Four candidates are competing for the Republican nomination in Maxatawny Township.
Jennifer Weil, Steve Wilson and Robert Reynolds and Bobby Turner are running for a single spot on the board of supervisors in the May 20 primary.
Supervisors serve six-year terms.
We asked the candidates to respond to a question:
Question: Name a single problem facing the municipality you are running to represent and how you would address that issue if elected.
Jennifer Weil
Occupation: Weil is a client service manager.
Age: 59.
Response: I believe that as a township we need to be fiscally responsible and plan for the future of our township. Our school district has produced data showing that our youth population is shrinking. This means that our population is aging, and we must prepare for a future where our older community members are not encumbered with providing support for our township through extreme taxation.
We as a community need to find workable solutions to increase our tax revenue. While I agree that we need to maintain our rural setting and our farmland, we must look for ways to increase our tax base and not rely solely on our residential population. I am not for miles and miles of warehouses, and I am also not in favor of sprawling housing developments. We need to find alternatives.
Steve Wilson
Occupation: Wilson ran his own repair business for nearly 30 years before retiring.
Age: 69.
Response: The largest issue facing us right now is predatory development. The road infrastructure that runs through our township is in no way adequate for any of the proposed projects.
The improvements scheduled for this year will in no meaningful way help to mitigate the disaster that would befall this valley if any of these projects comes to pass. The roads running through this area cannot handle the volume of truck and employee traffic that any of these projects would bring. Our ecosystem and infrastructure is not and will not be prepared for any of it.
If elected, I will speak to and represent what I feel is the overwhelming sentiment in this township that predatory development will destroy the quality of life we now have. We must protect this special place that we call home. Residents have the right to not have their lives uprooted for a return on investment.
Robert Reynolds
Occupation: Reynolds is a historian.
Age: 62.
Response: With a looming school tax increase in Maxatawny, some residents may believe that recent large-scale development proposals would solve this issue, but it’s more complicated. The initial short-term benefits from large development projects need to be weighed against the true long-term cost of hosting such projects in the township.
Potential unfunded impacts from recently proposed large-scale development proposals include significantly increased truck traffic and damage to back roads, and as public safety declines, the necessity for a new full-time police force 24 hours a day becomes unavoidable. These costs come due after a major development project is built, and those costs are unfairly paid for by taxpayers and often outweigh the tax revenue the proposed developments are promising.
I am a Republican candidate for supervisor who will create and implement a new comprehensive plan for Maxatawny Township, written in cooperation with the other municipalities in our school district, to meet the current and future needs of our residents. A clear long-range vision, establishing a fiscally responsible new comprehensive plan for Maxatawny, is the best means to meet the needs of our community and schools, and will provide the best value to our residents.
Bobby Turner
Did not submit a response.
Source: Berkshire mont
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