REMARKS
Ariola discusses her personal achievements and approach to leadership
0:27:22
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Council Member Ariola outlines her personal achievements and her solution-oriented approach to her work in the City Council, emphasizing bipartisan cooperation and specific policy successes.
- She highlights bipartisan legislation passage and creation of the mayor's office of marine debris removal
- Ariola mentions successful advocacy for school safety measures and city workers' rights
- She expresses optimism about affecting change as a Republican in the council
Joann Ariola
0:27:22
My solution oriented approach to this work has led to bipartisan passing of legislation, making the DOT more transparent to our communities and to the creation of the mayor's office of marine debris removal and vessel surrendering to keep the water and shoreline surrounding our city cleaner than ever before.
0:27:42
When parents were concerned about the safety of our schools, we got together and demanded the New York City Department of Education install doorbells and lock the front doors of our schools to keep our children safe from harm.
0:27:53
We are now in the final stages of those installations.
0:27:56
We've advocated for our city workers who were unjustly fired for not just wanting to take a brand new vaccine after they had served this city at the height of a pandemic with little to no PPE.
0:28:06
And we fought to get 100 of those workers back to their positions.
0:28:11
And I will not stop until each and every one has returned to their job.
0:28:15
Many of them are here with us today and I applaud them for their integrity and willingness to hold the line for thousands of others who have been wrongfully taken from serving our city.
0:28:27
As I begin my tenure as minority leader, I look forward to engaging conversations with all of you here at the council.
0:28:33
I know that there is much we do not agree on, but I think there is so much more that we can agree on through meaningful dialogue.
0:28:43
I have heard people say that as a Republican, it's hard to make headway or affect change, But I'm happy to report that's definitely not the case.
0:28:50
Our delegation is affecting change that matters.
0:28:53
We are righting the wrongs, fighting hard and holding our ground, finding solutions, and navigating our way through one of the city's most trying periods, while looking ahead to a brighter future for the city we all love.