What’s important to local voters?
This is the third in a series of stories about the three Richmond City Council voting districts that will elect council members Nov. 5. Richmondside reporters walked around the neighborhoods conducting impromptu interviews of voters. (Read District 1 and District 6 at these links.) For more, see our local elections page.
Voters in Richmond’s City Council District 5 will be electing a political newcomer to succeed longtime Richmond politician Gayle McLaughlin, who opted not to run.
The two candidates vying for the seat are Ahmad Anderson, the son of two former Richmond mayors, and Sue Wilson, who has worked as a union organizer and nonprofit consultant. (You can meet them and ask questions at an Oct. 8 election forum co-hosted by Richmondside.)
District 5 encompasses a stretch of neighborhoods, including Marina Bay with its townhouses and waterfront views and the Richmond Annex, a mostly residential neighborhood on the other side of Interstate 580 in southeastern Richmond. District 5 also includes the Eastshore, Cortez/Stege, Panhandle Annex, Parkview, Laurel Park and Southwest Annex neighborhoods
Spanning 22 acres, Booker T. Anderson Jr. Park provides fields and green space for kids and adults in the district to play baseball, soccer, and pickleball.
Anderson is the son of the former mayor the park is named after. His mother, Irma Anderson, also served as mayor of Richmond. Anderson credits his family with passing down a legacy of social justice and public service. He’s made issues such as public safety, budget oversight, and housing affordability core to his campaign.
Wilson, who is endorsed by the Richmond Progressive Alliance and McLaughlin, credits McLaughlin for introducing her to Richmond politics. She is focused on expanding affordable housing, clean industry jobs, and rebuilding downtown.
In interviews with Richmondside, several District 5 residents described why they stay engaged with local politics and what they see as the core challenges facing the district. They shared concerns about crime, homelessness, and traffic enforcement while also highlighting the good they want to see continue.
Streets, crime, and public perception
At the Marina Bay farmers market on a recent Sunday, Michael Tarkington is thrilled to see crowds of people mingling and enjoying the day surrounded by boats, water, and trails. The farmers market represents the kind of energy he wants more people to know about.
Tarkington, who runs a conflict resolution firm called MLT Resolutions, moved to Marina Bay during the 2009 housing crisis. He thinks Richmond has a branding problem. Local leaders should do more, he said, to build a sense of identity for Richmond.
“That’s PR,” he said. “People outside of Richmond either don’t know about Richmond, or have a negative connotation about what Richmond is. But we have the Marina Bay area. We have Point Richmond. We have the Iron Triangle. They’re all bringing unique qualities.”
Still, he acknowledges Richmond is not without its problems, and that’s part of why he believes local elections are so important. He wants to see signs that taxes are going back into the community. He would like to see the city invest more resources toward crime-prevention programs.
“It goes back to identity. Kids need summer jobs. Create opportunities for business owners to … hire them for the summer, bring tax breaks for them,” Tarkington said. “We have kids or adults come in and do donuts in the middle of the street. Once again, is there a place for the youth to go?”
‘People died to give people the right to vote’
Over at Richmond’s Laurel Park neighborhood, longtime community advocate Myrtle Braxton returns home from Easter Hill United Methodist Church. She said everyone in her church is registered to vote.
“They know better than to not to be registered,” Braxton said.
Braxton, who just turned 97, has lived in Laurel Park since 1968. The park in front of her home, Abraham Braxton Park, is named after her late husband.
One of the first things Braxton’s father did after moving to California from Texas — where residents had to pay a poll tax if they wanted to vote — was register to vote.
“People died – my people – to give people the right to vote,” Braxton said. “A lot of people don’t know the history of how people were beaten in the South, all kinds of things that keep people from voting. That’s why I think it’s very important.”
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“It drives me crazy that people are sleeping out on the street. That’s my issue. It’s not fair to them, and it’s not fair to us.“
— Myrtle Braxton, Richmond District 5 voter
She sees the top issues facing Richmond as an understaffed police department, speeding on roads because of a lack of traffic enforcement, and homelessness. When she drives around Richmond, she notices empty buildings.
“It drives me crazy that people are sleeping out on the street,” Braxton said. “That’s my issue. It’s not fair to them, and it’s not fair to us.”
Bringing back a sense of pride and purpose
Kara Braxton, Myrtle Braxton’s daughter, listens in while her mother describes the history of Laurel Park and challenges today. She works as a flight attendant, a job that gives her the chance to see the world and return home to Richmond.
Kara Braxton agrees the city should do more to address homelessness, by, for example, building more homeless shelters where people can bring their children and their pets.
She also worries about the sideshows and illegal dumping.
“You have to take pride in where you live. Richmond is called ‘The city of pride and purpose.’ You don’t want to have trash on the street,” she said.
The optimistic voter
Like other District 5 residents who spoke with Richmondside, Richmond Annex resident Lisa Park is concerned about crime. But environmental issues are also top-of-mind for her this election.
Park, who moved to Richmond about 10 years ago, is an environmental health specialist in Alameda County. She believes corporations in Richmond, such ase Chevron, should pay their fair share, and she wants a local representative who is on-task about cleaning up the contaminated AstraZeneca site.
Of the many issues she cares about, she’s hopeful for the city’s future.
“I’m optimistic, very optimistic,” Park said. “We can get things done.”
Final Richmondside Richmond City Council meet-the-candidates night
WHAT: District 5 meet-the-candidates night, the final of three Richmondside co-hosted election events. (District 1 was held Sept. 18. Read what happened here. District 6 was on Sept. 30. Read that story here.)
WHEN: The District 5 forum will be held Oct. 8, 6:30 p.m.-8 p.m., Easter Hill United Methodist Church, 3911 Cutting Blvd. or via Zoom. Please RSVP if you’re attending in person.
DETAILS: Light refreshments will be served, and Spanish translation will be available.
We want to hear from you! What should we ask the candidates? Email your questions to hello@richmondside.org.
MORE INFO: Not sure which district you live in? Visit Richmond’s city voting district map. For information on voting, read our Contra Costa County how-to-vote guide.
