Micha Rosenoer: Edgewater City Council Candidate Questionnaire

Micha Rosenoer, candidate for Edgewater City Council (photo provided by the candidate)

We asked each candidate for Edgewater City Council five questions to help community members get to know the candidates and their views.

Here are the answers sent by Micha Rosenoer:

Your Occupation:

Nonprofit Executive Director at Emerge Colorado

What do you love about Edgewater?

I love Edgewater for the same reasons so many of our neighbors do. Edgewater is a small town with a wonderful neighborhood feel on the edge of a big city. We get all the benefits of a tight-knit community while still having access to the cultural and economic opportunities in Denver, and within only a few minutes of the mountains. I love that kids can walk safely to and from school, and that we know the owners of local businesses by name. I also love the cultural, age, and socioeconomic diversity of Edgewater – the city is 41% Latinx, a mix of working and middle class, renters and homeowners, and both young people who recently bought their first homes and older people who have lived here from decades. We have strong roots here too – my husband’s great grandfather opened up a butcher shop in the 1920s just blocks from where we live now, and his family has been here ever since. Edgewater is a great place to grow our family, and lots of Edgewater residents feel the same.

What do you view as the role of the Edgewater City Council?

The Edgewater City Council is comprised of elected community members who should balance the views of the city’s residents while ensuring our most marginalized community members are heard and represented. Their role should be to reach out to community members, local businesses, teachers, and other local interests as well as other governing bodies to develop policy options that reflect and respond to the needs of our city while ensuring long-term financial sustainability. Edgewater is a wonderful city, and it takes proactive, forward-thinking leadership on the city council to protect what we love and prepare us for our future.

Which of Edgewater’s recent legislative actions is your least favorite? Which is your favorite?

The city council’s goal is to design policy that represents the best interest of the whole community. But as I’ve been talking to residents, I’ve noticed that most residents don’t know about major planning processes being undertaken by the city and have not given input on the plans, including the recent sustainability plan, traffic calming mobility plan, or the comprehensive plan. In fact, the comprehensive plan notes that near 40% of Edgewater identify as non-white, and the city needs to prioritize the engagement of these members of our community. The city needs to do a better job of reaching out to the whole community for input and meeting people where they are at instead of waiting for community members to come to them. This can be facilitated with a stronger communications plan including digital and social engagement, in-person recruitment, better understanding why some people aren’t engaging in planning processes, and doing better to make government more accessible and inclusive.

Given that these plans and processes serve as the foundation for much of the policy coming from the city council, we must do better to include all members of our community to ensure that these policies balance the needs and input of different interests and don’t prioritize the values of the few over the needs of the many.

I am glad, though, that the city passed the recent sustainability plan and adopted a resolution putting in place a formal sustainability board to implement that plan. Edgewater has some of the worst air pollution on the Front Range, and very low recycling rates. We can do better at protecting our air quality, water resources, climate, and public health, and I am glad the city council has taken proactive action to do so.

What role can Edgewater City Council play in supporting current small businesses and attracting new ones?

The city council should pursue zoning and permitting processes that guide (re)development and support small businesses, walkability, and that enhance the community feel of Edgewater. For instance, we can work with businesses to minimize regulatory delays and identify opportunities to support business start-ups and expansions. We can also explore rezoning parts of the 25th avenue corridor to mixed-use or commercial use to create connectivity between the businesses between Ames and Gray streets. The recent Comprehensive Plan also noted that 13% of Edgewater residents are unemployed; the city can work with local businesses to identify workforce need and encourage employment of Edgewater residents.

Why should Edgewater residents vote for you?

I love Edgewater, and our residents do too. The small town feel, sense of community, and diversity of our residents are significant, unique strengths of Edgewater, and I will work to maintain that character. We also can do more to improve the daily lives of our citizens to better reflect our values, like offering curbside composting, ensuring more community outreach on city services and programs, and fostering more engagement and equitable representation. We also need to ensure that we are leading on issues of growth and affordability by being smart and taking community input on zoning, addressing skyrocketing rental prices, and reducing air pollution so that families can put down roots and thrive in Edgewater long-term. As the daughter of an immigrant and a military veteran, I know first-hand the value of hard-work and the struggles of working families. I am excited at the prospect of helping Edgewater prepare for our future, and would be honored to earn your vote.

Joel Newton

Joel has been a resident of Edgewater, Colorado with his family since 2012. He is the Executive Director of local education nonprofit Edgewater Collective and Editor of the Edgewater Echo.