Candidate profile: Lisa White, City Council at Large

Q&A
Lisa White

Tell us briefly about your qualifications and why you are running.

I have been involved in housing my entire adult life. I have extensive experience with business law and contract negotiation, as well as fiscal responsibility and management of large budgets.

Amid rising home prices and escalating monthly rents, what can New Bedford do to ensure there is enough affordable housing for those who want to continue living in the city?

We can support development proposals that include a minimum of 50% affordability. We can support home ownership and getting more residents into owner-occupied positions in our multi-family properties. We can once again commence the first-time home buyers classes that have been paused since the onset of the pandemic and begin awarding down payment assistance once again.

Police and fire departments recently shifted staff and consolidated operations in a new public safety station in the city’s South End. Is there still adequate public safety across the city? How will you work to keep the neighborhoods safe?

I believe we need a more robust police force. I believe that if we want safer streets, we should focus on more officers, not more stations. I am a proponent of strengthening community bonds with on-foot officer patrols in the downtown area.

New Bedford has a higher rate of COVID-19 than the state average, along with a lower vaccination rate. Are you in favor of mandatory vaccines or testing for municipal employees as announced by Mayor Jon Mitchell? If not, what would you do to make New Bedford residents safer?

I believe people should have the freedom to choose what happens with their bodies, but I also believe in accountability. I think that the testing provides a decent alternative to ensure the safety of others while respecting people’s right to choose. I would be interested in exploring the possibility of implementing some sort of a waiver people could sign, if they choose to remain unvaccinated. Something that would alleviate medical professionals of liability in the event an unvaccinated person becomes ill with Covid and resources aren’t available.

Nobody should have to be turned away at the emergency room or for other life-saving procedures because someone is taking up resources with an illness that could have been prevented.

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