2022 Mayoral Forum: Kevin de León

2022 Mayoral Forum: Kevin de León

This is an in-person event. Attendees will be required to show proof of vaccination along with proof of identification. Please read and check the agreement and safety boxes in the registration. Additional information regarding general event information and check-in process will be emailed directed to registrants 24 hours before the event.

AIA Los Angeles is hosting series of candid discussions with the leading Mayoral Candidates for the City of Los Angeles. The series of forums will serve as an opportunity for the A+D community and general public to learn more about each candidate’s vision for the city.

This forum, moderated by Frances Anderton, AIALA will be asking Kevin de León specific questions centered on his vision for a great city and his specific implementation strategies for how to most effectively address the ongoing challenges of housing, climate, and racial equality crisis.

Great cities serve all their people and require visionary institutions, beautiful streets and civic spaces, and robust political leadership.

Our next mayor must have great ambition matched with acute technical knowledge of how our city works in order govern Los Angeles as the world class city transform effectively. Who will our next mayor be?

Candidate:

Kevin de León – Councilmember, City of Los Angeles
Kevin de León has spent his life as an educator, activist, and community organizer. He was the first Latino leader of the California State Senate in 130 years, and represents the 14th District as a Los Angeles City Councilmember. Kevin has fought his whole career for the values his immigrant mother instilled in him from a young age.

Born in Downtown Los Angeles to a single, immigrant mother who supported her family working as a housekeeper, Kevin de León was taught early in life the value of hard work, and how important it is to stand up and speak out for what’s right in your community. Kevin was the first in his family to graduate from high school, attended U.C. Santa Barbara, and graduated from Pitzer College with honors.

Kevin got his start at the corner of Whittier Boulevard and Esperanza with One Stop Immigration Center, teaching English as a second language and U.S. history classes to people who came to Los Angeles to make America their home. He went on to cut his political teeth by helping organize one of the biggest marches in California state history against Prop 187 — a measure that aimed to prevent undocumented immigrant kids from using public health services.

Kevin spent years fighting for our teachers and their families as a labor organizer for the California Teachers Association and with the National Education Association. He pushed to strengthen our public schools across the city and state, from increasing school funding in low-income neighborhoods to improving facilities for kids, parents, and educators.

After serving four years in the California State Assembly, Kevin was elected to the State Senate in 2010, and was elected by his colleagues to lead the Senate as President pro Tempore in 2014 — the first Latino to lead the Senate in over a century.

During his time in the state legislature, Kevin led historic achievements to improve California families’ lives, protect our environment, and strengthen our economy. He secured hundreds of millions of dollars in funding for Los Angeles River revitalization, toxic waste clean-up, and public park projects. He authored Prop 68 to keep drinking water clean, as well as Prop 2, which secured the largest financial investment in California history to build permanent housing for Californians experiencing homelessness — an issue he cares deeply about.

Kevin knows what it means to experience housing insecurity. As a kid, his family lived paycheck to paycheck; and as a young adult, he slept in his car for months at a time when money was tight. As a City Councilmember, Kevin has been laser-focused on creating positive solutions for the homelessness and housing crises facing our city. In the past six months, he’s housed more residents than any other member of City Council, and has passed his signature “A Way Home” plan that proposes building 25,000 units of homeless housing by 2025. Kevin believes Los Angeles can become a strong leader in addressing the nation’s homelessness crisis and create a model for others to follow.

Moderator:

Frances Anderton, Hon. AIALA – Design and Architecture Writer and Producer
Frances Anderton covers Los Angeles design and architecture in print, podcasts and public events. She is currently writing a book, “Common Ground: Multifamily Housing in Los Angeles,” for Angel City Press. Anderton also programs talks, exhibitions and events at Helms Bakery District; these included Low Rise, Mid Rise, High Rise: Housing in L.A. Today, a pop-up exhibition displayed in June 2021. For many years Anderton hosted DnA: Design and Architecture radio show, which told stories about the design and the built environment from the vantage point of designers, critics and users. Metropolis magazine named Anderton the “voice of the city.” Anderton got her start at KCRW producing Warren Olney’s current affairs shows Which Way, LA? And To The Point, two brilliant programs that gave voice to multiple stakeholders and diverse opinions on pressing issues. She produced and co-hosted the radio series Wasted: Neat Solutions to the Dirty Problem of Waste, aired in early 2021 on KCRW’s Greater LA. In 2015 she curated Sink Or Swim: Designing For a Sea Change, about resilient architecture, shown at the Annenberg Space for Photography. Honors include the 2020 ICON Award from the Los Angeles Design Festival and the 2010 Esther McCoy Award for her work in educating the public about architecture and urbanism, bestowed by the Architectural Guild of USC School of Architecture.