Zandra Rice Hawkins, Ward 10 Concord City Council Candidate

Zandra Rice Hawkins

Age (as of Election Day)

42

Position sought (including district number if applicable)

Concord City Council, Ward 10

Party Affiliation

Democrat

Family

I’ve been married to my husband Brian for 16 years. We have two children, Annabelle, 8, and Teddy, 4, who attend Broken Ground School and East Side Learning Center

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

Non-profit Executive Director, Granite State Progress; husband serves as Director of Government Relations for NEA New Hampshire

Education

Gonzaga University, Bachelors of Business Administration (first generation college graduate)

Occupation

Non-profit executive director; founding executive director of Granite State Progress (15 years)

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office

Concord City Councilor (elected 3 terms, 2019-present); member of the Transportation Policy, Public Safety, Community Development, Solid Waste, and Everett Arena Advisory Committees, and Mayor Bouley’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Justice and Belonging Committee (three-member body: Mayor Bouley, At Large Councilor Bryon Champlain, Ward 10 Councilor Zandra Rice Hawkins); Mill Brook PTA Treasurer for 3 years

Campaign website

https://votezandra.com/

Why are you seeking elective office?

I am running for re-election to City Council for Ward 10 because I want to continue to make Concord a great community to live, work, and raise a family. I’ve been proud to support efforts in the city to support economic development and expand our revenue base, strengthen our infrastructure, make our parks and trails more accessible, invest in our public services, and ensure Concord is a strong and welcoming community for all of us. We need to keep building off this work and ensure that we are meeting challenges around affordable housing and other issues that make it difficult for community members to stay and thrive here, particularly seniors and young adults. It has been an honor to represent Concord Ward 10 for the last three terms and work on these critical issues. Concord is the community my husband and I decided to buy our first home and raise our family. I want to keep it a strong and welcoming community for this generation, and the next.

The single most pressing issue facing our (board, district, etc.) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

One of the most pressing issues facing Concord is the lack of affordable housing. Until our city and state can create more affordable housing, we will all continue to feel the pressures around increased property taxes, barriers for our small business workforce, difficultly for families trying to stay in their homes, and few options for unhoused community members to move into stable, secure housing. We need a mix of all types of housing. Concord can update our ConcordNext zoning to allow families to increase existing housing options; and we must guarantee that any new developments meet our community needs while maintaining strong access to jobs, school, health care, grocery, complete streets, green space, and more for residents. I believe strongly that the lack of affordable housing is a concern all across New Hampshire, and our city and state have a responsibility to bring together developers and community leaders to ensure we are identifying solutions for our community needs.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

As an elected City Councilor for nearly five years, I’ve been a part of making major decisions regarding the future of Concord. I am proud of my track record, and my efforts to expand constituent involvement and participation in the city decisions that impact them. My experience serving on the Public Safety Advisory Board, Community Development Advisory Committee, Transportation Policy Advisory Committee, Everett Arena Advisory Committee, Solid Waste Advisory Committee, and as one of three members appointed to Mayor Bouley’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Justice and Belonging Ad Hoc Executive Committee means I have a strong handle on the issues facing Concord and the progress we can continue to make.

As a City Councilor, our job is to listen to constituents and plan for both immediate and long-term needs. Part of our work is to envision the Concord we want to leave for the next generation, which means being serious about what we need to do today to ensure a thriving community for years to come. Our city staff and experts guide us on guardrails and options, but it is the job of city leaders to make the decisions that impact our future.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community (or district or constituency)

(Current three-term City Councilor for Ward 10)

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

The vast majority of the issues we deal with at City Council are consensus-driven: we all care about expanding economic development and broadening our commercial tax base to keep resident taxes low and public services strong; we all know that housing affordability is an existential threat to the ability for Concord workers to afford to live in the community they work, and for families already in their homes to stay here, especially our elderly. Many of us are concerned about our unhoused population and how to safely and responsibly advocate for solutions. And we all know that Concord has major decisions ahead of it regarding our investments in our public safety, our schools, public transportation, zoning, and our overall community priorities.

As a City Councilor, my goal is to make sure we are making smart, strategic decisions regarding how we develop Concord and what we invest in as a community. I am concerned with making sure we have enough public safety resources to meet the needs of our community, including investing in early outreach and prevention, and that we are thinking about how major decisions in our community impact existing infrastructure and resources. I am a strong supporter of Concord’s worthy goal of 100% renewable energy, and know it is important to have strong voices and robust ideas around the table to advance toward these goals. Creating complete streets (good roads and sidewalks that ensure public transit friendly, walkable/rideable neighborhoods) is important as we consider ways for families and workers to move around the city. As a community leader who knows that hate has no home here unless we let it, it’s critical to me and for the future of all of our children that we create a welcoming, inclusive community.

For all of the decisions that come before City Council, I do my homework to understand issues and gather constituent feedback, be an active part of City Council deliberations, and am intentional about publicly stating the reasons for how I vote.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

As a City Councilor for Ward 10, some of my major accomplishments include securing major street improvements all across my district; supporting successful public-private partnerships, such as Merchants Way at Exit 17, to meet community needs and expand our commercial tax base; voting in favor of economic development efforts along Storrs Street and other critical areas of the city to bring in more revenue and increase vibrant corridors of the city; encouraged investment in affordable housing initiatives, and voted to advance critical housing and outreach programs; advocated for and successfully secured a fourth ambulance unit to reduce response times and ease the burden on our first responders; worked with constituents to make our ice skating policies accessible for all community members; supported good jobs and wages in the City of Concord, from summer lifeguard positions to critical public safety officers; sponsored and passed the Indigenous Peoples’ Day resolution in 2021 to better reflect our history and community values; organized to send a strong message from city and school leaders that hate does not belong in Concord in the wake of neo-Nazis targeting a local small business and Concord residents; raised critical questions ahead of votes and decisions to ensure every community member is heard and our taxpayer dollars are used effectively; created a binder of City boards and committees with responsibilities and qualifications requirements and tabled at community events with opportunities for Concord residents to join city committees and boards; advocated for more accessible and responsive local government; paid out of pocket to provide child care at City of Concord visioning sessions to ensure every community member could participate; worked with city staff to send letters to trucking companies reminding them of no cut-thru traffic policies that impact Ward 10 roads and generate noise for local residents; proposed and set in motion a potential municipal composting program to divert up to 30% of household waste from trash collection at a savings to the city, taxpayers, household costs, and the environment; supported the creation of the Ad-hoc Gully Hill Road Committee which led to the City negotiating a more profitable lease with an organic farmer whose Sunflower Festival attracted 15,000 customers to the heart of our City; attended city and state committee hearings on behalf of constituent concerns; and hosted neighborhood meetings and street corner gatherings to address local concerns, including hosting monthly calls with neighborhoods facing specific needs and challenges and facilitating community conversations to bring people together.

My successful track record as a City Councilor demonstrates I am someone who can build support for key priorities, but that I am also willing to ask tough questions and push for transparency and accountability for taxpayer dollars. Concord benefits best when our elected officials have open and honest discussion about our community priorities, and when we actively engage our constituents in the decisions that impact them. I am running for re-election to continue to deliver on the commitments I made on behalf of my constituents, and to keep Concord strong for this generation, and the next.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

When I first ran for City Council in 2019, I met with several Concord leaders to discuss critical issues facing the city. One important piece of advice shared with me is: some people point fingers at an issue and demand that something needs to be done, others point fingers at a problem and ask how can I help? A leader should always be a part of making things better. I appreciated Mayor Bouley's advice and have always strived to be a City Councilor and community member who steps up to the challenge and pitches in to do my part.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I love serving as the Concord City Councilor for Ward 10, working with neighbors to make our community the best it can be. Our family is an active part of the Concord community, participating in local youth activities, volunteering at the Concord Multicultural Festival, enjoying our family hikes, visiting playgrounds, and celebrating alongside our community at countess city and community events. Whether it is on City Council, at our neighborhood school, or in the community, I am committed to making Concord an even better place to live, work, and raise a family. You can learn more about my priorities and read my endorsements at votezandra.com. Thank you, and I hope I can count on you to Vote Zandra Rice Hawkins on Tuesday, November 7th!