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Lauren McNally (Democrat)
| Running for | Youngstown Council 5th Ward - Democrat |
|---|---|
| Residence | Youngstown, OH |
| Education | Ursuline High School - graduated 2001 Miami University The Ohio State University B.A. Political Science B.A. Journalism |
| Employer | City of Youngstown Involta, LLC |
| Family | Breen McNally, husband Children: Breen McNally II Clare McNally Padraig McNally |
| Family in office? | Breen McNally – husband employed by City of Youngstown |
| Reasons for running | There is still work that needs done and I am seeking re-election to continue pushing the 5th ward and the city forward. I have a very clear and concise platform based directly off of the concerns residents have shared with me during the last few years. First, we need to improve our street paving process. We need to find a way to invest more money into our roads and utilize better material so our roads last longer. Second, we need to fix our sewer problems. The 5th ward suffers from flooding and sink holes and I think we are all tired of seeing orange cones covering these holes for months on end. Thirdly, we need to invest in our corridors. We’ve done a great job building up and improving our downtown area but we need to put forth a concerted effort to get increased investment in the corridors. Finally, we need to continue to work towards improved transparency in city government. |
| Priorities | • More streets getting paved • Fixing our sewers • Repairing public sidewalks • Investing in our corridors • Improving transparency in city government • Reliable safety services • Fiscal responsibilities |
| Qualifications | I have served as the 5th ward representative for Youngstown City Council for the past three years. I have gained the knowledge necessary to be an effective checks and balances for the administration as well as made quality relationships that are key to getting things accomplished in the 5th ward and the city as a whole. I’ve also served as chair of the finance committee and the health committee, vice chair of the economic development committee and public works committee and member of the education committee and legislative committee. I’ve also sat on many community boards including the Red Cross Lake to River Chapter, Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians and Mahoning Valley Young Professionals and been an active member in community organizations such as the Rocky Ridge Neighborhood Association and Youngstown Junior League. Through these various organizations, I have led fundraising efforts, wrote grants, organized private and public events, prepared reports, conducted formal meetings and helped with neighborhood revitalization efforts. |
| Positions on the issues | The three most important issues facing the city are finances, economic development and infrastructure related issues. Over the last year our economic development has completely stalled out. We haven’t had one new deal come in which means our income tax base has not grown. At the same time, we’ve lost one very large employer with the closing of Northside Hospital. With less money coming into our general fund, spending from that fund has decreased causing reductions in city services. Our residents don’t deserve more cuts to services but without economic development we are going to find ourselves in a very difficult situation. We are also dealing with a severely outdated infrastructure system. We’ve been successful in completing some larger, main roadway projects that included water and wastewater updates but we still can’t keep up with residential street paving, sewer overflows and sinkholes. The fifth ward, alone, is constantly littered with orange cones covering potholes and sewers that have caved in. Furthermore, the EPA-mandated long-term control plan to fix our sewers is putting a financial strain on our wastewater enterprise fund but the suggested rate hikes would be crippling to our small businesses and residents. While, we have made progress during my time on city council, there is still a lot of work that needs to be done. We cannot repeat the stagnation we had in 2018 and council and the administration are going to have to work harder than ever before to push Youngstown into the future in the right way. |
| Offices Sought | I ran for Youngstown City Council, 5th Ward in 2015 and have served that term from 2016-present |
| Offices Held | Currently hold the office of Youngstown City Council, 5th Ward representative |