On the night of Oct. 1, Queens Holistic Moms sponsored a District 22 City Council candidate forum in Astoria. All three candidates attended, but the incumbent, Councilman Peter Vallone (D-Astoria), did not stay to hear people’s comments and the third candidate did not address my practical concerns.
Lynne Serpe was the clear winner of the event. She spoke articulately about solutions. Her platform encompassed healthy school lunches, access to reliable transportation, energy efficiency, parks in the southern part of Astoria and libraries open seven days a week.
As a mother of an infant, I am concerned about air quality in Astoria and improving public transit access. Serpe has a plan for reducing the risk of asthma by improving energy efficiency and lowering our overall power usage. And she would work to make the N and W subway lines accessible to residents in wheelchairs and strollers.
Finally, I was impressed to hear about her prior experience working on clean and fair elections, especially when the incumbent voted to extend term limits.
Emily Compton
Astoria
