CORNELL MILLS - CANDIDATE FOR DISTRICT 7 CITY COUNCIL
Real Experience. Real Results.
Friends, Family and Residents of District 7:
I am a lifelong Boston resident, 36 years old, married and the father of three. I am a small business owner of a real estate firm that specializes in foreclosure prevention. If I am honored to be your City Councillor, one of my priorities will be to create a comprehensive and effective foreclosure prevention strategy. We must find ways to protect our housing stock by preserving existing housing and expanding homeownership opportunities because I believe a stable homeownership community is key to achieving a good quality of life for everyone.
Growing up, I lived in Roxbury and Dorchester. My brother and I grew up in a household where public and community service was an expectation. We learned early on the importance of giving back and participating in the fabric of our community. I attended Boston Public Schools, Weston Public Schools through the METCO program and graduated from Boston College High School. I also attended Johnson C. Smith University, a historically black college in North Carolina. Each of these different settings gave me a unique understanding of the kind of environments that make education work. As your City Councillor, I will work to reduce the unacceptable high school dropout rate with a particular focus on strategies targeting Black and Latino males, 6 out of 10 of who currently do not graduate from high school.
My work experience has been diverse but community service and community building has always been the common thread. I served as Field Operations Supervisor for the Boston area for the US Census Bureau during the 2000 census and successfully focused on populations historically undercounted. I always had a strong entrepreneurial spirit and from 2002-2005 my brother, cousin and I ran a family business in Dorchester’s Jones Hill. That experience gave me a first-hand understanding of the needs of small business, the engines of our community, and the relationship between small business development and job creation. In a district where unemployment is twice the state’s average, we need to be more creative and results-oriented in putting the people of our neighborhoods back to work. As your City Councillor, I will draw from my experiences and utilize a combination of strategies that will work to change that paradigm.
In 2005, I worked as a lead Civilian Homicide Investigator for the Homicide Division of the Suffolk County DA’s office. My job was to respond to and investigate violent crime scenes. Often, it was the first interaction with potential witnesses and I saw firsthand how important it was to establish a relationship of trust with them from the start. I’ve seen the benefit of effective community policing and what can happen when law enforcement works well with the community. I believe that as your City Councillor, I can do a better job of bridging the divide between communities and police that often stands in the way of effective apprehension and prosecution of those who commit violent crimes that wreak havoc in neighborhoods throughout District 7.
This is a short term election cycle with long-term consequences. District 7 has an impressive legacy of strong and effective leadership in Bruce Bolling, Anthony Crayton and Chuck Turner. I share their same commitment to community. If I am so honored to be elected District 7 City Councillor, I will use my experience to build on that legacy of leadership in greater service to all the residents of the district. I respectfully ask for your vote on February 15, 2011 for the primary election and March 15, 2011 for the final election.
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