Uniquia for council

Uniquia Lewis runs for council

Community activist Uniquia Lewis will submit petition signatures this week to run for Niagara Falls City Council. If elected this would make Ms. Lewis the first African American councilwoman in the City of Niagara Falls’ history.

“Change needs to come to the City of Niagara Falls,” said Ms. Lewis. “Change starts with people. I’ve regularly attended City Council meetings, school board meetings and community events for years. I’ve been a quiet but passionate advocate for change all that time. After careful and thoughtful consideration, myself and my family decided it was time to take that passion public - and I’m proud to announce my campaign to transform the City of Niagara Falls”.

As a born and raised Falls resident Ms. Lewis has seen firsthand how the city is failing its residents. “The one thing all Niagara Falls residents - in fact all Western New York residents - agree on is that the city has completely failed for decades. There is no one person responsible, it’s become a culture of failed decisions.

“People in office for years, running for reelection to offices they feel are lifetime appointments, actually campaign on failed leadership without once looking in the mirror and knowing they’ve played a large role in that failure.

“While it's not constructive to assign blame, it is time to stop ignoring the failures and stop returning the same failed leaders to office”.

Lewis is fueled by anger after seeing the City Council fail to oversee a $1.5 million deal with an investor gone wrong. She feels the city needs someone with oversight skills and sound judgment who will not allow anyone, even the mayor, to create another mess in this city.

“This city is too far behind to add anymore problems in our bucket. It’s time to take action to fix it.”

A single mother of two and a Hijabi Muslim, Lewis is a WAWG (We All We Got) member and running on a slate with WAWG Mayoral candidate Demetreus Nix who is running to replace Mayor Restaino.

Initially they both appeared on two different petitioning forms and had to discard hundreds of signatures to create the power of unity to run together. They now appear on a joint petitioning form. Like her fellow slate candidate Nix, Lewis also supports term limits and a full-time city council with daily access to the people.

She also supports lowering taxes and dropping garbage collection fees. Lewis also stands unafraid to fight with Albany for a fair share of Casino and Park revenue.

Unlike what current city hall does, prioritizing outside big investors, supporting bogus ideas that will put our city 20+ years in debt and wanting to open more airBNBs, Lewis centers her whole campaign around the needs of the people.

“The city hall is a place where priority should be on NEED, not on ‘ideas, wants or luxuries first.’ It is not humane to fund million dollar projects to entertain the outside rich while our locals are facing displacement because of lack of jobs and opportunities. The city needs our representative with our lived experiences to serve us. The rich won’t see our problems,” Lewis said.

A resident of the Inner-City in Niagara Falls, Ms. Lewis will focus on four key issues in her campaign: Transparency and Inclusion: “The city is only as strong as its people. As a council member I will force the city to be completely transparent - not for fear of exposure of long-held secrets, but to encourage participation and generate good ideas from all corners of the city.”

Council Representation: “The current council is merely a rubber stamp for the Mayor. It’s not just the people who are kept in the dark, but the Council readily and publicly admits time and time again that they approve proposals with no advance knowledge and little information. It’s beyond time to force the council to hold regular office hours, have its own professional staff and be more available to constituents. I also don’t believe in machine politics and lifetime appointments and will push for term limits.”

Investing in the Community: “Our biggest failure is also our greatest asset if managed properly - our abandoned and vacant residential and commercial properties. I will push to get these properties in the hands of locals. To make affordable housing and home ownership a reality again.” Community Centers for Youth; Community Shopping for Residents; Community Jobs People: “We have a perfect business eco-system at our disposal, but we’re not managing it. I will push to reinvest in long-abandoned community centers so our youth will have mentorship and recreational opportunities. I will push to invest in local shopping opportunities instead of failed crypto-dreams. I will push to create a micro-business climate that will allow Falls residents to pursue the dream of not only home ownership but business ownership.” Uniquia Lewis has spent her life keeping a focus on the important, recognizing priorities, and slowly working towards a better future.

“These are not the only issues facing our city, but they’re the immediate priority. If we can start to turn these things around, other good opportunities will follow. Ms. Lewis, clearly frustrated with local politics, is running in the Democratic Party primary which will be held in June.

To get involved in the “Lewis for Council'' campaign volunteers can reach out to Ms. Lewis through the Center for Entrepreneurial Thought on 19th Street or email her directly at ul.nixcontracting@gmail.com