Ridgefield is on the rise. With so much change and development, it is time to see some transformation in the leadership department as well.
There are 15 elected positions in Ridgefield. Only five of those are held by women, zero held by people of color. If you exclude the five school board directors, the average age of our elected leaders is north of 70. Meanwhile, people 65 years and over represent only 12.2 percent of our city. In addition, nearly 20 percent of our citizens are people of color. Does our leadership reflect those statistics?
A glaring example occurred recently with the division of our city council. They chose to undercut a very popular, accessible woman, taking away the progress of cultivated relationships and a new era for the city.
This past fall, there were nine seats up for election, only two of which were contested. We need some fresh perspectives to keep up with our inevitable growth. I am grateful for those who have served our city for many years. However, Ridgefield is not the old-school community it perhaps was. It’s critical that major aspects of our city reflect that progress.
