AURORA | A north Aurora veteran and Aurora Public Schools teacher is the latest denizen who says he’s running for a spot on the city council.
Bill Gondrez announced earlier this month that he’ll challenge Ward I Councilmember Crystal Murillo, who was elected in 2017 and has filed paperwork this year signaling that she’ll vie to keep her seat in November.
Two other residents had filed their intent to run paperwork for Ward I as of late last month: Scott Liva and Christopher Bella.
Gondrez says he’s a U.S. Army veteran who was last stationed at Fitzsimons Army Medical Center. He retired in 1994 and is now a teacher in Aurora Public Schools, according to a news release.
“I’m running for the Aurora City Council because the residents of Northwest Aurora deserve to live without the constant fear of being a victim of a crime, they deserve to have an economic development plan that brings jobs that pay a living wage to our area, and they deserve an affordable housing strategy that meets the needs of all of our residents,” Gondrez said.
Ward I includes some of Aurora’s lowest-income neighborhoods but also vibrant immigrant and refugee communities. City lawmakers have so far struggled to ensure that the economic development centered around the Anschutz Medical Campus also benefits residents.
The Sentinel has been tracking city council candidacies each month. Read the latest round-up here.
— GRANT STRINGER, Staff Writer
She was great doing door to door canvasing before elected. Crystal was friendly and outgoing back then but you really just don’t hear anything about or from her since she was elected. I think the seat is still waiting for the right fit!