City of Rochester Political Candidate Questionnaire 2025

About: The FPC team reached out to all political candidates running for Mayor and for available City Council seats in June 2025 to ask them the following questions related to the food system in the City of Rochester. Scroll to see each candidate’s responses. Candidates are listed alphabetically by last name for each political position.

  1. What role does the City government have in ensuring that our community has consistent access to nutritious and culturally appropriate food?
  2. Are you familiar with the Rochester Community Food Systems Plan? How would you support its implementation? 
  3. What can the City do to promote the purchase of local foods by city institutions?
  4. What is the role of the city in supporting community gardens? 
  5. How can the City support garden and nutrition education for City youth?
  6. What can the City do to protect children from predatory marketing of unhealthy foods? 


Candidates for Mayor:*

  1. We work to attract and support these type of businesses and work with local entrepreneurs.
  2. Yes.
  3. We do this now by giving priority to local vendors and supporting local through our Healthy Roc Grocer Program.
  4. We provide resources to those wanting gardens including in helping with materials.
  5. We have our cultivating communities program which helps youth with jobs in gardening and nutrition.
  6. We can work with the NYS Attorney General to stop this.

  1. The city government has a critical role to play in building and sustaining a local food system that is just, resilient, and responsive to community needs. That means ensuring access to nutritious and culturally appropriate food is not left to chance or charity—it must be a matter of policy.

    As mayor, I would prioritize food equity as a core part of our public health, economic development, and environmental sustainability agendas. The city can use its planning, zoning, and procurement powers to support urban agriculture, incentivize healthy food retail in underserved areas, and protect land for community gardens and local growers. It can also invest in infrastructure that strengthens the local food economy—like shared commercial kitchens, farmers markets, and food hubs—particularly in neighborhoods that have experienced disinvestment.

    Just as important, the city should center the voices of those most impacted by food insecurity in policymaking. That means working in true partnership with groups like the Food Policy Council, frontline organizations, and resident leaders to co-create solutions that reflect the cultural diversity, knowledge, and priorities of Rochester’s communities.

  2. I strongly support its vision of a just, resilient, and community-driven local food system. The plan recognizes that food access is deeply connected to racial equity, health outcomes, land use, and economic opportunity—and that meaningful change requires intentional policy and investment.

    As mayor, I would prioritize implementation by ensuring the plan is integrated into city budgeting, planning, and development processes. That includes protecting land for urban agriculture, reforming zoning to support community gardens and food businesses, investing in neighborhood-level infrastructure like farmers markets and shared kitchens, and supporting food entrepreneurship—especially among Black, Brown, and immigrant communities.

  3. The City can play a powerful role in growing the local food economy by leading with its own purchasing power. City institutions—like R-Centers, senior centers, and after-school programs—serve thousands of meals and snacks every year. By shifting procurement policies to prioritize local, sustainably grown, and culturally relevant foods, the City can directly support Rochester-area farmers and food producers, while also improving the quality and nutritional value of meals served to residents.

    As mayor, I would work to adopt a Good Food Purchasing Policy, create purchasing cooperatives, and invest in supply chain infrastructure, all while prioritizing equity.

  4. Community gardens are vital neighborhood assets. The City’s role is to not only permit these spaces, but actively protect, expand, and invest in them.

    As mayor, I would ensure the city preserves and increases access to land for community gardening by identifying vacant lots that can be designated as long-term or permanent garden sites, especially in areas with limited food access. We have to streamline the permits and reduces barriers for residents and organizations who want to start or maintain a garden. The city can also play a role in providing material support like water access, soil testing, compost, fencing, and tools. We should also ntegrate gardens into city planning by recognizing them as essential infrastructure.

  5. The City can play a major role in connecting young people to food, land, and health through hands-on garden and nutrition education. These programs do more than teach kids how to grow vegetables—they cultivate leadership, build lifelong healthy habits, and foster a deeper connection to community and environment. We should train and hire youth as garden educators and food ambassadors and integrate programming into R-Centers.
  6. As mayor, I would work to restrict advertising of junk food near schools, parks, and youth-focused spaces, especially on city-owned property, set nutrition standards for foods sold in vending machines and concessions in city facilities, and leverage city permitting and zoning to limit the concentration of fast food outlets.

  1. Food is an absolute necessity, but presently many of our communities qualify as food deserts, meaning that they lack credible grocery stores and healthy food options. The city needs to ensure that every neighborhood is planned with healthy foods in mind, not an afterthought. In my plan to build 4,000 units of housing for ownership, I will have grocery stores integrated into every pocket of development. In other words, I envision working with small grocers and co-ops to get them to open in the areas that need them most, cutting the red tape so it becomes easy to do business, and making city lands available for community gardens and urban farms.

    It also means that we need to acknowledge that food is not just food, that cultural foods matter. I will ensure that our policies are respectful of and supportive toward the foods our communities actually eat and value. That is how we build health and dignity for every resident.

  2. I have not had the chance to look into it yet.
  3. The city can do a good deal to ensure our schools, hospitals, and senior centers buy their product from the local day. We can set procurement targets, say, insisting that 20 or 30 percent of food purchasing be done on New York State farms. There can be values-based procurement policies that give priority to the fresher, local, and culturally relevant foods so that their providers can offer those options to vendors who bid for city contracts. Working with the Food Policy Council, we can identify barriers preventing food hubs, cooperatives, or minority-owned farms from accessing city buyers. Small farms and urban growers need also to be assisted on the distribution or paperwork so that they are not foreclosed from doing business with the city. Lastly, apart from tracking and publishing the buying rate of local food by city institutions, we continue holding ourselves accountable in multiplying the local food economy. Local food expenditure bucks the dollar for health: it also keeps money within the community and feeds our growers.
  4. The city supports community gardens. That means the city can make land available for lease as vacant lots at an inexpensive rate, or can modify zoning to ease the operating conditions for the gardens. The city can also make investments in water access, soil testing, and fencing so a garden can initiate and be kept safe. The city can work alongside local nonprofits and community groups to provide technical assistance and training, as well as mini-grants for seeds and tools. Above all, let us ensure community gardens become inseparable from the city for the long-term, rather than an interim solution, by incorporating them into land use planning and providing real security. Community gardens create healthy neighborhoods, grow fresh food, and nurture local relationships; so it should be expected of the city to not only allow but promote gardens in every way.
  5. The city can help youth learn about gardens and nutrition in a number of ways. We can create school gardens and urban farms in collaboration with youth programs and schools so that children can experience growing food firsthand. We can offer small grants to community centers, after-school programs, and schools to cover the cost of garden curriculum, tools, and seeds. In order to teach children how to make nutritious meals and how to know where their food comes from, the city can also collaborate with neighborhood nonprofits to introduce nutrition education into summer camps, after-school programs, and classrooms. The city can help children develop healthier habits and meaningfully connect with the land and their food by funding these programs.
  6. City can help with restricting ad within city control.

*We did not receive a response from: Louis Sabo.

Candidates for City Council:**

  1. The city has a critical role in eradicate food deserts across the city of Rochester.
  2. Yes!I would like to have monthly meetings together so we can map out the best way to serve the residents of the city of Rochester.
  3. To maintain a partnership with them and other appreciate agencies to ensure quality food service for the residents of Rochester.
  4. To make them available in all the areas of the city where there most needed.
  5. Providing community education to the residents about their function & need in our neighborhoods across the city.
  6. We would have to take responsibility had a community to ensure proper fruits and vegetables or any products with only provide nutriential values for our families.
  1. City government has a huge role in ensuring that our community has consistent access to nutritious and culturally appropriate food. We administer the Public Market, which is one of the most important channels for food access in the community. We also run programming for youth at Rec Centers that is responsible for feeding people. There are also a lot of indirect ways that the City can play a role in food access, including zoning, grants, and more. That is precisely the reason that I wrote the legislation to create the Food Policy Council.
  2. Yes. I will work closely with City departments to create an implementation plan.
  3. We are already making good progress on promoting the purchase of local foods by institutions run by City of Rochester. When it comes to institutions within the city limit that are not run by city government, there is not much opportunity for legislative action but rather through intentional, strategic, relationship building.
  4. The City should be doing everything in our power to facilitate the creation of community gardens on vacant, unbuildable lots. We have lots of these locations. I have worked extensively on our existing garden permits to improve this process. We must continue to work with neighbors and organizations to develop a larger network of people interested in starting or adopting community gardens.
  5. The Rec Centers and Libraries are critical opportunities for this type of educational programming. We have made progress in this area, but there is still much work to do.
  6. We can use the business permitting process to change what is allowable for marketing. This is something I’d look forward to addressing further with the FPC.

  1. City government plays a critical role in shaping a food system that is equitable, sustainable, and rooted in community. Access to nutritious and culturally appropriate food is not a luxury—it’s a basic need that directly impacts health, academic success, and economic mobility.

    The City can lead by investing in urban agriculture, supporting local food entrepreneurs, preserving land for community gardens, and ensuring that zoning and land-use policies encourage food access in every neighborhood. We can also strengthen partnerships with organizations like the Rochester Food Policy Council to ensure residents’ voices and cultural traditions shape how food policy is created and implemented.

    As a City Councilmember, I would champion food justice as part of a broader equity agenda—prioritizing funding, infrastructure, and policies that ensure all residents, regardless of income or ZIP code, have access to the food they need to thrive.

  2. I was not familiar with the plan before receiving this questionnaire, but I’ve since taken time to review it. I appreciate its focus on equity, community voice, and access to healthy, culturally appropriate food.

    As a City Councilmember, I would support the plan by advocating for policies that increase access to healthy food through neighborhood-based food businesses, mobile markets, and stronger support for local food entrepreneurs. I’d work to ensure that city resources are targeted to areas most affected by food deserts and food swamps, where access to nutritious options is limited.

    Access to good food—and real food choices—is essential. Everyone in our city should be able to feed their families well, regardless of where they live. I’m committed to advancing policies that make that possible.

  3. The city can lead by example by prioritizing local food purchasing for its own facilities—like rec centers, city-sponsored events, and youth programs. It can also encourage and support other institutions, like the Rochester City School District, to adopt similar practices by promoting the benefits of local procurement and exploring ways to align funding or partnerships.

    Additionally, the city can simplify its own procurement processes to make it easier for local food producers to bid on contracts, and partner with food hubs or aggregators to help smaller farms meet institutional needs. Offering technical assistance and incentives to vendors who source locally can also help shift more dollars into our regional food economy.

    By supporting local food purchasing, the city can help strengthen our local economy, reduce environmental impact, and increase access to fresh, high-quality food for Rochester families.

  4. The city plays an important role in making land and resources available for residents who want to grow food in their neighborhoods. While I don’t believe community gardens should be the city’s primary food access strategy, I do believe they are valuable community assets that promote wellness, education, and neighborhood pride.

    City policies should make it easier for residents to manage and sustain these spaces. That includes allowing garden managers to install permanent features—like park benches, compost bins, or plant fruit trees—which can provide additional food sources and turn gardens into natural gathering places for residents. These improvements help transform community gardens into vibrant, welcoming spaces that foster connection, pride, and ownership. The city’s role is to reduce red tape and ensure residents have the tools and flexibility to make these spaces work for their communities.

  5. The city can play a key role in connecting youth to hands-on learning about food, gardening, and healthy living—especially through its network of rec centers and youth programs. One meaningful step would be installing raised garden beds at each rec center and training staff to support food growing activities. This not only teaches children how to grow food, but also provides a critical, transferable life skill that can benefit them and their families.

    In addition, the city can partner with local organizations to offer nutrition workshops, cooking demonstrations, and seasonal food programs that help youth understand the connection between what they eat and how they feel. These experiences build confidence, promote healthy habits, and foster pride in contributing to their communities—all while addressing long-term food access and health equity.

  6. While the city can’t regulate all advertising, it can take important steps to reduce children’s exposure to unhealthy food marketing in spaces it controls. For example, the city can prioritize food vendors and concessionaires who do not market unhealthy products to children—especially at rec centers, city events, and public facilities.

    The city can also adopt healthy vending and procurement policies to ensure that the food and beverages offered in public buildings align with public health goals. Additionally, through public campaigns and partnerships with local schools and organizations, the city can help raise awareness about how food marketing targets youth and support efforts that promote healthier choices.

    By using its influence and purchasing power responsibly, the city can help create environments where healthy eating is encouraged—and predatory marketing has less room to thrive.

  1. Our city government needs to ensure by using all legal mechanisms to ensure all residents have equal access to nutritious and culturally appropriate foods.
  2. Yes, I am familiar with the Rochester Community Food System Plan. I would support its implementation, by drafting legislation that allows the positive aspects of the program to thrive.
  3. Put in place monitors, to check and balances, that the purchase of local foods is actually occurring.
  4. The role of the city is to support when possible the rezoning of city lots for the purchase of community gardens. Also, provide start up dollars so residents can begin these community gardens.
  5. Bottom line, make yourself available to endorse programs where our youth are a priority.
  6. Do not allow such marketing within our city.
  1. To ensure that our community has consistent access to nutritious and culturally appropriate food, city government can support initiatives live the food policy council, working to create a healthy food system that takes several factors into account, including affordability and what’s possible in the natural environment. Additionally, City Council can make investments in initiatives like a municipally owned grocery store that partners with local farmers to provide organic, healthy locally grown foods at low costs.

  2. I’m aware that the first Rochester community food systems plan is in progress. As a legislator who practices collaborative governance, I will support implementation by collaborating to educate neighbors about the plan, offer opportunities for feedback, and priotize funding implementation efforts through the annual city budget and capital improvement plan.

    Further, I will work with allies in the state legislature to access funding for implementation of the plan.

  3. The City could work with state and federal government partners to subsidize and incentivize the purchase of local foods by institutions. The city could also fund efforts to market and educate institutions about available local foods.
  4. The city plays a critical role in supporting community gardens, by identifying and preserving city-owned land for use by the community. In collaboration with grassroots organizations, the city should implement a master plan for a network of community gardens across the city, protecting designated plots from speculative development while providing a venue for Rochester residents to connect with their natural environment. Further, the administration should consider reviewing existing garden permit policies in partnership with community garden stewards to ensure that the process is accessible, and is truly functioning to support and empower community garden members.
  5. Through partnership with R Centers and RCSD schools, the city is well positioned to develop a comprehensive gardening and nutrition education curriculum. This could serve as both an after school program and a summer camp, with the goal of introducing all RCSD students to education that teaches them how to grow their own food.
  6. City Council must enact local laws prohibiting the marketing of unhealthy foods in city-funded buildings, including City schools. Moreover, city funds should be allocated toward promoting knowledge of and advertisement for healthy foods and local food knowledge, in partnership with community gardens, local farmers, and indigenous community leaders.
  1. Local government has a responsibility to tackle local & regional food system challenges. Moreover, the City Council plays a crucial role in ensuring consistent access to food by championing innovative solutions, fostering community relationships, and setting policies to address disparities in food and nutrition security.
  2. Yes, I sit on the Community Advisory Committee (CAC) and on the Rochester Food Policy Council (RFPC). I will help implement the Food Policy System plan by making sure all voices are heard when it comes to this plan. Ensuring our residents have access to healthy food is one of my top priorities and to tackle this issue I want to make sure that our data is shared with stakeholders and create initiatives that are out of the box so all cultures have equal access to food for a better health outcome.
  3. The City can set policies and practices that support local food procurement by government agencies & private businesses. Use purchasing methods that target local food and procure nutritious foods for public food service & sales to promote healthy diets.
  4. The City should support community gardens by providing financial assistance, use of vacant land, equipment, community grants, and partnership with businesses and non-profits. In return the community gardens can support the city by transforming underutilized green spaces into productive green areas.
  5. The core aspect of community gardens is to provide a central open space for people of all ages. For the younger community member the community garden becomes a space which fosters social integration, community involvement & civic engagement. On the Rochester Food Policy Council I advocate for in school and after school gardening programs. The positive benefits of these programs are skill building, job training, increasing self-esteem, nutrition and food education, environmental awareness & behavior, as well as community building. For neighborhoods experiencing social, economic & physical barriers, community gardens can be an effective strategy for community development & youth empowerment.
  6. The city can reduce predatory marketing of unhealthy foods and beverages by restricting the advertisement of unhealthy products in and around certain public places such as schools, hospitals, government offices, and parks. The city can also sponsor/support education campaigns that warn people about the dangers of unhealthy foods, beverages as well as teach people how to spot predatory marketing. Something I would like to implement is create a data page that would disclose contributions from corporations that promote unhealthy foods. Most importantly on a larger level, I will advocate for extending social media privacy policies for children and youth to protect minors between 13 and 18 to protect them from data collection to be used for marketing of unhealthy products.

  1. First, we have a tremendous asset in managing the Rochester Public Market – one of the best open-air markets in the entire country. Continuing to invest in improving the market is critical to the health and affordability of healthy eating in our community.

    The city has also created an expanded food access in smaller grocers. While there is still much work to be done on quality and culturally appropriate food, the Healthy Roc Grocer program has indeed expanded access in corner stores and other small businesses.

  2. I already am supporting this work. I intend to look at the permitting process and land use, particularly when the zoning alignment project comes before council. I believe we can do more with long-term permitting and urban agriculture by revisiting our growing policies on vacant lots. I think we can also do more with transportation to food access hubs such as the public market, grocery stores, and other amenities that provide access to healthy food at a more affordable rate. With nearly 40,000 residents facing food insecurity I believe part of the solution is creating more food access opportunities in neighborhoods.
  3. I believe we can look at our purchasing policies to ensure health equity is centered and we support our local economy. I also believe education both inside our various departments around the importance of modeling behavior in our community can be part of a larger communications strategy initiated by city government.
  4. Providing access to resources (such as soil when possible, mulch, etc.), access to tools and materials, and in situations where there are long standing and strong collaborations I believe facilitated access to water is also important and the city can do more in that space. I do believe the city’s role is both cooperation and compliance. On the compliance front, we need to ensure gardens contribute to neighborhood vitality.
  5. The city can support these efforts through R-Centers, Libraries, our horticulturist, and creating programming or partnership opportunities specific to gardening and nutrition. In addition, I believe in bringing in experts. I think exposure to our vast local farming communities and educating youth on “where the apple comes from” could be a critical part of improving awareness, food access, and sustainability of healthy eating habits.

  6. I believe the city can continue to expand efforts like the Healthy Roc Grocer program to encourage the prevalence of fresh produce in stores, help stores market healthy products through product placement and store infrastructure, and work with store owners to keep the cost of produce affordable. The fact of the matter is the margins and waste of these products impact the store owners willingness to buy into selling produce.

    From a policy standpoint, the city could do more to incentivize businesses that offer healthy and culturally relevant products and regulate advertisements in businesses/windows of small stores.

  1. Advocacy. We need leaders who believe in making sure communities have such access to nutritious and culturally appropriate food. There are a lot of ways this can be improved. As a social worker I believe that I am one of the most qualified candidates to help with this. I have a few ideas: 1. we can incentivize “corner stores” to offer more nutritious and culturally appropriate foods. 2. we have to find a way to provide resources to “community gardens”.
  2. The community food systems plan is a great initiative by the City of Rochester. It would be great to have a licensed master social worker (like myself) on City Council as an advocate and can make informed suggestions in implementation.
  3. One thing we can do is identify institutions that have committed to purchasing local foods and when the City of Rochester host events- we look to vendor with those institutions first.
  4. I just visited the community garden at 161 First Street. I plan to support them and other community gardens with providing resources. This garden supports itself only by returning bottles. I will make sure that is not the only source of funding for community gardens.
  5. We must find a way to engage youth at community gardens. As a social worker I can use the platform of City Council to encourage community garden leaders to create youth opportunities and or summer programs.
  6. The City of Rochester must commission a study to identify ways in which marketing of unhealthy foods are taking place locally in Rochester, then create legislation to prohibit such marketing. I really believe that we have to make sure the corner stores are on board with embracing the City’s stand (a “stand” will be established with me in office) and work towards being leaders of healthy food options at corner stores.
  1. Food is essential. City and all government should make sure that that this basic need is met. City government and make sure that development includes the creation of grocery stores or other food options. It can also make it easier to support and operate community gardens. The city can also partner with organizations to support mobile food markets, and other famer markets, especially in under served areas.
  2. I was aware of the Food Policy Council, but wasn’t aware that it was under a larger plan. If elected to City Council, I would be very interested in supporting and move forward the recommendations that are made in this plan and push for legislation that would support the implementation of the plan.
  3. The city should be able to set policies that prioritize the purchasing of local foods.
  4. The city should be a stronger support of community gardens. The city can make it easier to activate community gardens’ by setting multi year and year long use agreements. The city can also support supplying water and power to these properties and not put it on organizations to fund these amenities.
  5. The city can advocate for garden and nutrition education in RCSD. The city can also ensure that there is this type of education at Rec Center/after school programs. The city can also include this type of education into the summer youth job program where youth are getting paid about gardens and nutrition.
  6. I would have to think more about what the city can do in this space.

  1. The City of Rochester has a responsibility to actively address food insecurity by supporting local food producers, expanding access through improved transportation and infrastructure, and ensuring that culturally significant foods are available in every neighborhood. That means rethinking zoning laws to allow more community gardens and urban farms, investing in mobile markets and food co-ops, and partnering with trusted grassroots organizations already feeding our people.

    It also means listening. Food is deeply personal and cultural—access to it should not be generic or one-size-fits-all. I will advocate for the creation of a city-wide Food Equity Advisory Council that centers the experiences of residents most affected by hunger, food apartheid, and diet-related illnesses.

    By prioritizing food justice in our policies and budget, we can nourish not just individuals—but entire communities. Healthy food is a human right. And it’s time our city government treated it that way.

  2. I am not currently familiar with the Rochester Community Food System Plan, but I am committed to learning more on behalf of the residents of our city. My commitment to food justice is not new—I founded the 14621 Food Stands during the height of the pandemic to ensure families in our most underserved neighborhoods had consistent access to free, nutritious food and hygiene supplies. These grassroots food boxes were strategically placed throughout the community and continue to serve residents to this day.

    I believe that access to nutritious, affordable, and culturally relevant food is a basic right, and I will support the implementation of any plan that centers equity, community voice, and sustainability. I look forward to working alongside local growers, advocates, and residents to ensure that the Rochester Community Food System Plan delivers meaningful change across every zip code.

  3. The city has real power to lead by example—and that includes putting our dollars where our values are. We should be making sure our schools, rec centers, senior programs, and other city-run institutions are buying food from local farms and vendors, especially small businesses offering culturally relevant options.

    It shouldn’t be hard for local folks to do business with the city. We can make it easier by supporting food hubs, investing in cold storage, and helping growers get the tools and training they need to navigate the system. And when the city throws events, local food should be on the table—literally.

    This is about food justice, economic justice, and community care. If we’re going to talk about equity, our purchasing practices need to reflect it.

  4. Community gardens are more than just green spaces—they’re about healing, feeding our neighbors, building relationships, and reclaiming land for the people. The city has a responsibility to support that.

    That starts with making land accessible—vacant lots shouldn’t sit unused when folks are ready to grow. The city can help by offering space, water access, small grants for tools, and making the process simple, not complicated.

    We also need to protect these gardens long-term. Too often, communities build something beautiful only to lose it to development. The city should work with residents to make sure these spaces stay rooted.

    And most importantly, the city needs to follow the lead of the people doing the work. Support doesn’t mean control—it means listening, resourcing, and getting out of the way when necessary. Community gardens feed more than bellies—they feed hope. The city should help them thrive.

  5. The city can pour into our youth by turning schoolyards, rec centers, and empty lots into gardens where kids learn to grow their own food and connect to their health and culture.

    We should fund programs that teach cooking, gardening, and nutrition—especially those already doing the work in our neighborhoods. And let’s create paid summer jobs so young people can earn while they learn.

    This is about more than food—it’s about pride, power, and planting seeds that help our kids grow strong. The city should be there to help them thrive.

  6. The city has a responsibility to protect our kids from junk food marketing—especially in our public spaces. We can remove unhealthy ads from bus stops, rec centers, and near schools, and instead promote real, healthy, culturally relevant food.

    We should also invest in programs that teach kids how to spot and resist predatory marketing. And we need to hold companies accountable for targeting our neighborhoods. Our kids deserve better—and the city has the power to lead that change.

  1. I believe it’s the role of local government to make sure that the basic needs of their community are met. Fresh, nutrient dense, and culturally appropriate food is one of the foundational pillars of these needs and I do not believe that Rochester is doing enough to make this the reality. Our city has an 8 zip code area where 30% of the people are struggling to feed themselves. This is unacceptable under any circumstance, but the fact that our region also grow 45% of the fruits and vegetables for the entire state makes it even more disturbing. We have resources, we grow food, and we have 3,000 vacant lots that could support educational and community driven urban agriculture to improve the accessibility to and familiar with fresh produce that would keep our community fed and healthy.
  2. Yes, I have been to a number of meetings and presentations related to this plan, and I look forward to helping to change the landscape of our local food systems. The work that has been done by the Food Policy Council and their collaborators has been integral to understanding the state of our food systems (several of the metrics in my previous answer came from a presentation given a few months ago in collaboration with this group), now it is time for local officials to take action and make sure that zoning, permitting processes, and budgetary priorities align with the needs of this community.

  3. There are a number of ways to address this issue. The first is education. If people do not understand how to use produce, then they will not eat it, even if it is given to them for free. I helped to design a program (in my capacity at EquiCenter) that received nearly $1M in ARPA funding two years ago, in collaboration with Headwater Food Hub and Trillium Health. The organization I worked for at the time was responsible for the educational component of the proposal, and taught more than 1,200 participants every year through cooking classes and farm workshops. I believe we can expand on these programs with comparatively little funding by collaborating with organizations that already exist, expanding our school garden programs, and incentivizing participation for families.

    Access is also fundamental when it comes to purchasing local foods. One of my favorite city programs is the double-up program at the Public Market, which doubles the value of food stamps for community members in need when they buy certain products. This is good for families and growers, and I cannot praise the effort enough. The only thing I would change would be the scaling of the initiative to ensure that the funding is ensured throughout the entire budget season.

    Our Public Market is an absolute treasure, but it is not enough to ensure that everyone in our community has access to fresh, local foods. We need to improve public transportation and bike lanes leading into the market, and we also need to support the building/establishment of local grocery stores. I am familiar with the Roc Healthy Grocer program, but dont think it goes nearly far enough, or supports in the right way. I have been to many of the stores featured in the program and am underwhelmed by their selection. I also remember the acknowledgement that several of these stores have closed during the duration of this initiative. In my opinion, the city focuses too much on public relations and marketing, and not enough on ensuring the viability of the businesses through direct funding to ensure that the cost of perishable items are covered if they spoil on the shelves.

    Lastly, I believe that community urban agriculture efforts have been under supported, and even prevented by our local government. I have seen a number of community gardens destroyed or threatened by the city. As a member of the urban agriculture community, I have been active in the fight to expand the rights of growers within the permit process for the last five years. From meetings with Real Estate, DRHS, and the Attorney General’s Office, I have expressed my dismay over the antagonistic stance taken by this program and presented options for positive change. I know it is possible to do better because there are incredibly passionate and dedicated staff within City government trying to help in spite of the decisions made above their heads, because we have a number of non-profits that are working to expand opportunities in Rochester, and because I designed a program that provided free plants, tools, workshops, and educational resources to nearly half of the gardens in Rochester for less than $50,000. Buffalo, NYC, Detroit, and so many other cities have made scalable urban agriculture possible, it is time for Rochester to do the same.

  4. City Council can help to provide resources for gardeners through their influence over the budget process. Allocation of funding is one of these possible avenues, but so is creating a Division of Urban Agriculture within DRHS. Currently the Community Garden program is managed by individuals who specialize in real-estate. Having sat in on countless meetings on the topic, it is clear that there is very little understanding of horticulture or community building in the building of these processes and agreements between the city and community members – for example, we had to fight for the right to have picnic tables at gardens, because those running the program were worried that “people would gather at the tables.” I believe that if we have the right personnel, funding, and land usage agreements, we will see a drastic change in our community garden landscape and be well on our way to building a greener city.

    From garden manager/founder, to board member of an urban ag non-profit, to creating programs that support community gardens with direct resources, I have dedicated the last five years of my life to improving the viability of community gardens in our city. I am incredibly proud of the work we have done together, and grateful for the community I have found along the way. If there is one promise that I can make without the slightest doubt, it is that as a City Council Member, I would expand the accessibility and success rate of community gardens in our city.

  5. I would like to see a community garden at every school in the city, and stipends given to those who facilitate the programs. The amount that our budget has given to RCSD has not increased in decades, and I would agree to increase this allocation with the agreement that community gardening was built into their budget as an extra-calicular with resources supporting it.

    I also believe that the City could support educational programs at organizations already doing this work in order to increase the sustainability of orgs like EquiCenter, Taproot, Common Ground Health, and EquiCenter, while ensuring that youth serving organizations like Teen Empowerment, the Boys and Girls Club, Center for Youth, EnCompass, Cameron Communities, and R-Centers received quality programming throughout the year.

  6. Ultra processed foods are a genuine public health crisis, and need to be treated as such, especially when it comes to our young people. There are a number of avenues to pursue, including working with schools to improve choices available at lunch and breakfast, ensuring that food pantries are not focusing on calorically dense, high-sugar foods, and increasing the availability of fresh foods in communities.

    One thing that I have not addressed yet is the value of stories and connection with food. While managing a 3-acre teaching farm, I watched the excitement and wonder blooming across thousands of young faces when they ate their first “spicy flower” (nasturtium), or got to pull a carrot from the ground and snap it in their teeth with glee. Part of the solution is steering young people away from dangerous foods, but another important part is steering the Towards healthy alternatives.

    This is why culturally appropriate foods are an essential part of this conversation (and I appreciate your questionnaire opening with this acknowledgement!). When young people feel connected to their roots, their histories, their families stories, they are doing more than just feeding themselves, they are joining in their traditions and legacies. One of the most powerful lessons I have learned in horticulture and cooking classes is that asking questions is often more useful that speaking. When a 15 year old shares a story about their grandmother in the garden, growing food and cooking a meal that is now only a memory, there is no pre-packaged food that can stand-in for that moment.

    Cooking and growing food together is at the core of the human experience, and I believe that with the right guidance, healthy food choices become obvious as long as we are connected to our history and have access to the ingredients.

  1. I mean they set policy and allocate funding. I would say even if that is no a focus that they would be able to focus a light on the issue and make moves to fix it.
  2. I like it for the most part. I would like it to have more emphasis on local beef, poultry & eggs.
  3. I am very firm on focusing local especially when it comes to purchasing and sourcing food. To do that city council can budgetary focuses on both sourcing and earmarks for specifically that. I would like to promote policy and legislation that makes this more of a focus and more practical.
  4. I support victory gardens for individuals that is a much more efficient and sustainable model. “Community Garden is a nice idea but better incentivized as a victory garden model with to chickens for each who wants to raise them. This way we can cut down on rubbish and insects while promoting more active and immersive life styles of the citizenry.
  5. Simply put R Center programs. I have some other serious ideas but they are a little intensive to write about here in this format.
  6. That is more of a FCC thing, so that is for the Federal level, but I mean I could say be more cautious of what & how much of processed & industrial foods are in vending machines @ R-Centers; maybe talk to the board of ed local on the seem.

**We did not receive a response from: Luis Aponte, Kelly Cheatle, Niner M. Davis, Tonya Noel Stevens