Priorities

Alexandria thrives when our children thrive. Parents, schools, and local and state officials need to continue to build deeper relationships to advance educational success and equity across the city and support our young people from cradle to career.

As Mayor, I will work to:

• Invest in stable, affordable, quality childcare including early education and childcare options for infants and toddlers to prepare them for school and before and after school programs to help older children thrive
• Deepen the partnership between city government and the Alexandria City Schools Board to ensure our children succeed
• Strengthen training and summer youth employment programs

As a growing city, we must be intentional about ensuring all Alexandrians are able to live and age in quality, healthy housing they can afford in neighborhoods that provide the resources they need and amenities they want. On the City Council, I have actively supported the expansion of the accessibility and affordability of housing.

As Mayor, I will work to:

• Ensure residents achieve homeownership and age in our community
• Coordinate our development efforts with our public works, transportation, school, and climate resilience strategies
• Protect and expand tenant rights
• Prevent displacement

A thriving Alexandria economy will generate good jobs, support entrepreneurship, and sustain local businesses. As a member of Council, I have addressed this goal by prioritizing small businesses, employment programs, and unions.

As Mayor, I will support the city to:

• Leverage the City’s unique assets and creativity to create a long term, targeted economic development strategy to protect and expand our commercial tax base
• Activate all of city government–from the Alexandria Economic Development Partnership, Planning and Zoning, and Code Administration to Communications and Community Engagement–to ensure that we are helping new businesses to open, stay open, and thrive
• Partner with local employers to develop workforce readiness pipelines to give our young people access to high-paying, high-quality jobs after graduation
• Engage unions in developing strong worker standards and protections, apprenticeships, and opportunities that empower worker voices and well-being
• Advocate for local artists and artisans, promote their work, celebrate their community, and highlight their place in driving our economy and the appeal of Alexandria

We all deserve to feel safe in Alexandria, whoever we are, wherever we live or work. The increase in crime has us all feeling on edge and feeling less safe. Maintaining the status quo is not acceptable.

As mayor, I will work to:

• Partner with the Alexandria Police Department (APD) to find common sense efficiencies so officers spend more time engaged in community policing, with an effort to align APD resources across prevention, detection, and intervention to reduce crime, address hazardous traffic violators, and expand our community outreach efforts
• Engage other criminal justice partners, as well as non-profit and community partners to develop programs to prevent recidivism, especially youth-focused programs
  
• Increase communication between the police and the community. We need a strategic plan that focuses on morale, crime reduction, building accountability, and clearly communicates our efforts to the public
• Expand investment in the safety and mental health of all our dedicated first responders, including APD, Alexandria Fire Department, and Alexandria Sheriff’s Office

The purpose of our city government is to make Alexandria work for its residents. If we fine-tune our efforts to meet resident needs and actively engage residents in city decisions, we will build trust, confidence, and a stronger community.

As Mayor, I will work to:

• Harness the collective creativity of residents, key stakeholders, and city staff to improve city services and accountability 
• Establish metrics and performance measures for all community engagement activities
• Improve our cybersecurity policymaking, detection capabilities and response plans because trust in government hinges on residents and businesses knowing their data is protected
• Respond more quickly and effectively to resident concerns and needs, from maintenance of sidewalks, parks, and buildings to family emergencies