Life experiences serve Griffin as she serves Maricopa

Running on a platform of civic responsibility and reaching out to youths, Marquisha Griffin was elected to the Maricopa City Council in March with hopes of making government more accessible.

Griffin, the first African American woman elected to the council, found hope through her own circumstances and said her life experiences would allow her to better serve constituents.

Griffin, who was once a single, teenage mother on public assistance, realized that in order to help her family, she first needed to help herself. Griffin acknowledged that her story isn't rare, although in her position as a councilwoman she can understand the plight of many and use her life experiences to help the residents of Maricopa to make better-informed decisions.

"I'm not ashamed of speaking about being a single parent raising a child on public assistance in public housing ... it was through those difficult moments that I have become the person I am today," Griffin, 33, said. "Unfortunately many people have that same bleak story to tell. The key is to have faith and believe that you can be victorious."

Griffin also serves as a council assistant for Mesa City Council members Alex Finter and Scott Somers.

Her responsibilities include interacting with Finter and Somers' constituents, developing policy and researching issues.

Finter, who was elected to the Mesa council in March, said he has asked Griffin about a variety of issues because of her unique position and insight.

"I have seen where she has been able to take solutions to problems and apply them to the relatively new and growing city of Maricopa," Finter said.

Maricopa Councilman Marvin Brown said he believes Griffin's position in Mesa will benefit Maricopa and he added that Griffin will be able to help her colleagues deal with issues as Maricopa grows.

"Since Mesa is a much larger city than Maricopa, it often experiences municipal issues that come to Maricopa much later," Brown said. "(Her experience) will help us respond sooner rather than later," added Brown, who has served on multiple commissions and boards in Arizona and Michigan.

About 35 miles south of Phoenix, Maricopa established its first City Council in 2004 after incorporating in 2003.

Maricopa has grown significantly since the beginning of the decade, adding more than 35,000 residents. Declining home values and foreclosures have plagued Maricopa, which has become the poster child of surplus real estate that was spurred by sub-prime mortgages, during the past couple of years. Many of those mortgages have defaulted, leading to hundreds of bank-owned and vacant properties and as a result have caused home values to plummet.

Reports from Arizona State University's department of Realty Studies show the median price for a new home in Maricopa fell nearly 30 percent in three years, from $218,780 in the third quarter of 2005 to $155,730 in the third quarter of 2008.

Griffin acknowledged the home foreclosure problems in Maricopa and said it's important to have the city do what it can to help residents.

"We (the city) are a resource center and have been providing educational workshops and counseling to assist families with retaining their homes," said Griffin, who added that many cities across the country are dealing with home foreclosures and that there's no simple answer. Griffin said the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Neighborhood Stabilization Program may be a possibility in making sure foreclosed properties in Maricopa don't yield to urban blight.

She said that the city is still looking into this program, which provides local governments funds to acquire and redevelop foreclosed homes.

Because of the significant growth, Griffin said "transportation is probably one of our biggest challenges."

The one major road to the city, state Route 347, is a constant gridlock during morning and evening rush hours. She said the City Council should continue to lobby on the state and federal levels for assistance.

"One of the things we can do is (to) create jobs (in Maricopa) so less time is spent on the road," Griffin added. She said that the recently launched a commuter bus service to Phoenix, which may be expanding service to other Valley cities, is another step to reduce congestion and provide another option for residents. Griffin said that both initiatives - getting aid from state and federal governments for the housing problems and commuter bus services - will help alleviate some concerns in Maricopa. Before her election to the council, Griffin served three years on the city's Planning and Zoning Commission, where she was instrumental in Maricopa's first general plan and zoning and ordinance codes.

"The greatest way to have influence over the outcome of a decision is by sitting on those governing boards where decisions are made," Griffin said.

She became involved government service and leadership to set a good example for her children. After seeing her determination, she said her children can accomplish anything.

"They won't have any excuses not to aim high and achieve their goals," said Griffin, who is a member of the National Black Caucus of Local Elected Officials. She was appointed in mid-November as NBC-LEO's regional director for Arizona, Utah, Nevada and Hawaii. The NBC-LEO, a division of the National League of Cities, aims to promote the interests of the African American community through legislation and direct action.

Griffin, a married mother of five, was considered a non-traditional college student because she worked full time and attended school in the evening. She interned in Congress in the summer of 2003. During her stay, her husband, Joel, looked after their children. Griffin said it was difficult to be awaybut she added that "many sacrifices were made, but my husband unselfishly extended his support ... I gave up a lot to gain a lot more."

Griffin was born in Kansas City, Kan., and earned a bachelor's degree in political science from Arizona State University in 2005. She also has completed graduate coursework at the Keller Graduate School of Management. Griffin said she'd like to get "youth more engaged in civics."

She suggested to her fellow councilmembers about establishing an annual youth summit and mayor's youth committee. Griffin said that she'll try and "solidify support from other councilmembers and the mayor."

Growing up, Griffin said she didn't have an elected official reach out in her community to engage youth. Because of that, she believes government should be more accessible to the public, particularly young people.

Griffin was the only candidate during the March election to visit Maricopa High School.

"We need to actually ask teens what they want, what they need," said Griffin, calling it vital that elected officials be engaged with our next leaders.

Marquisha Griffin