Ward 3 City Council Candidates Focus on Neighborhood Concerns

Democrats Iris Sanchez and Aram Ayalon and Republicans Joel Moret and Jason Gibson are running for the two City Council seats representing New Britain’s Ward 3.

Sanchez and Ayalon say that they are running for City Council to advocate for public services for the working class and the elderly and to protecting water and air quality.

Ward 3 is situated in the center of the city, including Mount Pleasant area, parts of West Main Street, Downtown, the Arch Street neighborhood, much of the South Main Street neighborhood, Washington Street, the North-Oak Street neighborhood, the senior buildings on Basset Street and Martin Luther King Boulevard and part of the neighborhood to the west of Central Connecticut State University.

Voters in Ward 3, depending on where they live, vote at the New Britain Senior Center at 55 Pearl Street, the School Apartments at 50 Bassett Street, the Graham Apartments at 107 Martin Luther King Drive, the Generale Ameglio Society at 13 Beaver Street or the International Church at 40 Acorn Street.

The election for City Council in New Britain’s Ward 3 is an open seat race. Ald. Shirley Black (D-3) is retiring from the Council and Ald. Manny Sanchez (D-3) is seeking citywide office as an Alderman-At-Large.

Iris Sanchez is a longtime Democrat who has worked as a volunteer in the VITA program at HRA of New Britain, helping clients with their tax returns.  She graduated from High School in Puerto Rico in 1992, and moved to New Britain in 1994.  She is a graduate of the American Institute in West Hartford in the field of Billing and Coding.

Sanchez says that she would like to focus her energy on the City Council on community programs for children happening inside of the schools, giving them recreational, artistic and athletic opportunities.

Ayalon served on the New Britain Board of Education from 2007 to 2014. Holding a PhD in Curriculum and Instruction, he is a professor of Education at Central Connecticut State University. He has been active in the Democratic party since 2006.

Ayalon says that he believes that the key to a better New Britain is investments in public housing, school, and natural resources. He says that he feels strongly in increasing alternative energy use at the city level and reducing pollution.

Ten of the fifteen members of the City Council are elected from five City Council “Wards”. Each Ward represents certain neighborhoods of the city. The voters in each Ward elect two Council members to represent them. In each Ward, each voter can vote for two candidates and the top two are elected.

Editor’s Note: City Republicans were asked for candidate profiles on their candidates and did not respond by the publication of this article.