2 New ​“Alders” Make The Rounds

Two ​“alders” checked in on a couple’s revived East Street deli, talked street improvements with a development official, blasted the news to constituents — and dreamed about what they want to be when they grow up.

The ​“alders” were Ada Akdağ and Melissa Rodriguez, two high school students appointed to serve as ​“alders for a day” Thursday alongside East Rock/Fair Haven Alder Caroline Smith.

Rodriguez, an 18-year-old rising senior at New Haven Academy, and Akdağ, a 15-year-old rising sophomore at West Haven High, participate in Junta For Progressive Action’s Youth Empowerment Program. 

They were selected by Junta’s Kiana Cintron to shadow Smith over the course of a jam-packed afternoon, and to try their hand at constituent communication by posting updates on Smith’s Instagram account.

Their first stop was a visit to East Street Grocery and Foods, a business whose new owners asked Tanbee Smith to help them spread the word about their offerings.

Fiances Keiry Pena and Joseph Jenkins took over the storefront at 607 East St. and officially revived it one month ago. They said they secured spot after the former owners of J & J Deli decided to retire. Pena and Jenkins have now filled it with convenience items as well as freshly-made, mouth-watering Puerto Rican food.

Jenkins first came up with the idea for a deli due to his enthusiasm for Pena’s cooking. 

“You eat this food? It’s like you’re not even here,” he said. ​“You can taste the love.”

Akdağ and Rodriguez were tasked with snapping photos of the new business and posting about it on Instagram — an example of how alders can support local businesses and keep their constituents informed about neighborhood news.

“What did you think?” asked Smith on the way back to her car.

“They’re like couple goals,” said Akdağ.

“The way he looked at her and the way she looked at him” showed how much they believe in each other, Rodriguez said.

“Just the power of even one person believing in you” can make a massive difference, Smith observed.

Making Three Moms Proud

Smith, Rodriguez, and Akdağ met each another for the first time earlier that afternoon at Junta’s Grand Avenue headquarters.

Smith, who is serving her first term as the alder of Ward 9, explained that the job of representing her constituents is ​“very personal”: all about building relationships, managing disagreements, and pursuing a vision for her neighborhood and city rooted in the values she’s formed throughout her life.

She asked each of the alders-for-a-day to talk about the life experiences that fuel their interest in politics.

“I’m passionate about where I come from and representing my Hispanic and Latino community,” said Rodriguez. She immigrated with her family from El Salvador when she was 11 years old. She hopes to study psychology, and eventually to work both with individuals and communities to explore how their life experiences have shaped who they are.

She founded New Haven Academy’s Hispanic Heritage Club. ​“We are a little family,” she said. ​“For once I could feel like I was home again.”

Rodriguez said she’s inspired to pursue her dreams by her mom. ​“She did so much for us: she left her country, works multiple jobs,” and always encourages her kids to spend time outside.

This resonated with Akdağ, who said her mom works extremely hard for both her and her brother. ​“Just seeing her be proud of me” is a huge source of motivation.

Akdağ immigrated from Turkey when she was 7, first moving to Pennsylvania and then to West Haven. She loves English class and is especially fond of Markus Zusak’s novel The Book Thief. ​“I really want to go to a good college, like Yale,” she said, and one day become a lawyer.

“My mom is a huge source of inspiration for me,” echoed Smith. She added that her mom is also an immigrant, having grown up in a small South Korean village and eventually found a home in Kentucky, where Smith grew up. 

Smith enrolled in college at Yale — and found a long-term home in New Haven. ​“This is what it feels like to be part of a city, a community,” she recalled feeling in her first years here.

Fielding Tough Questions

After promoting the East Street deli, the group headed to their next stop: a tour of City Hall.

As Rodriguez selected Bruno Mars’ ​“Locked Out Of Heaven” to play from the car stereo, Smith took the opportunity to ask the pair ​“all the things I want to ask teenagers.”

“Are boy bands still a thing?” she asked.

Not really, they said, though some of Akdağ’s friends like now-disbanded groups like One Direction.

“What do you think of the presidential election?” Smith asked.

“It’s just sad,” said Rodriguez, who said it’s less about feeling excited about one candidate than supporting ​“whoever is not Donald Trump or Biden.”

High school students could have done a better job at the presidential debate between Trump and former candidate Biden, said Akdağ. She said she wishes the candidates would focus more on ideas for the country, like how to address climate change.

On the walk through the New Haven Green between Smith’s parking spot and City Hall, the alder asked, ​“If you could make one change to the Green, what would it be?”

Rodriguez said she’d add more seating options throughout the park, not just around its borders.

Akdağ got excited about Smith’s suggestion for a food kiosk: ​“That would be a great way to support small businesses.”

Finding "Joy" In Local Government

At City Hall, Smith showed Akdağ and Rodriguez around the aldermanic chamber, pointing out her name plaque and the table where members of the public can offer testimony.

The group had a chance to meet with Malachi Bridges, a city economic development officer focused on neighborhood and commercial growth. A lifelong New Havener, Bridges is currently pursuing a law degree at UConn on top of his City Hall day job.

Bridges offered the high schoolers a glimpse of a proposal to revitalize Kimberly Square and described one of his favorite projects to work on, a redesign-in-progress of Long Wharf.

His goal, he said, is help spur a more walkable and vibrant experience in predominantly lower-income and Black and Brown neighborhoods. ​“Those communities deserve to look like Downtown. They deserve to look like Orange Street,” he said.

One of his favorite parts of the job, he added, is interacting with neighborhood residents and businesses. ​“They love their communities,” he said. ​“Just seeing that pride puts the battery life in my hat.”

After this meeting — and en route to a few more, including Smith’s ​“office hours” and the Fair Haven Community Management Team — the team reflected on what it means to be a public servant.

Rodriguez said she appreciated the ​“joy” that Bridges brings to his work. 

While local government affects everyone, she observed, ​“a lot of people do not see behind the scenes.”