Agenda - 09-02-2021; 4-a - Discussion and Appointment for the Vacant Position on the Orange County Board of Commissioners

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10 10. What steps do you think the Board of Commissioners could take to address the chronic lack of affordable housing in the county? In addition to steps mentioned earlier in question 4 and 9: As a member of the Chapel-Hill Carrboro NAACP, I have deep admiration for the leadership we see in civic organizations to raise the visibility of and effectively advocate for solutions for affordable housing (and other) challenges. As a result of my affiliation with CH-C NAACP, I and other community members became more knowledgeable about specific opportunities to advocate for progress, and I wrote a letter of support to the Town of Chapel Hill for the future Weavers Grove development that adjoins my own neighborhood. The work of organizations like emPOWERment, Inc. are models for public-community partnership. Our commissioners already engage with local civic organizations, and I would support continued listening with a broad range of stakeholders to build an ever-improving understanding of how the County can best serve our community. The Board can also continue to look beyond Orange County and North Carolina for examples and tools such as community land trusts that are being used in affordable housing development to understand what has worked and what has not in those communities. 11. What should the county government be doing to address the climate crisis? See question 4. 12. Orange County is in the process of revising its long-term transit plan in the aftermath of the failure of the Durham-Orange light rail project. What do you believe a new plan should emphasize? What potential initiatives would you like to support? The failure of the Durham-Orange light rail project serves as a cautionary tale for those serving in local government. Rather than weighing in at this time on what elements a new plan should address, I commit that as a new commissioner, I will be diligent in building an understanding about our short and long-term community needs for transit. I will be guided by the axiom of making good investments -- i.e., invest when you understand what it is you are investing in. To that end, I will not hesitate to ask questions to ensure that I have that understanding, so that we can continue to provide services that are crucial to our citizens today and that will enable our future growth.