I am asking for your support and involvement in this campaign so that I can faithfully represent you. I am a lifelong resident of the District and in Beekman Houses. For the past decades I have been steadfast in my demands that our representatives in governemnt at all levels be held accountable to adequately respond and help resolve the issues and concerns of the residents living in our communities.

My efforts on behalf of the residents of Beekman Houses are well documented and a matter of record. This effort resulted in this property of many, many units of housing being transferred by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to the residents of Beekman Houses who now own the complex in which we live. With your support and your vote I will be in a position to expand on my community building efforts to include all of the people and neighborhoods in the 17th City Council District.

As someone who actually lives in our area, I live the issues. I know firsthand about the impact of pollution on our health and quality of life and high rates of asthma. I live near waste transfer facilities, highways and power plants that were sited with little or no opposition from the local elected officials. I will be a strong advocate for a cleaner environment, for the preservation of community gardens, an increase in resources for parks and trees and greenways, fairly distributed across the District.

Where are the jobs for our people? You can be sure that my background in banking and finance will be directed towards creating innovative opportunities for community investment that benefits us in the district with business and employment opportunties.

As for education, as your Council Member you can be sure that I will not just sit in an office and let schools like PS # 31 on the Grand Concourse stay closed for years, while children are bussed to overcrowded classrooms elsewhere in the District. I will fight for our fair share of funding and resources and ensure that every student has access to internship, mentoring and after-school opportunties.

We must improve community police relations so that our youth are not criminalized, add more foot patrol officers to our neighborhoods and have more police stationed on hot corners where drug dealing and violence occur. As your Council Member I will work to make sure that illegal guns are not brought here and that gun manufacturuers are held accountable for their reckless sales and distribution of weapons and participation in the illegal gun trade.

Finally, I recognize the importance of working with a diverse arrray of people of all backgrounds and age levels. The community I live in and work for is made up of elders and children learning from each other, of Latinos and African Americans making their blocks safe and of business owners and activists unitted to improve our quality of life.

I am asking you to join this campaign. Contact me to volunteer, contribute or share your ideas and suggestions. When you support me, Arline Parks, you will be making the right choice and the right call to be your voice in City Hall