More jobs in health care, a varied job market and tighter budget controls highlight the stands of Khalid Bey, Democratic candidate for Common Council District 4, on some key issues.
Bey’s opponent is Green Party candidate Howie Hawkins, who has run unsuccessfully 18 times for public office. They are vying to succeed Democrat Tom Seals, who reached his term limit of eight years on the Common Council. District 4 includes the central portion of the city including downtown Syracuse, Brighton, Southwest, University Hill and University neighborhoods.
The District has 13,364 registered voters. Of those, 8,617 are Democrats; 1,190 are Republicans; 84 are Green Party.
The election is on Nov. 8.
Democracywise has posed three questions on key issues to the candidates. Here’s Bey in responding to the questions:
Jobs
Q: The unemployment rate in Syracuse is hovering around 7.5 percent. What specifically, if anything, would you propose to create new jobs in the city?
A: “The number one employer is health care,” Bey said. He had a conversation a few months ago, he said, about public assistance in relation to health care where a local employer has agreed to provide training certification in the health care field. This would be a partnership, he said, with Jobs Plus, a collaboration between Onondaga Community College and the county’s social services department. City residents would be weaned off of public assistance, Bey said, and they could literally walk to work near their homes.
He also calls for the city to talk to businesses, reach out to vendors, offer incentives to attract them to Syracuse and offer exclusive contracts with those businesses. It’s important to start attracting a variety of employers, like more manufacturing jobs, he said. And the unemployed need more training, he said.
“People need to fit themselves to the job market,” he said.
Young People
Q: Keeping and attracting young people is a long-standing concern for our region. The 2010 Census showed a continuing population shift from the city to Onondaga County. What, specifically, do you think the Common Council or city government should do make the city more attractive to young workers and their families?
A: “Variety in job market,” Bey said, is important in attracting young people to Syracuse.
He expressed concern that the city may not have a good social life for young people. He referred to the city as a “retirement community” that closes after 6 p.m. He wants to create more activity, he said, like another sports bar on South Salina Street.
He urged more activities from the Parks and Recreation Department. “We need to come up with ideas for activities for parks in the winter,” Bey said.
The Budget
Q: Like many cities and towns, the city has budget problems. What, if anything, would you want the city government to do about taxes and city services or programs? To balance the budget, what taxes, if any, would you cut or raise? Why or why not? Without new revenue, what services or programs would you cut? What other measures do you think the city can or should do to resolve its budget shortfall?
A: “Eliminate waste and excess,” Bey said.
He would cut the size of government through consolidating resources and services, he said, but not by cutting public programs.
He would be interested in creating other housing programs, he said, selling more of the abandoned property in the city to newcomers willing to move into the city.
He also would push for Syracuse to get more state funding, he said. “City hall does not demand its absolute share of resources from the state,” he said.
In terms of taxes, Bey says he’s not for raising taxes. Instead, he suggests the city can raise more revenue by attracting more residents with more jobs.
“Unless it’s absolutely dire,” said Bey, “I’m not voting to raise taxes because there’s more ways to raise revenue.”
(Caitlin M. Francis is a graduate student in broadcast and digital journalism.)
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