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Ron Magnus - Candidate Opening Statement
Good evening everybody at this fireside chat. Thank you to C.O.V.E. Committee, Presidents of respective Civic Associations; and acknowledgement of Chairman of the Ward 5 Dems, Robert Brannum, and Commissioners Thomas and Clark. I am excited to be in this campaign, this race. This is a time for change, a critical stage for Ward 5 that is in turbulence, it is imperative to get it right. I am running because I have the requisite of skills needed for Ward 5. I will work hard to provide the service Ward 5 needs; with my 24 year track record in law practice, serving under Tony Williams and six terms as Democratic state Committee Attorney (you will see on my material). I am asking in the beginning, as I will at the end your vote for election to Ward 5. 1. What is your vision for the pace and character of community economic development in light of the changing demographics of Ward 5, particularly in the neighborhoods situated west of the train tracks? Excellent question, it is critical because economic development is a priority. You will note on my platform, this is my first priority Economic Development with the assurance of inclusion and smart growth which means that we are at the table to ensure that citizens are equal partners, and the leadership of the Council member is to ensure that this Wards development is in accordance with the desires of the neighbors, that it is livable, walkable, and allows us to grow; another major concern is the tradeoff to bring in development with concerns for benefits, such as jobs. Leadership is to allow inclusion of neighborhood concerns with input, not overrun by developers, but the two should enjoy a marriage of partnership that is equal. Ex. McMillans Development has a unique nature, it must stay in place (livable, walkable, and reflects value, and fosters growth and development0. FOLLOW UP: a. How do you plan to maintain neighborhood integrity in spite of economic development? As an attorney of twenty four years in DC, Ive represented the interest of my clients Ward 5 citizens are my client, it is my duty to make sure the development goes forward with the concerns of the residents. The interest of the Developer is to make money; the interest to the Community is size, density, traffic, and jobs, we want to make sure as Council Member we have these concerns addressed. 2. How would you advance public safety so that residents (both long term and more recent arrivals) will feel safe in their homes and on the streets without fostering an environment which has the look and feel of a police state? I have lots of experience with the last two mayoral transitions, working in the areas of public safety, one of my favorite projects was focused on community policing, requiring neighborhood officers to come out of headquarters (5th District) and patrol cars into the neighborhoods without the police state mentality , that is to walk the beat, learn the community, and vice versa, the community the police. Best Practice which is supposed to already be in force from back in the day the police and community relied on each other for information that is one of the concepts that is missing. FOLLOW UP: a. How will you address the need for substance abuse treatment?
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First, I support the marijuana facilities. As a caring leader we need to provide for those who have the need. What I dont support is all of them being located in Ward 5, there has been a tremendous track record for Ward 5 becoming the dumping ground; we need have a strong advocacy to protect our interest. b. Related to the issue of crime, what will you do to combat truancy? Very important issue, one of my biggest priorities is public education, to increase quality education; reach out to community and provide resources for single parent homes; zero in on juvenile delinquency and create a partnership with non-profits, like churches, at a grassroots level to create programs and to develop different kinds of outreach efforts to reach our young people. 3. What will you do to help insure that children in Ward 5, and for that matter, adults who are so inclined and so motivated have the opportunity to attend quality schools without leaving their community? This is a challenge, currently we dont have a middle school, and youth are required to transport out to other neighborhoods, and then come back to high school. Three new schools are on the blue print for developing. Council Members need to work with Mark Jones to create relationships within the community to create quality education; create and develop parental skills initiatives, and address the economic disparity. I will bring non-profits and churches together with our school system and government to develop a holistic approach, a safety net to close the gap. I.e. after School care to provide productive activities and a safe environment while parents are absent. Earlier today in Trinidad, they were talking about this need for after school programs for parents who have to work 2-3 jobs. FOLLOW UP: a. Parental skill development, how does this relate to implementing strategies to prepare our children for college or vocational training beyond secondary school and adult education? College and vocational training is another component of educational needs. The early end is what we do with the elementary level. The back end is to create options of vocational training that will evoke successful careers, scholarships and college education. DC used to have a very strong and aggressive vocational education program; I want to go back to that. 4. How do you propose to address the mounting issues of traffic gridlock and walkability in Ward 5, particularly west of the train tracks, especially given the significance of development projects that are either already underway (Rhode Island Row) or planned for the near future (McMillan), inside or just outside the boundaries of our neighborhoods? Great question this goes back to my initial statement regarding smart growth, that these developments serve the interest of our neighborhoods, making sure we dont have too much density. I will watch to avoid too much large box development; I will look at small business development which hire more residents. Look at Wal Mart, Rhode Island Avenue development, I will champion for the jobs and benefits of the community. As Ward 5 Council Member, I will make sure that we have neighborhood inclusion
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with the objective to give the community the opportunity for full input, and to ensure openness and transparency. I will hold weekly office hours at the Council Members office, open houses; and establish a Ward 5 constituent office within Ward 5 for the inclusion of all citizens, civic association and ANC leadership, and ministers. FOLLOW UP: a. In terms of economic development, as it concerns the Developer, the group overlooked is seniors (old and new residents). What initiatives would you put in place to protect their interests? Ward 5 has a tremendous amount of seniors; we need to conduct outreach and to include seniors in discussions. I have to leave a bit earlier tonight to go to a meet & greet at a senior building, because I see seniors as a valuable resource, as to their wisdom. I am going to certainly reach out to ensure they have a full voice, from Delta Towers, Office of the Aging, and hear from all other senior residents in Ward 5. [Audience Questions] a. CVS is moving from 4th Street to Rhode Island Avenue, this is inaccessible to seniors, what is your position on this? I dont really have a position on this, but as I said before, I want to ensure that everyones voice is heard. I want to convene meetings to gather input to ensure representation for anyone who would be affected, whether CVS, Pepco, any other utility company, I will be at the table to make sure any residents affected are represented in economic development. b. If we support you, how will you ensure that our city increases funding from Congress? I will support Statehood; I will support budget autonomy. As an attorney and founding member of DC Vote, and activist of the District of Columbia, I have a great relationship with Congressional leadership and experience in the past representing the city and Tony Williams on the Hill that gained synergy and partnerships. I will have to further develop relationships to have a presence on the Hill and represent advocacy for the District of Columbia. c. Ward 5 is subject to a number of vacant surplus schools with the lack of economic base, what is your position on this? Ward 5 has a number of vacant schools and other buildings. I will champion to recruit for economic development and partnership with the Department of Planning to identify communities that are underrepresented, vacant nuisance properties, industrial properties on New York Avenue, Rhode Island Avenue corridor, 12th Street, these are tremendous opportunities to determine best interests, to bring development that creates citizen opportunities, trainings that prepare our young people for quality education and job opportunities. d. Do you support Initiative 7 to ban direct contributions to mayoral/city campaigns, and will you accept corporate contributions? This is a complex question. Im in favor of banning campaign bundling and support of full disclosure, to encourage and enliven public faith in government institution. I know we have an owner of a restaurant in Ward 5 who supports one of our candidates. I support instilling ethics, term limits and the ban on certain contributions. We can go a long ways to clean up politics and ethics in our government.
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Closing Statement Thank you very much C.O.V.E. and everybody here for this great opportunity to have a fireside chat without the fire, and again I apologize for having to leave early. I invite you to join in other discussions with me, go to WWW.ronmagnus4ward5com there you will have a full list of my platform. I welcome opportunities to talk to you again, by website, email me or get my phone number from the website to call. As we go forth, it is very important that we do everything we can to make sure we have the best possible representation. With two four year track records, law and public service, this gives me the distinctive advantage to other candidates. I am looking forward to coming to the Ward 5 neighborhood. Dont forget the Election on May 15th, get everybody out. I am looking forward to coming over to Edgewood, Bloomingdale and other neighborhoods to talk with more of you.
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