More Councilmembers Sign on for Participatory Budgeting…But Not Eugene

Four more Councilmembers have signed on to join the original four for the next round of participatory budgeting, where the community works together to develop capital projects they feel need funding in their area, and then district residents get to vote on the projects that get the money.

Some residents in our neighborhood have already gotten to try it out–those who are represented by Councilmember Jumaane Williams voted for several youth-oriented projects this spring. He’s doing it again this year, as is Councilmember Brad Lander who represents parts of Kensington, while Councilmember David Greenfield, who represents parts of Borough Park and Midwood, is one of the people who has signed on for the first time.

Basically, much of our neighborhood is surrounded by Councilmembers who are putting some of the budgetary decisions into their constituents’ hands–and the district in the middle of it all that’s missing out is number 40, led by Councilmember Mathieu Eugene.

This is not to say that Councilmember Eugene doesn’t spend his discretionary budget well around our area. From playgrounds to hospitals to streetlights to murals, he’s helping out on various community initiatives left and right. But wouldn’t it be interesting to see what the people of District 40 would like to spend about a million dollars on?

If you’re in Williams’ district, what did you think of the first cycle of participatory budgeting? And if you’re in Eugene’s district, what projects would you most like to see funded?

Map above showing Council Districts via Capalino+Company. You can find your street and your District there, or you can enter your address into the Council website to see who represents you.