City Council Candidate Responses

District 22

1. Please briefly share your background and note any experiences you may have in engaging older adults, whether professionally or personally, and in connecting with the non-profit sector.

Felicia Kalan

I studied Political Science and International Studies at the University of Evansville and the American University in Cairo, Egypt. I worked as a Legislative Aide, co-founded an anti-human trafficking nonprofit called UNCHAINED that served survivors of human trafficking, and worked as the former V.P. of Operations at COhatch, a coworking space and startup incubator company that helps economically revitalize struggling areas. Our nonprofit, UNCHAINED presented at the social enterprise conference at Harvard University and I’m connected with many nonprofits in the city and nationwide. My husband serves at Bridge Community Church in LIC as a Pastor & Elder and I’m the Chairwoman of the Interfaith Coalition for Peace & Safety- working with multiple nonprofits and communities of faith to address public safety issues in all five boroughs. I was nominated by Schneps Media as a “Power Woman of 2020” and was also listed in Top 3 local candidates to watch by national political organization Republican Women for Progress. I grew up in a struggling single mom household and my mom went back to nursing school and started a home health care agency, Home Care Assists in the Midwest. I have worked to provide home health aide to homebound individuals including elderly and disabled through my moms business. During COVID, I have worked to clean up trash, deliver meals and face masks to seniors and digital programming to keep them engaged. Every year for Thanksgiving, we also deliver turkeys to home bound individuals, including seniors. I believe that we should not only be serving and fighting for our elders, but also engaging them for wisdom on how to move forward as a city and fighting to ensure our seniors can age in dignity and in community.

Leonardo Bullaro

Growing up, my mother’s parents lived with us. My grandparents were my everything. They immigrated to America late in life, when they were in their seventies. They did not speak English and they were dependent on my Mom, Dad, me and my siblings for everything. We took them to the doctor, I would drive my grandmother to church, walk with my grandfather to the park. It was wonderful to be raised with them. Because of them I learned to speak Italian so we could communicate and I got into the habit of going to church regularly. My upbringing has shaped how I feel about many older adults. They are our treasures. We must slow down this fast-paced life, when we can, and engage with our seniors to make sure they are cared for and don’t feel alone. In return, we will be blessed with stories, lessons, love and so much more. I have 15 years experience working in public schools, nonprofits and government agencies. While my public service was directed to developing young people and families, my commitment to older adults has always been strong.

Evie Hantzopoulos

I am the Executive Director of Global Kids, a non-profit that empowers youth to take action on critical issues facing our world. We created and implemented a curriculum designed to engage young people and older adults. I also serve on Community Board 1 in Queens and chair the Housing Committee. As such, I have advocated for affordable housing proposals that include affordable housing for seniors. Personally, I care for my mother who has Alzheimer’s, and also assist several seniors who live on my block with groceries, prescription pick up, and general support. I am very familiar with the world of non-profits, and have been working at non-profits since 1990 when I moved to New York City.

2. As we live longer and healthier lives, what are your priorities with respect to promoting equity across all ages in our City?

Felicia Kalan

Equity for all results in building a truly resilient city, and that starts when our elected officials start fighting for our communities again.

• We need to fight for repairing infrastructure and accessible transportation system for all
• We need to fix food desserts and ensure everyone has access to healthy nutritious food
• We need to ensure safe and clean streets
• We need to invest in more affordable housing and community centers for seniors
• We need to ensure better quality of life for everyone- from families with small children to our aging population fighting for all New Yorkers to be born with dignity, to be raised in a city that supports families, a good place to raise kids with quality education, a place everyone can find a good job, and a place all people can age in dignity. In order to achieve this, we must invest in better supporting our seniors and the entities that serve them.
o In order to achieve this, we need to partner with CBO’s, businesses, and community members to ensure our brightest minds can fix our neighborhoods problems and ensure continued investment and pave the way for innovation

Leonardo Bullaro

The promise of the American Dream that brought my family to Queens in the 1950s is out of reach for far too many today. While much of our current focus is on recovering from a decade filled with economic disruptions, the long-term outcome must be a more equitable sharing in the prosperity workers create and makes both workers and the economy resilient to future challenges. I'm running for City Council to build a new American Dream and make our community healthier, more prosperous, and more equitable for all New Yorkers.

My primary platform initiative to achieve greater equity is expanding opportunities for all residents, of all ages. To achieve this goal, I will use my position in the Council to:
-Rebuild an equitable economy by funding skills training and apprenticeship programs that lead to good-paying, middle-class jobs.
-Support our local small businesses to ensure they receive the resources to weather the current crisis and enhance their ability to rebound and thrive.
-Expand access to an engaging, high-quality education that prepares young people for meaningful work and civic participation.
-Tackle the housing affordability crisis by expanding the supply of safe, affordable options while maintaining the character of our communities.
Strengthen services for our seniors to ensure they can enjoy a high quality of life and retire with dignity in the same community they have called home for years.

Evie Hantzopoulos

My top priorities are affordable, safe, and dignified housing (including supportive housing for seniors), public education, and saving our small businesses. I also believe that we need to provide accessible health care, particularly as we respond to the COVID crisis, to our senior population, as they have been neglected during the pandemic, as well as other supports to combat the isolation and challenges they face.

3. Do you support increasing the budget for the Department for the Aging (DFTA), which funds programs such as Senior Centers, NORCs, home-delivered meals, and more? Please give rationale for your response and specify any specific funding changes you are most committed to achieving.

Felicia Kalan

I certainly support ensuring that seniors are a priority in the budget, and would need to see the programs that serve our seniors and if they are effective in achieving what they aim to do. As far as home delivered meals, Senior Centers, NORCS and related programs, we need to continue those important programs and provide the necessary funding for them to grow as needed.

Leonardo Bullaro

I fully support increasing the budget for DFTA and believe that there is already a great, and growing, need for services for the 1.73 million City residents 60 years of age and over, who represent 20% of the city’s population. Given that one in five live in poverty and more than one in four report challenges with mobility and self-care, the City must provide adequate care for older residents. I am committed to helping these residents ensure their dignity and quality of life and remain a vital part of our communities. My platform includes several safeguards, including:​
-Food Security. As the pandemic has worsened the already problematic food insecurity many seniors face, I will ensure full funding of the Department for the Aging’s meal programs as well as maintain the number of case management workers who perform other vital services.
​-Combating Social Isolation. Since being isolated is tied to increased mental and physical health issues and other negative factors, and the pandemic only worsened this issue, I will seek additional funding for DFTA programs, including support for caregiver services and to eliminate the home care and case management waiting lists.
-Preventing Workplace Discrimination. The pandemic wreaked financial ruin upon those with limited resources and many people over 60 need to work because they can’t afford retirement. Others see jobs as giving them a sense of purpose and maintaining social connections. Whatever the reason for being in the workforce, I will support laws and enforcement to prevent age-related bias against older workers and work to find new opportunities and training programs specifically designed for older workers in the recovering economy.
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To keep our elder residents safe and part of our communities, my platform calls for:​​
-Expanding eligibility for the Senior Citizens Homeowners’ Exemption (SCHE) to help ~29,000 older homeowners living on limited budgets make ends meet.
-Automatically enrolling eligible senior renters in the Senior Citizens Rent Increase Exemption (SCRIE) program, which would help ~26,000 seniors better afford rent so they could remain in their homes.​
-Strengthening the investment in senior centers and an increased development of retirement buildings and communities for this population.

Evie Hantzopoulos

Yes, I absolutely support increasing DFTA’s budget - the fact that it makes up only .5% of the city’s budget, especially as people live longer and have greater needs as they age, is unconscionable. I will push to make funding permanent instead of at the mercy of the budget negotiations as well as discretionary funding which affects smaller organizations that rely on it. Organizations can’t meaningfully create long-term programming plans if they are having to start from 0 with their budget every year. Plus, time and energy that is needlessly used to advocate for funding every year could be better invested in issues advocacy and developing and delivering programming and initiatives.

4. Do you support implementing a Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) increase for city-contracted human service workers and the full implementation of the Indirect Cost Rate (ICR) initiative for non-profits? Please explain your response.

Felicia Kalan

Yes, I support these policies because I believe that it’s crucial to support our health and human service infrastructure. In order to make impact sustainably, we must partner with CBO’s in the city to provide necessary services to our most vulnerable, and ensure these organizations are able to afford administrative costs and receive a liveable wage.

Leonardo Bullaro

I am in support of both. First, COLAs are a necessity for the city’s dedicated workforce, whether on the city’s direct or indirect payroll, to continue to meet their own needs even as they serve others, especially in a city where costs are ever-increasing. As such, I fully support having pay increases using a COLA-driven formula.

Second, the stability of the nonprofit sector and its ability to meet the ongoing needs of New Yorkers amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond are unquestioned. Having handled millions in grant funds in my previous positions, I understand the role that ICRs play in providing organizations with necessary non-personal funding and I will fight for full implementation of the agreement we reach to ensure their operational viability. Attempts to close the city’s budget gap at the expense of the providers who are serving our most vulnerable residents, especially at one of the toughest times in our City’s recent memory, is simply wrong.

Evie Hantzopoulos

Yes and yes! We can only have quality services if we can retain quality talent. The 1% COLA adjustments allocated in the state budget were a win, but we can do better - I strongly support the 3% COLA increase included in the current City Council’s response to de Blasio’s budget. We also need COLA to be increased regularly, to keep up with the cost of living, which is already difficult in such an underpaid field. This is why I also support a plan to attain equitable wages for NYC’s human services workers. This is something I very much look forward to working on.
The indirect cost rate must be fully implemented; as a director of a non-profit, I know how much money goes into overhead, and so many non-profits spent thousands to be eligible and apply, only to have it cut drastically last year. The fact that the next round of reimbursements is projected to only cover 30% of requests is unconscionable. I fully support City Council’s call to allocate $57 million to fully fund ICR.

5. Given that many older New Yorkers rely on limited fixed incomes and would prefer to age in community, rather than entering costly nursing homes, how will you address the need for affordable senior housing with services for a growing older population? How will you evaluate/respond to affordable senior housing proposals during ULURP?

Felicia Kalan

We need to address cost of living and affordable housing for senior homeowners and renters, and ensure seniors have a safer alternative to nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic. We must secure more affordable housing for seniors and continue to invest in on-home health care services so that seniors can age comfortably. Moreover, we need to address high property taxes for seniors on a fixed income that own a home. We will use innovative approaches to improving housing for our seniors, like building a “Senior Village” with a grocery store, park, salon and other amenities for seniors. I will advocate for affordable senior housing proposals during the ULURP.

Leonardo Bullaro

Safe and affordable housing is a critical issue that affects so many older residents and yet the city’s current processes and solutions are failing and insufficient. As a Council Member, I will fight to change the current approach and develop a greater supply of housing while maintaining the character of our communities. First and foremost, I support the adoption of a Comprehensive Planning framework, with significant community input, to ensure needs are met and all communities are playing their part. Second, I support the use of Strategic Zoning as the most effective tool for solving the housing affordability crisis. District 22 has no zoning for mid- to high-rise buildings. With an analysis driven by the community’s input, strategic zoning will increase the number of housing units and drive down rents.

In light of my platform, I also believe the ULURP process can be improved. In its current configuration, the Community Board is given a reactive role, as opposed to a proactive role where community members are setting the vision and needs of the neighborhood as part of a citywide comprehensive plan. To improve this outcome, as a City Council Member I would provide funding for Community Board members to develop the technical expertise on how to draft plans, conduct stakeholder analysis, and get training on how to conduct successful negotiations. In addition, the entire process must be sped up so that communities can hold developers accountable to meet needs and lower total costs (and thus increase affordability) as a result of more compressed project lifecycles.

Lastly, I will prioritize development by “strategic owners,” especially community development corporations, land trusts, and faith-based developers who are proven drivers of affordable housing and related social benefits. The goal is to ensure that both homeownership and rental opportunities meet community needs, are affordable, and that the mix of commercial and community spaces developed serve all residents.

Evie Hantzopoulos

I will fight for more supportive housing specifically for seniors, with some services specifically tailored for LGTBQ+ seniors who can struggle in nursing homes where they are shut off from their communities. Additionally, I will fight to make urgent NYCHA repairs. This is especially important for the growing number of seniors who are NYCHA residents. I am also committed to legalizing basement apartments, as this can help small homeowners stay in their homes. Additionally, I will fight for additional funding to support Naturally Occurring Retirement Communities (NORCs). The $950,000 awarded in this year’s state budget was a win, but more is needed.

We must also ensure that home healthcare workers can make a living wage, so we can meet the demand of seniors who need care but want to age in place. To achieve this, I will work with state electeds to pass the Fair Pay for Home Care Act, so people can afford to live off home healthcare wages, providing good jobs for community members and allowing seniors to have the quality care needed to age in place. I will also collaborate with state officials to pass S4222, and fight so that this law also includes finding innovative approaches to retirement plans for all domestic workers, including home healthcare workers, as our taxes are controlled at a state level and city council can’t force private employers, or even 501c3s, to provide retirement plans. Although there’s currently Intro 0888-2018 in the city council that could be expanded from applying to employers of 1 employee instead of 10, it only provides IRA accounts, but the employee has to fund them themselves through payroll deduction. As home health workers’ salaries are already woefully inadequate to survive now, this wouldn’t be a viable source of retirement savings for them.

I will also include our seniors in creating and enacting appealing, culturally-responsive services that they desire. Last summer, we saw how leaving seniors out of this process led to sub-par services when seniors and other populations decided not to use the cooling centers because they had been designed as basically a big, empty room that was cool but completely boring, with no activities or materials to engage with. We must also consider the linguistic and cultural needs that must be met to truly deliver the support our seniors need.

As for ULURP proposals, anything built on public land must be 100% affordable housing with levels that serve lower income seniors, and include a culturally - appropriate community center. However, I am largely against the ULURP process, as it is mostly performative and the community’s input is usually disregarded. Still, if the process remains in place, I will champion ways for meetings to be more accessible to seniors and people with disabilities, such as remote attendance, large-print materials, interpreters in major languages and ASL, and holding the meetings in accessible spaces.

6. While many older adults wish to be connected, many lack the financial resources or training necessary to fully access technology, exacerbating the digital divide. How would you encourage the City to address this?

Felicia Kalan

The digital divide in vulnerable populations is a growing issue, especially during the pandemic. According to the Center for Disease Control 1 in 4 adults aged 65 and over are considered socially isolated, and nearly 1 out of 3 adults over 45 feel lonely. Social isolation is a growing problem among our seniors I would love to see a program implemented that connects vetted high school students with a senior “buddy” that would be tasked with training seniors on how to fully access technology, and the teens would be paid by a city agency to do so, or earn school credit. We can leverage community centers as training centers, and provide every low income senior with a tablet with pre-uploaded apps for services i.e. telehealth, food orders, etc. We need to work with Internet Service Providers to ensure low cost internet access and with tech companies to create senior friendly app devices.

Leonardo Bullaro

First, the lack of a device and broadband has left many older residents without access to the information and resources necessary for their well-being or to participate actively as citizens, a problem the City must remedy. Reliable broadband has moved from a nicety to a “must have” utility. Mayor de Blasio vowed to create universal affordable broadband back in 2014 and set aside $70 million in 2015, and when that didn’t come to fruition, announced a $157 million program in July 2020 but reports indicate that no contracts have been signed and millions await a connection. The “free internet” deals offered by broadband providers in 2020 were mostly limited-time promotions and users are now getting bills for a service they struggle to afford, even when discounted. Initial federal COVID relief failed to provide funding specifically for connectivity but there is flexibility to use the monies already provided, and about to be appropriated under the American rescue Plan, to address this issue. As a Member of the Council, I will ensure that federal funds are dedicated to this purpose as well as work to create a dedicated reduced-price program from ISPs for those who qualify. Additionally, library and school staff can be utilized to provide training for those wanting to learn more about computer software, mobile applications, and surfing the Internet. Many times, these courses are being offered but are not being marketed correctly. I would encourage creating training programs in partnership with community based organizations so that the city can reach as many participants as possible.

Evie Hantzopoulos

I will advocate for free, citywide broadband, and will work with our state electeds to increase funding for senior service providers’ and senior centers’ technology infrastructure. We could also provide free broadband-enabled devices for seniors per the Internet Master Plan, but also ensure that free training comes with the distribution.

7. During COVID-19, Senior Centers continued to work remotely, offering services in new ways to ensure their clients’ needs were met. To date, providers have not been authorized to operate in-person, despite restaurants, movies, and other entities, which older adults could also attend, being open. Further, community-based organizations, in many cases, have not been leveraged in the new meal delivery system. What are ways that you feel the City should work with nonprofits and engage older adults in the event of a future emergency?

Felicia Kalan

We need to create an entirely new emergency preparedness infrastructure, and ensure we are working with Senior Centers in the district to help meet the needs of our seniors. Moreover, I believe Senior Centers should be deemed “essential” and able to fully operate, and should certainly be leveraged for meal distribution and other essential care. The city needs to streamline city services via an app that educates the public on where to go for certain issues, and a point of contact.

Leonardo Bullaro

The reopening decisions made by the state and the city have been inconsistent and not in line with the needs of various communities. That is especially true for the outcomes felt by the older residents of our city. With the increased level of vaccination, I will support an expedited reopening of senior centers and other service organizations and locales to meet the extraordinary needs of this population, provided these activities are done with all appropriate safeguards.

Moreover, despite often being funded by or under contract to the city, there did not appear to be a comprehensive emergency plan nor was one developed during the course of the pandemic. As a Member of the Council, I will call upon the DFTA and the Office of Emergency Management to prepare such a plan and ensure that it is at the ready in case of future disruptions, whether from disease or natural disaster. The utter failure to plan for the provision of services to a population in need is inexcusable and I will make such planning a priority during my service on the Council.

Evie Hantzopoulos

This is the exact reason why I co-founded Frontline Foods Queens, which raises funds to pay restaurants to provide healthy prepared meals for frontline healthcare workers, seniors, NYCHA residents, and food pantries. Using our model, the city could create a voucher system that restaurants could participate in, and disseminate vouchers to SNAP recipients. However, we also need a longer-term solution, such as the state to enact a SNAP restaurant meals program such as that in Rhode Island, and I will pressure our state electeds to do so.

Additionally, senior centers should be included as distribution sites for grab and go meals; even when schools were closed, this service was offered out of school buildings, so there’s no reason why senior centers can’t do the same. Senior centers should have been used as points of distribution for other resources in a more coordinated way as well. Not doing so was a missed opportunity to say the least, and something that we should strategically include in planning for any future emergencies.
Senior outreach and emergency preparedness is another reason why it’s so important that smaller, community-based nonprofits be awarded city contracts, as they will be able to reach and provide appropriate care to older adults during future emergencies. There should also be more direct funding to small community-based organizations, such as the $13 million included in the state budget for the AAPI Emergency Fund.

Finally, as I state above, I will fight to allocate money in the city budget to fully fund these crucial nonprofits, and I will pressure the mayor to permanently fund these organizations instead of making them rely on discretionary funding.

8. With 1 in 5 New Yorkers over the age of 60, what are the changes you would seek to make to create a more age-friendly district? Please consider addressing the physical infrastructure of your district (walkability, accessibility, etc.), health care access, safety net resources, and other district specific items of note.

Felicia Kalan

Accessibility- many of our seniors rely on public transportation or cars to get around the city and during the pandemic, I received over 20 complaints from seniors regarding the open street closures. Before implementing open streets or putting in bike lanes in residential areas, we need to study how the changes we make to city infrastructure impacts our senior population. Moreover, we need to invest in elevator accessibility in our subways.

Community & Connectivity- We need to address the social isolation among our senior population and find more ways to engage seniors in our community, so they can continue to contribute to the community and feel valuable. We also need to address the digital divide and help seniors connect digitally with other seniors through special apps.

Health Care- We need to increase access to health care and better integrate the expansion or health and wellness programs and care offered at senior centers.

Housing- ensuring safe and affordable housing.

Public Safety- fighting to fund the police and ensure public safety is a priority because of the rise in crime against seniors

Leonardo Bullaro

The physical infrastructure of my district matters a lot and my platform calls for a number of improvements to ease of use and safety that would also make the district more age-friendly. Below are some of the programs I have supported and will work to expand as a Member of the Council:
-One of the Senior Pedestrian Focus Areas under the Safe Streets program was implemented in Astoria during Phase 2. The improvements made included more lighting under the elevated trains, long signal times for crossing certain busy intersections, and more clearly marked lanes and crosswalks. These improvements were most welcome and I intend to seek additional input from the senior and disability communities to ascertain where further improvements can make our district more age-friendly.

-The premise of Vision Zero is the reduction of harm and I believe that there are several factors involved that have led to a resurgence of deaths, including drivers being increasingly distracted and increased speeding and racing on less crowded roadways during the pandemic. To alleviate these factors, I will advocate and budget for enhanced enforcement efforts by both the NYPD and TLC as well as the expansion of speed cameras from school zones to other areas of the city. I will advocate for having DOT 1) install more pedestrian refuge islands on busy and wide thoroughfares and 2) increase the number of intersections that have pedestrian walk counters. Together, these provide safer crossings, slow left turns from cross streets, and reduce conflict between pedestrians and motor vehicles. As well, I will encourage better signal alignment to ensure that motorists are presented with traffic controls that ensure lower speeds.

-Open Streets have been essential to giving New Yorkers space to breath, recreate, decompress, and maintain safe physical separation during the pandemic. Currently, Shore Boulevard, which cuts through Astoria Park, is limited to pedestrians and bikes. I would see to it that this road remains closed to vehicles. Similarly, I will work to add more commercial district streets to the program so that shopping, dining, and walkability are improved.

Evie Hantzopoulos

First of all, I will champion more accessible public transportation, with an elevator at every subway stop and replacing turnstiles with a gate model that’s large enough to accommodate a walker or wheelchair; right now, anyone using either is dependent on someone to let them in through the emergency exit. We must also invest in more community health centers and create more food markets in food desserts. We also need to make sure we have adequate curb cuts and keep sidewalks clear during times of snow accumulation (with adequate room for pedestrians, wheelchairs, and access for seniors.)

Whenever possible, we should bring healthcare services to seniors, especially during a pandemic. Senior centers could have been used as socially-distanced vaccine sites, and the city should have executed a coordinated plan to bring mobile testing units to senior housing; this is something that I did in my district for a naturally occurring retirement community, but this should have been done by the city.

There also should also be a rollout for accessing vaccines that isn’t dependent on access to and proficiency with technology; although the city has the option for booking appointments for some sites by phone, you have to go online to find the number, and it doesn’t allow you to book for all sites like the web version does. My campaign has been bridging this gap for seniors in the district by scheduling appointments for all sites over the phone, but, again, this is an area in which the city should have done more in regards to inclusion and outreach, especially since seniors are the population that’s most vulnerable to the virus.

I will also fight for incentives for landlords and homeowners to retrofit and update apartments to help people age in place.

9. In the event of a budget shortfall, how would you push for the City to close the gap? Are there agencies or programs you feel should or should not absorb cuts? Please be specific.

Felicia Kalan

I don’t believe in defunding the police because of the rise in attacks against seniors, but I do believe in making seniors and children highest priority in the city budget.

Leonardo Bullaro

Despite learning that tax receipts were greater than anticipated and the expected receipt of funds under the American Recovery Plan, the city must be prepared to pass a realistic budget and more accurately forecast its own future spending. My platform includes reasonable means for raising revenues, many of which have other social benefits attached, including:
-Borrow from the Federal Reserve’s Municipal Liquidity Facility. Through this COVID emergency lending program, the Fed said it will buy short-term debt and allow cities of 1 million or more to repay in two years, as the economy rebounds. I will urge the city’s Finance Department to work with the Comptroller's office to maximize the benefit of this opportunity to ease short-term revenue shortfalls.
-Sell Byproduct Of Wastewater Treatment: New York City’s 14 wastewater treatment plants process 1.3 billion gallons of wastewater per year. As a byproduct, these facilities produce biogas during the anaerobic digestion stage of treatment. This unused gas represents a renewable source of energy that could instead generate millions in revenue and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by an estimated 44,000 metric tons of CO2 per year.
-Resumption of State Reimbursement in City Jails: About 8% of individuals incarcerated in city jails are alleged technical parole violators previously released from state prison. The state previously reimbursed the city for the cost, currently $789 per day per prisoner. Resumption of these payments would generate ~$190 million annually.
-Reacquire Battery Park City: The state created the Battery Park City Authority (BPCA) in 1968 to finance, develop, and operate the area, which has been achieved. Despite being a public benefit corporation exempt from city taxes, the city provides most municipal services, such as schools, sanitation, and police. BPCA makes “payments in lieu of tax” but retains its surplus revenue. Reacquiring BPCA would deliver ~$70 million annually.
-Use Technology to Monetize Violations: Create a pilot program that utilizes an emerging technology of video cameras mounted on city streets connected to software that not only aids traffic management but also raises revenues. Through this technology, the city would bill vehicles that park in commercial spaces and fine vehicles that double-park as well as enhance existing enforcement officers' efforts.

Evie Hantzopoulos

We must always protect the most vulnerable. Our funding for seniors, people with disabilities, education, and lower income families should never be cut. We should reallocate money from the bloated NYPD budget into these programs, and other social services programs that will empower our communities to thrive and be truly safe.

10. How should your constituents look to measure your success in achieving your responses outlined above?

Felicia Kalan

Tangible ways to achieve my specified goals would be; 1. Assessing the decrease in the digital divide via quantitative data on the amount of seniors given tablets and trained on technology 2. Investing in public safety to ensure our seniors are protected, tracked via budget votes 3. Making changes to how open streets and bike lanes are implemented with more consideration for seniors, senior centers 4. Building or securing more affordable housing for seniors as needed.

Leonardo Bullaro

Metrics have been a critical part of my training and work and I fully intend to make them part of my service as a Member of the Council. Constituents will be able to compare my platform to my work based on the outcomes below. The legislation I introduce, cosponsor, and vote on; The agency, program, and district item budgets I support; The programs and organizations I champion; The oversight efforts I deploy to hold city agencies and contractors accountable; and The caliber of my constituent services. In business school, I learned about “Management by Walking Around”. I plan to “walk” the district often connecting with seniors, young families, business owners and others, so that I always keep my ear to the ground of the most pressing community issues. I would encourage constituents to contact me directly and I will encourage public participation in community planning events to ensure that all voices are being heard.

Evie Hantzopoulos

It’s important to set public goals, and then provide a report card each year as to the progress of that goal. I plan to provide frequent town halls with interpreters including ASL, so constituents have direct access and opportunity to ask questions on these items and hold me accountable. They will know I’ve achieved them when they can more easily access healthcare, affordable housing, healthy food, public transportation, and any other things they need to thrive and live with dignity.