Lincoln City Council candidate profile: Brodey Weber

LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) - The election to fill the Lincoln City Council District 4 seat representing downtown and northwest Lincoln, will be among four people in the April 4 primary. Democrats Kay Siebler, Brodey B. Weber and Maggie Mae Squires will appear alongside Republican Wayne Reinwald.

Two candidates will advance to the May 2 general election. The winner will fill the seat of council chair Tammy Ward, who declined to run for a second term.

10/11 NOW sent a questionnaire to all candidates and we did not edit responses. Read Brodey Weber’s below and view other candidate profiles here.

Occupation: Vice President of Client Relations for Mid America Casing Supply, LLC

Public Service History:

- Board of Directors - Highlands Neighborhood Association

- Board of Directors - Community Action Partnership of Lancaster and Saunders Counties

- Mayoral Appointee - Lincoln-Lancaster’s Keno/Human Services Advisory Board

- Member - Lincoln’s Chamber of Commerce Young Professionals Group

- Former Assistant Debate Coach - Lincoln Southwest High School

Briefly explain why you’re running for Lincoln City Council. As a lifelong resident of Northwest Lincoln, I feel a responsibility to step up to serve my community. As the only candidate in this race that has been raised here, educated here and has worked here, I believe that I can be a strong advocate for us in City Hall. Every decision that is made in our city deeply impacts our lives, especially in areas such as public safety and streets. Far too many people in North Lincoln feel like an afterthought, and it is time that changes. That’s why improving our roads in North Lincoln and keeping you safe will be my top priorities if I am lucky enough to serve.

As a city council member, you’ll be tasked with approving a city budget. Explain any experience you have handling budgets. What are your priorities when it comes to budget negotiations and how do you achieve them? I have extensive experience managing budgets in both the private and public sectors. As a member of a non-profit’s Board of Directors, I have assisted in overseeing a multi-million dollar budget. As a member of the Lincoln-Lancaster’s Keno/Human Services Advisory Board I have worked with others to disperse hundreds of thousands of dollars to local organizations actively working to improve our community. These experiences have allowed me to gain valuable insight if I were to be elected to the City Council. As an elected official I will always be mindful that our budget comes from hard-working folks in our city. To be a good steward of public funds I will prioritize our needs over wants, like our roads and first responders. I will work with anyone on the City Council to ensure that we approve a responsible city budget.

What can be done by the city council to improve housing affordability? We need to do something in Lincoln to make housing more affordable. Affordable housing is a difficult issue because what is affordable to one person may not be to the next. I support the city’s Affordable Action Housing Plan and think we need to continue to execute that plan that experts developed. I think we need to look at other factors that deal with affordable housing, including supporting businesses that create good-paying jobs so hard-working Lincolnites can improve their financial well-being.

What are your thoughts on using Tax Increment Financing (TIF) for development? TIF is the only economic development tool that cities have. I support TIF for projects that have a value to the community. As your city councilmember, I’ll be evaluating each project to determine what that value is. In general, I think TIF projects should support things like affordable housing, supporting local businesses, and making Lincoln more likely to attract and retain young families.

How should Lincoln work to attract new business and support and increase the number of small businesses? I have proposed re-establishing the city’s Airpark Economic Development Task Force. I think that by partnering with the state, county, Airport Authority, and private businesses, we can attract new businesses to set up shop here in Lincoln. When we create more jobs, we create more opportunities for other businesses like restaurants and grocery stores to thrive.

When should Lincoln’s COVID-19 health emergency expire? The Federal Public Health Emergency is set to expire at the end of the day on May 11th. These emergency measures are meant to assist and protect communities during the recovery phase of the emergency, not just the cause of the emergency. As someone who has been working for a small, family-run business I have seen firsthand how we are still recovering from the economic impacts of COVID-19. Because of Lincoln’s health emergency, we have been able to receive funds from the Federal Government that Nebraskans have already paid into. As a result, we have been able to make sure businesses can stay open, connect employers to prospective employees and work to keep roofs over our neighbors’ heads.

Would you support an LGBTQ fairness ordinance ballot initiative? I unequivocally support our LGBTQ+ community, and part of supporting communities means listening. We as a city must oppose any and all forms of discrimination. The Lincoln Chamber of Commerce has historically supported anti-discrimination policies. This is not just a social issue, it’s an economic issue. We need this to continue to grow our community and attract and retain the most qualified workforce we can. Still, I am hesitant to put a person’s human rights on a ballot. We are currently on track to see the most expensive Mayor’s race, just months after the most expensive primary race for Governor. If the fairness ordinance is on the ballot, organizers need to have a campaign strategy to take on the large amounts of money that could be poured into our city by some of the richest families in our state and out-of-state special interests.

A handful of Nebraska municipalities have outlawed abortion by local ordinance. Would you support a such a move in Lincoln? No. Whether or not a person morally disagrees with abortion, people will still seek out that procedure. I believe that if someone feels that they are in a situation that they need to get an abortion, that it must be as safe as possible. The best way to ensure that, is to keep it legal. I think we as a community would benefit from trying to enact policies that prevent unwanted pregnancies instead.

Copyright 2023 KOLN. All rights reserved.