Meet The Candidate: Jim McNulty Running For Gaithersburg City Council

GAITHERSBURG, MD — Gaithersburg voters will have the opportunity to elect a new mayor and two city councilors at the Nov. 2 election this year.

Patch has reached out to all of the candidates and asked them to share with readers why they think they're the best pick on the ballot. Jim McNulty, a candidate for City Council, filled out this survey.

Early voting for the Gaithersburg election will be held at the Activity Center at Bohrer Park on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 23 and 24, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Regular voting will be on Nov. 2 also at the Activity Center.

Candidate

Jim McNulty

Age (as of Election Day)

47

Position sought (mayor, city council, school board, etc.)

City Council

Party Affiliation

Democrat (Gaithersburg Elections are non-partisan)

Family

Wife: Amy, married 20 years; Children: Colleen (17), Sean (14)

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

My wife is a federal employee. My grandfather was formerly a member of the Upper Darby Township (PA) School Board.

Education

University of Scranton (1996): BA Communication (cum laude), business minor

Occupation

Creative Director at Gigawatt Group, 25 years experience working for television networks like Discovery Communications and HGTV, and local TV networks like NBC4 and ABC7.

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office

N/A

Campaign website

jimmcnulty.org

Why are you seeking elective office?

I'm running for city council to help create opportunity, expand representation, and provide proven leadership. As the only candidate who lives east of I-270, I bring a voice that is underrepresented on the council—and could be missing altogether if I'm not elected. The future of Lakeforest presents such an important opportunity for our city, and we need a voice on the council who actually lives near the mall and understands the impact a reimagined Lakeforest can have—and will have—on the surrounding communities. As the Chair of the Olde Towne Advisory Committee, I am invested in the future of Olde Towne, and want to help our entire small business community emerge from the pandemic. We already have a world-class biotech corridor, but we need to make our city even more attractive to companies in other industries looking to invest in our city—and help keep the jobs we already have. So much of being an elected official is about managing competing interests, and having served as the president of the Saybrooke Homeowners Association, I worked hard with our Board of Directors to make the difficult decisions. I want to bring my pragmatic, practical approach to local government.

The single most pressing issue facing our (board, district, etc.) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

The single most pressing issue facing our city is Lakeforest, and I want to begin tackling the opportunities and challenges that we can now while the owners are organizing their future plans. The new master plan passed by the city council calls for 35% of the 102-acre site to be set aside for public use. The City should begin conversations now about consolidating those interests into a single destination that can be the crown jewel around which a truly walkable, self-contained, transit-friendly community can be built. Something like a Strathmore, convention center, or central city park like a smaller version of Boston Common. We also should begin looking at the surrounding infrastructure and plan for the future, not react once something is built. The intersection at Montgomery Village Ave. and Frederick Ave. backs up on a good day. We should begin conversations with our partners in Annapolis now to discuss improving the intersection with an overpass similar to what was built at 355 and Montrose or Georgia Ave. and Randolph Rd. These are things can be started now and show our city's commitment to realizing a revitalized Lakeforest.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

The biggest difference between me and the other candidates is that I'm the only one who lives on the east side of the city, which has higher population density than west of I-270. I also bring the experience of having led an HOA of 478 homes and have served on two city committees (Olde Towne Advisory & Transportation), as well as the School Advisory Board for St. Martin's Catholic School in Olde Towne. This experience is why I've gotten support from both sides of the city, including current City Councilmembers Rob Wu and Neil Harris, and former City Councilmember Yvette Monroe, as well as community activist and former PTA president Oscar Alvarenga.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community (or district or constituency)

There are two open city council seats this November, with Councilmember Mike Sesma retiring after 16 years and Councilmember Laurie-Anne Sayles running for county council at large. The city is well run—with zero debt—and I hope to continue the tradition of good governance that Gaithersburg enjoys.

How do you think local officials performed in responding to the coronavirus? What if anything would you have done differently?

I think the City of Gaithersburg has done a good job managing the pandemic. I particularly appreciate the quick pivot to allow additional sidewalk dining which allowed many of our restaurants to survive through the lockdowns.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

Expanding access to mental health care is an important—and personal topic for me. In 2010, I was one of three people who was taken hostage by a suicide bomber at Discovery Channel headquarters in Silver Spring. My life was saved by the Montgomery County SWAT team. I saw first hand what can happen when someone doesn't have access to proper mental health care, and have been able to recover as well as I have from PTSD because I did have access. I also saw how few resources are available to trauma survivors, which is why I founded a faith-based peer-to-peer support group for PTSD at St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Rockville.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

As HOA president, I led the efforts to interview and hire a new management company, firing the only property manager our neighborhood had known over its nearly 30 years of existence, in an effort to modernize our community and improve our community's management. This shows my willingness to tackle hard challenges despite the difficulties to benefit our community.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

My wife and I have a running inside joke, but it rings true. "Breathe in, breathe out. Repeat as needed." Sometimes the best thing one can do when things get difficult is to take a step back, assess as best you can in the moment, and move on to the next challenge.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

As we emerge from this pandemic, we should expand our Toolbox program to support our small business community. We need to continue to Grow Gaithersburg and make our city even more attractive to bring in all kinds of employment opportunities—not just biotech, but office jobs, union jobs, skilled labor, and entrepreneurs. We need to position the city as a employment hub, and reevaluate our transit and transportation system to bring people to Gaithersburg, not just shuttle them through down county.