Meet the Candidates for Evesham Mayor and Council: Week 4

Every week throughout October, The Sun has asked candidates in the Nov. 4 election for council seats to respond to questions pertinent to local issues. Coverage for Week 3 here.

For the final week, candidates were asked only question where they could give one final message to voters:

1.) Make your final pitch. Why should you be elected to town council?

Republican Mayoral Candidate Mayor Randy Brown, and Town Council candidates Councilwoman Deborah Hackman, and Councilman Steven Zeuli

1.) Make your final pitch. Why should you be elected to town council?

In May 2007, Mayor Randy Brown, Chris Brown and John McKenna won an election that stunned many. They were elected to bring change to Evesham Township and that they did. They ran on bringing community back to the town they grew up and raised their children in, reducing property taxes, creating active and passive recreation for children and adults, streamlining government and the creation of shared services within the existing government entities.

Councilman Zeuli and Councilwoman Hackman picked up where John and Chris left off, creating a better Evesham.

We ask for your vote because there is so much more work to be done here in the community, and Mayor Brown, Councilman Zeuli and Councilwoman Hackman are the perfect people for the job.

Community: Since 2008, we have all enjoyed the fireworks with thousands of our friends and neighbors at Cherokee High School, we have been part of the Fourth of July parade, run or walked in the Mayors 5k race and taken dozens of photos of our children during the Kids Bike Parade. You have strolled down Main Street during the Taste of Evesham, shopped at the Harvest Fest or sat on Santa’s lap at Winter Fest. Most of these events never occurred prior to 2008. We made memories that will last a lifetime, together as a community called Marlton.

Property taxes: Evesham Township Council voted to reduce property taxes again this year. Under Mayor Brown, Councilman Zeuli and Councilwoman Hackman’s guidance, Evesham Township has the lowest per capita tax bill in Burlington and Camden counties combined. In 2014, the township’s rateable base skyrocketed $31 million, an increase not seen in decades in the township. As rateable values rise, property taxes fall.

Recreation: The Diamonds at Arrowhead Park is the crown jewel in Southern New Jersey. Opened in May, the facility has already played host to thousands of baseball and softball players between ages 4 and 18. The Cal Ripken 10-year-old World Series Champs proudly fly their banner on the outfield walls. The makeover of the Memorial Sports complex that includes a state-of-the-art multi-purpose turf field, additional lighting for night play, major upgrades to the interior of the Blue Barn and a new playground, makes Memorial Park a destination place for Evesham families. In addition, there is the acquisition of hundreds of acres at the Black Run Preserve, walking trails around Croft farm and the Memorial Sports Complex.

Since 2007, we have streamlined Evesham township government to very acceptable levels. Our workforce is about 25 percent smaller today but more efficient than ever. We inherited a $6 million deficit and now are running at a $4 million surplus, a $10 million swing in a very short period of time. Evesham Township is now the model in New Jersey when it pertains to shared services. We have multiple shared service contracts with all the local taxing entities and many local municipalities. The township building plays host to the Evesham School District Art Show yearly. We have just begun the largest redevelopment program in township history that will bring many full-time jobs, increased rateables and a reshaping of the landscape of our community.

On Election Day, we ask for your vote so we can continue down the road of economic and community prosperity. Let’s continue to make memories that last a lifetime, together.

Democratic Mayoral Candidate Fred Ritter, and Town Council Candidates Sophia Nowinski, and Phil Warren

1.) Make your final pitch. Why should you be elected to town council?

We believe that Evesham is a wonderful town to work and raise a family in, and it is our honor to ask for your vote on Nov. 4 so that we may serve on behalf of every resident of our town. As residents who have, and are, raising our own families here, we are running for mayor and council because the town is at an economic, financial and political crossroad, and our future depends on the decisions that the residents of our town will make on Nov. 4.

Our town needs a mayor and council who will stand up for every resident, serving as a voice for a better Evesham, and challenging the status quo so we can deliver high quality services while ensuring that families get the best value for their tax dollars.

Unfortunately, under the current mayor and council, there has been a troubling trend in the way our town has been managed. While the current members of council have resigned themselves to being a rubber stamp for the mayor’s personal priorities and agenda, there has been a decrease of transparency and accountability. This has led to a lack of checks and balances that will lead to long-term financial and economic pains for the taxpayers of our town. The mayor and council cannot continue to be able to make shortsighted decisions that only serve their short-term goals and mask the real problems facing our town.

We have proposed many new initiatives, such as seeking additional opportunities for sharing services with neighboring communities and implementing green initiatives and smart growth policies that will save our resident’s tax dollars. Unlike the current mayor and council, we want leadership that will stop playing financial shell games by bonding for projects that don’t serve the long-term interests of our town and residents.

We have proposed a complete, independent audit and public accounting of township finances, along with a comprehensive review of how we deliver services so that we can identify areas to streamline and improve operations. As well, in order to bring greater transparency and accountability to our town, we believe that all township council meetings should be videotaped and made available via the township website and to cable television providers for public access programming so that every resident can see, at their own convenience, the business that is being carried out in their name.

We also need to do more to support our small businesses in town, which often feel left out of the redevelopment discussions that go on between the mayor and council.

Our town does not serve the ambitions and goals of any individual or particular group; our town belongs to its greatest asset: our residents. Our town government must harness the collective knowledge and expertise of its residents and implement modern, creative and viable ways to improve our town in every area of need, while implementing new approaches to governance creating a better Evesham for our residents.