Kim will unveil additional details about her plans for City Committees throughout her campaign leading up to election day. Check out the first round of disclosure on her plans for Committees below, and stay in touch with Kim and her plans by joining our mailing list on our contacts page!
Clean Streets Committee
Working with the citizens to help the homeless and clean up the streets:
Ask anyone in the downtown area, and they will tell you we have an issue with the homeless population. The current administration claims the homeless are being dropped off from other areas, when research shows 80 percent of the homeless are long-time Granite City residents with family living here in town. To help mitigate the homeless crisis and get the homeless off the streets, Kim will develop a committee focused on helping and supporting our homeless community while cleaning up the downtown area.
Learn more about the “Clean Streets Committee” in the near future
Taking Back Our City Committee
Creating a safer city with citizen involvement:
While the current numbers show reported crime down 18% in Granite City, we all know the growing amount of unreported crime is soaring. The reason for unreported crime is two-fold:
1) Police are overworked and the thin staffing prevents accurate documentation of all crimes taking place (minor crimes often getting overlooked and not documented)
2) The faith in the police in general is faulty following nationwide decrease in trust in law enforcement officers. Therefore, citizens are less likely to call the police when they are witnessing crime or are in need for police support.
A way to combat these facts is to mobilize citizens to help protect and support their neighbors and offer resources to these volunteer citizen groups from City Hall. Kim Benda will create a “Neighborhood Watch Committee” that will create a network of Neighborhood watch groups throughout all 5 Wards. These committees will be supported by the Aldermen in each ward, and will allow for members of the Auxiliary Police and other trained emergency responders who are residents in these neighborhoods to create a network of supporting and reporting
Learn more about the “Taking Back Our City Committee” in the near future
Downtown Arts and Entertainment Committee
Continuing the work of the Downtown Arts and Entertainment District:
As the city continues to focus on business development, we will not forget the areas that are already in development in Granite City. One of the areas of pride in our town is the Granite City Arts and Entertainment District, funded by TIF and developed as a destination for tourists on Route 66 as well as the bi-state area. The work of this area will not be abandoned, and Kim will leverage one of her staff members to continue the great work started in the downtown area. Kim will continue the current work of the Arts and Entertainment District through connections in the St. Louis and Southern Illinois Arts Communities, and will reach out to resources on both coasts to strengthen the growing community downtown at NO-COST to the taxpayers!
Learn more about Kim’s plans for the the “Downtown Arts and Entertainment Committee” in the near future
HARC Board Committee
Reinstating the Historical Architecture Review Committee will be an additional task Kim Benda will take on as Mayor of Granite City in 2025. Kim knows the importance of keeping homes with historical classification in architectural good-standing. She will gather a group of experts from the community in Architecture, Building, Carpentry, Property Ownership, and TIF Funding experts to develop a plan for keeping the history of this city alive. As before, HARC board will have final say on any demolitions in the city, and will continue to guide the department of Building and Zoning when it comes to health growth and grooming of derelict properties. By having this group work hand in hand with Building and Zoning. Zoning. Kim believes this will also help cross-train the current staff in that department to ensure they are learning and understanding the urban planning and structural engineering behind the ordinances they enforce. The HARC board will encompass the entire city, unlike its previous version that only serviced the TIF districts of Downtown. We want to improve every neighborhood.
Learn more about the “HARC Board Committee” in the near future
Look for more information to come about the: