Five local organizations came together on Saturday, July 13 to host a Meet the Candidate Forum for Huntsville’s City Council District 5 contest.

The meeting was held at St. Luke Christian Church on Sparkman Drive.

The National Coalition of 100 Black Women – Greater Huntsville Area Chapter, 100 Black Men of Greater Huntsville, the League of Women Voters of Tennessee Valley, the Huntsville Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta, and the NAACP of Huntsville/Madison County collaborated to host the event.

The candidates discussed the issues that are significant to District 5 residents in a wide-ranging, well-organized debate that lasted one hour. The debate was followed by a relaxed half hour “mix and mingle” in which the candidates were available to interact with the audience.

District 5 is the largest district in Huntsville in regards to geographic size. The West Huntsville district is more than 80 square miles. It spans from Jordan Lane to the east and reaches to Highway 31 in the west.

The candidates running for City Council in District 5 are Kimberly Lewis and John Meredith (incumbent).

The debate was moderated by Kristin Baker and Julian Boykin.

Each candidate was given 90 seconds to introduce themselves, 60 seconds to respond to each question, 30 seconds per rebuttal, and 90 seconds for a closing statement. Timekeepers were diligent in ensuring that these parameters were strictly adhered to.

Kim Lewis opened her remarks by stating that she was born and raised in this area. Lewis is currently a business owner in Huntsville.

“I’m running for office because I want to continue to support this community,” said Lewis. “I want to make sure we are supporting our schools, and that we are supporting the infrastructure.”

Lewis was the first Black woman to serve as Chair of the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber of Commerce.

John Meredith, who currently holds the office of City Council Member for District 5, said that he originally ran for the position when he found himself dissatisfied with the quality of life in his district.

“I felt that what I was getting for my taxpayer dollar was not equal to what folks on the other side of the Arsenal were getting for theirs,” said Meredith. “We didn’t have a single rec center anywhere, we didn’t have ballfields, we didn’t have a connected greenway system. And I have worked to make sure that all of those things are currently happening.”

Each candidate was asked to describe their vision for District 5.

Lewis explained that District 5 faces unique challenges because of its size and disjointedness — with both urban and rural areas comprising the district. Lewis stated that there needs to be a concise, coherent plan that covers all areas of the district.

Lewis illustrated the need for greater services by explaining that she pays an increased rate on her home’s fire insurance due to its distance from the nearest fire station.

Meredith said that a new fire station will be opening in District 5, on Burgreen Road, within the month of July. The opening of this fire station will mean that some District 5 residents will save money on fire insurance for their homes.

Lewis cited her record of community engagement, as well as her current position on the Limestone County Chamber of Commerce, as evidence that she will stay engaged with the constituents of District 5 — should she be elected. Throughout the meeting, Lewis emphasized the need to represent Limestone County residents who live in District 5.

Meredith said that he is the only currently serving City Council Member who provides an agenda-specific preview of the City Council meetings to his constituents.

“On Wednesdays I release a push email that has everything that is on the council agenda for the Thursday meeting, so that my constituents know what is specific to them,” said Meredith. “I am the only City Council Member that has two official Facebook pages. I also have a lot of folks on my personal page. I am the only one that holds district forums.”

Meredith said that he makes sure his town hall meetings travel from location to location to ensure that voices in every part of his district are heard.

Both Meredith and Lewis agreed that affordable housing is a growing concern in District 5, and Huntsville at large.

Meredith called the question of affordable housing the question of the moment. He said he is working to change the model of housing development in west Huntsville, to ensure that there is a greater available range of housing prices.

The Huntsville Business Journal submitted a question to the moderators, pressing each candidate to define the term “affordable housing.”

“Statistically speaking, you’re not supposed to spend more than 30% of your disposable income on housing,” said Meredith. “Growing up, that’s what affordable housing meant. But we blow past that now on a regular basis. Our historic measurements for it are all behind us at this point.”

Lewis said that the affordability of housing can be gauged by the wages offered by proximate employers.

“Thinking about the Mazda Toyota plant — when you’ve got two and three thousand dollar apartments out there near a manufacturing facility, it just doesn’t make sense. The people that actually work in that facility cannot afford to live in those houses,” said Lewis.

Public education was identified as a challenge in District 5.

“We have three schools to support the largest district in the city — the district is 80 square miles. That’s insufficient. We have kids riding buses up to an hour each way — to and from school. That’s unacceptable. We have to have schools,” said Meredith.

Meredith said that a farmer has donated land for a school in west Huntsville and that it is in the city’s capital plan to construct a new school there.

Lewis explained that her daughter’s schools utilized portables to attempt to handle overflowing classrooms. Additionally, the commute to her daughter’s elementary school was 35 minutes each way.

“That school is at least another three or four years out,” said Lewis. “That is not going to address issues we have right now. We have to figure out ways to get more support for the schools.”

Each candidate was given the opportunity to deliver a closing statement at the conclusion of the debate.

“I am invested in making sure that you’re taken care of — the individuals, the constituents — making sure that your day-to-day lives are better because of the fact that you live within the city of Huntsville,” said Lewis.

For his closing statement, Meredith asserted that more progress has been made in District 5 in the past five years than in the 20 years before that.

“I ask for your vote because we have four years behind us and in those four years, I believe, we have brought more quality of life improvements to the district than we have in the last 20,” said Meredith. “The relationships that I have established with my constituents, I think, are irreplaceable. I think those folks know the value of what they have right now.”

The organizers of the event emphasized that they do not endorse either candidate, but encourage voters to continue to research the candidates and exercise their right to vote.

August 13 is the cutoff for voter registration for the August 27 election.

This article is part of the Huntsville Business Journal’s ongoing coverage of the upcoming municipal election, which will be held on August 27.

There are two important upcoming events for District 1 and 5, respectively. Blackburn Chapel CPCA will host the School Board District 1 Forum on Saturday, July 27, 2024 from 11:00-12:30.

District 5 will return to St. Luke Christian Church’s for a School Board Forum on Saturday, August 10, 2024 from 12:00-1:30.

For more information on how to vote or to check out future debates and forums, please visit advancehuntsville.com.