Koudanis running again for office

LYNN – Undeterred by a failed run for councilor at large, Aikaterini “Katerina” Panagiotakis Koudanis said she is in the race for the state representative seat vacated Wednesday by Steven Walsh.”I thought my platform for council at large was a little too large for the office,” Koudanis said. “I thought I’d be better for state representative.”In a brief note to the Speaker of the House, Robert DeLeo, Walsh resigned his 11th Essex District seat effective March 5.Koudanis said November’s council race, where she placed last with 1,656 votes, was a good introduction to the political arena.”Every time you run you’re getting connected,” she said. “It’s all about making a network.”She said the one strategic change she plans to make is to include more door-knocking in this campaign.”I didn’t do hardly any last time,” she said. “I didn’t want to knock on doors because I didn’t want to bother people.”She has learned, however, that while some may not want to talk to a candidate, a great number of residents do, she said.A Lynn native, raised in what she calls a modest Greek family in a middle-class neighborhood, Koudanis said she gave a lot of thought to her decision to run. She calls herself an entrepreneur and design and planning consultant for an international hospitality project in the Bahamas. She has a degree in architecture, which she said lends itself to innovative planning, from Wentworth Institute of Technology of Boston.”I’m also an environmentalist,” and, as such, have fought for clean air, clean water and will fight to keep the community at the forefront of any waterfront development, she said.Koudanis said she is often perceived as a “sweet voice” and attentive to people, but she also carries a strong voice when it comes to politics.When Lowe’s Home Improvement and Walmart announced an expansion plan that would have encroached on the campground and wooded area off Route 107, Koudanis jumped into the fray. She also has worked to keep Union Hospital a fully functioning hospital rather than a primarily psychiatric facility, she said. Other initiatives she plans to tackle include improving communication between the government and the people, innovating education in public schools, increasing public and “green” infrastructure, supporting good job creators and addressing opiate abuse, she said.”I don’t think anyone has the understanding I do with that,” she said. “I have helped people personally.”Koudanis also said that, as a woman, she would bring balance to a male-dominated House.”I have a lot to offer,” she said.For further information on Koudanis and her petition initiatives, check out www.Katerina.info.