Alexandria Mayor Alyia Gaskins says her participation in a recent gathering of local leaders around the world at Harvard University was “transformative” and shared a story about confronting a property manager over mold.
From April 12-14, Gaskins was included in the ninth cohort of the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative, joining leaders from 45 cities and 16 countries to exchange insights on local governance. She now says that the initiative has inspired her to focus more of her efforts on workforce development. Alexandria was also chosen for an “innovation track,” through which city staff will have the opportunity to learn how to better use data and innovation to work with residents and employers to enhance existing workforce strategies and explore new ones.
“As for next steps, my key priority is workforce development given the rising unemployment that we are seeing and the barriers to employment that we know exist for so many in our city, especially for our most vulnerable,” Gaskins told ALXnow.
The program has trained 359 mayors and more than 635 senior municipal officials across 41 countries, according to the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative. Discussion topics included “democratic innovation, homelessness and public health, cross-sector partnerships for children and youth, infrastructure development, and the evolving role of mayors on the global stage.”
Gaskins participated in a number of events, and said the most memorable was speaking at a JFK. Jr. Forum with Mayor Dada Sello Morero of Johannesburg, South Africa, and Executive Mayor Regina Romero of Tucson, Arizona.
At the forum, Gaskins said the biggest issue Alexandria faces is climate change and recounted a “transformational moment” in her leadership — the story of visiting a mold-infested apartment and confronting a property manager about unsanitary conditions.
Gaskins said she received emails from tenants in an undisclosed apartment building in the city complaining about the property manager, as well as mold conditions. She said she brought her infant daughter on a tour of one of the units and that her daughter began coughing upon entering the apartment, only to stop when they stepped into the hallway. The cough returned each time they went back inside.
“At this point the property manager comes, and he’s like, ‘Well, you didn’t get permission to come here,'” Gaskins said. “I was like, ‘I don’t need permission. I’m coming to see my friend. I’m here with my neighbors.’ And he said, ‘Everything that is being said here is a complete lie,’ and I said, ‘I want you to stand in this hallway with me. Do you hear my baby make a noise?’ and he said no. I said, ‘I need you to walk in this apartment with me,’ and we step inside and [her daughter] starts coughing again.”
Gaskins said that moment changed her leadership style and that too often leaders dismiss what their constituents are experiencing in their own homes. She said she was able to help the family move into another property and take “legal actions” against the property manager.
“I said to him, ‘I don’t know what is going on in here, but I can tell you there’s a problem in this room, and I can tell you that I’m going to do everything I can to either get everyone out of here, or you won’t be here,’ and he was like, ‘You don’t have the authority to do that,’ and I was like, ‘Just watch me.'”
Gaskins told ALXnow the apartment building was not an Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority property but did not provide additional details about the interaction. ALXnow has reached out to the city for more details.
See the full discussion with Gaskins below.
