With just over a month left until the Sept. 12 Democratic Primary, City Council Member Mathieu Eugene (D-Prospect Lefferts Gardens, Flatbush, East Flatbush, Ditmas Park) is tasked with assuring constituents of his accomplishments during a 10-year incumbency, while squaring off with challengers Jen Berkley, Pia Raymond, and Brian Cunningham on relevant issues.
The often elusive Eugene took the time out to speak with KCP recently.
One of the most significant issues in this race has been housing and Eugene argues that though his fellow candidates also speak on housing, he has proof of his commitment to the issue. He references work to creating over 550 affordable units in the area. He says that funding he allocated for affordable development brought certain rents down to $250 a month.
“There are people who’ve been living in the community all of their lives, and now they are forced to leave, because they cannot afford the rent,” said Eugene. “I cannot pretend that I’m going to resolve the housing crisis, but I can do my best to make a difference. And I will continue to do that.”
In particular, he emphasizes that he has always pushed for strict and specific conditions when it comes to development in the area. He says that he will only agree to development that hires residents and supports small businesses by buying materials locally.
He adds that while building affordable housing is important, there must also be efforts to ensure that residents are earning enough to match rising living costs.
“Of course we have to create affordable housing, but there is no one magic bullet to resolve the housing crisis,” said Eugene. “We have to create a system and conditions for people to have a higher salary, a living rate.”
Eugene argues that this is especially crucial for young people in the district. He says that until recently, for every 135,000 young people in the city who applied for summer jobs each year, only about 35,000 were hired.
“We are talking about 100,000 young people who want to do a positive thing. We deny this opportunity,” said Eugene, noting his work with the Summer Youth Employment initiative, and adds that as Chair of the Committee of Youth Services, he helped raise the number of summer jobs to 70,000 citywide.
Eugene said that ensuring year-round work for young residents was equally important. ““I’m pleased but I’m not satisfied. I’m going to continue to fight until every single young person looking for a job in NYC can get a job.”
Eugene says that supporting young people in the district should extend into the world of education, as well. He references his nonprofit organization, Youth Education and Sports, and argues that he has worked to provide funding to afterschool and summer programs in the district.
“As a council member, I’ve been at the forefront of the fight to create opportunities for young people,” said Eugene, recalling meeting young people during and after their participation in the programs. “They didn’t want to go home. Every day they were waiting for the time to go back to the program. At that time, I wanted to serve the youth, but I didn’t know the impact I was making in their lives.”
Trained as a physician before his involvement in politics, Eugene emphasizes the work he’s done with local hospitals and medical centers. For example, he says he collaborated with Maimonides Medical Center to host medical symposiums with free screenings and sometimes treatment. He cites funding he allocated to the Downstate Medical Center for dialysis equipment and treatment.
Eugene maintains that healthcare is one of the most important issues in New York City. He argues that above all, the city government has the responsibility to provide quality healthcare for its residents, regardless of their wealth or immigration status.
“There are people suffering from high blood pressure, diabetes, because they don’t have access to medical care,” said Eugene. “If people are not healthy, what are they going to do? If they are not healthy, forget about jobs, forget about affordable housing.”
Eugene insists that above all, what sets him apart from his fellow candidates are his 10 years experience in the city council. He says that while challengers can only provide promises and hopes, he has tangible proof of work he’s done for the community.
“There’s a big difference between rhetoric, promises, and me who has been there, doing it, knowing it, making a big difference, improving people’s lives,” Eugene said. “People don’t have to listen to me. Challenge me, come with me, they will see for themselves what I’ve been doing.”
But the council member adds that he wouldn’t be running again if there wasn’t more work to be done. He recalls his father encouraging him to always seek improvement.
“He said, ‘my son you have a responsibility, every human being has the responsibility to contribute to the society you are living,’” said Eugene. “Every time, try to see what you can do better. There is no perfection at all.”
