Who is Lita Brown, Hornell's newest representative?
A self-described “people person,” Lita Brown is ready to get to know more of her neighbors in Hornell’s 6th Ward.
Brown was appointed to the Common Council on Monday night to fill the vacancy created by Jessica Cleveland, who resigned her post to accept the new full-time deputy mayor’s position.
Brown, originally from Wayland, has lived in Hornell since around 2011 and resides on East Avenue with her husband and two children.
“I really like meeting new people and hearing their ideas, and hearing what their concerns are,” said Brown. “I think that will be beneficial.”
Brown is a familiar face for many of Hornell’s youngest residents. She has worked at Hornell Area Concern for Youth since 2015, first as a youth educator and, since 2020, as a prevention educator. That position has taken Brown into school districts throughout western Steuben County teaching social and emotional learning to grades K-6, as well as drug and alcohol prevention for the older age groups.
The Steuben County Youth Bureau named Brown its 2020 Youth Service Worker of the Year “for her natural ability to connect with youth and handle crises with grace and professionalism.”
“I’m very youth-based, so anything that can impact the future of our kids in this community is what I will be focused on,” she said. “I also think Hornell has a lot of opportunities that everyone doesn’t take advantage of. There’s a lot of people who don’t even know about Concern for Youth, for example. I’d like to help people get to know that there are resources out there.”
One of the biggest issues facing residents of the 6th Ward in recent years was the fate of the Bryant School. The Hornell City School District closed the Terry Street building at the end of the 2020-21 school year, citing greater efficiencies, and sold it to Park Grove Realty for $500,000. Park Grove recently broke ground on a $14 million adaptive reuse that will turn the former elementary school into 39 apartments for residents earning up to 60% of Steuben County’s median income.
The proposal generated some pushback from residents and Cleveland was among three aldermen who opposed a resolution to rezone the property. One of the issues was public access to the playground at the school, with Park Grove and the city eventually reaching an agreement to keep the playground open for community use.
“We have a lot of young kids in the 6th Ward who utilize that playground,” said Brown.
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Jessica Cleveland moves into new full-time deputy mayor's position
Cleveland had represented the 6th Ward for the last seven years. The city made the deputy mayor’s position full-time in August, and Cleveland resigned from the Council on Monday to formally accept the appointment by Mayor John Buckley. She will start her new duties Sept. 26.
“Jessica really kept things going smoothly in the 6th Ward,” said Brown. “I would like to continue to run this Ward as smoothly as she did while helping whoever I can help.”
Brown, like Cleveland, is a Republican. The city has a longstanding tradition of appointing members of the same political party to fill vacancies on the Common Council. Republicans currently have a 7-3 edge over Democrats on the Council.
Brown will complete Cleveland’s term through 2023. She said she hasn’t yet decided if she will run for a full term next year.
“Lita has been heavily involved in Concern for Youth and in the community for a great number of years,” said Buckley. “She’s spearheaded some of the projects and programs with Concern. She works closely with not just the kids from Hornell, but also some of the students from Alfred University that come down and act as mentors and work with the kids as well. She’s been a great advocate for the children of the community and I think she’ll be a wonderful advocate for the residents of the 6th Ward.”
The Council had one other resignation earlier this year after Democrat John Allison moved out of the 3rd Ward. Pastor Cedric Cooper was appointed to fill that vacancy.
Chris Potter can be reached at cpotter@gannett.com or on Twitter @ChrisPotter413. To get unlimited access to the latest news, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
This article originally appeared on The Evening Tribune: Hornell representative Lita Brown brings youth focus to city council
