Thread: Rishell confronts overcrowding, illegal immigration

http://www.timescommunity.com/site/tab6 ... 6105&rfi=6

During a campaign season, Labor Day is the traditional day for those in elective office to begin kicking their campaigns into high gear as the race toward Election Day speeds up. There are fewer than 70 days to go until Nov. 7 when voters in the 50th District district will decide on the successor for the late Del. Harry J. Parrish.

Democrat Jeanette Rishell and Republican Jackson Miller have both entered the final stretch of the campaign season. Both candidates, who were nominated by their respective parties in June, updated their Web sites with new layouts and information last month.

They've hit the streets, campaigning door-to-door. They have sent out fliers by hand and by mail and have met with area residents. They've had yard signs and stickers printed and have shaken the hands of area residents they are hoping will show up to the polls this fall.

Campaigns

They have stepped up fund-raising efforts as well.

On Aug. 19, House of Delegates Minority leader Brian Moran of Arlington joined Rishell for a fund raiser that netted about $4,600 dollars for her candidacy. She said he introduced her "very articulately" before she spoke to fellow Democrats about transportation, education and various other issues.

The campaigns of Miller and Rishell have been relatively tame though they have traded barbs with one another on separate occasions.

Rishell has levied charges that Miller is an extremist right-wing Republican. Miller has said, however, that as a delegate, he would concentrate on issues such as transportation, the negative effects of illegal immigration, and taxes instead of "being a leader" on social issues such as abortion and gay marriage, which he does oppose.

Miller said he was "deeply bothered" by Rishell's claim that she is a successor to Parrish because while Miller worked on Parrish's last three campaigns, Rishell donated money to his Democratic challenger in 2005.

"I am a moderate. That's how I feel that I am in the mold of Harry Parrish," she said. "Harry Parrish was someone who was willing to sit down and talk to people ... he was a very good listener. And I have a tremendous respect for that and that's why I've knocked on 6,200 doors, because I want to listen in the same way."

She did confirm, however, that she donated money to Parrish's 2005 Democratic challenger, Donald Shuemaker.

"I think I gave $100," to his campaign, she said. "I was supporting him as a fellow Democrat and as a fellow Manassas Park resident."

Twice last month, her campaign issued press releases outlining her positions on two issues she did not address at a speech during her campaign kick off in June: illegal immigration and overcrowding.

While her opponent has made those topics two of the centerpieces of his campaign from the get-go, along with taxes and transportation, Rishell has focused largely on transportation, development and education.

She said she has "learned a great deal about all issues" over the last two months, especially illegal immigration and overcrowding. Rishell said there was "no special reason" for waiting until August to lay out a formal plan for dealing with the topics "except we held to a schedule for releasing. That's just how it fell."

Overcrowding

Last December, Manassas Mayor Doug Waldron pushed for a bill to redefine the definition of "family" in order to combat overcrowding in the city. The zoning ordinance, which the City Council - including Miller - approved, redefined "families" to keep large numbers of extended family members from living together inside the city. The ordinance was later rescinded.

Rishell said she disagreed with the city's approach because of potential "unintended consequences" that could be generated by the initiative.

"I was opposed to the redefinition of family," she said. "I felt that was somewhat misdirected. I know the intentions were excellent, but the effort was misdirected."

On Tuesday, Rishell issued a five-point plan for how she would work to combat overcrowding if elected to the state House. First, she said she would push for a bill making it a felony to run "illegal boarding houses."

"These are boarding houses which have so many people ... that exceed the capacity of the home and there's bound to be stress on the electric, the water, [and] the utilities of all types," she said. "Residences were designed to hold a specific number of people," she said, adding "And when you really exceed the number, and I think we're all aware of what we heard in the community, that you're going to have problems."

To her, those problems include parking, excessive garbage and cramped living conditions.

"If you have that many people sleeping in a home, you're going to have sleeping in bathrooms," she said. "You're going to have sleeping in closets. You're going to have the people subdividing the home without permits."

When asked what areas of the 50th District are most impacted by overcrowding, she refused to single out any particular neighborhoods.

"I knew at the time I was in the neighborhood that there appeared to be a significant degree of overcrowding, but what appears to a person and what's in reality sometimes [are] two different things," she said. "That's why I don't think it's appropriate to comment on the identity of that neighborhood."

Rishell supports raising fines on zoning ordinance violations from a $10 minimum and $1,000 maximum to $2,500 minimum and $10,000 maximum.

She said that increasing the fines on those who run the homes "can discourage these boarding houses that are popping up."

The fines would apply to the landlord, not the residents.

Rishell also proposed a "Livability Court" which would handle such cases. She cited success with a similar court system in Charleston, S.C. and said in a written statement that she would like the court to be separate from existing Municipal Court because "community maintenance problems need to be taken out of the regular docket and be viewed in a context other than that of being sandwiched in between drug cases."

If certain illegal boarding houses are shut down, however, some residing in the homes may find themselves homeless. To avoid putting people on the streets, she said, "I'm hoping that we can assist them to locate alternative housing. We don't want to be in a situation of creating homelessness. We want to be perceived as a community as a problem solver. That's the important thing here."

http://www.potomacnews.com/servlet/Sate ... 0280&path=

Rishell unveils plan for overcrowding
By ALEXANDER J. GRANADOS
agranados@potomacnews.com
Thursday, August 31, 2006


Jeanette Rishell, the Democratic candidate for the 50th Virginia House district, thinks working to curb illegal boarding houses is one of the keys to combating housing overcrowding, she said.

In her recently released overcrowding policy, she proposes stiffer penalties for those who run these houses, including raising minimum fines from $10 to $2,500, and maximum fines from $1,000 to $10,000.

Rishell said these houses are a safety hazard and if further laws are necessary to stop them, she will act.

"I don't want our community to have a disaster. I don't want a loss of life," she said. "When first responders go to a home, how are they to know even how many children are living in that house?"

Rishell and her Republican opponent, Jackson H. Miller, are battling for the seat left open after the death of Del. Harry J. Parrish.

The 50th House district includes Manassas City, Manassas Park and parts of Prince William County.

In her overcrowding policy Rishell also proposes a Livability Court that would focus on cases of violations in housing codes, and other related codes, to give them the attention they deserve, she said.

"Perhaps being on the regular docket and being viewed with drug cases, it diminishes the importance of these basically quality of life issues that we are dealing with," she said.

Other aspects of her policy include ensuring overcrowding complaints are not anonymous but are in written form and fully documented. She also proposes a study of illegal immigration's impact on overcrowding and the costs involved, which would be given to Virginia's congressional representatives so that localities could get financial support.

Her opponent, Republican Jackson H. Miller, is not impressed.

"Now that she's running for political office, all of a sudden she wants to do something with this issue," he said.

Miller, a Manassas City Council member, said the city already enacted one effective way to battle overcrowding.

In December 2005, the council passed an ordinance redefining the term "family." The ordinance effectively limited who could live in a house together and was an attempt by the city to squash overcrowding.

Rishell helped get rid of the ordinance by leading protests against it, Miller said.

Rishell said the ordinance was a mistake.

"I think that was very well-intentioned but misdirected," she said. "They were trying to do the right thing, but I was very uncomfortable with trying to redefine the family."

She said a "problem-specific approach" was necessary to attack overcrowding head on.

The ordinance was ultimately repealed because of pressure from numerous civil rights groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia.

Miller said if it were possible he would like to see the city be able to use the ordinance that was passed, and he would like to see the state back Manassas in this regard.

"I would also like to give localities more tools, with regard to state law, to allow us to make tougher ordinances on overcrowding," he said.

This could include things like tougher fire code regulations, he said, but it should be something localities determine.

Miller said he supports the idea of raising fines for people who run illegal boarding houses, but that is where he and Rishell part ideological ways.

There is no reason to have a separate court for code violations, he said. Code violations can be handled in General District Court as long as people are willing to enforce those laws, he said.

As for requiring overcrowding complaints to be in writing, Miller said that would discourage due diligence from citizens. They should be able to make complaints anonymously, he said.

And while he said that finding solutions to illegal immigration would help with overcrowding, the two issues are not the same.

"Overcrowding can be an immigrant, it can be someone whose family has been in the United States for 200 years," he said.

Voters will have a chance to pick their candidate in the Nov. 7 special election.

If Hazelton law sticks, you can just use that. Actually, without using such strict law, you wont get far. Just use a copycat law of Hazelton, or get lost, your a phoney.