Our Question: What are some community-based strategies that you would encourage as an alder to address poverty?
Rebecca Kemble, District 18
Madison’s overall economic development strategy should be focused on increasing the tax base for the long term in the most effective and stable way possible — by helping people find or create work at real living wages so they can meet the needs of their families.
As alder, I will champion sustainable, equitable economic development by striking at the roots of poverty and wealth inequality through working on the city’s cooperative enterprise development initiative.
Cooperatives are social or economic enterprises guided by the values of self-help, self-responsibility, democracy, equality, equity and solidarity. Worker cooperatives are businesses organized around worker-members’ productive skills to produce goods or services that are needed in the community. Members of worker cooperatives democratically share in the profits, oversight and management of the business, developing business and interpersonal skills as they grow their enterprise together.
Cooperative businesses embedded in larger cooperative networks are historically proven methods to generate dignified jobs, improved working conditions and enhanced community and local economic development. Many other cities are looking to the cooperative model to solve some of their most intractable social and economic problems.
For the past 15 years, I have been a worker-owner in one of the largest worker cooperatives in the country: Union Cab. In that time I have been elected to leadership positions within national and international cooperative organizations, and I will bring a great deal of experience and practical know-how to this city initiative.
I will work to involve Madison’s cooperative businesses, as well as trade union apprenticeship programs and other agencies involved with job training, in shaping this program. But most importantly, I will convene gatherings of neighbors to discuss their needs, skills and aspirations in order to develop high-quality projects that are driven by the people who need them most.
In addition, I will promote:
- Community benefits agreements in TIF awards;
- Better access to transit;
- Expanded access to affordable housing, accessible multimodal transit, employment options for those without college degrees, and civic resources outside downtown;
- Joining light industry manufacturing, urban agriculture and affordable housing to create welcoming and affordable communities.
Peng Her, District 18
Addressing poverty requires collaboration between citizens, our businesses and our government leaders. As alder, I will build on the Northside’s existing assets, utilizing federal grants and forming partnerships with the city, for-profit and nonprofit agencies to create jobs and job training while supporting existing businesses. My strategy will involve mapping out our assets, highlighting our residents’ values and desires, and supporting your ability to affect change. As a member of the Madison Economic Development Committee, Hmong Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce, a longtime public servant and community activist, as well as a former small-business owner, I have the leadership and experience to address this issue.
I will support and grow our food-oriented assets — such as FEED Kitchens, Community Groundworks and La Crosse Seed — by establishing the Northside Food Empowerment Zone. Preference for awarding city funding will be given to projects proposed in the Food Empowerment Zone. We will use existing tools, such as façade grants and small cap loans, to attract new businesses to hire local residents. We will partner with the new Public Market District to create a food production and storage facility on the Northside.
I will increase women and minority-owned businesses using my connections with the Wisconsin Women’s Business Initiative Corporation, Small Business Administration, Latino Chamber, African-American Chamber and Hmong Chamber. While on the Hmong Chamber, I helped establish a $250,000 revolving loan fund and assisted minority entrepreneurs in writing business plans, creating finance statements and creating budgets.
I will go after federal grants as well. I will reinstate the community officer position being eliminated to make sure our neighborhoods are safe. I will organize community engagement events, such as Eat Play Bike and placemaking, to allow neighbors to get to know each other and celebrate the diversity and success of the Northside. I will advocate for a Northside bus rapid transit location because we need accessible and affordable mass transit for sustainable growth.
By supporting economic development, job training, mass transit, and safe and engaged neighborhoods, together we can increase opportunities for all residents and reduce poverty on the Northside and across Madison.
Larry Palm, District 12
I’m honored to be able to continue to serve the residents of District 12 for the next two years. There have been many projects that I have been working on that are designed to promote and improve the Northside. I’ve been highlighting some of them in previous issues, such as the Northside TownCenter redevelopment, additional planning along North Sherman Avenue and Northport Drive and Warner Park.
I’ve been asked to discuss community-based strategies to address poverty. It’s always difficult to discuss significant topics such as poverty in such limited space, but I appreciate the compelling need to discuss both one-on-one and as a community. Especially concerning is childhood poverty and the lifetime of issues that develop because of this.
As a member of the City-County Homeless Issues Committee, I am also aware of the challenges people with no or poor housing have, and as a city we have committed to building additional housing for not only individuals but homeless families. The Madison School District has calculated there are more than 1,000 homeless youth this school year.
Many individuals — both inside and outside of government — have been meeting to discuss, engage and act. The Northside has had some success in community discussions, such as the Racial Equity Forum, and I certainly encourage everyone to participate and engage.
We have many assets on the Northside. One key activity everyone can do is ask how we can connect all people to these assets. If you’re hiring for a job, can the job be performed by someone without a high school diploma and can you post it as such? If you’re shopping at a store, does the store provide reduced-price services? Do you have a skill that you can share at an after-school program (including encouraging young people to participate)?
A significant concern as people grow older is that they may have to leave their home. Leaving behind a comfortable setting and familiar community affects independence and control over quality of life. To help seniors safely stay in their homes, the niche for TZ of Madison, a Northside general contractor and remodeling specialist, is to provide universal design for the layout of the home to make it accessible, comfortable and welcoming, as well as to meet the needs of a family of all ages. Owner Larry Taff and his son Jesse are Aging in Place specialists, a qualification that means they know how to design and implement changes to a home so its owners can stay in one’s own home and community and age in place safely, independently and comfortably, regardless of age or ability level. For more information on TZ of Madison, visit www.tzofmadison.com or call 241-2967. 
