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New Montgomery County Council president outlines priorities: jobs, police facility, early childhood care
Summary
Natalie Fanny González, newly elected president of the Montgomery County Council, said she will focus on private-sector job creation, building a new police facility in Glemont with a stated funding request, and expanding early-childhood education and child-care slots to prepare children for kindergarten.
Natalie Fanny González, councilmember for District 6 and the newly elected president of the Montgomery County Council, told a Spanish-language radio program she will make private-sector job creation, public-safety facilities and early-childhood education top priorities of her term.
"Para mí es un gran honor tener esta posición... y es algo con el que yo me he estado enfocando por mucho tiempo," González said of her new role. She said the council will place a renewed emphasis on policies and projects that spur private-sector hiring and prepare a future workforce.
On public safety, González described an aging station that serves parts of her district — including Glemont, Aspeng Hill and Wheaton — that floods and has mold problems. She said she is "luchando para obtener" funding and stated an amount in the interview: "son 100000000 de dólares" to build a new, combined facility in Glemont that would house two police stations alongside county parks offices. González said she plans to include the project in the county development pipeline next year.
González also emphasized expanding child-care and early-education capacity: increasing the number of seats so children under 5 have the foundational preparation needed for kindergarten and so parents, particularly mothers, can return to work. "Mi meta es ampliar y crear más sillas donde las mamás y los papás... puedan poner a sus hijos en estos cuidados de educación infantil," she said.
González tied childhood education to workforce development, calling it a way to prepare future workers and reduce barriers for working parents. The interview did not include specific timelines, funding sources beyond the stated station amount, or votes from the council on those projects.
Next steps: González said she will pursue funding and put the police station project into the county's development projects process next year; formal budget requests or council decisions were not recorded in the interview.
