5 Questions With Upper East Side Councilmember Candidate Vanessa Aronson

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — Vanessa Aronson, a 40-year-old Democratic candidate, is running for City Council in District 4, which includes NoMad, Times Square, Stuyvesant Town, Peter Cooper Village, Murray Hill, Kips Bay, Turtle Bay, United Nations, and Upper East Side-Carnegie Hill, in New York City's primary election on Tuesday, June 24.

The district seat is left open by the Councilmember Keith Powers, who is now running for Manhattan Borough President.

Before running for office, Aronson, who is from Lenox Hill, worked as a public school teacher at MS 319, an advisor to the president at Hunter College, the director of strategy at the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, and a U.S. diplomat stationed in Jakarta, Indonesia; Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and at the UN.

Patch recently asked Aronson five questions about her campaign and district. See her replies below.

EDITOR'S NOTE: The following article contains information about one of several candidates who have announced their campaigns for Upper East Side offices in the 2025 primary election. Patch has contacted the other candidates with the same questions and will post replies as they are received.

PATCH: Why are you running for City Council?

ARONSON: Life in New York City shouldn’t be this hard. From skyrocketing rents to unresponsive city services, too many people feel ignored by local government and fear that the Trump administration is a danger not just to our rights, but our safety and future. We need local leaders who are brave enough to stand up and fight for our city and experienced enough to get real results. I’ve spent my career doing just that, as a Foreign Service Officer, public school teacher, community board leader, and president of my local Democratic club. Whether I was cutting through bureaucracy to reunite families abroad, advocating for students with disabilities who were denied their legal services, or pushing for affordability and accountability here in our neighborhoods, I’ve always led with tenacity, integrity, and action.

Too often, trying to get help from the city feels like shouting into a void - frustrating, exhausting, and fruitless. But I know it doesn’t have to be this way. I’ve seen how, with the right leadership, government can be a powerful force for good. My proven record makes it clear that I can be trusted to lead effectively and with deep integrity.

I’m running to restore trust in local government, to make sure every New Yorker’s voice is heard, and to fight every day for a city that truly works for all of us. I’m a working mom who believes our kids deserve a future in a city that reflects our values, our strength, and our hope. Despite the challenges we face, I know that together we will build a city that makes us all proud.

PATCH: What sets you apart from the other candidates?

ARONSON: What sets this campaign apart is a genuine grassroots, voter-focused movement that includes the broadest coalition in the race. From labor unions to Democratic clubs to advocacy organizations to district leaders, this campaign is deeply rooted in the district and uniquely free of special interests. Our campaign is a big enough tent to include voters of many different backgrounds and ideas. My job is to listen and find solutions that benefit our district and city.

By contrast, special interests are actively trying to buy this election. We’re seeing money from Trump administration official Charles Kushner, a MAGA billionaire donor network and even DoorDash try to boost my opponents. After one of my opponents opted out of the Matching Funds Program, this became the most expensive Council race in the entire city. And that’s before we even count the money coming in to influence the race through dark money that doesn't have any legal limit.

Our campaign is for every voter who believes elections shouldn’t be bought by the highest bidder but earned through public trust.

PATCH: What sets you apart from the other candidates?

ARONSON:

1. Protect and demand real affordability in housing.

Too often, developers seek zoning exceptions and build luxury towers that actually reduce the number of affordable units, even when they technically comply with the law. I will demand smarter, more accountable land use, ensuring that new construction, especially in our district, meaningfully adds to our supply of middle-class and affordable housing.

At the same time, we must preserve the affordability we already have. New York City has lost over 150,000 affordable units in recent years, including more than 4,000 rent-stabilized apartments in 2023 alone. I will fight to strengthen rent stabilization laws, close loopholes that allow for unfair rent hikes or deregulation, and hold landlords accountable for harassment, opaque billing, and broken promises. In communities like Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village, built for stable, middle-income housing, we must protect that legacy. Renters shouldn’t have to worry each year about whether they can stay in their own home.

2. Lower everyday costs for working families and small businesses.

Affordability doesn’t stop at housing, it’s also about ensuring families and local businesses can thrive. In my role as former co-chair of the Youth, Education, and Libraries Committee of Community Board 8, I worked with Council Member Julie Menin to expand access to child care services across New York City. I will continue to fight for truly universal 3-K and Pre-K so that every family in District 4 has access to high-quality early childhood education. My eldest son didn’t get a 3K spot two years ago, and spent last summer on a waitlist for pre-K. No family should have to choose between economic stability and care for their child.

I’ll also fight to repeal the Commercial Rent Tax that unfairly penalizes mom-and-pop businesses and roll back tax incentives that encourage landlords to keep storefronts vacant. And I’ll push to convert underused commercial spaces, especially in Midtown, into mixed-income housing and family-supporting infrastructure.

When our families, tenants, and small businesses are supported, our neighborhoods become truly affordable and sustainable for the long term.

PATCH: List two ways you plan to make the neighborhood safer.

ARONSON:

1. Make our streets and subways safer by investing in mental health services: While overall crime rates in the city are down, we’re seeing a deeply troubling rise in random violent incidents like the tragic murder on 14th Street, attacks in the subway, retail theft, fare evasion, and visible drug use along key corridors like 14th Street. The common thread running through these issues is a mental health crisis that the City has deprioritized and underfunded for far too long. What we are witnessing on our streets is the direct result of years of disinvestment in mental health care. We must turn that around.

I will fight to reinvest in long-term care, including reopening and expanding capacity at the Randall’s Island facility, which once housed 4,000 inpatient mental health and drug rehabilitation beds and today operates with only 50. I will also address the shortage of mental health professionals by creating an incentive program that offers student loan forgiveness for those who commit to serving in our public hospitals and mental health facilities. Rebuilding our mental health infrastructure is essential, not just for those in crisis, but for the safety and well-being of our entire city.

2. Crack down on ebikes by holding delivery services accountable for unsafe practices: I’ve heard the concerns of residents about a range of safety issues from e-bikes and scooters, from individuals riding mopeds on the sidewalks to careless behavior in bike lanes that leaves pedestrians feeling like they could be hit at any moment while trying to cross the street. I know how scary it is when I'm pushing our baby in the stroller while trying to hold my 4-year-old’s hand. I’m pressing to hold delivery services accountable for the unsafe practices they’re forcing on workers, such as time targets that can’t be met when following basic safety rules and laws. Just like Dominoes was forced to end its “30 min or less” guarantee when unsafe driver behavior was putting lives in danger, the delivery apps should not be allowed to incentivize unsafe behavior in our community any longer. Companies like DoorDash are endangering our neighbors and hiding behind workers to avoid taking responsibility for the harm they’re causing.

PATCH: What’s one place in the neighborhood you frequent the most?

ARONSON: I am a frequent Ess-a-Bagel customer. My father, who passed away suddenly when I was nine, absolutely loved bagels, so it’s a small way I stay connected to him. It’s a comforting ritual that reminds me where I come from and why I fight for this city.

Early voting begins on June 14. For questions and tips, email Miranda.Levingston@Patch.com.