Tuesday evening, the community got the chance to hear from the 4th ward city council candidates at the Faurot West and Boulevard Neighborhood Association's Town Hall.
Questions regarding safety, retaining the youth, and new housing strategies were just some of the topics addressed at the town hall. Dilapidated and vacant housing is an issue that both candidates Rebecca Kreher and Peggy Ehora say they are looking to tackle.
"One thing that we can do is inform neighbors of what to do when there's an empty house, what to keep an eye on. Or if their neighbor has high traffic at night or in the middle of the day, helping the neighbors know how to reach out to the police department," said Rebecca Kreher, 4th ward city council candidate.
"I think that everybody deserves to live in a safe home and so if we can do nothing more than tackle them one issue at a time, for me it would begin with safety," commented Peggy Ehora, 4th ward city council candidate
Fourth ward resident, Janet Ristenberg agrees that something needs to be done regarding housing, but she would also like to see some business growth as well.
"It would be great to have some jobs within the city that support people so we can live in the city happily," said Janet Ristenberg, 4th ward resident.
Kreher and Ehora say they are both committed to helping tackle the issues and concerns that residents like Ristenberg have. This forum was just one of those ways they believe they can accomplish that goal.
"It's kind of nice to be able to take questions from our constituents and be able to answer their questions directly," said Ehora
Kreher says this forum really helped her connect with residents and find out the best ways to help them.
"How can we bring people together to better the community? Let's get them involved. What are they interested in? What are their passions? What can we do to, you know, meet the needs that they have and how can they get them involved in other things that are going on?" asked Kreher.
Tuesday night's forum is one of several others that will take place over the next couple of weeks. The 4th ward city council person will be elected on November 5th.
