Newton Candidate Profile: Kathryn Winters For City Council

NEWTON, MA — Newton will have several contested races in this fall's election. But this was the only preliminary election on Sept. 10 to thin the field of Ward 5 city councilor candidates from three to two. Newton Patch asked candidates in the contested races to answer questions about their campaigns and will be publishing candidate profiles as election day draws near.

Kathryn "Kathy" Winters, 49, was one of three candidates running for Ward 5's seat on Newton City Council, where incumbent Jim Rice is not running for reelection. She was a top vote-getter in the preliminary election on Sept. 10 and will move on to compete in the general election on Nov. 5.

The president of the Waban Area Council is also a mother of three. She graduated from Boston College for her bachelors and got her law degree at Georgetown Law. She's an attorney who served as a federal judicial clerk for a year and as a corporate tax attorney in private practice for five years and providing pro bono legal work for a number of non-profit organizations.

Are you running for office in Newton? Contact Jenna Fisher at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com for information on being featured in a candidate's profile and submitting campaign announcements to Newton Patch.

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

climate change. There are many things we can do at the municipal level to reduce green house gas emissions in Newton. Steps that we take in Newton can have a ripple effect as we influence other cities throughout the commonwealth and the country. The Newton Citizens Commission on Energy has released a Climate Action Plan and the City of Newton is working on its own Climate Action Plan. Both of these plans outline bold but realistic initiatives to reduce our green house gas emissions in the short and the long-term. As a City Councilor I would look to follow the roadmaps laid out in these plans.

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

I have the leadership experience to be an effective city councilor and representative of Ward 5. In my experience as an attorney and as a community volunteer, I have excelled at working with people with different viewpoints, and I am adept at building consensus.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform:

Improved streets and sidewalks are a top priority for me. We need to make walking in Newton more safe and inviting, both as a means to get people out of their cars and to improve our overall quality of life. Students within a mile should be able to safely walk to schools, and all residents should be able to safely walk to village centers or to public transportation. All busy streets should include complete sidewalks with well-designed pedestrian crossings. Much of our auto traffic comes from outside of Newton, and there is little we can do to reduce overall traffic, but we can take steps to make it safer and more pleasant to walk throughout the city. We should have a comprehensive plan for making Newton pedestrian-friendly, with a realistic assessment of the funds required to get us there.

Housing and development is another important issue facing the city. I believe we must provide more varied housing options throughout the city (both as a means to address the region’s housing shortage and to promote environmentally sustainable living through compact transit-oriented housing options). I am supportive of developing a context-based zoning code that would provide clear rules to add incremental density in a way that relates to the existing environment. For environmental purposes, a new zoning code should reduce teardown vulnerability and encourage rehabilitation of existing structures and should also require rigorous efficiency standards (to the extent allowed by state law). The city is currently processing a number of larger development proposals, both through the special permit process and the state's 40B comprehensive permit law. In the case of any special permit, as a city councilor I would work hard to address community concerns and to negotiate with a developer to achieve the best result possible.

Finally, another important aspect of my platform is providing responsive constituent services and acting as voice for the ward. I have had the chance to work closely with retiring Ward 5 councilor John Rice over the past six years, and I have admired his tireless efforts to address constituent concerns and to serve as a voice for the community. As a city councilor I would seek to emulate that brand of ward representation.

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

On the Waban Area Council I have worked hard to promote civic engagement and to keep the community informed about issues of importance. One example of this would be my work on street and sidewalk safety. I helped organize community meetings regarding traffic redesign in connection with the building of the two new elementary schools in Ward 5 and with the planned repaving of Chestnut Street. Along with other councilors, I walked door to door to make sure residents were aware of the opportunity to provide input, and I led the effort to advocate to the city for safety improvements. If elected to the position of Ward 5 Councilor, I would bring that same attention to community engagement.

The best advice ever shared with me was ...

The best advice I ever received came from Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. I used to work for her late husband Marty, and when I got married she shared with me the marital advice she had received from her mother-in-law: "sometimes it helps to be a little deaf." I have found it to be great advice for a marriage, for raising teenagers, and for a political campaign!

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

I am someone who believes in respectful dialogue and in trying to understand all perspectives on an issue. In speaking to voters throughout Ward 5, I have found there is a remarkable amount of consensus on issues of importance. But even in Newton we can have loud voices on extreme ends of a particular issue dominate the debate. I believe I have the temperament and the skill set to get past divisive rhetoric and to get things done on behalf of the city.

Previously: Humphrey, Winters Win Preliminary Election In Newton’s Ward 5

Newton Election Calendar 2019: What To Know