City Council candidate Mitch D. Gruber
(Ballot lines: Democratic)
1) What is your No. 1 priority, if elected?
My top priority is to bring a public health lens to the decision-making at City Hall. As for individual
initiatives, I will work to help low-income neighborhoods transform vacant lots into productive spaces
that foster community engagement. These lots can become gardens, natural playspaces, and venues for
community events. This is a straightforward strategy to build healthier neighborhoods, attract
investment, and strengthen communities.
2) What is the greatest strength and, conversely, the greatest weakness of the City Council?
The greatest strength of current City Councilmembers is that they are all experienced legislators who
care about Rochester. They take their jobs seriously and have effectively guided the city for years. This
strength can also be seen as a weakness, however. In order to bring fresh ideas and perspectives to city
government, Council needs to hear from younger voices and political outsiders.
3) What have you learned about this community during the campaign, and how will that affect your
service?
I have learned that people across all neighborhoods are eager for innovation on City Council. A common
refrain on the doorstep has been: we must try new things to continue to improve Rochester. People
have been really interested in hearing about my track record of innovation at Foodlink, and have
encouraged me to bring the same mentality to City Hall.

On Page 2 are the responses to a questionnaire from August (prior to the Democratic primary). Please
refer to ballot lines above for those applicable in the general election.

City Council candidate Mitch D. Gruber
(Ballot lines: Democratic)

1) Do you support the Morgan proposal for Parcel 5 Yes/No and why?

it would be premature to offer a vote on a development proposal that is still in progress right now. I'm
glad that there has been civil dialogue on this subject, and hopethat the resulting project reflects the
concerns of the community. When the time comes, if elected, I'll work to make sure that whatever
development takes place?whether now or in the near future?has widespread support from the
community. in the meantime we should all take this opportunity to seek detail, think analytically,
independently, and broadly about what's best for that space and the city as a whole.

2) On what topic/issue do you most disagree with the current city administration, and why? On
which are you most aligned, and why?

The City must be more progressive when it comes to land use. We have so many vacant lots in
neighborhoods throughout Rochester, like mine in Susan B. Anthony. We need to work with neighbors
and neighborhoods to turn those lots into gardens, play spaces, and community centers. These
developments can make a community stronger, and begin to attract investment in neighborhoods that
are too often ignored. These initiatives are working in other Rust Belt cities, but will require Rochester to
create more flexible zoning laws.

The Warren administration deserves credit for recent efforts at confronting structural inequality, which
is the most pressing issue facing our city today and in the future. I applaud the work that she has done
with Kiva and worker owned coops. In addition, I think the Office of Innovation has done some really
critical research, including the recently published ?Wage Disparities in Monroe County by Race and
Gender." That kind of large-scale, data?driven thinking is going to help us squeeze the most good from
every possible public, private, and not-for-profit dollar. I applaud her team's work to reverse a decades-
long problem in the making.

3) Do you support or oppose the proposed redevelopment of Cobbs Hill Village, and why?

Once again, the question seems premature since there is not a proposal pending right now. However, I
am skeptical of any development within our existing parks, and would vote no for environmental
reasons.