In the third week, council candidates explain their stances on government’s transparency with the public and their longterm visions for the township.
The Sicklerville Sun is running a four-week Meet the Candidates series ahead of this November’s Gloucester Township Council and Mayoral election.
Below are profiles of the candidates running in the election. In the coming weeks, the candidates will answer questions regarding issues pertaining to the town.
Democrats:
Names: Dave Mayer, Dan Hutchison, Scott Owens and Michelle Winters
- Do you feel the township has done a good job regarding transparency with the public?
Over the past eight years, the Township has expanded residents’ access to and participation in government in several ways. First, the GT Citizens access program was created. This initiative consists of live streaming all council meetings and ensuring the agendas are posted at least four days in advance. These aspects allow residents to review the agenda in advance and watch council meetings online from their homes. The Gloucester Township E-Gov Program was also created to allow residents to email questions to Council which are then answered during the next council meeting. Additionally, all of the previous eight budgets, including the current one, are posted online. Finally, the township established paperless Council meetings where Council members have computers with their agendas (computers donated by the school district). The township also recently redesigned its website to allow more access to public information.
2. How do you envision Gloucester Township five years from now?
Dave Mayer — Five years from now, I would like to continue seeing more commercial businesses moving into the town creating more jobs and more rateables. The town will continue to develop into a destination place for people and families. However, I want to have more open space saved so that families can enjoy the outdoors. We also need to continue to invest in our infrastructure by improving roads.
Councilwoman Michelle Winters — I would like to see an increase in property values, continued decrease in crime rate through community policing. I would also like to maintain our financial stability.
Candidate Scott Owens — I would like property taxes to remain stable, continue growing our ratable tax base, continue the growth of community activities, and strong overall fiscal health of the township.
Councilmen Dan Hutchison — I would like to see the towns financial rating to remain high over the next five years while continuing the programs focused on improving the infrastructure of Gloucester Township (i.e. roads parks etc.)
Republicans
Name: Frank Radisch
1) Do you feel the township has done a good job regarding transparency with the public?
No. Not at all. This is one of the biggest complaints I hear from residents.
There are areas of communication where we do well, especially what the Police Department has done regarding their outreach efforts.
However when it comes to areas that should have more transparency our government is silent. Here are some examples:
-We all get the email alerts on weather conditions, ribbon cuttings, movie night, etc, but when it comes to public meetings such as Council, and Board of Education there is a mysterious silence.
-When residents packed Council Chambers on July 25, 2016 angry about a double digit tax increase they were told they should have known when the budget meeting was and come to that meeting to voice their concern.
-The roll out of our energy consolidation program was a disaster. It wasn’t transparent to residents what was happening, who it affected, and to make the residents “opt out” was an unfair plan.
We will improve the transparency and openness of our government activities. Residents will be made aware of all public meetings with emphasis on the ones that pertain to the spending of their tax dollars.
2. How do you envision Gloucester Township five years from now?
Well I am hopeful that we use the opportunity this November 7 to bring a balance of power and ideas to our government. If we can provide a fairer property tax to our residents we will see more people want to move here, and our home values increase. We can really transform Gloucester Township to be the affordable town that it should be.
Name: Peter Heinbaugh
1. Do you feel the township has done a good job regarding transparency with the public?
This is a question that would better be asked to Gloucester Township residents as a whole. Ask the folks of GT if they feel they are kept informed of the decisions made by our current government. Ask them if they feel that they are the priority and the benefactors of our current government. Ask them if they feel that they are welcomed to be part of the process. Ask if they feel like they’re getting their money’s worth for the crushingly high property taxes.
Our team — Frank Radisch for Mayor; Jen O’Donnell, Rhoda Montana, and yours truly Pete Heinbaugh for GT Council — will make the twice monthly GT Council meetings the centerpiece of a truly open, transparent government. We will widely publicize the meeting schedule and the meeting agenda. We will televise the GT Council meetings. Our new mayor and new administration will attend and be a part of the meetings. We will make the meetings a comfortable setting to encourage comments and ideas from the public. We will do more than just quietly vote on the agenda items; we will fully explain items on the agenda, and the reasons for our votes.
Please read our team’s “7-point Transparency and Reform Plan” (and the rest of our platform) at www.SavingGT.org.
2. How do you envision Gloucester Township five years from now?
Right now, what is the main reason for the recent decline that has occurred in Gloucester Township? Answer: Crushingly high property taxes. Our high taxes often leave families and businesses with no choice but to vacate their homes and move out. Our high taxes discourage new home buyers and new businesses from moving into our town. These decisions, then, have a snowball effect of decreasing our property values and impacting our schools.
Our team’s number one priority is to reduce GT property taxes. (Please read our team’s “7-point Property Tax Reduction Plan”, and the rest of our platform, at www.SavingGT.org.)
Lowering our property taxes is the best thing to do to achieve a vision of a better Gloucester Township. Lower taxes will allow families to remain in GT; will refill vacant homes; will incentivize new businesses to open here.
Name: Rhonda Montana
1. Do you feel the township has done a good job regarding transparency with the public?
The current administration does not exercise transparency. In the current administration, a select few make the decisions, then the rest vote as they are told.
Too often, decisions are made to satisfy the self-serving agenda of the political machine, their pay-to-play donors, and their connected cronies.
Our government is supposed to be the people’s government. If elected, our team — the $aving Gloucester Township Team — will serve only the people of our town; NOT a political machine.
2. How do you envision Gloucester Township five years from now?
I envision a Gloucester Township where its citizens are highly involved in the decisions of the township government. I envision a new and improved Gloucester Township government that is honest, transparent, and genuinely in tune with the priorities of the people in the township. I envision a Gloucester Township where people feel comfortable, and want to live here.
Name: Jen O’Donnell
- Do you feel the township has done a good job regarding transparency with the public?
No. Here are two examples.
First, almost no taxpayer in Gloucester Township was aware of the 12% tax increase that was passed last year until the new, higher property tax bill arrived in the mail. By then, it was too late. The damage was already done by the mayor and council.
Second, there is very, very poor attendance at the Gloucester Township council meetings. When I speak with residents in our town, most are unaware of these meetings. Our township should be publicizing these meetings, and encouraging attendance to these meetings. Our community will be stronger with more involvement from concerned, informed, engaged residents.
2. How do you envision Gloucester Township five years from now?
As a parent, I envision an amazing future for my children. This must be my attitude and my focus. It’s the only way I can survive living in Gloucester Township’s government-caused hardships.
Typically, the best predictor of future behavior is past behavior, and I think GT residents have had enough of the supposed “progress” that our current government claims to have made. We truly can’t continue with the “progress” the incumbents have shown us so far.
