Josh Mandelbaum

Great to hear from our next Congress member Sarah for Iowa at the Iowa Unity Coalition town hall. We need people in Congress who will stand up for health care, good paying jobs with livable wages, and affordability.

It was great to start my day with Des Moines Public Schools at McKinley Elementary School to celebrate the completion of the Shoot for the Stars mural. This community project was a partnership with Invest DSM and is a great way to celebrate the history and diversity of our community.

This week is not the first time that Councilmember Gatto has been unable to find a woman to serve on Planning and Zoning. This is the third time in his tenure on Council. I made proposals to address these issues the last time it came up, but it was resisted.

Des Moines City Council members flouted gender balance requirement Joe Gatto and Linda Westergaard both named men to the Plan and Zoning Commission when state law called for appointing a woman.

It’s time for the Council to address predatory towing in Des Moines. We should improve our towing contract to protect consumers who get towed by the city, and we should pass an ordinance to provide protections in private towing.

“The process has stunk from a council member’s perspective,” Mandelbaum said. “This is an important contract. Towing practices in this city are a real concern. This should have been discussed by the council before the RFP. But the whole process has been shrouded in secrecy.”

Company alleges bias in favor of Crow Tow in police contract bid A Des Moines towing company alleges the city's police impound contract bidding process was biased toward Crow Tow, despite public complaints.