The Darbo-Worthington Neighborhood begs to differ Mayor Dave!
Dear Mayor Dave,
Along with several hundred of my eastside neighbors, I attended last week’s People’s Forum for the Mayoral and Dane County Executive Candidates. As the President of the Worthington Park Neighborhood Association, imagine my surprise to hear you say that Madison no longer has any troubled neighborhoods. You are surely aware that the Darbo-Worthington neighborhood includes some of Madison’s lowest-income residents, rundown housing stock, high concentrations of children eligible for free and reduced lunch, and challenges related to crime. Though there certainly have been improvements in recent years – and the Neighborhood Association has been at the heart of the creative and collaborative efforts that have led to many of these improvements.
And while those of us who live in the neighborhood see everywhere the possibilities and the opportunities instead of just the challenges facing our small neighborhood, I remain dismayed that you feel that our neighborhood is no longer “troubled.” I would like to ask that, if you are re-elected on April 5th, that you commit yourself to better understanding the challenges facing Darbo-Worthington neighborhood and make addressing them a priority for your next year as Mayor. Would you be willing to make that commitment to us?
Thank you,
Dace A. Zeps
President, Worthington Park Neighborhood Association
Think he’ll even bother to hit reply on his email? Paul Soglin would . . . he’d probably invite them to his office or go out to meet with them! And he would not need to be educated about the issues they face in their neighborhood.
