Mayoral candidates share views on quality of life issues at campus forum
Kim Chaudoin | 615.966.6494 |
A crowd of more than 300 members of the Nashville community braved the cold to attend a mayoral candidates forum hosted by the Nelson & Sue Andrews Institute for Civic Leadership and presented by the Nashville Civic Design Center.
The forum gave candidates running for Nashville mayor an opportunity to share their viewpoints on important community issues. Participants in the forum were Megan Barry, Charles Robert Bone, David Fox, Bill Freeman, Howard Gentry, Jeremy Kane and Linda Eskind Rebrovick.
The 2015 Nashville mayoral election will take place on Aug. 6. The candidate who gets elected will succeed incumbent Mayor Karl Dean, who is in his second term of office and is term limited and ineligible to run for reelection.
The Nashville Civic Design Center focused the forum on quality of life issues such as improving transportation and mass transit, walkability, neighborhood planning and design, housing affordability and food access as well as open space and parks. Each candidate had an opportunity to respond to a series of questions related to those issues.
“There will be a lot of important issues facing our next mayor,” said Gary Gaston, design director at the organization. “The Nashville Civic Design Center brings a focus to quality of life issues for the candidates to gain their perspectives on them – and make sure that these issues remain a top priority as the campaign season proceeds.”
Bringing the community together for conversations of significance, such as the mayoral candidate forum and last month’s Abriendo Puertas (Opening Doors), is one of Lipscomb University’s community outreach priorities.
"The Andrews Institute thrives on collaborations and the impact they can have on our community,” said Lydia Lenker, managing director of the Andrews Institute. “We were honored to partner with the Nashville Civic Design Center to host this significant conversation at Lipscomb. It was a privilege to have a front row seat to learn about the mayoral candidates and their vision for Nashville."
Gaston said he believes the forum was a success.
“I am grateful for such a strong attendance at the forum because it shows that theses issues are very important to Nashvillians – as we plan for our future," he said. “I am grateful to our partners at Lipscomb for hosting a great event and look forward to seeking additional collaborations in the near future.”
Lipscomb University students had an opportunity to tap into this campus event by watching the forum in another location, discussing the issues addressed and giving immediate feedback on candidate responses.