Dennis McDermott
(click photo for candidate’s website)
Paul Klein
(click photo for candidate’s website)
There is a contested primary election race for Allegheny County Council District 11 between incumbent Paul Klein and his Democratic challenger, canvasser Dennis McDermott.
There are no Republican candidates for this seat.
Pittsburgh District 10 comprises:
- City of Pittsburgh, Ward 7 (Shadyside)
- City of Pittsburgh, Ward 14 (Point Breeze, Squirrel Hill, Frick Park)
- City of Pittsburgh, Ward 15 (Hazelwood, Greenfield)
- City of Pittsburgh, Ward 16 (Parts of South Side)
- City of Pittsburgh, Ward 29 (Carrick)
- City of Pittsburgh, Ward 31 (Hays, Lincoln Place)
- Homestead Borough
- Mount Oliver Borough
- West Homestead Borough
The candidates’ answers to our voter guide questions for the Primary Election on May 16 are below. You can also learn more about these candidates in the WESA 2023 Primary Election Voter Guide.
2023 Voter Guide Questions:
Roughly 1 in 7 Allegheny County residents are food insecure, and large sections of the county, especially many predominantly Black communities, do not have access to healthy affordable food.
1) What legislation or policy measures would you support as County Councilmember to address hunger and food apartheid in the county?
Klein:
As chair of the Allegheny County Council Committee on Health and Human Services, I see my role and that of the committee, as providing a stage in order to elevate the importance of public issues that have been ignored or not adequately addressed. I try to invite people to the table who have been doing the yeoman’s work in advancing the cause that they have championed. I hope that they will help us to educate the public as to the extent of food insecurity in this county and will help us to craft initiatives that will have an impact. As a body that represents the entire county, a county composed of about 130 municipalities, our reach is quite large. The challenge that we face in driving home the message that poverty and hunger are more prevalent in this region than many can imagine, is bringing this dire situation to the attention of the leadership in all of the communities that make up this county. We cannot compel those communities to act, but we can make the case that without buy-in from those municipalities, the prospects for having an impact are grim. As a member of council and as chair of this committee, I am committed to providing leadership around this damning challenge and charting a new food system paradigm. I will reach out to the food insecurity network in this area later this spring, and welcome their wisdom and their recommendations.
McDermott:
Addressing the inequities that exist from neighborhood to neighborhood in Allegheny County will
take a multi-faceted effort. But the road to addressing issues like the 20-year life expectancy
difference that exists between neighborhoods in the county runs straight through the issue of
food injustice. The minimum wage in Pennsylvania is a starvation wage and the wage for
service workers is unconscionable. Where possible, the county council must ensure a living
wage for county employees and consider legislation that would require a living wage for those
who work with the county or on county land. One of the easiest and most effective measures to
address racial inequality would be for the state to increase its minimum wage so that it meets
and exceeds the basic necessities of its residents and we should continue to advocate for our
state elected officials to make this change.
It is those who stand to lose the most who are also the most dependent on the county’s public
transportation system. Unfortunately, it is the same individuals who are the most underserved
by the same system. We must fund our public transit system to achieve fast, affordable, and
reliable service for the communities that depend on it. We must also ensure that transit runs to
areas that provide affordable food and jobs for those communities.
Many other issues go into this as well, zoning laws need to be adjusted to at least allow for
corner stores in the neighborhoods most affected by food apartheid, encouraging and educating
on urban agriculture, and adding farmer’s markets are all things worth exploring.
2) What role do you see, if any, for a county-level Food Justice Fund?
Klein:
The City of Pittsburgh created a Food Justice Fund in 2022. The need for such a fund to be created county wide is quite compelling. As we are in the midst of an election cycle that will end with the election of a new County Executive and administration, we need to make our case for such a program right now. It’s important that we place the future leadership of this county on notice, that this must be a priority. Five weeks ago, as Chair of Health and Human Services, I held a public hearing to assess our current efforts to improve air quality in this region. It was both a plea to the current administration as well as to whoever the future occupant of the executive’s office might be. As has been suggested in some quarters, we can’t ‘foodbank’ our way out of hunger. Food charity is not enough. We have to be thoughtful and creative and willing to allocate money in our municipal budgets and look for new sources of money in order to move the food insecurity needle, which nationally hovers at 11-12%, and that has been the situation for the past 30 years.
McDermott:
Addressing the life-expectancy crisis in Allegheny County is of paramount importance, and a
program like the Food Justice Fund would show that the county is seriously addressing the role
that food insecurity and food apartheid play in the crisis. The Food Justice Fund could provide
assistance to local organizations that are working to increase access to healthy foods, educate
families about important eating habits and sustainable urban agriculture, and assist in the
development of local food systems, especially in the funding of economic opportunities for
BIPOC families to simultaneously address the issue of food insecurity and poverty through job
creation.
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