Siefka wants to bring new voices, transparency to city government

Leah Siefka has lived in multiple spots around the globe, but now she’s making her home in Hoover and trying to plug into the community more.

She’s also hoping the community will plug her into the Hoover City Council, taking on Curt Posey for the Place 1 spot on the council in the Aug. 25 city election.

Siefka, 39, lived in Fairhope until kindergarten and then moved to New York for about 12 years before attending the University of Pittsburgh, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy and religious studies and a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology.

She then lived in Switzerland about four years and worked on her master’s degree at the University of Lausanne in Geneva. She moved to Beijing, China, for two years due to a job change for her first husband and returned to the United States in 2009, settling in Baton Rouge.

She worked as an education coordinator for a homeless shelter for children and teens for 1½ years and then three years as a community school program director for McKinley High School in Baton Rouge. The latter job included coordination of a health clinic, social work clinic, after-school program with cultural amenities, a community garden and a parents’ room where parents could check on their children’s academic progress.

Siefka then spent about four years as a human resources and finance executive administrative assistant at the LSU School of Social Work. She met and married her second husband while in Baton Rouge and moved to Hoover with his job change in 2015.

They initially settled in Bluff Park and moved to Green Valley in February 2019. She has a 16-year-old stepson in New Orleans and two daughters, ages 4 and 1.

Siefka spent some time as a stay-at-home mom but also worked one year as a “BMW genius” at BMW of Birmingham. She has worked in human resources for International Wines and Craft Beer in Alabaster since February.

PREPARATION FOR SERVICE

Siefka said her varied experiences, particularly her work in the nonprofit sector in Baton Rouge, gave her a lot of experience in finding solutions to complex problems without a lot of resources and creating common goals within a diverse community, asking for input from a variety of stakeholders.

She has had experience dealing with state and city policies, education entities, transportation agencies, law enforcement, nonprofits and big corporations, she said. She also learned a lot about statistical analysis, data-based needs assessments and ways to streamline and improve processes.

These are the kinds of skills she believes would serve her well as a member of the Hoover City Council, she said.

Siefka said she and her husband, Kevin Lombardi, came to Hoover because they liked the diversity of the people and the opportunity for a small-town feel but a more cosmopolitan suburban life.

They were won over by the amenities such as the Hoover Recreation Center, Hoover Public Library, Hoover Senior Center and the well-maintained city properties, but one shortcoming they noticed as newcomers was a lack of transparency in how city government operates, she said.

She would like to increase transparency and two-way communication with the public by having regular, planned events for council members to engage with people.

Siefka said she is concerned about the continued negative impact of the COVID-19 disease on the economy. Hoover has a very creative class of restaurateurs who are struggling, and the city needs to find creative ways to help them survive, she said. The city’s diversity is a great strength and should not be seen as a weakness, she said. Hoover needs to protect its success by bringing in new voices to solve complex problems, she said.

She also wants to make sure that all children are kept safe and have equal access to a high-quality education, she said. Siefka said she wants to make sure the city provides continuous support for the Hoover school system, which she said is “one of the most beautiful things about our city.”

LAW ENFORCEMENT AND TAXES

Siefka has put numerous posts on social media in recent months regarding law enforcement.

For example, in June on Facebook, she shared a story about the Minneapolis City Council considering disbanding its Police Department and wrote her own comment that “this is how we start.” She shared another story about Buffalo police officers resigning to support suspended officers, and she wrote “Abolish the police.” She also on June 13 shared a New York Times opinion piece titled “Yes, we mean literally abolish the police.”

On May 30, she shared a tweet from U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez that said New York police officers drove a sport-utility vehicle into a crowd, and Siefka included a comment at the top that said “[expletive] murderers.”

When asked about these social media posts, Siefka said they were in reference to police departments in other places and not applicable to Hoover. In her few benign interactions with Hoover police, they have been professional and helpful, she said.

She does not believe the Hoover Police Department should be defunded or abolished, she said. She does not have expertise in law enforcement, she said. “I don’t have any advice or opinion on how to enact public safety.”

However, she does believe Hoover police officers should have implicit bias training and thinks the city should be more transparent with its data concerning the Police Department and be open to improvement. She would love to see more conversations about police being a part of “community building,” she said.

Regarding city finances, some current council members have said the council should consider rescinding sales, use and lease tax increases approved two years ago and perhaps a $2-per-night room fee for lodging facilities.

Siefka said the city is fortunate to have had those tax increases as it deals with the fallout of COVID-19 but said it would not be wise for her to form an opinion on rescinding those tax increases until the city can get a clearer picture of the long-term financial impact of the disease.

People really won’t know that until after federal relief payments end, she said. Some city taxation and spending is prudent when it’s done to strengthen the whole of Hoover, she said, referencing road projects.

For more information about Siefka, visit Leah Siefka for Hoover City Council, Place 1 on Facebook.

See the complete list of Hoover mayor and City Council candidates and links to their profiles.

This article was updated at 7:49 p.m. with additional information about Siefka's recent comments on social media regarding law enforcement.