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Decaturish invited all candidates running in the Nov. 2 municipal election to submit up to three letters on their behalf. One of the letters could be written by the candidate. Here are the letters in support of Atlanta City Council District 5 candidate Doug Williams.

Dear Decaturish, 

I am proud and honored to support Doug Williams for Atlanta City Council District 5. There is no other District 5 candidate with the experience, longevity, commitment, and proven ability to work with city, county and state government leaders.

As voters, we need to honestly ask ourselves what tangible things has a candidate done to improve my quality of life and that of my community?

Doug and I first met at an East Lake community meeting in 2004. Not long after that, we found ourselves at my kitchen table strategizing as community leaders the old fashioned way. Doug, myself, and a handful of neighbors brainstormed ideas to improve safety and security in our community.

We researched crime statistics and patterns, met with officers from the Atlanta Police Department Zone 6, Dekalb County South Precinct, and City of Decatur Police. From that meeting, the East Lake Security Patrol (ELSP) was formed. The ELSP hired off duty officers to patrol our community. This was the beginning of improved safety for all residents in East Lake. Due to the success of the ELSP, the District 5 communities of Kirkwood and Edgewood asked for our assistance to begin their own neighborhood patrols.

Doug was elected to serve as the President of the East Lake Neighbors’ Community Association. I served as his Vice President. I witnessed his ability to lead, research, plan, and strategize. But it has always been his honesty,  loyalty, and willingness to work hand-in-hand with neighbors from all walks of life to get things done for our community and District 5.

So as a voter, when I think of what qualifies Doug to be our next Atlanta City Council District 5 Representative I know that:

1) Doug has longevity in our District 5 community

2) Doug has volunteered over 10,000 hours in District 5

3) Doug led a successful effort to improve safety in our community

4) Doug started the first ever East Lake Farmers Market to prevent blight at the intersection of 2nd & Hosea Williams

5) Doug worked with city officials to acquire grants that resulted in a brand new neighborhood park playground and renovated community center

6) Doug collaborated with the DOT to make Memorial Drive safer for pedestrians

Candidates backed by big money corporate interests,  who have questionable integrity,  who have lived in District 5 for a short time, and candidates who are visibly not comfortable interacting with neighbors from all walks of life, could never serve my family or community well.

That is why Doug Williams is the only choice to serve us in Atlanta City Council District 5.

– Luana K. Slaughter

 

Dear Decaturish,

I’m Doug Williams. I’ve been a husband, father, and usual suspect in good trouble in Atlanta in DeKalb for most of the past 20 years. I’m running for city council because I want to  make sure that Atlanta works for everyone, and I know working together we can make it happen.

I got into community organizing to fight the cynicism that has led people to believe that only the wealthy and powerful can affect positive change. I put in over 10,000 hours of my life to my community as a neighborhood president, NPU officer, renovating our city parks, founding and running The East Lake Farmer’s Market & Urban farm, and reducing crime while building community. I’ve partnered with city, county, state, federal, and private partners to get things done for our community to the tune of over 1 million dollars. My work is built on bringing people together to bring about positive change.

The city council representative has the greatest opportunity to do the most good for the most people by not only working as the representative on the legislative council, but acting as an advocate, organizer, and facilitator to bring public and private groups and resources together to help our communities set goals, identify challenges, and realize our vision. If you hire me for this job, my focus will be on making the city work for us. In particular, my focus will be on three interconnected areas;  Safety, Shelter, and Services for our community.

SAFETY:  As your City Council Member, I will work to repair the relationship between our community, police, and city hall. We can rebuild that relationship by bringing community groups and law enforcement together in partnership, and humanizing our relationship with each other. I’ve done this before, and have restarted efforts to do this again.

SHELTER: As your representative, I’ll work to make sure Atlanta has affordable housing for everyone, regardless of income. Currently over half of our residents cannot afford housing within 30% of their income. We can be a city where our people can afford to live, with affordable housing, and a protected tree canopy for all.

SERVICES for ALL: As your community advocate, I will ensure that we care for those who have been left behind by careless development, particularly our seniors, youth, and the disabled. We can give tax breaks for seniors and help increase their community mobility by repairing sidewalks, create job training opportunities and a greater role in our community for our youth, and provide more resources for those with physical and mental disabilities. We can be a city that works for EVERYONE if we care to plan.

Additionally, when elected to city council, I will immediately create and implement an annual community performance review (CPR) for citizens to rate the performance of city services, with quarterly town halls at the neighborhood level. The survey will be available online but also through community centers, libraries, and senior centers. This tool will provide metrics of performance of city services & identify community goals for development. I can’t force the entire city to implement such a program, but as a city councilperson I can start work on this immediately for district 5.

When you’re making your choice for your city council representative, don’t just listen to what candidates say, look at what we’ve done and what we have to show for our work. If you look at my record you will see I don’t just talk about change, I bring people together, and I get things done to the benefit of the community. I’m not just making promissory notes about what I’ll do, I’ve got the results and the receipts to show for my work in our community. I’m not new to this, I’ve been doing this.

I’m asking you to hire me to work for you because I know talk is cheap, but action gets things done. I will work for an Atlanta that works for EVERYONE, but especially the people of Atlanta in district 5.

– Doug Williams