Three of the seven candidates running for a District 8 Phoenix City Council seat spoke at a KJZZ forum last night.
They debated the best way to clean up contaminated land in South Phoenix and how to grow the South Phoenix economy, which historically has had fewer development opportunities.
"And the way that you get there is, one; you utilize our biggest resource in the district, which is Sky Harbor Airport. The area between downtown and Sky Harbor, is a hub, a potential hub for innovative and creative businesses," said candidate Lawrence Robinson.
Candidate Kate Gallego suggested better communication with minority constituents.
"I’ve also called for the city to have bilingual economic development staff, so that we can work and regardless of what language you speak, you have opportunities and support from the city, because we do have a lot of great programs to support small business owners, but it doesn’t do any good if you don’t know that they’re out there or if you can’t communicate with the people that are offering it," Gallego said.
The third candidate, Luis Rodriguez, says making neighborhoods safer with more police officers will make more businesses open in South Phoenix.
City council voting ends Aug. 27.