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City Council Survey (District 19): Kevin Kim
Democratic Party http://www.votekevinkim.com Candidate Submitted Biography: Kevin grew up in Bay Terrace, and is a proud product of the NYC public school system (P.S. 150, I.S. 25, Townsend Harris H.S. at Queens College). After excelling in athletics and academics in high school, Kevin attended Stanford University where he received his B.A. in East Asian Studies and his M.A. in Sociology. In 1999, Kevin received his J.D. from Columbia Law School, where he was a Senior Editor of the Columbia Law Review. Kevin currently works as the Deputy Director of Community Affairs for Congressman Gary L. Ackerman (D-Queens/L.I.). His previous professional experiences include working as a federal law clerk, a corporate attorney at Davis Polk & Wardwell, and a founding partner of Yoon Suh & Kim LLP. His community involvement includes serving on the boards of various non-profit organizations, including Friends of Thirteen, Inc., American Red Cross - Queens, Korean American Association of Queens and Organization of Chinese Americans (LI). He is also a Certified Community Mediator through his participation in the Black-Korean Mediation Project. In August, Kevin and his wife, Clara, will welcome their first child. City Council Survey (District 19): Kevin KimQuestion 1: What is the most important transportation need in your district? As a Council Member, how would you work to address this need?Congestion on our local streets is a serious problem in the 19th District. To mitigate this problem, I will work to increase the number of public bus routes and increase the frequency of public bus service to our district. This will make public transportation a more appealing alternative for residents. I will also work to reduce congestion caused by illegal truck trafficking by implementing the use of technology to enforce traffic regulations. Question 2: The intersection of 23 Avenue and Bell Blvd is one of the most dangerous in your district, where 0 people died and 18 people were injured between 1995-2005 (NYS DOT). As a City Council member, what traffic enforcement policies or physical changes to the intersection infrastructure would you support to make this intersection safer for everyone who uses it (pedestrians, cyclists and drivers)?Given the proximity of P.S. 169, the Bay Terrace branch of the Queens Public Library, and the Bay Terrace Shopping Mall to the intersection of 23rd Ave and Bell Blvd., I would advocate for crossing guards to work extended hours at the intersection to protect any crossing pedestrians, especially during the school year. I would also like to see the traffic light at the intersection turn to a steady red light in all four directions to allow pedestrians and bicyclists the opportunity to cross with traffic paused. I believe that both of these options will slow down traffic through the intersection making the roads safer for everyone. Question 3: According to the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles' most currently available data, in 2007 speeding was a contributing factor in over 3,000 motor vehicle crashes in New York City. Furthermore, the same data showed that the top human contributing factor to the 264 fatal crashes in New York City during 2007 was also speeding. Given these figures, what measures, if any, do you support to redress this problem? Finally, do you believe that New York City’s current speed limits are safe?I would propose that we instate a 20 mile per hour speed limit inside on all roads that go through residential areas and that we install more speed bumps to make drivers slow down. On major roads I believe a 30 mph limit is acceptable but I would support increasing fines for those found speeding. Furthermore, I would support increasing the number of intersections with traffic cameras to catch drivers who race to beat a red light. Question 4: The Department of Health and Mental Hygiene's website reports: "In New York City, obesity is epidemic: more than half of adult New Yorkers are overweight (34%) or obese (22%). Data show that obesity begins early in life: nearly half of all elementary school children and Head Start children are not a healthy weight. In New York City, 1 in 5 kindergarten students, and 1 in 4 Head Start children, is obese." Do you believe that increasing walking and biking in New York City would improve public health? If yes, how would you work to increase walking and biking in your district?It is vitally important that we work to ensure that as many New Yorkers (especially our children) as possible are able to maintain a healthy lifestyle, not only for their immediate benefit but for the purpose of reducing the costs of healthcare in the long run. I believe that we should work to increase the number of bike and walk paths throughout the City to promote exercise for our residents. The 19th District is fortunate to have a number beautiful bike and walk paths throughout our neighborhoods and I will work to ensure that are maintained. I will also advocate increasing the number of bike lanes in the streets to offer a safe route for biking. Finally, I will work to see that our green spaces are protected so that our children have safe parks to play and exercise in. Question 5: Road pricing, including such measures as non-stop tolling, fees based on vehicle miles travelled or entry into a highly congested zone, has been the source of much discussion in New York City and other major metropolitan areas. London famously uses a congestion charge to fund its transit system, Oregon recently piloted a program to replace the gas tax with a fee for miles driven and Seattle recently studied how road pricing could be introduced on a regional basis. Seattle's study, “Traffic Choices Study" (http://psrc.org/projects/trafficchoices/index.htm), found that introducing new tolls on major corridors during peak traffic hours influenced drivers’ behavior and projected that a region-wide road pricing scheme could significantly reduce vehicular traffic congestion. Do you think that introducing a road pricing strategy would change New Yorkers’ travel choices? Do you think that this would be an effective way for the City to reduce backups on high-traffic roadways like the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, the Gowanus Expressway or the Long Island Expressway? Finally, do you believe there are additional benefits in the surrounding neighborhoods which could be realized from the reduction of vehicular congestion on these routes?I prefer increasing public transportation and infrastructural improvements to our roads to reduce traffic instead of road pricing measures. Given the cost of living in New York City today, additional fees to use public roadways could be financially prohibitive for some local residents. I do not believe commuters should be punished with unequal fees based on how far they live from their place of employment. Question 6: Do you believe that reducing residential parking requirements as set forth within NYC zoning regulations would affect neighborhood traffic congestion, and if so, in what way? I believe that reducing residential parking requirements would likely increase traffic in neighborhoods as residents would be more willing to take their cars out due to the increased likelihood of finding parking near their home upon their return. Question 7: The NYC Department of Transportation's Public Plaza Program, Pedestrian Street Program and Summer Streets events are intended to diversify the use of public space and provide more places for New Yorkers to recreate and socialize. Do you support the temporary or permanent repurposing of street space for pedestrians and cyclists? I support the temporary repurposing of street space for community use, though I believe we should fully examine the possible effects street space being permanently repurposed on a site by site basis. Question 8: The City recently released plans for Bus Rapid Transit and expressed interest in bringing a bike share program to New York City. Do you think these new projects would enhance the city's transportation network? Please explain.I fully support all transportation initiatives that would reduce congestion traffic and streamline public transportation for New Yorkers. I believe systems like Bus Rapid Transit would be especially beneficial in the outer boroughs were there are few subway lines. A bike share program would also be beneficial not only for enhancing transit alternatives but for improving the public health as well.
Submitted by kevindkim19 on Fri, 08/07/2009 - 21:09.
Submitted by kevindkim19 on Tue, 07/28/2009 - 13:36.
Submitted by kevindkim19 on Fri, 08/07/2009 - 21:09.
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