2021 Edgewater City Council Candidate Spotlight: Liam Donevan

This weekend we will be spotlighting the candidates for Edgewater Mayor and City Council. There is only one candidate for Edgewater Mayor, current City Councilmember John Beltrone. There are four candidates for four seats on Edgewater City Council. The City Council candidate with the least number of votes will finish the last two years of former Councilmember Micha Rosenoer’s term on Council.

You can read the candidate spotlights as they are released here.

Today we are spotlighting one of four candidates for Edgewater City Council, Liam Donevan.

Your Occupation:

I manage a program that provides systems advocacy and supportive services for people with disabilities in the criminal justice system.

What do you love about Edgewater?

What’s not to like about Edgewater? I love the small town feel with easy access to all the offerings of a major city. I love feeling part of the community, whether that’s at a 25th Ave. block party, picking up my yearly compost at a sustainability event, or heckling a rec softball game at Citizen’s Park. I grew up in a very small, sleepy midwestern town and spent most of my 20s escaping to the hustle and bustle of big cities. Edgewater is the perfect marriage of those two worlds and I couldn’t be happier to make it my home!

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

The role of City Council should be to ensure that everyone in Edgewater feels safe and secure in their home and that they have the resources they need to thrive. City Council should also always be thinking about the future and considering how actions taken today (or not taken) will impact the residents of Edgewater 5, 10, 20 years from now.

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

Overall, I think City Council has done an excellent job of representing the best interests of Edgewater’s residents. What does stand out as my least favorite action is the Edgewater Crossing development at 29th and Kendall St. The exploding cost of housing in the Denver metro area is nothing short of a crisis and every level of government needs to be taking advantage of every opportunity they get to confront it. This was a prime opportunity for affordable housing that instead is being turned into $500k+ townhomes.

My favorite has been everything to do with the city’s Sustainability Plan. I love being a resident of a city that is prioritizing climate action and I am looking forward to continuing to support the efforts of the Sustainability Board. The gardener in me has especially appreciated the city’s new composing program!

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

It’s important to recognize that supporting small businesses doesn’t just mean ensuring that owners are raking in profits, it also means supporting the workers that are making those small businesses run. To me, a thriving business scene in Edgewater is one where all workers are paid a living wage, where working parents have access to consistent, affordable childcare, where staff can still show up to work if their car breaks down, where workers aren’t constantly worried about making rent that month. Certainly, COVID has been a time where direct, financial support to small business owners was essential and I am absolutely in favor of ongoing support while this pandemic continues, but my priorities will be ensuring that the workers in those businesses are not left behind.

Why should Edgewater residents vote for you?

Residents of Edgewater should vote for me if they want to be represented by someone who will be a tireless advocate for everyone who lives or works in Edgewater that is struggling to put food on the table or to keep a roof over their head.

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.