The Inkwell interviewed three candidates running for the District 6 seat, the district which the Armstrong campus falls under, to understand their plans for enhancing the Southside and increasing student engagement in local governance.
Chase DeCarlo
Improving the Southside
- Decrease and help the homeless population by providing resources to treat mental illness and drug addiction, as well as transitional housing
- Decrease violent crime
- Build more affordable housing units and provide financial assistance to those who need it through housing programs, such as the Georgia Dream Ownership Program
- Increase business development/make the Southside a more appealing place to live
Student involvement
- Launch a podcast aimed at young audiences to demystify legislative processes.
- Increase pay and job opportunities for young people
- Integrate Georgia Southern-Armstrong further into the community
Kurtis Purtee, Incumbent Alderman and Police Captain at Armstrong
Improving the Southside
- Investing in the Savannah affordable housing fund and working with developers to build more affordable housing
- Help the homeless community by providing housing and working with the Interagency Council on Homelessness
- Partnering with the Savannah Police Department to increase public safety
Student involvement
- Collaborating with the Young Democrats of Chatham County and Georgia Southern’s Student Government Association
- Voter registration events on campus
- Ensuring student safety on campus
- Create more jobs for post-grad students who want to stay in Savannah
Accomplishments as Alderman
- Investments in recreational areas and neighborhoods, such as a “$2.5 million fix” in Joseph A. Tribble Park
- Investing “$2 million in sidewalk repairs” that will connect Coffee Bluff to Windsor Forest, then Windsor Forst to Wilshire
- Investing in the Tide to Town trail to “connect all of our communities together” for those who do not have access to a vehicle
- Written the nondiscrimination ordinance
- The Vision Zero plan
- Helped to raise the minimum wage for city employees to $15 per hour
Mike McCann
Improving the Southside
- Hands-on approach to decreasing homelessness through nonprofit organizations like the Interagency Council for Homelessness
- Implement neighborhood crime watch associations to decrease crime
- Build income-based housing units
- Improve recreational areas and public transportation
Student involvement
- Aims to create programs that encourage college students to get involved in their local government
- Focused on resolving issues that past generations have faced
- Create higher-paying jobs for students in Savannah
