West Hartford Election 2021 Profile: Adrienne Billings-Smith

WEST HARTFORD, CT — Democrat Adrienne "Ace" Billings-Smith, 40, is running for West Hartford Town Council in West Hartford.

Occupation: Attorney/flight Attendant

Family: Susie Billings-Smith, wife Russell Billings-Smith, son Rena Billings, mother Patricia Billings, aunt Emma Billings, niece

Experience: n/a

Family in government: NO

The single biggest issue in town is ______, and I plan to do this about it:

I don't believe that there is just one single pressing issue in West Hartford. I think that West Hartford has room for growth in many areas. If I were to have to pinpoint something that encompasses multiple issues, then it would be infrastructure. We must update our storm water/sewage issue and mitigate the flooding in our area. We must also continue to keep our roads safe and repaired. Further, in terms of the future, we must upgrade our broadband and close the digital gap so that all residents of West Hartford have access to the internet and continue to utilize alternative safe energy where available in our public buildings. Additionally, we need to continue to invest in residential and commercial development. There are a lot of great projects in the works in West Hartford that will continue to make us attractive to future residents and developers, which will help us push forward with our initiative to be a part of the transportation corridor. Lastly, we must commit to issues that are not traditionally found under the infrastructure title, but are vital to our growth, and such as issues like early childhood programs and properly staffing our public safety departments. I plan to advocate for the issues mentioned above and advocate for fair wages and safe workspaces for workers. I will also advocate for the residents in terms of how these issues affect our budgets in hopes that they don't affect our taxes any more than they must.

Critical differences between me and my opponents:

As a candidate, I believe that collaboration on issues that affect the residents in West Hartford is important to the success of our town. I believe that all issues must be looked at from an equity lens to ensure everyone's voice is being heard at the table. When you start to parse out critical differences you begin to lose the ability to analyze important issues. The way I lead an effort may be very different than the way others choose to get their message across and come up with solutions. However, and at the end of the day there must be collaboration and a solution. If the other individuals choose not to be a part of the collaborative effort than they are doing a disservice to our residents.

Accomplishments:

On a professional level, I am an attorney and earlier in my career a college basketball coach. I believe in reviewing and analyzing the details of documents and contracts so that an informed solution and decision can be made, because the nuances of the document can be life-altering for the residents of West Hartford. I take the responsibility of representing individuals to heart because these are my neighbors, family and friends who will be affected and I want to ensure that I am their voice at the table. As I stated before, I am a believer in collaboration and teamwork. I have led many efforts in town and partnered with multiple stakeholders which have included the town, the school district, and and other community organizations. I led the Juneteenth effort to be recognized in town in 2020 and chaired its board in 2021. I was one of the lead designers on the MLK Jr. inspired mural in Blue Back Square and led the way of the renaming of Unity Green (formerly Goodman Green).

Other issues:

I will advocate for business owners who are trying to make ends meet as well as their employees. I will advocate for our schools. Our children deserve nothing less than a stellar and culturally diverse educational experience. I will ensure that any budget adopted puts our residents' needs first and continue to fight to keep our much needed and wanted services and programs intact. I will strive for social changes that are needed in our community to ensure everyone feels seen and heard and welcomed. I will support our public employees who need the proper personnel to do their jobs to keep our community safe. I will advocate for the community to focus on issues that affect our environment.

What else would you like voters to know about you?

First and foremost, I care about West Hartford and its future. I am a middle-class mother, wife and neighbor who can relate to the everyday struggles of balancing work life and home life. I understand the daily priorities of being a West Hartford resident, from financial sustainability, to making sure our children have a great education, and ensuring our services and programs benefit our entire family. I also understand the need for feeling secure and welcomed in our neighborhoods and driving down safe and well-kept roadways. I will advocate for all those things, and because as your neighbor I am in this with you.