The following questions are derived from the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce’s 2021 Legislative Agenda. Through the Legislative Agenda, the Chamber has identified its priority action items for the next year and beyond.
- INTRODUCTION – Please introduce yourself and describe why you are seeking a seat on the Alexandria City Council. For this question, you are welcome to submit a brief video.
My name is Patrick Moran, and my candidacy for Alexandria City Council is about service: service to my hometown; service to the community; service on behalf of my daughter and all the little ones that will inherit a City that is reflective of the leadership and decisions we make now.
My offer to serve is also consistent with a legacy of service and leadership that my family has offered to Alexandria since my father moved to Del Ray in 1971 and began volunteering with the United Way before serving as Councilman, Mayor, and Congressman.
My experiences being born in Alexandria, growing up Del Ray, and now living in Old Town provides me the basis for a special appreciation for many of the positive investments and improvements that have come to Alexandria, while also retaining the special character of the many neighborhoods that make up Alexandria. My professional background and record of devoted service to our community prepare me to lead our Council in addressing many of the most pressing concerns of today.
I am the Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) volunteer appointed by Council to represent the MRC on the Citizen Corps Council (CCC). I am serving my second term as Chairman of that body, and as Chair, I have led the ResilientALX initiative to improve the holistic preparedness of the City against natural and manmade disasters.
I am a job creator who has helped launch careers in the green industry.
I am a contractor who helps clients solve their problems while presenting economical solutions for maximizing the ecological benefit of their properties.
I am also a project manager (PMP) who understands how planning processes work and will be able to take action on day one to improve the operational efficiency of our local government to maximize our community’s highest quality of life and shared prosperity.
I am running for council to offer my service in ensuring that Council and our community can address the most pressing issues efficiently and effectively for the benefit of all Alexandrians and to ensure that action is taken to make Alexandria the absolute best it can be, which in my estimation will make it the Best Small City in the World. - COVID-19 RECOVERY – Please share your thoughts on what economic recovery looks like for the City, particularly its businesses.
We must first ensure that all Alexandrians who ought to get a vaccine receive one. In tandem, we must ensure that we maximize the extent to which Alexandrian businesses, large and small receive federal and state funding to stimulate a rapid recovery. Through the support of the Chamber and other organizations, there is enormous potential to make our recovery resilient by investing in long-term value creation.
We should anticipate that the American Economy is entering a boom time. We must invest in our infrastructure, including Broadband. This will expand the use and appeal of many underutilized commercial spaces in Alexandria. We should also be prepared as a community to expand areas of economic activity in the forms, of shops, cafes, boutiques of the traditional throughways such as Mount Vernon Ave in Del Ray and King Street in Old Town, as well as upper Duke Street and Van Dorn.
We must seize this opportunity to improve the City’s resiliency. This can ensure our commercial operations, schools, and other community centers can remain powered, connected, and operational no matter the weather or crises. - COVID-19 CHANGES – The City has relaxed a fair number of regulations to allow for businesses to operate under COVID-19 protocol. Which of these loosened restrictions would you like to see in perpetuity? Are there any you would like to roll back?
I would like to see continued use of virtual meeting technologies in tandem with in-person meetings in order to promote inclusiveness and accessibility of City Proceedings.
I would like to see Alexandria continue in its curbside outdoor dining. It has been excellent. It has made for a more walkable community and stimulated commercial activity.
I would also like to see the easement of restrictions regarding outdoor alcohol continued in perpetuity only to be reconsidered if it is determined that there is a public detriment. - EQUITY & INCLUSION – There is a broader conversation about equity in relation to COVID-19 as well as racial justice in response to recent events throughout the country. Alexandria demonstrated a commitment to advancing equity in its work with the addition of the Race and Social Equity Officer. As an elected leader, working in concert with the Race and Social Equity Officer, what ideas do you have to help Alexandria, particularly the business community, work towards being more
inclusive?
First, we must ensure that our historically excluded communities are engaged in the vaccination effort. I feel that we have an enormous opportunity to expand the use of technology to improve inclusiveness and civic participation amongst all neighborhoods in Alexandria.
To offer a concrete example, I would like to pilot interactive kiosks at bus stops and other transit hubs. These kiosks ought to include community events and a schedule of docket items being considered by Council and Council-appointed boards and commissions. I believe these kiosks could also be means of collecting public comment.
I also have thought a lot about how gainful employment is the best social program to resolve inequalities and set a basis for wealth creation and prosperity. I would like to see our City open up work-study programs that hire Alexandrian residents and ACPS students and provide training to meet existing community needs, such as infrastructure
maintenance. I believe this can be done in conjunction with the business community who can provide a basis of training and potential hiring opportunities for graduates of these types of programs.
I would like to see the city do more to foster entrepreneurship. This would include expanding educational opportunities to ensure Alexandrian students are equipped with personal financial literacy, small business accounting, and introductory tax strategy.
These skills are not only the basis for being very valuable employees but also to be a basis on which they can start new businesses. - CITY ISSUES – What do you feel are the three (3) most pressing issues facing the City of Alexandria today?
The most pressing issue facing Alexandria is COVID-19. We must ensure that we continue our work together as a community to distribute vaccines and work to resolve the healthcare inequities that the Pandemic Exposed. As a city, it’s time to fill Alexandria’s 300 vacancies of city staff with skilled professionals that are ready to address the infrastructure deficiencies we are facing.
The second top issue is critical infrastructure, which includes school capacity. As a community and city, I fear that we currently lack the necessary critical infrastructure that is inadequate to ensure top-quality delivery of public services, including education to our growing City. On Council, I will continue to work in advancing ResilientALX, the mission of which is to holistically review all of our City’s critical infrastructure and community lifelines in order to inform updates to the strategic plan that hardens these systems against down-time or vulnerabilities.
The third top issue is quality of life. I would like to see City be more deliberative and proactive in cultivating a high sense of the quality of life. Once in office, I would lead the development of a new board responsible for neighborhood well-being. I believe this can be a forum to which neighborhood leaders can communicate directly with staff persons to address issues that are negatively impacting the quality of life. - STATE AND REGIONAL ISSUES – What do you feel are the most pressing state and regional issues affecting Alexandria?
COVID-19 aside, the most pressing issue is education. Virginia ranks last nationally, 50 out of 50, in teacher pay. This must be fixed, and we must recognize that until it is, our students will suffer and that the expectations we place upon our teachers are inconsistent with our commitment to adequately compensate them. We must also ensure that there is universal pre-K, with public developmental childcare options to promote the return of women into the workforce. We must ensure that we are doing everything we can to not only ensure that our children are prepared to thrive, but also that the departure of 2 million women from the workforce because of the pandemic and caregiver responsibilities is only temporary.
At the state level, I would also love to see BPOL tax reform because it is poorly structured: taxing businesses based on their gross revenues rather than profits. It does not make sense to do it this way and overly burdensome business, especially real estate brokerages and small businesses.
I believe we should also be prepared as a City to capitalize on the legalization of Cannabis. As the regulations are passed, it can enhance Alexandria’s tourism appeal. I believe Alexandria should embrace it and be progressive in how we capitalize on revenue-generating opportunities. An example of an idea would be 5% Alexandria cannabis product sales that can be directed towards funding social services, mental health, and wellness in our beautiful City.
Patrick Moran | Candidate for Alexandria City Council
Patrick Moran is a Yale-educated social entrepreneur who has committed himself to strengthen his community and fight climate change through business. Patrick owns and leads Tactical Land Care LLC (TLC) that provides stormwater management solutions and sustainable landscape improvements to residential and commercial properties throughout the DC-metro area. He is a dedicated community volunteer who is serving his second term as Chairman of the Alexandria Citizen Corps Council (CCC), where he spearheaded the unanimously adopted ResilientALX Charter by Alexandria City Council aimed at holistically improving the resiliency and preparedness of the City residents, businesses, and organization, in collaboration with its neighbors. He is a member of the Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) and has supported the Alexandria Health Department’s Covid Relief efforts. Patrick served on the Steering Committee for the Partnership for a Healthier Alexandria where he has sought to address healthcare inequalities and social equity issues. Patrick is running for City Council in this upcoming June 8th election where he hopes to continue his efforts to strengthen communities and address gaps for all Alexandrians.