Shontel Lewis

-Campaign Website - www.shontelforcouncil.com

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-Contact Information – Shontel Lewis | 303.642.6954 | yallknowshontel@gmail.com 

 Shontel Lewis

-In 100 words or less tell us who you are and why you are running?

I am running because I believe the Health of our city is the Wealth of Our City. Too frequently, we measure the progress of our city in dollars when we should be prioritizing our social determinants of health — affordable housing, healthy and affordable food, quality health care, education and job training, community based resources, frequent and effective transit, and a flourishing culture. As your next City Councillor, I am committing myself towards making District 8 the healthiest District to live in in the City and County of Denver, while improving both individual and community health outcomes across the entire city.

-In 100 words or less, why do you love living in Denver?

I love living in Denver because it has been a vibrant home for me to not only grow from infant to adult but for me to raise my family. Denver has been a place of opportunity, a place where a young girl can go from poverty, a teen mother, eviction and eventually a former Vice President running for city council. Denver is such a rich city with such potential to be a model as a thriving city where all can live rich and full lives. -What are your top three favorite songs of all time?

-What was your first job?

Age 13, Summer Youth Employment Program | Refurbishing computers.

 Shontel Lewis

-It is estimated that Denver is short by nearly 70,000 units of housing. What would you do to expedite increasing Denver’s housing stock?

With a housing shortage, building more housing is often the answer, and building more housing is good, however we need to focus city policies on subsidized and affordable housing, enhancing the city’s capacity to build housing according to its needs. We need to ensure that we are providing all housing types in all of our neighborhoods throughout the city. Additionally, there are immediate steps that we can take as it pertains to our land use patterns for denser more walkable neighborhoods, understanding that density is a great draw for increased transit.

-From recent reports, rental housing in Denver is out of reach for residents. What is your plan to ensure affordable housing for all in every type of housing?

New housing is incredibly important and we should be making public investments to meet the urgent need. The city could fund community or social housing through the creation of a social housing authority to support the development of new housing(using Prop 123 funds), providing the opportunity to build permanently affordable housing at scale. Land use reform could enable more economical types of development through the reduction of parking requirements, minimum lot sizes, setback requirements etc. We also can use tools like the newly passed state law allowing apartment acquisition by municipalities.

Unhoused community members have long called Denver home, but Denver has historically struggled to develop effective, human-centered strategies to address homelessness. What is your experience with homelessness, and how would you go about providing sustainable services and housing?

As a parent, I struggled to stay housed and understand through my lived experience the precarity of our housing system. As a former VP at the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless, I also understand the policy structures and ways to change policy to meet peoples’ housing needs. I know how people’s circumstances vary, but we all do better when our support systems kick in when things get tough — Denver needs to focus on providing that lasting support, so that people can truly break the cycles of poverty and thrive.

 Shontel Lewis

-Would you support best value contracting and would you support a collective bargaining agreement for Denver city workers?

Yes — every worker deserves the right to unionize.

-How will you expedite and ensure completion of the airport renovation?

A recent report by the Denver auditor’s office on the Great Hall project showed the need for more oversight, better recordkeeping, and greater contractual accountability when the city contracts with third parties on these high-dollar projects. Additionally, we need to ensure that proper labor standards are being met as we move expediently toward project completion. The next Council will need to ensure the Auditor has the necessary information and tools to achieve these objectives.

-What are the biggest needs and opportunities you see for the City and County of Denver to foster economic development, while safeguarding and bolstering livable jobs?

We’ve seen a huge amount of interest in climate-related work through the Climate Action Office, and I believe the City should take advantage of the enthusiasm and increase the opportunities for community-centered climate jobs. Additionally, raising wages for City workers is something the Council can directly control and do quickly, especially when it comes to raising the floor for its lower-paid workers. The next Council should also be thoughtful about the jobs created through its various contracts, and how best to provide those quality jobs using public dollars.

-Business opportunities for businesses owned by people of color, women, and other marginalized populations are key to Denver’s economic sustainability and equity goals. How will you prioritize business development programs among these key communities?

The city should work to cultivate more worker-owned businesses, which have the dual effect of empowering people of color, women, and marginalized populations and enhancing worker power. The city’s procurement and contracting practices are another area where the Council can look to keep valuable community businesses alive and thriving.

 Shontel Lewis

-In your view, what is the most pressing public safety need for the City and County of Denver today?

The City should target poverty to address the root of the many stems of safety risks that affect Denver in pressing ways. It is no coincidence that rising costs of housing have come with rising rates of homelessness and eviction. With Denver still dealing with the impacts of a global pandemic, extreme inflation in core costs, and a continual stream of gun violence, the leaders of the City should prioritize economic security for vulnerable people, so that the person who loses a job doesn’t lose their home, or the senior struggling to get by doesn’t have to skip on groceries.

-How would you go about ensuring equity across our public safety system?

Communities of color continue to be disproportionately arrested and policed, and often when these concerns are raised, the community feels its voice is not listened to. We know that selective enforcement of law undermines the public trust, and makes our communities less safe. As a Councillor, I will use the powers of oversight to hold our law enforcement accountable and seek more equitable outcomes of public safety.

-What does community safety mean to you?

Community safety should be about restorative justice — about reparation from harms, about evidence-based and trauma-informed practices. Our communities are more safe when people have affordable housing, have accessible and effective public transportation, quality jobs, access to medical care and therapy, clean air and water. Safety should not be about punitive reflex, but about building a resilient and cohesive community.

 Shontel Lewis

-A key in making sure Denver is a livable, equitable and thriving community is ensuring a robust transit system. Describe your vision and plan for enhancing Denver’s transit services.

As a former RTD Director, I understand firsthand the importance and the struggles of Denver’s transit services. While we work with RTD and state partners for lasting regional solutions, including sustainable funding for projects, Denver can continue to build out DOTI’s capacity to provide micromodal solutions like the Montbello Connector, and work towards more multimodal infrastructure to accommodate the growing demand for bike and bus transportation options.

 Shontel Lewis

-Please share your solutions for Denver’s approach to the current migrant crisis and ensuring that Denver’s programs and policies treat our immigrant communities with dignity, respect, and fairness.

Migrant communities deserve dignity and respect, and we need to do better as a City in opening our doors and our resources to provide for the hungry stranger. While the influx can strain the city’s capacity, we have the wealth in this city to provide the help, and work with the communities to learn exactly what kind of help is wanted. We should also work with state and federal officials to the extent that meaningful support is available, but Denver can get creative and aggressive on its own in reallocating resources toward helping these groups in need.

-How have you advocated for immigrant rights policies or do you have personal connections to immigration? How does that prepare you for being a candidate in an immigrant friendly state and city?

I first became aware of families with a variety of citizenship status, as a student at Manual High School there were often cases of families being unfairly split, or constantly under threat, due to failed policies. I then meet my high school sweetheart with a family from outside of this country under constant threat of separation for engaging in basic necessities like employment, accessing health care, utilizing transit etc. These threats still continue as citizenship is a very long and difficult process. I believe the experiences in my family and in my employment at DPS, RTD, and Goodwill provided me with a lens of understanding, compassion and desire to support folks with mixed-citizenship status to not only welcome folx but to ensure we are fighting for what they need to thrive.

 Shontel Lewis

-How will you ensure and evaluate equity across Denver’s programs, policies, and departments both among city communities and among city employees?

I will bring the same principles of equity I’ve talked about throughout this document to the City of Denver — good paying jobs, community centered values and representation, and ensuring that people have the support they need to thrive. I know this community, I grew up here and I’ve been involved with the community for my entire life. I commit to balancing the many needs of the City and prioritizing the most vulnerable when resources are stretched thin.

-What is your vision for Denver’s hospital systems?

Denver’s hospital systems provide essential services for the city and the region, and we can always improve both the health and the economic outcomes for patients who use services. I believe the City should explore ways to cancel medical debt for vulnerable populations, and ease the burden of care. The city should also partner with its hospitals, air quality professionals, and other relevant personnel to ensure that climate emergency preparedness plans are in place and we have contingencies for the events that Denver might face.

-How would you ensure equitable abortion access for women and pregnant people regardless of insurance?

The City could explore the idea of guaranteeing/canceling the medical debt for women and pregnant people who seek abortion services in the city and do not have insurance, and should be looking at all the other available options for ensuring access to important reproductive care. With the attacks on abortion across other states, Denver should prioritize funds for this purpose.