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Date: 2/1/2023
LONGMEADOW – A preliminary Special Town Election will be conducted on Feb. 7 to narrow the field of candidates vying to fill an empty seat on the Longmeadow Select Board. Three people – Walter Gunn, Sanjiv Reejhsinghani and Vineeth Shanker Hemavathi – are running for the seat; two will go on the March 7 Special Town Election. Reminder Publishing asked the candidates the following questions. The answers are in the candidate’s own words.
Reminder Publishing: Tell a little about your background. How long have you lived in Longmeadow?
Walter Gunn: Lifelong resident for 61 years. I am proudly town-educate, grade 1-12, having graduated [from] Longmeadow High School (LHS) [in] 1979. I am a graduate of Denison University, [Bachelor of Arts] in economics with a minor in political science. I returned to Longmeadow after college to pursue several entrepreneurial endeavors, eventually managing a local company that was family owned since 1919. My daughter, fifth generation Longmeadow, is [the] LHS class of 2017. My wife, Carla, has been a resident for 25 years, serving on many town committees, including [the] Finance Committee.
Sanjiv Reejhsinghani: I have deep and long-lasting ties to the community of Longmeadow. My family moved to Longmeadow after I turned 15, and I spent three rewarding years at Longmeadow High School (LHS), where I served as editor of the high-school newspaper, “The Jet Jotter,” and where I participated on the varsity swim team, concert band, wind ensemble, National Honor Society, as well as captained the math and science teams. After graduation, I moved away to Atlanta, GA, where I completed my undergraduate degree at Emory University, and dual Master of Business Administration/Master of Healthcare Administration degrees. I moved back to the Longmeadow area in late 1999, when I started working in medical sales, and then attended law school as a part-time evening student. I now work as an attorney and real estate broker. Although I have not held public office before, I have served in student government positions at the university and law school levels.
Vineeth Shanker Hemavathi: I’ve spent my entire career in public service – as a teacher, national security analyst, an attorney representing victims of domestic violence, and now representing victims of housing discrimination right here in Western Massachusetts. As a teacher, I helped students who walked into my sixth grade classroom reading at a kindergarten level, leave reading at grade level. I worked in law enforcement to keep our country safe from enemies both foreign and domestic. I helped women and children find peace and safety from dangerous people in their lives. Now, I help ensure children aren’t poisoned by lead paint, and that folks in Western Massachusetts aren’t discriminated against.
When my wife and I were starting a family, we moved to Longmeadow to be surrounded by the love and support of our extended family and to be a part of this amazing community.
RP: What made you decide to run for Select Board?
Gunn: First, a civic duty to fulfill an obligation to the Town Charter to fill the seat of the vacant fifth member of the Select Board. We owe it to the residents to have full representation. To bring experience to the executive branch of town government. As a volunteer public servant for 21 years, I have served on the Planning Board, chairing for many years and am currently [the] chair the Executive Committee of the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission. I have been a member of several town task forces.
Reejhsinghani: Throughout my life, I have had a strong commitment to public service. As a law student, I completed three legal aid trips over four years during spring break. As a practicing attorney, I regularly do pro bono volunteer legal work for indigent or unrepresented persons with the Hampden County Bar Association. I have also worked as a key volunteer with several political campaigns, including for former state Sen. Eric Lesser and for state Rep. Brian Ashe. If elected, I would be the first person of color to serve on the Longmeadow Select Board. This commitment to public service, combined with my sense of political activism, has inspired me to run for Select Board in order to make the town of Longmeadow run as efficiently as possible for everyone.
Shanker Hemavathi: This was an opportunity to give back to the community that has given my family and me so much. I’ve always believed that if you want to make your community better, you lace up your shoes, grab a clipboard, and go talk to your neighbors. On doorsteps and lawns across our community, people tell me how excited they are to have a new voice in our town government. Knowing, seeing, and listening to members of the community will make me a better Select Board member.
RP: What do you hope to bring to the Select Board?
Gunn: Leadership, experience, hard work, listening to the residents and having a network of local, state and federal officials. I have a working knowledge of the town’s functions having lived here and participated with and for the community. I have witnessed the evolution of this town firsthand and am familiar with the town’s strengths and weaknesses and where the future can and should take us. I believe in long range planning to address needs for generations to come. Now retired, I can devote the time required to continue serving and working for the town.
Reejhsinghani: I hope to bring issues up to the Select Board that I have culled from various townspeople as I have gone door-to-door to generate excitement for my campaign. Since Select Board members have three-year terms, it’s vital that any newly elected Select Board members stay in constant contact with their constituents, the people of Longmeadow. Also, I hope to bring a diverse perspective to the Select Board, as I believe it should represent the perspectives of the town as a whole, including our diverse populations which have settled into Longmeadow over the last 20 to 30 years.
Shanker Hemavathi: I hope to bring the experience of a career in public service coupled with a new perspective and energy. The perspective of a parent with two young children is important. It means that when we talk about the new middle school, I’ll have a personal stake in it, because my children will be going there. It means when we talk about stopping the new gas pipeline, I’ll be thinking about the air my children will be breathing. It means when we talk about racism and bullying, I’ll bring my experiences and that of my biracial children. My wife and I also watched our parents care for our grandparents and know that Longmeadow has work to do to ensure that we do right by our seniors. Having someone at the table living these perspectives today will make our decision-making on the Select Board better for tomorrow.
RP: How should the looming tax ceiling be addressed while maintaining services?
Gunn: Long-range planning. The Select Board needs to have faith in its town manager, committees and department heads. We are, and continue to, be vigilant of the “fiscal cliff.” Relationships, previously, and now, between appointed boards, town officials, and staff since 2017, will make this upcoming fiscal year 2024 budget, balanced and under the “ceiling” by administrating precious taxpayer dollars for services the town is accustomed to, expects and deserves. Our Finance Committee has a policy, first and foremost, of projecting out 10 years with a goal of keeping the town below the “tax ceiling.” With that said, we should continue to engage our legislative partners to explore options and create alternative strategies, should they be needed.
Reejhsinghani: The town of Longmeadow may be forced to consolidate certain resources and/or expenditures, as has already been discussed by the town leadership with the merging of Williams Middle School and Glenbrook Middle School, wherein both school buildings are reaching the end of their respective useful lifespans. Furthermore, the town can make zoning/re-zoning, as well as commercial licensing application processes, easier and more streamlined [to] attract new businesses to Longmeadow. I’ve spoken to various small business owners who have repeatedly told me that neighboring communities, such as East Longmeadow, have much looser restrictions on small businesses being able to situate and operate there. Longmeadow needs to help these small businesses thrive in order to keep these commercial interests thriving within the town.
Shanker Hemavathi: Ideas have been proposed to manage the looming tax ceiling, and I will only be supportive of a decision that allows the town to provide the services and quality of schools that folks rely on. We need to review every option, such as adjusting town fees and generating alternative revenue streams. However, as it stands, legislative relief appears to be the most sensible option. If this path is chosen, it will be vital to inform the town of this option, so that it can gain approval at a Town Meeting, and I believe I can play a key role in doing this through my demonstrated outreach and community building skills. I am also prepared to lean into my great relationships with our area’s elected officials to ensure legislative relief.
Voting will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Community House, 735 Longmeadow St.