“Poverty is the No. 1 factor in Tucson that is stopping us from prosperity. What the pandemic did is accelerate it. By observing what’s going on in the community, I think poverty is the main issue,” said Juan Francisco Padrés is a candidate for the Tucson City Council in Ward 3.
He addressed the Democrats of Greater Tucson meeting on May 10, 2021.
“Poverty is the common denominator in economic justice, social justice, climate justice and food justice,” Padres said. “Poverty affects every aspect of our community, from pollution, health, crime, the economy, education, and homelessness.
Padrés is the operator of Alta California Company, which imports craft beer, wine, and spirits from Mexico. He has experience working in the private sector in two Fortune 100 companies, and in city government as an Economic Development and International Trade Specialist. Most recently Juan worked as the Public Affairs and Business Development Manager for TuSimple, a technology company that specializes in artificial intelligence and autonomous trucking.
He offered four solutions for poverty:
Economic Development
- Attract jobs and investment to Tucson
- Promote business retention and expansion
- Incentivize sustainable development in distressed areas
- Ease zoning & parking regulations to accommodate mixed-use development
- Promote workforce development programs with community stakeholders
Affordable Housing
- Increase the number of housing units in the city’s core
- Purchase or repurpose city land for residential use
- Revise zoning code to simplify residential development
- Eliminate impact fees for new affordable residential units
- Partner with non-profit groups to build and operate affordable housing
Transportation
- Cleaner streets, sidewalks, medians, and washes
- Fund and implement Complete Streets
- Diversify our public transportation system to accommodate mores users
- Create and implement an electric vehicle charging station plan
- Convert city vehicles to electric power
- Substantial repaving of neglected neighborhood streets
Public Safety
- Decrease the city’s overall crime rate
- Properly fund our police department
- Reduce attrition & increase attraction of officers and public safety personnel
- Rethink how we police, protect, and serve our community
- Increase community trust & participation with police officers
- Safer streets and roads. Mitigate pedestrian deaths by automobiles
Discover more info about Juan Padres at https://votepadres.com/
