---

Former Asbury Park School Board member and 2020 City Council candidate Felicia Simmons will be joining incumbent John Moor and newcomer Sonja Mack as contenders for Mayor in this November’s non-partisan election. 

Simmons issued a news release announcing the kick off of her candidacy. The following is the full release:

Felicia Simmons is running to unseat John Moor in November’s election. She has worked in the last two years as the community organizer on two of the most impactful campaigns in Asbury Park history: Asbury Park Affordable Housing Coalition’s rent control referendum campaign to cap rent increases at 3% per year and their inclusionary zoning ordinance campaign that requires 20% of all new multi-family housing units to be affordable to low- and moderate-income Asbury Park residents. 

Simmons plans to turn that experience into a win of her own, as well as bring to light the struggles that she and many other city residents share. “This is a campaign for the people, by the people, with a plan to take over the city in a way that is beneficial to all parts of the city,” Simmons said at a campaign event at Sami’s Mediterranean Street Food.

“There’s no part [of Asbury Park] that is less valuable than the other part,” she added. “We’re a unique breed of people that come together under art, under love, under greatness, we’re an active group of people, we don’t sit back and be complacent.” 

Simmons’ main platform planks are:

• Ensuring the entire Asbury Park community has fair access to their Mayor and Council at large.
• Asbury Park residents are organized to make public presentations on their issues. 
• Creating a budget for Asbury Park focused on fair distribution of funds & economic opportunities for all residents and regions of Asbury Park.
• Engaging all residents, businesses, and community groups to develop a unified vision for Asbury Park.

Simmons said she’s not going to sit back and put Asbury Park’s problems on someone else, she believes it’s our problem and we have an opportunity to fix it so we can all stay and live in a productive, beautiful city by the shore. 

“We’re not going to sit back and be complacent as part of our city is pushed out, as part of our city is undereducated, as part of our city is underdeveloped, we’re not going to sIt back and continue to let these things happen.”

A life-long Asbury Park resident, Simmons graduated Asbury Park High School, class of 1998. She serves as President of the Monmouth & Ocean County National Action Network, Education Committee Chair of the Asbury Park NAACP, Co-founder and Community Organizer for the Asbury Park Affordable Housing Coalition and President/Executive Director of the Westside Community Center. She says she is, “Above all else, a mother, daughter, artist, and friend.” 

For more information about Felicia Simmons visit feliciasimmons4asburypark.com.

————————————————————————————-

Follow the Asbury Park Sun onFacebook, Twitter and Instagram.

The Asbury Park Sun is affiliated with the triCityNews newspaper.

---