Johnson cited three main priorities for the city — affordability, safety and cleanliness. And, he said, with taxpayers already squeezed it would be up to city leaders to find new efficiencies in government and up to citizens to pitch in with volunteer efforts.
“To achieve affordability, we have to handle safety and cleanliness in an affordable manner,” said Johnson, who added that as an alderman he hoped to take a lead role in efforts to bring citizens together around worthy projects. “We need our community to step up and say, ‘Let’s have a cleanup day, or two or 12 or as many as it takes.’”
Her own woman, says McDonough
That kind of citizen participation served as McDonough’s springboard into the fifth ward race. A 36-year-old Army brat turned Army wife, McDonough first came to Kingston to visit her in-laws while the couple was stationed upstate at Fort Drum.
“It just had this feeling of stepping into a community, a place where people know each other,” said McDonough who moved to the city in 2006 after her husband Patrick, a Kingston native, left the Army. “We thought it would be a great place to raise kids.”
When McDonough noticed a disturbing pattern of juvenile crime and disorder around her home on South Clinton Avenue, she rallied neighbors for a public meeting with police and public officials to discuss the issue. Then McDonough, who holds a degree in paralegal studies, went a step further — she researched and drafted a law which would make parents of repeat juvenile offenders subject to criminal penalties. The legislation is currently under consideration by the Common Council.
McDonough said blight and crime were the top issues she heard when campaigning door to door in the ward, issues that she said would have to be addressed before the city can lure new families and new business. McDonough said solving those problems would take careful deliberation and thoughtful decisions on the part of lawmakers.
Janai is an exceptional candidate. Quite outstanding in her abilities and energy with a track record already in place, before she even serves as alderman. Ward 5 is in for a real treat. Man, if we had 8 other aldermen of that caliber, and an alderman at large to match, Kingston would absolutely soar: like any organization, government lives and dies by the quality of the people who serve. They get to serve when a city 1) has the talent 2) the citizens choose them 3) there is a loyal opposition and media that does not play mad dog.