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Statement of Candidacy of Belinda Gergel

January 28, 2008

Good Morning.  I am Belinda Gergel and I am today formally announcing my candidacy  for Columbia City Council from District 3.

 It is entirely appropriate that I make this announcement on Pendleton Street and at this beautiful Inn .  I live on Pendleton Street , just a few short blocks from where we now stand, in a near century old home in this beautiful historic neighborhood lying in the heart of this great city.  I know the pleasure and stimulation I receive from living in a vibrant in town neighborhood and also appreciate the challenges related to living in an urban environment.  As a resident of the city center, I appreciate the critical importance of our city delivering basic services—police and fire, trash and garbage, infrastructure and parks—with a level of excellence and the need to think and plan creatively to shape Columbia into the dynamic 21st Century city we all desire.  Living on Pendleton Street has rooted me in the common experience of District 3 residents, who reside in our extraordinary in town neighborhoods stretching from Rosewood in the southern portion of the district all the way to Bradley at the northern end of the district. 

I also feel a special link to this Inn , which is a beautiful example of historic preservation and adaptation that is at once commercially viable and compatible with its historic neighborhood.  This did not occur by accident.  In fact, the two main historic components of this project, the Black House, where we now stand, and the adjacent Kirkland Apartments, were originally slated for demolition.   I am proud of my role in fighting for the preservation of these structures and negotiating with the developer, Mr. Bert Pooser, and others  in fashioning a compromise that worked for everyone.   The Inn at USC is a great example of how historic preservation and smart growth enrich and enhance a beautiful in town neighborhood.  I am humbled by the fact that one of the persons who will speak on my behalf on this important day in my campaign is Mr. Pooser, whose work with this Inn I so greatly respect.        

I come to this campaign at 57 with a lifetime of commitment to service and improvement of my community.  I arrived in Columbia from my native Rock Hill as an 18 year old freshman at Columbia College and immediately fell of love with this town.  With the exception of my doctoral studies at Duke University , I have lived in and loved Columbia for the past nearly 40 years.  I have taught in the inner city of Columbia , at C.A. Johnson High School , and spent most of my career as a professor and administrator at Columbia College .  At the time of my retirement in 2001, I was Chair of the Department of History and Political Science.  Since my retirement, I have devoted myself to civic service, which has included two quite extraordinary years as President of Historic Columbia Foundation.  Through my work with the Historic Columbia Foundation, as well as my research as an historian focusing on the history of this city, I have come to appreciate how preservation and protection of our neighborhoods are critical elements in sustaining the vibrancy and beauty of Columbia .

As a resident of an in town neighborhood, I have also experienced personally the issues of crime and safety.  Shortly after moving onto Pendleton Street , I confronted at midnight a would be burglar as he prepared to enter a window on the second floor of my home.  I let out a scream that woke neighbors a block away and sent my intruder jumping onto the ground below.  As proof that God has a sense of humor, our burglar dropped his wallet as he hit the ground. He was picked up within a day by the Columbia Police Department and prosecuted by the Richland County Solicitor's Office.  Having come face to face with a home intruder, I appreciate how critical effective public safety is for quality of life in our city, and I will be a tireless advocate to provide our police and fire departments all of the resources they require to keep the citizens of Columbia safe.  

When Anne Sinclair, my longtime city council woman, announced last April that she would not seek reelection, I was contacted by many friends urging me to enter this campaign.  I was aware that this could be a costly and intense campaign in which my advocacy for historic preservation and neighborhood integrity might become an issue. I was persuaded that at this critical moment in the history of our city I needed to step forward to help shape the future of our great city.  I have devoted countless hours over the ensuing months meeting residents across District 3, studying the critical issues that confront us and thinking creatively about how we can do things better.

I step forward today to formally announce my candidacy fully aware of the challenges of our city and the need to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of our city government.  I pledge as your council member to devote myself to addressing the following critical issues:

First, I want to make the Columbia Police Department the best led, best staffed and best paid local law enforcement agency in South Carolina .  I strongly support efforts to upgrade the salaries of our police and fire officers to eliminate the serious problem of "poaching" of some of our best officers by nearby departments.  I also want to increase our total police force from approximately 340 officers to 400 to provide sufficient staff to fully implement community policing.

Second, I want to strengthen neighborhood integrity and the quality of life in our in town communities through the more effective delivery of our basic services and protection from inappropriate in fill development that threatens neighborhood character.  I joined a group of neighborhood leaders last August in a compelling call for protective action by City Council and fully support the Community Character Ordinance scheduled to receive first reading on February 20.  I  vigorously opposed the efforts of the Homebuilders Association in recent weeks in trying to gut the Ordinance with an amendment that would effectively deny our neighborhoods protection from the reckless subdivision of  existing residential lots that includes selling the backyard, the demolitions of  historic structures and the building so called "McMansions" that are out of scale with the surrounding neighborhood streets.

Third, I want our city to engage in real strategic planning and to involve our city stakeholders in working and collaborating together to envision the type of city we want Columbia to become.  We have many exciting projects at the discussion or early development stage and, we must plan boldly and creatively if we are to be a "city of choice, not chance." 

Fourth, I will insist that our city get its financial house in order.  Monthly financial statements must be produced and we must have the financial controls in place to close out our books on time at year end.  I will insist on full financial transparency, to include placing all current financial statements and audits on line.  Our financial operations must inspire confidence from our residents and anything less simply is not acceptable.

My pledge to you is simple:  As your next City Councilwoman, I will devote every ounce of my energy, creativity and judgment to making the neighborhoods and business districts of Columbia safe, attractive and protected so that every street, like my own beautiful Pendleton Street, is a place that we are proud to call home.