Maggie Ballard, candidate for City Council District 6 in Wichita, KS
Name: Maggie Ballard
Age: 39
Occupation: Co-Founder of Paxton’s Blessing Boxes and operate an online sales company
Previous government service: Member of the District 4 Citizens Advisory Board
Have you run for office before? (Please list any previous offices sought) No
What is the top issue in your race, and how would you address it?
I’m running to make City Hall more transparent and accountable to the people. Currently we are seeing too much policy making happening behind closed doors. Taxpayers need to be able to trust the government is taking care of the basics and investing our tax dollars wisely. When elected, I would champion policies that promote more competitive bidding processes and review vendor contracts in public meetings so our vendors do not get complacent. The privatization of city landscaping is a perfect example. Our city invested big money into landscaping plans around the city, however, no one is holding vendors accountable when they fail to maintain our assets. That is unacceptable. We need consistent reviews with real metrics so we aren’t handing over taxpayer dollars to vendors not doing the job they are being paid to do.
What to do with the area’s homeless population has been a major issue recently. After they were pushed out of Naftzger Park, they migrated north a few blocks and set up camp around Open Door and the Lord’s Diner. Now, key sidewalks in that area have been striped off as no-sitting zones and warnings have been issued that the homeless people’s impromptu shelters and other possessions will be subject to seizure. Do you support these policies and why or why not?
I’ve spent years advocating for those experiencing homelessness, working one-on-one to connect them to services and shelter. I’ve spent my own money to buy hotel rooms because there aren’t enough beds available. This new policy is harmful and short-sighted. I believe that’s why our current council member worked behind closed doors with management to implement this policy with no public comment. This was announced at the District 6 Advisory Board meeting for the first time and the lines were painted the next day. Moving folks down the street doesn’t solve the problem. When elected, I will focus on the real issues, not just the optics. Right now, shelters kick people out during the day, making it hard to get a job while carrying your belongings around with no address for the application. We force people to wait weeks to get addiction or mental health treatment. If someone wants help, they cannot wait. We need transformative change and I have the real world experience to get it done.
The city has ongoing project plans to reconfigure many four-lane streets, including main thoroughfares such as Broadway and Douglas, to one car-traffic lane running in each direction with a center turn lane. Do you support this plan and why or why not?
I support the concept of the project, but we will need a council dedicated to consistent oversight to make sure we get this right. For this plan to be successful, we must collect feedback from residents in those areas because no one knows what traffic controls neighborhoods need more than the people who live there. I enjoy the walkability of Mass Street in Lawrence. The atmosphere encourages residents to get outside, walk and enjoy shops along the way. This plan would have a similar effect of slowing down traffic and encouraging more foot traffic for our local businesses. However, I want to ensure we increase pedestrian crosswalks and make them user friendly. Many crosswalks in our city take so long that people end up jaywalking and it’s incredibly dangerous. Pedestrians need the right of way, traffic directions should be well-marked so cars passing by can avoid this area and the City must increase park and ride options for the Q-line to service these areas to decrease car traffic.
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