Our Electoral Committee asked the candidates for the 2021 Charlottesville City Council Democratic Primary a series of questions surrounding Policing, Climate/Environment, Housing, and Transit. Candidates were given a week to respond and all three candidates submitted answers. Answers are listed in order received and have been minimally edited for clarity.

Note that Charlottesville DSA is not endorsing any of the candidates for Council.

If you’re on a desktop computer or large tablet, we recommend viewing our PDF version of the voter guide for the best experience.

The candidates are:

• Carl Brown (CB) | did not identify pronouns | website

• Brian Pinkston (BP) | he/him/his | website

• Juandiego Wade (JW) | he/him | website

Finally, we would like to thank all of the candidates for their timely responses.

Do you support giving the Police Civilian Review Board all the powers the city is allowed to delegate to it under the new state law?

JW: I support enforcing accountability of the CPD, but I do not believe in micromanagement. If elected, one of my first priorities will be to talk with members of the current CRB and members of the public to determine how Charlottesville should proceed.

BP: I am generally in favor of expanding the powers of the PCRB, to include subpoena power. I want to think carefully about legally binding dismissals and other disciplinary action. Obviously the City Attorney will need to weigh in on this. We would need to create the infrastructure—in terms of staffing, legal advisors, and so on—to make all of this effective and not counterproductive.

CB: It is my belief that once the Civilian Review Board completes the processes of hiring a new Executive Director, they can then begin the process of utilizing the powers as deemed necessary. However, at this point, the CRB is a work in progress and must continue to develop as a Board before they can effectively delegate.

Downtown parking enforcement

Support immediately: CB, JW
Support a study: BP
Will not support:

Parking enforcement citywide

Support immediately: CB, JW
Support a study: BP
Will not support:

Traffic enforcement

Support immediately:
Support a study: JW
Will not support: CB, BP

Welfare checks

Support immediately:
Support a study: CB, BP, JW
Will not support:

Responding to residents struggling with mental illness

Support immediately: CB, JW
Support a study: BP
Will not support:

Public defenders in Charlottesville make less than their prosecutor counterparts (source). Will you commit to increasing funding for the Charlottesville-Albemarle Defender’s Office to ensure we’re equitably funding defense for low-income residents in court?

JW: Ensuring justice requires that we put equal weight on public defense as we do on prosecution. The first step in achieving that is working towards pay parity between public defenders and prosecutors.

BP: I will commit to thinking hard about this in context with other funding commitments, especially in a post-Covid fiscal landscape. But, yes, I see that this is important and will make it a priority.

CB: Having a Criminal Justice background, I am in total support of increased funding for the Charlottesville-Albemarle Defender's Office to ensure that low-income residents have committed representation in court.

How do you plan to engage the Climate Action Planner and what would be your top priority for the person in this position?

JW: I believe the most important first-step in ensuring climate justice is increasing tree canopy in communities of color as a way to mitigate that outsized health impact of climate change. More broadly, I understand how historically the climate movement has been led by elite—often white—groups, and I believe that climate justice requires we actively bring disadvantaged communities to the table.

BP: I would listen to them carefully and take their recommendations with great seriousness, to include funding their requests. Top priority: Show me where any potential floodplain changes may be so that we can a) keep that in mind in planning and b) use that to convince reticent voters of how important this topic is.

CB: I would engage the Climate Action Planner in a manner of which they can educate me on the work they have already done, I listen to the direction of which the community seeks to go. Look at all aspects of their thinking from different perspectives.

Climate change disproportionately affects communities of color, the elderly, and the poor—how will you ensure that the city’s planned climate action isn’t directed at the city’s elite?

JW: I will work with the Tree Commission to increase the tree canopy in communities of color. As noted above, I will have the planner work in communities of color to actually implement its recommendation. Additionally, I will seek advice and services of the numerous nonprofits in the community working in this arena.

BP: First, I would make funding the Affordable Housing Plan endorsed by Council a priority. That seems to me to be the ground floor of all these discussions. Second, I would support efforts by groups like LEAP to subsidize energy efficiency enhancements in their homes. Third, I would explore "progressive taxation" (or "non-progressive subsidization") for natural gas and trash pickup.

CB: By introducing and committing to being more climate-conscious as a city, this will be an excellent opportunity to target the communities of color, the elderly and the poor, with the information, resources and incentives to realize the understanding and impact of climate change and the city's commitment to doing its part.

Most households in Charlottesville are just one to two people, but most residential parcels in the city are zoned for single-family homes. If you’re elected to Council, how would you help provide housing for people who can’t afford or don’t want a single-family home?

JW: I believe that providing affordable housing should be a multi-faceted approach. I would provide support for nonprofit organizations in the community such as AHIP, PHA and Habitat for Humanity. Part of the solution would be to look at the current single-family zoning. I would also explore opportunities to rezone to allow for multi-family residences.

BP: The best I can say to this incredibly complicated question is that I think that the basic ideas covered in the Affordable Housing Plan, and which are reflected in current drafts of the Land Use Map and Comp Plan, are generally reasonable ones. I support those ideas and thus will work to implement them.

CB: Having already been a part of many discussions on these housing topics, I will commit to better relationships and partnerships with Albemarle County, the Realtor's Association, the Neighborhood Associations and the University of Virginia. Charlottesville alone will not be able to solve our housing problems. It will take a collaborative effort, but also an inclusive approach.

Cville Plans Together recommends spending $10 million per year to address the affordable housing gap in Charlottesville. Would you support this level of funding for affordable housing? If not, what do you believe is the appropriate level of financial support for affordable housing?

JW: I fully support funding affordable housing. A thorough review of the budget will determine how much additional funding should be allocated to it.

BP: The simple answer is, Yes. The complicated answer is that, from my reading at least, the AHP actually requires "only" a net extra (i.e., above current outlays for subsidies) of $7 to $8 million dollars per year. I support that. Again, I think the AHP is a solid plan. It has the endorsement of the current Council and thus reflects a significant degree of democratic, popular support.

CB: Information is more important to them than funding. By providing better resources in the low-income housing communities, that provides educational resources, vocational training, computer literacy. Individuals will be able to design their own vision of success in their community.

Parking requirements for residential development drive up housing costs by as much as 25%, with cost increases hitting affordable housing especially hard. Would you support reducing or eliminating parking requirements in Charlottesville?

JW: yes

BP: Yes.

CB: Initially, I would support reducing the parking requirements with the goal ultimately being to eliminate them after a sound review.

What other policies would you pursue to help build affordable homes? For each policy you support, how many affordable homes do you think it would create?

JW: I would pursue more collaboration with surrounding localities and the University of Virginia. I am not sure at this point how much additional housing this will produce. Additionally, I would also explore opportunities to rezone to allow for multi-family residences.

BP: Again, I think the AHP is a solid plan. I want to focus on executing against that plan. I've read it thoroughly. It clearly reflects strong expertise on the topic. My focus will be on getting that done. I am unable to speculate on how many affordable homes might result, beyond the numbers stated in the plan.

CB: The topic of affordability consistently has been a topic of the campaign. With the understanding that the current Charlottesville City Council has not done its due diligence of turning every rock to assist in this issue, I believe that future conversations with a more inclusive population of stakeholders will assist in successful policy changes as we go forward.

Charlottesville currently allocates a significant proportion of its most valuable land to one of the least productive possible uses: free parking. A 2015 study commissioned by the city recommended converting some of the free parking spaces downtown to metered spaces. Would you support adding meters to avoid subsidizing cars by rolling back parking subsidies downtown?

JW: Because Charlottesville is only 10 square miles, we must ensure that space is used as efficiently as possible. I would thoroughly review this study and then gather representatives from the Economic Development office, the Downtown Business Association and housing advocates to craft a solution.

BP: Perhaps. Free parking downtown may seem like a waste. (Actually, most spaces there cost—unless I've not been looking hard enough!) But having good, solid parking options for people is important such that the Downtown ecosystem can thrive. That's important if we want to fund essential equity initiatives.

CB: A lot has happened since 2015. I will not support anything without looking at Charlottesville from a post-COVID [perspective]. Right now it is important to revive the downtown area. As we get back to some form of normalcy, we can then look at how to navigate our parking.

There were three fatal car crashes on 5th Street between July and October of 2020. How would you help prevent car crashes on dangerous roads like 5th Street?

JW: As a former transportation planner, I understand how to make roads safer by determining causality and working together with public works, enforcement, and the community to implement solutions. Possible solutions could include reducing the speed, narrowing the road or improved signage.

BP: Wow—that's a great question! I honestly need to think about that some more.

CB: Unfortunately, I am familiar with both those accidents. I have always suggested placing an additional light whether yield or stop, as that stretch has no breaking points from Elliott Avenue to Harris Road. Speed reduction midpoint will assist with that.

Research shows that protected bicycle lanes improve safety for cyclists, drivers, and pedestrians. Would you commit City funds to building protected bicycle lanes in Charlottesville? If so, where?

JW: Yes, I would recommend funds for protected bike lanes. That requires working with the community and alternative transportation organizations to determine the greatest need. I have worked with these groups and the community numerous times as a transportation planner and prepared to assist in this effort.

BP: I certainly committed to including Complete Streets concepts in design criteria for infrastructure upgrades. I am as concerned, too, that we have good sidewalks throughout the City. These important pieces often get swamped in the CIP requests. I want that to change. I also want NDS to do a better job engaging the Neighborhood Associations on these nuts-and-bolts issues.

CB: I would need to see the research first. I believe responsible cyclists and drivers improve safety. Too often in the community do I see cyclists, drivers, and pedestrians alike not be as responsible as they could be.

The Virginia legislature recently allowed localities to install speed cameras in school zones (source). Would you support funding for speed cameras near schools? If not, what steps would you take to protect children from car crashes?

JW: Yes, I would support this initiative. As a School Board member and as a father of a child who attended Charlottesville Public Schools, I have witnessed countless vehicles speeding in school zones.

BP: Yes, absolutely.

CB: I would support funding for speed cameras near schools as too often have I seen drivers disregard the bus signs and drive straight through. There needs to be greater enforcement for the safety of all of our children.