Ex-Councilwoman Hunt-Robinson Announces Run for WP Mayor
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Former Councilwoman Nadine Hunt-Robinson has announced she will be seeking the mayor’s chair in White Plains next year.
Hunt-Robinson, 56, said she wants to be the “people’s advocate” and has released plans for a listening tour in the early goings of her campaign with smart development and community policing at the top of her list.
The Democrat and corporate attorney served on the council from 2014 until 2023, when she did not seek reelection.
“People should feel that City Hall is their house, and that City Hall works for them,” she said during a telephone interview Monday.
Mayor Thomas Roach hasn’t decided whether he’ll run for another term, according to Ingrid Richards, his senior advisor. He’s been in office since becoming acting mayor in 2011 and later winning his first full term in 2013.
Councilman Justin Brasch, also an attorney, confirmed when reached by telephone that he anticipates running for mayor as well. He’s fundraising, but noted his attention right now is on electing other Democrats during the current election cycle rather than actively campaigning.
Since Hunt-Robinson’s term expired at the end of last year, the former councilwoman noted how she’s been talking with the community and preparing for the run with family and financially.
It’s her belief that her love for the city and record of proactively getting tasks accomplished makes her the right choice to lead White Plains.
The $2 billion redevelopment of the former Galleria Mall puts Whites Plains at a “crossroads,” Nadine-Robinson noted.
And she’s interested in helping White Plains reach that “next level.”
“I think it’s important that you have someone who is proactive and community centric at the helm of that development because that’s really going to impact White Plains for decades to come, between that and the other development that’s going on,” said Hunt-Robinson.
She said development is about finding a balance between the progress seen in downtown and “protecting” its surrounding neighborhoods, however. Those residential areas shouldn’t be treated with a cookie cutter approach, and there should be more checks and controls in place.
“You don’t want it to spill over inappropriately into the rings of neighborhoods,” said Hunt-Robinson.
Hunt-Robinson brought up how variances should be treated with a “citizen-centric” approach and referenced times on council when she questioned projects and pushed back during the land use process, asking developers if the community had input.
In turn, she feels it’s the mayor’s job to ensure that vision “cascades down” and that developers know they need to work with the community from the onset of planning.
“It stops some of the tension,” she added.
Nadine-Robinson supports building more affordable housing. But outside development, the former councilwoman wants White Plains to focus on 21st Century policing.
It has been a priority of hers for a long time, starting with her idea for a “police community board.”
“We need a police community board that meets at City Hall. I’ve sat in on a board that meets in the Public Safety Building, but there’s a chilling effect in my opinion when you meet haphazardly in the Public Safety Building. It should be transparent,” she said.
Asked about Roach’s tenure, Nadine-Robinson said there are initiatives that should continue, but noted there is something she feels would distinguish her from the longtime commander-in-chief.
“I think I start from a community centric approach. I’m very transparent, direct and approachable. I think that’s thus far been some of the concerns that have been raised,” she said.
“That is my strength. Agree or disagree with me, I’m going to be in the neighborhoods. I’m going to be talking to people about the issues and I will consider their points and bring them back and be their advocate,” she added.
Andy Milone has been a freelance reporter covering local government for various New Jersey and New York news outlets since May 2024. The Chatham, New Jersey native and Gettysburg College graduate previously worked as a full-time reporter for The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier in Iowa, Pine Barrens Tribune in New Jersey and The Shippensburg News-Chronicle in Pennsylvania. He began working as a professional journalist in 2018. You can reach him at 201-406-7222 (call/text) or by emailing andymilone@protonmail.com.
