Candidates for the Boston City Council At-Large positions gathered for a forum Monday in Roxbury to meet with voters and speak about issues including education, affordable housing and public safety.
Michael Flaherty, Ayanna Pressley, Michelle Wu and challenger Annissa Essaibi-George spoke at the Bruce C. Bolling Municipal Building. They also discussed construction of a gas pipeline in Roxbury, as well as the relationship between the Boston Police Department and the public.
When asked about teacher retention in public schools, Pressley, who currently serves as an At-Large councilor, said teachers have to be nurtured in order to feel accepted in the profession.
“Whether you’re talking about Boston Public Schools or charter schools, one of the reasons why we lose people’s aspiration to want to be a fireman or woman, or police man or woman, or teacher is that often times these environments aren’t welcoming,” Pressley said. “The key thing about retention is that we need to be able to wrap our arms around teachers. They need to be mentored, they need to be supported.”
Flaherty also described the need for “good quality schools” and “success stories” to replicate.
Essaibi-George, who came in sixth place in the At-Large race in 2013, stressed the need for community involvement in addressing issues plaguing the Boston Redevelopment Authority.
“I find it challenging to wrap my head around what’s happening at the BRA. It’s challenging for me to try, I can’t even imagine what it’s like to be a regular citizen, a regular resident of Boston,” Essaibi-George said. “I see my role, very much as a city councilor, asking ‘have you talked to the community? Where does the community stand on this?’ And we know, we want our voices to be heard.”
Earlier in the day, Essaibi-George received an endorsement from Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey.
Wu spoke about support for paid parental leave and creating more jobs that will make communities safer.
The Boston Municipal Election will be held on Nov. 3.
Attendees at the forum ranged from young to old, from residents to volunteers.
Matt Bennet, 25, of the South End, said that he was impressed by the forum’s facilitation of information regarding the serious issues facing the city.
“I thought that the forum was excellent,” Bennet said. “It was a great opportunity to really have a debate on some really serious issues facing the city like development, education [and] the charter school cap, and the most important part is that people’s voices are able to be heard.”
Bennet emphasized the positive effect he believes the forum will have on the polls.
“There are very few opportunities this election season, so I think we are going to see some real change at the ballot box this time,” Bennet said.
Christopher Freiss, 32, a ward 10 volunteer of Mission Hill, said that the forum provided residents the ability to gain knowledge regarding an election most don’t hear about.
“Boston media doesn’t really cover city races unless it’s really an election year event for the mayor,” Freiss said. “Getting the word out is super important to people who don’t care or don’t know who to vote for in a city council race.”
Freiss said that forums such as the Boston At-Large City Council Forum let residents hear impartial information about candidates they are unfamiliar with, as residents can ask questions regarding their concerns.
“You don’t want to go by what’s on their websites because that’s usually biased,” Freiss said.
Ann Steinberg, 68, of Mission Hill, said a positive outlook carried over from the beginning of the forum to the end, and was not surprised that more than 110 people came to watch.
“We were expecting this many people,” Steinberg said. “I thought the forum was very successful.”
