43
Boardman voters will see six candidates for trustee, school boards on Nov. ballot
BOARDMAN
Township voters will see six candidates on their ballots Nov. 3 – three for a township trustee seat, and three for two open school board seats.
TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE
In the race for a seat on the trustee board, incumbent Larry Moliterno faces a challenge from candidates Anthony DeFrank and Jim Villani.
First elected in 2007, Moliterno is vying for a third term on the board. In forms submitted to The Vindicator, he identified what he views as the main issues facing the township.
“Our budget has been cut over $2 million the past six years. We are a maturing community with an aging housing stock and infrastructure. We are not immune to the plague that drugs have become to our society,” he wrote. “But unlike most communities that put their head in the sand, Boardman is determined to conquer these issues. We identify grant opportunities, taking a leadership role in working with other entities to reduce operational costs. We are aggressively updating our Land Use Plan and demolition program to prepare properties for the next generation of redevelopment. We are vigorously enforcing a no tolerance policy for people dealing drugs in our community.”
Successes since he first was elected, he said, include introduction of the township’s first strategic plan; new social-support programs; initiatives – such as a landlord registration program and aggressive efforts to demolish vacant, blighted properties – that improve property values; and increased regional collaboration.
A crucial part of strategic planning, he said, is preparing the township for future development.
“I think what we’re seeing is a reinvestment in Boardman, kind of that next generation of redevelopment. You can see what’s happening along [U.S. Route] 224 in some of those plazas,” he said.
He also highlighted an increased focus on regional collaboration, citing the creation of a water district with Austintown and Canfield, a shared emergency-dispatch system with Austintown, a joint road-salt purchase with Youngstown, joint paving programs, a gas- and electric-aggregation program, and automatic emergency mutual aid with Canfield as examples.
His priorities if elected to a third term, he said, will be to map out a strategic plan for the next five years; find the funds to invest in infrastructure; identify options for renovation or replacement of the main fire station; and continue efforts that help maintain property values.
An issue that candidate Anthony DeFrank also identified as relevant is the need to improve infrastructure, namely roads.
“Roads are in poor condition. I suggest that Boardman develop their own resurfacing department instead of contracting the work with a private contractor,” DeFrank wrote. “This solution will save taxpayers money, create jobs and get the roads resurfaced in a timelier manner.”
Candidate Jim Villani identified environmental issues as a top priority, namely sewer discharges into Mill Creek MetroParks, and keeping “injection wells and industrial waste disposal out of Boardman.”
He also has proposed the township rehabilitate vacant, blighted structures instead of demolishing them. One idea he has is to invite immigrants or refugees to live in rehabilitated houses.
SCHOOL BOARD
Jeff Barone, Donald Riccitelli and Frank Zetts – none of whom is an incumbent – are running for two open school board seats.
At an event hosted by the Boardman Civic Association last month, the candidates were asked their opinions on a proposal to consolidate the district’s two middle schools. All three indicated they would support it.
In forms submitted to The Vindicator, the candidates each noted another issue they view as important – reductions in state funding.
“As co-chair of the 2012 Boardman Schools Levy committee I learned the inner workings of the school budget and the impact on the school system of the continual reduction in state funding,” wrote Barone. “I am in favor of living within our means and looking for ways to save which lends itself to discussing school consolidation options. I am not in favor of open enrollment.”
The other candidates also said they oppose open enrollment.
Riccitelli said his first priority if elected will be to step up marketing efforts.
“As a district, we send a staggering amount of our own taxpayer money to other districts because our students choose to go to school somewhere other than Boardman even though they reside here,” he wrote. “We need to fight the decline in enrollment and keep our Boardman residents in our schools.”