Beargrass Thunder was excited to interview Shameka Parrish-Wright, the first person to officially announce their campaign for the 2022 Louisville Mayoral election.
We were invited to her campaign office in the historic Heyburn building in downtown Louisville. Ms. Shameka graciously answered lots of questions that we intend to ask every 2022 mayor candidate, and elaborated on her CHANGE platform.
If you would like to donate, ask a question, or have an idea, you can find more info at shamekaparrishwright.com or email her directly by sending an email to shameka4mayor@gmail.com.
Some questions we asked include:
Do you have a yarden?
How do you intend to combat the urban heat island effect?
What steps do you plan on doing to decriminalize houselessness?
Do you plan on expanding I64 under Cherokee Park?
KIPDA has 2040 completion of Beargrass Creek trails - how will you fast track it?
What is your #1 campaign priority & the first thing you intend to do in office?
Do you plan on growing old in Louisville & what will you do when you age out of driving?
Do you intend to decrease the LMPD budget by the first fiscal year?
Do you support opening K&I Bridge from Portland to New Albany for bikes & pedestrians?
What will you do to create and protect community spaces for children and the elderly?
and what is your vision of the revitalization of neighborhoods?
our talking points revolved around:
Yardens, transit, two-way streets
Gardening & urban agriculture
Public Schools, education, & programming
Gentrification/predatory developers
City shutting down public gathering spaces & correlation with crime
Food apartheid & historically commercial vacant lots
Removing property maintenance code/nuisance ordinance
Trauma response/911 alternative/Defunding LMPD
Public transit improvement plans
Libraries & free 24-hour community spaces
For a shorter summary of her campaign plan, Shameka was kind enough to outline her CHANGES platform:
Shameka for Mayor means CHANGES we can see and feel:
COMMUNITY, HOUSING, ADVOCATING, NURTURING, GRASSROOTS, EDUCATION, and SUSTAINABLE.
Shameka's promises as mayor:
Push for Louisville to be a nationally known city for the arts.
Push for Louisville City FC to join Major League Soccer (appoint committee)
Grants for local businesses to become music venues (speakers and copyright licenses needed)
Foodie Tours
Return of Trolleys or Modern Street Cars
Olmsted Park Hiking and Historical Tours
Improved public transit and a feasible plan for some type of fixed rail transit that connects the 80 small cities, our airport and downtown.
Legalization of Cannabis and new dispensaries
New National Ad Campaign with the Tourism ideas listed above that include and extend beyond downtown Louisville and the Bourbon Trail.
Affordable homeownership and housing in every zip code.
Thanks again to Ms. Shameka for taking the time to answer our questions. If you're interested in hearing more from Ms. Shameka, you can gain access to our exclusive video by joining our Patreon! You can gain access to our hour-long conversation with Shameka about all the issues Louisvillians face as well as other exclusive Beargrass Thunder content and special opportunities.
Stay up to date! We intend to release more interviews with other 2022 Louisville Mayor candidates. Make sure you're subscribed to our youtube channel, and you can enter your email below to sign up for our website.