in a row that this happened,” he said. He asked how the candidates might address safety in downtown New Haven. Agosta said that New Haven has to improve its ability to recruit police officers. Kim said that she plans on getting to know local patrol and ask for more of a police presence. She said she wants to ensure compassion for those struggling and in need of help while making sure that people can walk and feel safe in their neighborhoods. Justin Etheridge echoed the issue of safety, stating that despite having “lived in big cities in my life, I’ve never faced homophobic street harassment other than in New Haven.” But Etheridge had another question: How would the candidates support workers fighting for higher wages, and how will they ensure money gets to schools and workers who need it? He cited a conversation with a paraprofessional, who told him that with her same qualifications, she would be able to earn $35,000 more working in Norwalk, like many of her fellow paras have gone on to do. “We have a big problem in Washington right now that we can’t solve,” Agosta said, referring to the decrease New Haven and other cities have seen in federal funding. “I don’t think anyone has an answer to these questions right now. The Trump administration is attacking education, and they’re attacking it with their purse strings. I don’t have an answer to your question.” “I am supporting some of the brave alders recently who have asked for more transparency in the school budgeting process, and I also asked for more transparency in all parts of the budgeting and spending processes across the city,” Kim said, citing the recent controversy of now-retired Police Chief Karl Jacobson’s admission to stealing $10,000 from the department’s fund for paying confidential informants. “Those are things that all the residents deserve to have a look at.” “I do feel that there’s a wave of hopefully new leadership in the city and especially on the Board of Alders, where hopefully more transparency is allowed,” she said. For “full transparency,” she said that she sends her kids to private school for “very personal reasons,” and that she knows it’s “hypocritical for me to speak too much about the New Haven Public Schools system.” “But it’s something I really care about,” she said. “I grew up in the public schools and great public school education has changed my life.” Both candidates also said that they would work to negotiate more contributions to the city from Yale, that they would work with the Safe Streets advocates to improve pedestrian and cyclist safety, and that they would encourage civic engagement from Ward 7 residents, with Kim saying that she’s even hoping to learn how to use social media to accomplish that goal. After candidates finished answering questions, the meeting adjourned so that ward committee members could cast their votes by app. They had a three-hour window to cast their ballots and Polly Russell announced on Thursday morning the results: Kim had won the endorsement of Ward 7’s Democratic Town Committee. The committee is made up of 50 people. Of the 25 votes cast, Kim received them all, according to Polly Russell. Absentee ballots for the special election will be available starting Jan. 16. Ward 7 residents must register to vote by Jan. 30, which is also the final date for write-in candidates. John Carlson, head of the New Haven Republicans, said that his party hopes to have a candidate in the aldermanic race but that there isn’t one at the moment. As of noon on Thursday, only Kim has filed with the City Clerk’s office to run. The post Dems Tap Co-Chair For Alder Special Election appeared first on New Haven Independent. ...read more read less