political profi les district 15
BY KENNY AGOSTSO
Why are you running?
As a district director to a
state senator, deputy chief of
staff to assembly members, and
currently deputy chief of staff
to State Senator Jamaal Bailey
I was able to witness fi rst hand
many of the problems that my
constituents are facing. I’ve
seen countless people been
evicted, lose their jobs, or have
their own adequate and proper
healthcare denied. Sometime
around mid-March 2020 I became
fully motivated to run
due to the present pandemic
crisis of the novel coronavirus
which exacerbated the ongoing
crisis in the Bronx, specifi cally
my district which is in the
poorest congressional district
in my nation as well as one of
the poorest council districts in
the city and is in the epicenter
of the epicenter in New York
State.
What you do for a living,
your relationship to the district,
and which neighborhood
you live in?
The zip codes in the 15 council
district have the highest
rates of infection, hospitalization,
and deaths. In addition
to the ongoing health care
and health disparities among
poor/working families of color,
we’ve had a decades long crisis
of reduced housing stock,
gentrifi cation of our neighborhoods,
and crumbling building
infrastructure as well as
bad corporate landlords who
BRONX TIMES REPORTER, M 14 ARCH 12-18, 2021
are bad actors in terms of improving
the conditions of their
properties – this would be the
individual apartments resulting
in high asthma rates, lead,
cancer causing contaminants,
unsafe water, un existing heat,
rat and roach infestation that
increases asthma rates, and deplorable
conditions in NYCHA
Housing stock.
What are the biggest challenges
facing the district and
how will you solve them?
My 30 plus years being
on the front lines defending
our community, seniors, people
with disabilities, veterans,
unions, animal rights,
LGBTQIA+GNCB. My solid
18 years of government experience,
I have provided direct
constituent services for literally
tens of thousands of working
poor people and mom-andpop
businesses. In addition in
all of my governmental capacities,
I was also able to assist my
various principals move legislation
on such issues as tenants
rights rule 21a (Housing Stability
and Tenant Protection),
vacancy decontrol, organizing
tenants and tenant organizations
no fault divorce marriage
equality, GENDA (Gender Expression
Non-Discrimination
Act), banning conversion therapy
in NYS and for the people
in our district.
What will you do differently
than the incumbent?
My primary focus is to do
everything in my power as a
community activist and candidate
to provide constituent services
as well as letting everyone
know in the 15 district that
once elected, I will be partnering
with city, state, and federal
agencies as well as community
based organizations/nongovernmental
organizations
to help implement my plan of
providing vaccinations for every
senior building, NYCHA
developments, and Mitchell-
Lama’s/large co-operatives
in the 15 district as well as the
whole of The Bronx.
Kenny G. Agosto
BY TROY BLACKWELL
Why are you running?
I am running for city council
because the Bronx, much
like the rest of NYC, is facing
four major crises: covid-19,
housing insecurity, lack of educational
resources, and reckoning
on race. As a product of
public housing and title 1 public
schools, these issues are
personal for me. People are seriously
hurting, and we can no
longer go on with business as
usual. The people of the Bronx
deserve new bold leadership
and it is imperative to challenge
the notion of who can
have a seat at the table.
Tell us about yourself,
i.e. what you do for a living,
your relationship to the district,
and which neighborhood
you live in
I am a proud son of the
Bronx who grew up in the van
ness section and now lives
on Allerton Avenue. My siblings
and I were raised in the
Bronx, went to public school in
the Bronx, and my stepdad is
a Black small business owner
who employs locally. My family
is a blend of Puerto Rican
and West African culture.
Before running for offi ce, I
worked for President-elect Joe
Biden and Vice-President elect
Kamala Harris. I also sit on
the Board of advisors for the
Museum of Public Relations
and on the education committee
for the National Puerto Rican
Day Parade.
What are the biggest
challenges facing the district
and how will you solve
them?
There are many challenges
but the most immediate is
homelessness and affordable
housing. 1 out of every 4 students
in district 15 is facing
homelessness and over 41% of
households are severely rentburdened.
My plan to solve
these issues includes raising
the market value of the CityFHEPS
voucher for those
coming out of the shelter system;
repeal 421-a tax subsidy
program and redirecting the
billions of dollars into the
development of low- and moderate
income housing; and
change the method of using
AMI calculations for developing
affordable housing which
should be based on community
boards/ neighborhood index
versus the current regional
AMI numbers which don’t favor
our most vulnerable.
What will you do differently
than the incumbent
One of my top goals is to
bring tech and innovation to
the Bronx to help solve some of
our more complex challenges.
38% of the Bronx doesn’t have
home-internet access which
heavily affects district 15 and
1 out of every 4 students is facing
homelessness. I support
using discretionary funds to
implement municipal broadband
so the most vulnerable
among us, including those in
the shelter system, have access
to free internet. To help curb
job loss, I want to establish
a public-private partnership
fellowship to train residents,
including those formerly incarcerated,
how to code and
install retrofi ts which would
help us transition to a more
green economy.
What’s your political experience?
I have dedicated my career
to public service and worked
in politics at various levels for
a decade now. My experience
includes work for the New
York City Council on participatory
budgeting implementation;
My Brother’s Keeper initiative
and intergovernmental
affairs in the Obama White
House under Valerie Jarrett;
criminal justice reform
at Color Of Change where I
worked on high-profi le cases
such as Cyntoia Brown; strategist
for the teamsters (labor
union) as they navigated the
opioid crisis and pension investments;
and most recently
the Biden-Harris campaign.
What endorsements do
you have?
I am endorsed by Chike
Ukaegbu, former Nigerian
presidential candidate; Tareese
Chester, CEO of Reisfi
elds; Tracey Mendelsohn
and Janet Dickerson, Coprincipals
of Human Impact
Strategies; a group of Obama
alumni; and Pride in running,
a PAC supporting lgbtq candidates.
Troy Blackwell
Troy Blackwell
Courtesy of Troy Blackwell
political profi les district 15
Kenny G. Agosto
Courtesy of Kenny G. Agosto
KEY DETAILS IN DISTRICTS 11 & 15 SPECIAL ELECTIONS
Early Voting dates: March 13-21 • Absentee ballot request deadline: March 16
Mail in your absentee ballot by: March 23 Special Election Day: 23
Go to voting.nyc.com to fi nd out about Early Voting in-person, and your area’s polling site.
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