White Plains Common Council Needs Steady Hand and a Genuine New Voice
There are seven candidates, across several political parties, vying for three seats on the White Plains Common Council.
Two, John B. Kirkpatrick and John M. Martin, are incumbents, both Democrats and the Democratic Party primary winners with the highest number of votes. Four of the remaining five candidates, Justin C. Brasch, Andrew C. Custodio, Alan D. Goldman and Michael Kraver, are newcomers to the election scene.
Common Council Candidate Cass V. Cibelli has run in several previous elections on the county as well as city levels. Before casting his bid for election to the White Plains Common Council this year, Cibelli sought the Republican Party endorsement to run for Mayor of White Plains, but that line was given to candidate for mayor, Milagros Lecuona.
At a time when many view the City of White Plains to be at a crossroads, it is encouraging to see eight people willing to enter the political arena – Saad Siddiqui, who ran for a place on the Democratic Party ticket – stepped out of the race after placing last in the primary in September.
The issues that candidates have brought to the forefront indicate a transformation in the suburban city style of living as single-family neighborhoods are striving to stay whole and high-rise rental apartments grab the attention and pocketbooks of new residents and developers coming to White Plains.
There have been calls for “change” in the way the city administration is going with too much focus on the growing downtown, along with negative and personal attacks through the media intent on humiliating individuals at the political forefront. Behind the scenes there was pressure from neighborhood groups that gathered political force to try to oust members of the Council that would allow controversial development projects to be built, namely the French American School of New York (FASNY). That debate took much attention away from issues of concern to all neighborhoods of White Plains.
At a time of change, as though navigating through a storm, there is wisdom in the phrase, “Steady as she goes.” For this reason, Councilmembers John Kirkpatrick and John Martin, who have served six and seven years on the Council respectively, deserve to keep their seats for another term.
Kirkpatrick’s experience as a city planner and environmental lawyer is most important now, when development is coming at White Plains from all sides. Kirkpatrick has shown through his record that he views each project before the Council thoroughly and independently, though he has the vision to also note the impact of each development on the city as a whole. His legal expertise in real estate and environmental law give him as well as the city he serves an edge in policy and decision-making.
John Martin also deserves to serve another term on the Common Council. He has a depth of knowledge of many of the residential neighborhoods as well as a working relationship with downtown businesses through his many years serving on the White Plains BID.
Martin and Kirkpatrick have proven they make their decisions on city policy on the merit of each issue, not necessarily swayed by party politics. Both, however, should listen to the repeated concerns of residents in the outside neighborhoods that they are not being heard, and give thought to improving communication from the Common Council to its constituents. Also, for those calling out for term limits, consideration should be given to ensure that new issues are met with new perspective and decision-making does not fall back on old ideas.
Candidate Michael Kraver has shown so much energy and given appreciated and thoughtful consideration to White Plains issues. As the youngest candidate for Common Council his perspective as a parent and professional has added much to the political discussion about current concerns of families and the future generations of the city. We hope to see him continue in city politics.
Alan Goldman has served the residents and other business owners of White Plains over many years and in many ways. His perspective as a business owner in the downtown, especially as it relates to aggressive parking behavior, should be taken seriously by all winning candidates and those currently serving on the Council who are not running for election at this time.
Andrew Custodio, a newcomer also with a fresh perspective, has given voice to concerns about transparency – an issue of importance during times of change.
However, candidate for Common Council, Justin Brasch, stands out from the crowd as a true voice for the people. While other candidates have mentioned the diversity that makes White Plains unique, Brasch has called out each neighborhood by name and addressed the more vulnerable population of White Plains. He has experience from budgeting to the environment to transportation to social service and justice making.
Justin C. Brasch should be given a seat in Common Council chambers.
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