WCDP Election Central – Candidate Information
Megan Patton
Raleigh City Council
District B
Candidate Statement:
As City Councilor for District B, Megan Patton is committed to creating a Raleigh that works for everyone. As an NC Teaching Fellow, she understands that local government has the power to change lives. After teaching second grade for several years, Megan worked in food service, pet care and manufacturing to make ends meet while her daughter was little — she knows the pinch of hard work and a tight budget. Raleighites deserve a representative who understands what keeps them up at night, who’s losing sleep over the same things. Megan won’t stop working on behalf of her neighbors until each and every family has housing that meets their needs, job opportunities that allow them to thrive, and a livable planet for generations to come.
Importance of this Race:
For the past two years, Megan has worked tirelessly to restore public trust in the council. From hosting monthly office hours to securing funding for a park master plan, Megan has woken up each day with a to-do list set on making lives better. In this race, voters have the opportunity to re-elect an experienced candidate — Megan Patton — who will bring some of our city’s amazing initiatives across the finish line, like the Alternative Crisis Response and Homelessness Response programs. Voters sent Megan to the City Council in ’22 to represent their vision of a Raleigh for everyone, and they deserve to see the product of that work!
Office Responsibilities:
- City Council makes legislative decisions regarding land use. This means determining what can be built in which areas within the Raleigh City limits. The City Council sets both the broad vision for where development should occur in the city and decides upon individual rezoning cases.
- The City Council sets the vision and policy for core services like Police, Fire, and 911. This also includes the provision of clean water, collection of Solid Waste and street maintenance (on city streets).
- The City Council can impact Climate Action and Climate Resiliency through prioritization of transit, innovation in Stormwater Regulations and preservation of the tree canopy.
Issues:
Housing:
Housing is a human right. The road to healthy, safe, and prosperous communities begins with residents who are stably housed. When folks have safe and stable housing, they can work, raise families, build wealth and experience better health outcomes. Raleigh is slated to grow to roughly 600,000 people over the next decade. In order to house all the folks coming in search of the new opportunities promised by businesses like Apple and Meta, we’re going to need a lot more housing than we currently have. And in order to house folks who already live here, we’re going to need a combination of strategies that serve our neighbors across the income spectrum.
Sustainability:
Climate change is happening. The actions we take now determine outcomes for the next generation. In 2021, Raleigh adopted a Community Climate Action Plan that aims to reduce Greenhouse Gas (GhG) emissions by 80% by 2050 and lays out several good strategies to get there. We need to accelerate these efforts and amplify them in order to preserve a world where we have enough food, water and safety from extreme weather events.
Making Raleigh a Great Place to Work:
Our city workers are our most valuable asset. In order to be a city that consistently delivers high-quality service for our residents, we need to be a leader in compensation and benefits. I look forward to continuing to partner with our professional staff and our labor unions to ensure Raleigh is leading the way in providing good careers for our tremendous public servants.