By Ashley Benkarski
NASHVILLE, TN— Quin Evans-Segall is one of eight candidates vying for one of four at-large Metro Council seats.
She said she’d bring her experience as an infrastructure attorney and Vice Chair of the Industrial Development Board to the role, a perspective she believes is key to helping craft solutions to multiple issues ailing Nashville, such as transit, predatory development and affordable housing.
“I’ve also seen other governments fail to make really smart infrastructure choices and we just have to be a lot smarter about how we do things in Metro right now,” she said. As Nashville sees an influx of newcomers and a bustling tourism industry that has driven up housing costs, an outdated infrastructure is adding stacks of problems for residents not only in Nashville but its surrounding counties.
One of the items on her list is passing dedicated funding for transit that could ease the economic burden on Nashville residents and those who commute to Music City for work, lessening cars on the road while making the streets safer for pedestrians. That’s important as Nashville’s population continues to grow. “It takes a lot of money to own a car each year, and the more we can give people options to own fewer cars, the more likely it is that someone can afford to live in the city,” she said. “Our streets are complicated because a lot of our most deadly streets, our most unsafe streets are state roads, but we have to work better with TDOT (Tennessee Department of Transportation) to get that fixed as soon as possible.” Working with ring counties to better communicate those needs to TDOT would be a key strategy, she said.
“I live in a walkable neighborhood and I also have a bike that I ride around town with my children and I know how unsafe these streets can be. I also have the luxury of having a car. I can choose to drive if I want to and a lot of our residents don’t have that luxury, and it shouldn’t be that they’re putting their life at risk just trying to get to work or to school,” she said.
Asked about some of her day-one priorities if elected, she said updating the zoning code is an important item.
She also said she’d like to make sure parents have childcare options, another barrier to financial security for households. “We have to make sure that we have child care for people right now. It’s impossible to find a child care spot that you can afford and that is consistent. And we should also make sure we fund after school care for school-aged kids fully so that nobody’s on a wait list and can’t get a spot, which we are experiencing right now.”
“These are just really conversations that take a long time to have, but we have to start them immediately. And that means starting all these programs, starting these community conversations, and making sure that Council is really working together to achieve what we need to in Nashville right now.”
Evans-Segall said the goal is to make Nashville, her hometown, healthy, sustainable and resilient. “I just think we need to make it work for people in a way it’s not currently, and I won’t stop until we do.”
Election day is September 14 and early voting runs until Sept. 9. “Please remember to vote. I would appreciate your support,” Evans-Segall said. Visit quinforcouncil.com for more information on her platform and campaign.
