Amherst Forward ask candidates questions
As in past years, Amherst Forward has asked candidates questions as they seek to decide endorsements. While they promise that they will not publish candidate responses, I have always posted them on my campaign page. Here are my responses for this election cycle:
Role. Amherst has a 13-person Town Council that hires and works with a professional Town Manager (and, through the Manager, Town staff). What do you see as the role of a Town Councilor in this system?
Individually, each Councilor has a limited role in hiring and working with the Town Manager. Collectively, the Council oversees the Manager through setting Policy Goals and Budget Guidelines. The Policy Goals focus staff work priorities. The Budget Guidelines set the Council’s parameters for the Manager’s proposed budget (which necessarily includes parameters for the Library, Elementary School, and Regional School Budgets, too). Each Councilor should contribute meaningfully to the drafting, revising, and adopting of these documents, and should ensure that the Budget Guidelines properly prioritize the Council Policy Goals.
In addition, as a legislator, it is appropriate and necessary for Councilors to propose legislation that will benefit the Town. This includes legislation that addresses gaps in Town services (waste hauling), solves problems that have cropped up in neighborhoods (rental registration, nuisance bylaw), governs staff actions (surveillance technology), or addresses fiscal and other issues that residents are concerned about (housing affordability through zoning changes, revenue generation through zoning changes or increases in local option fees, etc).
Relevant experience. In addition to serving on the Council/as a School Committee member, what other experiences – including lived, professional, civic, and volunteer – shape your approach to serving on the Council/School Committee?
In addition to the nearly seven years of experience I have as a Town Councilor, my professional, civic, volunteer, and lived experiences have all contributed to my governing approach.
Most of my adult life has been spent living in rental housing in Amherst and Somerville, MA, Boulder, CO, and Cleveland Heights, OH, all towns that have large college student and employee populations. Boulder has shaped my views on waste hauling, climate action, transportation networks, and housing programs.
Professionally, four years as a litigator required finding compromises between parties to settle matters to the mutual agreement of all, where each party believed the outcome beneficial to them. That experience continues to guide my work on the Council. I know being a successful Councilor requires compromise, working with others you don’t always agree with, and putting aside differences to get things done.
My volunteer service as a Court Appointed Special Advocate shaped how I work with, think about, and advocate for those individuals who are generally left out of government deliberations. The training I received in recognizing and navigating cultural differences in a system that isn’t always tolerant has allowed me to ask the right questions and consider the needs of all, not just those who know how to navigate the system.
Civically, my service on the Amherst Charter Commission shaped how I approach transparency in government. I oversaw publishing all written public comments on the Charter Commission webpage, as well as all drafts of the charter. In addition, I sent a regular newsletter out about the Commission’s work to subscribers and was the administrator of the Commission’s Facebook page. I saw how outreach and transparency results in better outcomes.
Collaborative decision-making. Individual Councilors represent their constituents in decision-making, but to be effective, they need to collaborate to get to a majority. Give an example of when you had to collaborate with others to solve a problem. What lessons learned would you apply as a Town Councilor (or have you applied if you currently serve as a Town Councilor)?
Effective collaboration requires open minds, thorough discussion, and compromise from both sides. Groups cannot effectively collaborate if people believe themselves in a battle to be won. Effective collaboration requires identifying the final goal and always remembering that everyone is working towards that goal. Two examples of effective collaboration come to mind.
Last term, the Community Resources Committee focused on addressing rental housing and quality of life issues in Town by working to revise the Residential Rental and Nuisance House bylaws. The Committee members began the process with different opinions on both the cause of the problems and the appropriate and necessary solutions. Through 16 months of conversation, Committee members were able to fully discuss their views, propose solutions, and work together to reach a recommendation that received unanimous support. We worked through our differences in what each of us thought the bylaw should address, how to enforce it, and what issues should be considered violations. Give and take from all was necessary. Town Councilors need to be open to ideas, not judgmental of others’ perspectives or views, and respectful of our work. It is important to keep in mind that we all have the same goal in mind – ensuring that all residents can live respectfully, peacefully, and cooperatively in their neighborhoods.
Another example is my collaboration with Councilors Miller and Bahl-Milne on the Resolution Concerning the Safety of the Amherst Pelham Regional High School Athletic Complex. The resolution originally presented to the Council was not something I could support. When it was delayed to a future meeting, Councilor Bahl-Milne approached me for advice and also approached sponsor Councilor Miller about revising it. To her credit, Councilor Miller was willing to work with us. We each approached the collaboration to revise the resolution with an open mind and a final goal of a resolution all of us could support. We considered each other’s proposed changes carefully, finding places where we could compromise on the language to reach agreement. In the end, the revised resolution passed the Council with 10 votes in support.
Key town needs. What do you see as the top 3 key areas the Town needs to make progress in? How would you plan to help progress happen in those areas?
We must address our housing crisis. We must find a fiscally responsible means of addressing the road and sidewalk repair backlog. And we must address the fact that our revenue increases each year are not keeping pace with inflation or the needs and desired services of the residents (including school children).
The good news is that the Council and Town have begun to address them head on. As a Councilor, I voted for a smart revision of the Inclusionary Zoning bylaw and the creation of the University Drive Overlay district, and have proposed a series of zoning bylaw revisions designed to create more opportunities for building duplexes, triplexes, town houses and infill development (this proposal led directly to the creation of the University Drive Overlay District).
Our housing is too expensive for many residents and potential residents to afford without being burdened. And we do not provide the variety of housing types that our residents desire. In my three terms on the Council, I have proposed a variety of legislation to address this problem. Not all of it has been successful, but if re-elected, I plan to continue proposing new legislation focused on the zoning strategies in the new Housing Production Plan and that learns from my legislative efforts.
To address the backlog of road and sidewalk repairs, the Council must be realistic. It will be expensive and we must be willing to consider a wide range of strategies to increase our annual investment. Potential strategies include a yearly capital override, decreased investment in vehicles (by replacing them on a longer cycle than is currently used), consideration of borrowing for road repairs. There are probably many other options, and the Council must have open and frank conversations regarding them.
As with road repairs, to address our budget struggles, we must begin conversations earlier, be open about the options, be willing to change past practices, and be willing to make legislative changes that would increase the possibility of developers building commercial property in Amherst. We cannot shy away from these conversations, which will be hard, because they necessarily deal with trade-offs regarding services (ending some, increasing others) and development (compromising on building to create a stronger economy and less burden on residents). There simply isn’t enough money to do it all, while maintaining strong budgeting and fiscal protections. The entire town must be part of the conversation, and as I wrote before, we must all approach the conversation believing that everyone has the best interests of the Town and residents in mind.
Accomplishments. What do you see as the biggest accomplishments of the Council/School Committee in this term? This can include the way it functioned, its governance, and/or specific initiatives or needs the Council or School Committee moved forward. For incumbents, what was your role in that success?
The Council’s most meaningful accomplishments this term are the creation of the University Drive Overlay District, which has the potential to transform University Drive and create much needed housing close to transit, downtown, and the University. This proposal came directly out of the conversations the Planning Board agreed to begin when they voted not to recommend Councilor DeAngelis and I’s zoning proposals on duplexes and triplexes. Without our failed proposal, it is possible the Planning Board would never have begun looking at areas to increase housing density.
Shortcomings. Where did the Council or School Committee fall short this term? How do you think it could have done better and what you will do, if elected, to address this shortcoming – be specific! This can include the way it functions, its governance, and/or specific initiatives.
Despite the adoption of the University Drive Overlay District, I would still argue the Council continues to fall short in addressing the housing crisis. For housing, the Council talks a lot about the need for more attainable housing in Amherst. However, it tends to leave the specifics up to others, including showing a willingness to wait for other’s proposals, instead of actively proposing solutions. The Council needs to find better ways to deliberate on these issues, choose steps to take, and then ensure those steps are taken. Right now, it struggles choosing steps to take because of the wide variety of options available and the diverse views on which options are acceptable or most effective.
The Council is also falling short on managing the Town’s budgeting process in an understandable and approachable manner. I would like it to be easier for residents to understand the budget documents (without the need for flow charts on what revenues go where), so that the conversations about trade-offs are more focused on decisions that need made, instead of whether there is money available.
Motivation to serve. In 500 characters or less, what is your biggest motivation to serve as a Town Councilor/on the School Committee?
I believe community service is important. I am motivated to serve on the Council because I want to help improve Amherst. I am running for re-election because I have enjoyed the challenge of governing in Amherst and have more I want to accomplish. Amherst is a great Town, but there are always things that can be improved. As a legislator, I will propose legislation to address the residents’ needs and ensure that the community’s priorities remain at the forefront of municipal decision-making.