Beverly Candidate Profile: Julie Flowers For City Council

BEVERLY, MA — Beverly will have contested races for City Council in Wards three and five and a contested school committee race in Ward Four this fall. Beverly Patch asked candidates in the contested races to answer questions about their campaigns and will be publishing candidate profiles as election day draws near.

At-large City Councilor Julie Flowers is running unopposed for re-election, but still asked to respond to our questions to update constituents on her positions and her thoughts on all things Beverly. Flowers is a minister at the First Baptist Church in Beverly and has an eight-year-old son. She is a 1997 graduate from Beverly High School and graduated from Wellesley College in 2001.

Are you running for office in Beverly? Contact Dave Copeland at dave.copeland@patch.com for information on being featured in a candidate's profile and submitting campaign announcements to Beverly Patch.

Previously on Patch: Beverly Election 2019: Here's Who's Running

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

I believe one of the most pressing issues facing our City - and, actually, our entire region - is the issue of affordability and the need for housing that is affordable, accessible, and where people are treated with dignity and respect. It is undeniable that the North Shore is both a beautiful place to live and an expensive place to live. We have an ever-increasing cost of living here, and that increasing cost puts a strain on those who live here or who wish to live here when it comes to the cost of housing.

This affordability crisis affects people of all ages and with all types of backgrounds - from young people who are just starting out to our seniors, many of whom have lived in Beverly for all or nearly all of their lives, and who can now not afford to sell their homes and downsize, as there is no affordable next place for them to live. With a housing stock where 12% of the total housing is deemed affordable, Beverly has been a leader in our region on this issue - but 12%, although a goal for which communities strive, still leaves far too many people without attainable housing.

More than that, this is not an issue that we can solve alone. We need more of our North Shore neighbors to join us (and to join with cities like Salem and Peabody, with whom Beverly has a memorandum of understanding around striving to address the housing crisis together) in the effort to create more truly affordable housing for people at all ages and stages of life.

As a City Councilor in my first term, this is an issue that has been extremely important to me, and I will continue to focus on this issue in the future. I believe there are ways think creatively about our zoning in new ways that could expand housing possibilities (for example, creating zoning for ideas like tiny houses or micro-apartments for those who are seeking a small space to call home, as well as considering expanding accessory dwelling units, allowing for more shared spaces, particularly for our seniors to share living space with younger folks and families in our community), and I further believe that we can leverage the use of our Affordable Housing Trust even more fully when new buildings are being built.

I believe and will advocate for more truly affordable housing for our seniors, which would allow many people like those I have met knocking on doors and talking with people to sell the homes they have owned for thirty or forty years and move into a new place in the City they love to call home - allowing more homes in Beverly to then become available at more accessible price points for young people or those seeking to buy a first house.

I believe our communities are stronger when we recognize the importance of housing and of housing with dignity and of ensuring that those who work in our community, providing services and helping to create the feel and vibe of this City that we love, can all afford to also call this City home.

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

I am currently in my first term as a City Councilor, making me the newest to this honor of serving Beverly as one of your elected officials. I believe this is a strength, as coming to this position with new eyes and eager to learn and to grow has allowed me - and I believe will continue to allow me - to think creatively about what is possible, to ask questions to learn more and to discover new information, and to see issues that come before the Council with fresh eyes.

I am determined and dedicated and have spent my first term learning and working to connect - in as many ways as possible - with you, the people of Beverly, whom I am honored to represent, and I intend to continue in that vein. I seek to listen to learn and understand, and one of my favorite aspects of this work has been having the opportunity to meet so many of you across tables, over cups of coffee, or even through my online Question and Answer sessions via my Councilor Facebook page, so that I can best understand your concerns, your hopes, and your dreams for this community that we share.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform:

I campaigned during the 2017 election saying that I believe that Beverly's practice of charging a fee for full-day kindergarten is a justice issue that we must resolve. I believe that we need to join the wide majority of other municipalities across our Commonwealth in offering free, equally accessible kindergarten to all our children. I am so pleased that since that time, our School Committee has taken the step of reducing the fee by nearly half! This is something to celebrate! Yet, there is work to be done.

Over these next two years in office, I will continue to be both an advocate for the full reduction of the fee and in support of efforts of our School Department and School Committee to reach that goal. I am interested in seeking new and creative revenue streams for our City - supporting efforts to pursue clean energy initiatives, for example, and seeking innovations around fiber internet infrastructure. I will be a voice for balanced growth and development that takes into account both the need for our City's growth and innovation and the real needs around maintaining open and green spaces, as well as quality of life for all our residents.

I am committed to the work of helping Beverly continue to be a responsible green community and to expand our efforts to conserve our natural resources and care for our environment. I am interested in thinking about new ways of creating access to and for multiple modes of transportation, ensuring Beverly is a safer City for those who walk and bike, as well as drive, and thinking creatively about ways to provide more access to public or shared transportation - from bikes to shuttles - for those in our community.

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

In my first term on the City Council, I was dedicated and responsible, making sure I was prepared for meetings and had done my homework on issues coming before the Council. I served this term as one of the members of the Legal Affairs Subcommittee, and I made sure to come prepared and ready to fully participate, ask questions, and engage in full conversation at these meetings. In this first term, I also introduced the successful Yes on 3 Resolution, that allowed our City to make a strong statement of love, care, and respect for our Transgender and Gender Non-Binary children, friends, and neighbors in our community.

I was proud to be able to work with my colleagues on the Council to bring forward not only that resolution and see it passed but, also, to engender open and respectful conversation about topics that impact our community and those who call it home. I also believe that my work as a minister at The First Baptist Church - which is, itself, work rooted in the wider Beverly community, has prepared me well for the work of representative government - the work of meeting people where they are, hearing their stories, understanding their hearts, and striving to meet their needs, to the best of our ability.

Outside my City Council work and my professional work, I serve as the Arts and Enrichment Coordinator for the Hannah School PTO, working alongside faculty and staff to bring to the school strong enrichment programming that works to support the excellent work being done by classroom teachers each day. I also am a member of the Beverly Rotary Club and serve on the Board of Harborlight Nursery School. I am also a mom to an amazing kid, which is among the roles of which I am most proud - and it is a role in which I have to bring to bear all of my best skills - listening, meeting people where they are, conflict resolution, comforting, problem-solving, time management, budgeting, and more!

I believe that my ability to juggle multiple projects and needs at a time, my listening skills, and my strong work ethic - all of which come into play and are cultivated and honed in all my roles - all come together to serve me well and make me well-suited for the work of serving as an At-Large City Councilor.

The best advice ever shared with me was ...

This is not advice, exactly, but it is a quote that I grew up hearing and of which I was always reminded, and it both stays with me and informs and inspires my work and my dedication to my community:

"Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can." (John Wesley)

I believe in the power of shared community, and I believe in the power that each one of us has to do good to and for one another and in and for our community, each in our own way, and each in our own corner of the world. I believe that those seemingly little drops of water can fill a big bucket. That's what keeps me going and fills me with not only incredible hope but incredible awe.

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

It is incredibly important to me to hear from YOU, even as I share with you my ideas and thoughts and insights about our City and where I think we can go and what I hope we can achieve. YOU are the people those of us who have our names on the ballot are running to represent. YOU are the people we are to carry with us into each meeting, each conversation, and as we make each vote.

I try hard to be as accessible and approachable as possible, and I hope that you will take me up on my offer of connection and conversation, whether through an online Question and Answer session, or at a weekly Wednesday candidate drop-in session during this campaign season, or simply by phone or email. It has been a true honor to serve as one of your At-Large City Councilors for this first term, and I would be honored to continue to serve you in the future.

Previously Published Beverly Candidate Profiles:

Candidates for reelection are marked with an asterisk (*).

City Council, Ward Three

Stacy Ames

Euplio "Rick" Marciano

Kirstin Shapiro

Kris Silverstein

City Council, Ward 5

Kathleen Feldman

Don Martin *

School Committee, Ward 4

John Mullady *

Jeffrey C. Silva