Activist Toolkit

1. What motivates you to seek this office? What skills, experiences, and perspectives would you bring to the Village, and why would those contributions be valuable in the role of Oak Park Village President?

Candidate video response

I can contribute to our community’s equitable and sustainable recovery from the pandemic through the strength of my ideas, my ability to communicate effectively, and the depth of my personal and professional experience. Most recently, I have demonstrated this through Takeout 25, a very successful initiative I created to help our local restaurants survive the pandemic. My efforts on Takeout 25 have been acknowledged by the Wednesday Journal, who recognized me as a 2020 OPRF Villager of the Year. Specifically, I bring:

• Fiscal responsibility developed through business management and board decision-making experience

• Experience as an immigrant working with diverse groups to find common ground 

• Innovative and inclusive solutions that that identify and balance seemingly opposing priorities (in the case of Takeout 25, safety and economic recovery)

• Understanding of the interrelated issues of taxation and property values as a former renter, and now as a homeowner in OP

• Community service orientation and sustainability focus reflected in my service on the OP Energy and Environment Commission and the Ad Hoc Climate Action Planning Team

I combine the problem-solving skills of an Engineer and the business savvy and fiscal discipline of an MBA to address our most pressing challenges.

2. What are the three biggest challenges or opportunities you expect the Village of Oak Park to face in the coming years, and how would you work with your colleagues to address these challenges or realize these opportunities?

The biggest challenges we face include: 

• Economic recovery from the pandemic – This challenge also offers a great opportunity for us to build back our local economy with an eye toward the future.

• Affordability and high taxation – Ensure that the value returned for the high taxes we pay is consistent across everyone who pays those taxes. (Read my proposal on Affordable Community Internet.) Keep property values stable.

• Division along racial and ethnic lines – Calm the tension by finally addressing and fixing disparities based on evidence and facts. Implement new methods of communication, transparency, and accountability in this area.

• Sustainable Development – Ensure that we avail ourselves of available Federal funding for the clean energy transition by creating green economy training, jobs, and businesses here in Oak Park.

 I intend to work collaboratively with my colleagues at the board table to listen, understand, and facilitate shared interests in issues that benefit Oak Parkers and move us forward as a community.

3. How will you balance competing interests, such as your own deeply-held values and opinions, input from village staff and fellow board members, and diverse views from the community? How would you describe your leadership style and your decision-making process generally?

It is vital that the board members have the ability to listen carefully and balance competing interests, contradictory perspectives, and often deeply held beliefs (their own and others’). I have demonstrated this ability in my leadership of Takeout 25, where I focused entirely on the group’s mission without letting my personal preferences get in the way of decision making. I have demonstrated that also in work I’ve done to make energy more affordable in Ontario, Canada. I had to work with government agencies, regulators, the local utility, and community members to align competing interests and to deliver outcomes. My leadership style is characterized by the following:

• I enjoy exploring inclusive and creative solution options that balance multiple – and often apparently competing – priorities. Making progress on seemingly “stuck” areas is extremely satisfying.

• I welcome challenges to my ideas and values as long as they are offered with the intent to improve the solution and outcome.

4. What values would you bring to the budgeting process? What changes do you favor in the process by which the Village conducts its budgeting and fiscal planning?

I intend to be a responsible steward of the Village’s finances and fulfill my fiduciary responsibilities with integrity. I suggest: 

• Budgeting 3 years forward and not just for the current year.

• Agreeing with the Village Manager on possible budgeting scenarios early in the year. This would help staff to plan and provide options for decision making at the budget table. Departments would be asked to plan for several relevant scenarios (for instance, present the financial impact of implementing the Board’s top policy choices for the year; and/or show us what a 10% cut across the budget would look like for your department). With this information, the board could carefully consider options and make more informed decisions when it came time to set the budget.

• Explore budgeting practices that enhance clarity, transparency, and accountability. 

5. How will you balance the community's desire to reduce the property tax burden with the promotion of equity, diversity, and quality of life in the Village?

Pitting fiscal prudence and tax management against equity is unnecessary, inaccurate, and divisive. In fact, the large tax burden in Oak Park hinders the economic diversity of our community. These objectives can coexist and both be met. My approach would include: 

• Innovative ideas like the one I propose around high-speed internet (read more here) that address affordability, equity, and small business support at the same time

• Strengthening commissions – especially the Citizens Relations Commission (CRC) – to really understand and reflect the community’s needs

• Directing the community relations department at the Village to focus on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion – as is the case with most corporate and governmental organizations – and then providing appropriate talent and leadership for success

6. How do you define equity? Have recent discussions in the larger community informed or changed your thinking?

Equity means that everyone is equally able to take advantage of opportunities and resources in a community. This finds expression in equal outcomes across all socioeconomic groups. In other words, if outcomes are not equal, you know you have a problem.

In Oak Park, we have a gap along racial lines with African Americans disproportionately represented at the disadvantaged end of the socioeconomic spectrum. There is also a credibility gap which is a huge part of equity: it is harder to succeed and be convincing when you are Black.  African American individuals have to try harder to be taken seriously as doctors, lawyers, or even in the doctor’s office as patients. Their concerns are dismissed and doubted. Doubt and suspicion are reciprocated with the Black community distrusting institutions like the police department and the government’s vaccination program.

Growing up in India, and building bridges between my families across multiple continents, has provided a great starting point for my education on this topic. My understanding continues to evolve as I make a conscious effort to listen, understand, and learn about this issue as it pertains to our community. Even in our Village, the experiences are broad and the learning endless.

7. How do you plan to solicit feedback from people who may be experiencing Oak Park in a different way than you? What barriers do you believe may exist in this process?

Chronic and historic barriers make it hard to engage constituents like single mothers and lower income African American constituents who are too busy working multiple jobs and trying to survive.  Their needs have not been met and they are frustrated.  Another barrier to civic engagement is trust.  People do not step forward now because politics and civic engagement is not a safe space for anyone.  Ensuring that people have an opportunity to be heard, to engage, to contribute can change the tone of that discourse and the resulting quality of solutions. I suggest that we:

• Use technology to meet people where they are and make it easy for them to participate and contribute (perhaps regular Zoom meetings).

• Consider relocating board meetings to alternate, accessible venues around the village, once a month or another specific periodicity.

• Strengthen Village commissions to reflect the diverse perspectives in the community. At the same time, go beyond allowing public participation in commission meetings: enable it through community outreach. Many people in the community don’t know that opportunities exist for working on commissions and for letting their voice be heard through the commissions.

8. How will you help smaller and locally-owned businesses survive and thrive in Oak Park, especially in the wake of the pandemic? Do you believe it is appropriate for the Village of Oak Park to provide incentives or supports specifically directed toward minority-owned businesses? Why or why not?

I am already supporting small, locally-owned businesses successfully with Takeout 25, which is helping our local restaurants survive the pandemic. Within Takeout 25, we have created lists of Black-owned and women-owned businesses. In future: 

• The Takeout 25 model could be expanded to work with shops and other service providers as part of the broader Pick Oak Park campaign.

• I would also emphasize attracting small businesses consistent with the needs of Oak Park and rebuilding the local economy for the future.

• I would emphasize minority-owned and woman-owned businesses in the Village marketing campaign so that our community can spend and support these businesses in ways that are consistent with our values.

9. Rental units comprise about 41% of Oak Park’s housing stock. In what ways should the Village better serve the needs of renters who reside in our community?

I have been a renter in Oak Park. Based on my experience and conversations with other renters in the community, I suggest: 

• Renters do not have an organization that represents their interests. I would strengthen the OP Regional Housing Center’s ability to represent renters. 

• Renters need better parking solutions. Please read my current thoughts about Oak Parking.

 This is not a complete list of all issues which renters face. As Trustee, I would engage with renters across Oak Park, understand their problems, solicit their ideas, and seek solutions that address their needs.

10. How will you collaborate with neighboring communities? Discuss a specific initiative you would wish to undertake. What benefits and challenges would you anticipate?

I have demonstrated this kind of collaboration in my efforts on Takeout 25, partnering with several neighboring communities (River Forest and Forest Park primarily, and Elmwood, Berwyn, Austin as peripherally). The case for inclusion and the mechanism of collaboration was unique for each community, but the values behind the effort to work together were consistent. (Please read River Forest Village President Cathy Adduci’s endorsement of my campaign.)

 I would explore similar collaborations around age friendly communities, sustainability/climate action, and creating scale for high-speed internet negotiation with ISPs (read my idea for Affordable Community Internet).

11. How will you work with your colleagues to ensure that Oak Park remains economically and racially diverse? Give an example of an initiative you support that would have a significant positive impact on racial or economic diversity.

We moved our biracial family to Oak Park because it was the best option in Chicagoland. I have heard similar stories from several families. So, Oak Park has the ability to attract and retain racial diversity. However, affordability is increasingly challenging, and economic disparities in society often translate to reduced racial diversity in a community.

 Since economic diversity is partly dictated by affordability, the Village is a factor, but school districts D97 & 200 are responsible for ~70% of the tax burden and need to be part of the solution.

 Takeout 25 is one example of my approach: 

• I conceived Takeout 25 to bring the community together around a common cause (helping restaurants survive the pandemic while keeping the community safe).

• The power of social media was used to achieve this mission.

• We ensured that all businesses and every community member, regardless of socioeconomic background, felt welcome and could contribute to the mission to save local restaurants.

• We created lists of Black- and women-owned businesses to make it easy for the community to spend consistent with its values.

• We reached out to businesses that were struggling with social media outreach and helped them to create a presence and drive business.

12. What do you see as the most pressing issue relating to housing in Oak Park? What policies would you advocate to address this issue? Do you consider support for affordable housing to be a core function of our village government? Why or why not?

Affordable housing is not technically a “core function” of the village government but it is an important one to focus on, as our society evolves and we create pathways to upward mobility. These issues cut across racial and generational lines as well, with groups relying on pricing and infrastructure that could serve them better. Related issues include: 

• Parking

• Accessibility to public transportation

• Aging in place

13. What impact can a municipality such as Oak Park have on climate change, and how will you prioritize that work among other issues?

Oak Park has the ability to lead on issues of sustainability and climate change. This is why I serve as a commissioner on the Energy and Environment commission and as a member of the Oak Park Climate Action planning team.

• Oak Park should set and achieve targets in accordance with the Paris accord on Climate change.

• Our actions as Oak Parkers today have the ability inspire our youth to get ready and take over our efforts to solve the most complicated challenge of their generation: climate change. 

• I believe climate change/sustainability efforts and economic development can coexist. I would consider developing a clean energy/sustainability incubator to attract investment, startups, and jobs to Oak Park. I would implement this by taking advantage of Federal investments in the clean energy transition plan put forth by the Biden administration.

• Similarly, a more energy efficient housing stock will contribute to a small relief in energy costs annually for home owners and renters. 

• As part of the Oak Park Climate Action Planning Team, we have already offered a proposal to the current board with concrete recommendations on energy efficiency and a shift to renewable energy for our ~$2.5 million-and-growing sustainability funds.

14. In recent months there have been calls to defund the police or reimagine public safety in Oak Park. How do you define public safety? Would you begin from the premise that the Village's police budget should increase, decrease, or remain flat? Why?

Public safety is a priority for stable community. At a high level, public safety involves safeguarding people and organizations from crimes, disasters, and other potential dangers and threats. 

 “Defunding the police” means different things to different people and that phrase does not enable solution seeking. So, as we look forward to public safety in Oak Park, my point of view is best represented in my proposal on Keeping Our Community Safe. The three key considerations are: 

• The police department and the community at large must both be active participants in a reimagination of public safety.

• The road map from where we are today to the reimagined future must be clear and specific with broad buy-in from all impacted parties.

• Success must be clearly measurable and independently verifiable.

15. What do you see as the most pressing issues relating to development in Oak Park, both residential and commercial? What policies would you advocate to address those issues? In which areas of Oak Park would you prioritize residential and commercial development?

Development needs to contribute to an overall vision for the community.

• Oak Park is a tourist destination because of its historic and architectural significance. Future development needs consistency to ensure that Oak Park stays differentiated and attractive to tourists who contribute to the local economy.

• Commercial development should focus on North Ave, Madison Ave, South Oak Park Ave, Roosevelt Rd, with an eye towards distributing development to underdeveloped areas that have commercial potential.  All areas need to be modernized at the same rate so that new development does not leave us with derelict, obsolete, or underperforming areas.  

• Residential development needs to happen at a moderate pace to ensure the population stability that is required to maintain the tax base and support the local economy.

• Development needs to be done in a trustworthy and transparent manner. 

16. Following work done in Evanston, recent community discussions have focused on reparations for Black Oak Parkers, with particular interest in policy changes to help support Black home ownership. Are you supportive of reparations, in principle? Would a discussion on this issue be helpful to the Oak Park community? How should such a discussion proceed?

If reparations have a chance to succeed in redressing centuries of systemic oppression and discrimination, they need to be administered federally and measured locally. 

• Neither Evanston nor Oak Park can take the lead on this because the most oppressed in society do not live in Oak Park or Evanston. If reparations have a chance to succeed in redressing centuries of systemic oppression and discrimination, they need to be administered federally and measured locally. 

• Moreover, monetary reparations –without the ability to measure outcomes—have been shown to be an ineffective weapon in the battle against generational and systemic oppression globally. 

But there are things we can tackle on the local level: 

• The skills and education to participate in and take advantage of available opportunities are critical for any individual or group to move up in society. These can be managed at the Village level in Oak Park.

• We already spend ~70% of our budget on education, but are failing our Black community. Work with taxing bodies to drive more equitable outcomes through focused skill development.

• Providing opportunities to learn and apply skills of the future Is key. Creating excitement around these efforts and creating a culture of learning is very important.

17. Advisory referenda have appeared on the ballot in Oak Park over the past few years at the direction of the Village Board. Do you believe non-binding referenda such as these are a useful tool for governance or civic engagement? Why or why not?

Advisory referenda are useful if used appropriately. For citizen input on a public question to be meaningful: 

• The referendum must be clearly defined, articulated, and understood.

• The public must be educated on the pros and cons before the vote. 

 Because civic engagement based on facts is important, we must go beyond making information on a referendum merely available: we must make it accessible. I would support a fact-based information campaign by the Village using all available channels, including print and social media, town halls, announcements, and so forth.

18. Oak Park Trustees share responsibility for oversight of the Collaboration for Early Childhood. Do you support this example of intergovernmental cooperation? Are there other types of intergovernmental cooperation that you would support?

I believe intergovernmental collaboration and cooperation can lead to better service for the community.

• The Collaboration for Early Childhood is an amazing organization as it addresses a segment of child development that has the biggest impact on life outcomes.

• I see and have successfully explored several opportunities to collaborate between the Chamber, OPEDC, and the business district leads on Takeout 25.

• I expect to collaborate with the township, park district, and school districts on topics ranging from social services, to sustainability, to affordability.

• Also, I am open to collaborating with neighboring communities on mutually beneficial policies and programs.

• • • • •

[The above answers were supplied on 2/19/21.]