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Date: 10/20/2021
EASTHAMPTON – Election season is officially upon us in Easthampton.
On Nov. 2, four candidates will square off for a mayoral race that this year is a little different than in the past for the city. Ranked Choice Voting will be utilized during this year’s election since there are two or more candidates running for mayor. Residents will be allowed to rank all qualified candidates on their ballot, and the mayoral term will last four years.
This year’s race features four candidates – incumbent Mayor Nicole LaChapelle, Fort Hill Brewery owner Eric Berzins, resident Keith Routhier, and write-in candidate Donald Torrey. With election night fast approaching, Reminder Publishing had the opportunity to ask each candidate their thoughts on specific issues and topics within the city. Candidates are listed in alphabetical order by last name.
Reminder Publishing (RP): Easthampton is participating in a myriad of ways to become more energy efficient and environmentally cognizant, particularly with the Honeywell project that is just getting underway, as well as the MVP program. What do you think the future holds for the city when approaching climate change, and are there other methods of approaching it down the road?
Berzins: I don’t think that you have to spend a lot of money in order to be environmentally conscious. It seems as though the Honeywell contract was rushed, in order to save a few interest points on a $6 million bond. I think that a lot of concerns brought up by the Energy Advisory Committee and the third-party independent review were overlooked by the mayor and City Council. Specifically:
1. Not installing a cost effective 130-kilowatt solar system on the Mountainview school.
2. Installing a solar system on an aging roof at 50 Payson Ave. Roof will have to be replaced in six years. Removal of the panels will cost $30,000.
3. It seems as though only Honeywell was considered, and no other vendors.
I don’t think as a community we have had time to recover from the pandemic. Going into the pandemic everyone experienced a large tax increase. I do believe that people hit hardest in the pandemic have the smallest voice and are not being heard by our government. As we recently saw, the Planning Department just got $90,000 from the Marijuana Fund. In order to justify their existence, the planning department will come up with more projects. And projects cost money; I don’t think that it is appropriate to put more financial pressure on the taxpayer during these times of uncertainty. I think that as a community we should be patient, get COVID under control, let supply chains regroup. And then start discussions on how to improve the city, while being cognizant of government budgets that are funded by the citizens of Easthampton.
I think that engaging in outside activities breeds the environmental awareness. I myself am an avid mountain biker and have donated $10,000 to the Hendrick Street trails (this money has yet to be used). I also have a history in actively participating in the building of trails. See minute 11:30 in the following YouTube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adaIWstR0Eo
LaChapelle: With initiatives like our energy service performance contract, the city of Easthampton is taking important steps both economically and from a public health perspective to move away from non-renewable energy sources. All of our climate change goals support those two needs. From an operational standpoint, we have taken small and impactful steps like moving our services online to reduce paper use. We have begun to shift the city’s vehicle fleet to hybrid and electric vehicles. Outside of operations, we also received state funding to develop a Green Infrastructure Master Plan to address stormwater-driven flooding hazards throughout the city and for the design of green infrastructure improvements in the Cherry Street neighborhood.
Torrey: It is my opinion with the Honeywell project that there are some major drawbacks. The City Hall roof is 14 years old, and removal and replacement are not included in the contract. I would not promote it for this reason. The project is extremely expensive with the solar canopy behind the safety complex and would have a lower rate of return than a solar field. I would be in favor of putting a solar field on city land on Park Street next to the Tree House project. I believe there is 13 acres. Solar fields are the most profitable. Down the road I would look at other city owned property for possible solar fields.
RP: As the pandemic continues to linger, what do you think are some ways the city can continue to support the art community and small businesses, particularly in the downtown district?
Berzins: As the pandemic lingers, I think that it is important to have a unified message regarding health mandates throughout the state. I don’t think that it is appropriate for individual towns to implement their own COVID policies. Because each town/city can have its own policies, it leaves it up to business owners to educate all of their customers on their city’s policies. It turns business owners into health enforcers, which in my opinion is not appropriate and makes running a downtown business even more difficult.
LaChapelle: We successfully launched Blueprint Easthampton with the Massachusetts LGBT Chamber of Commerce, a first-of-its-kind resource for local microenterprises, and the early results have been exciting. We will continue to grow this venture and provide entrepreneurs with support and direct capital. Within Blueprint Easthampton, I joined with the Chamber of Greater Easthampton to establish the Sustaining Small Business Grant (SSBG) program, designed to provide short-term and immediate financial aid to support operations for local businesses impacted by COVID-19. The city’s art coordinator worked with Easthampton City Arts to provide grants and residencies for artists and makers. I plan to continue funding these local programs while working with businesses, artists, and makers to connect with federal funds.
Torrey: The pandemic seems to be winding down. I find wearing a mask to walk into a restaurant and then taking it off as soon as I sit down somewhat useless. I would expect those such as myself, that are older, have been vaccinated or have had the virus and have a natural immunity to be relatively safe. Those that don’t then by all means wear a mask. I feel antibody testing is important and a non-vaccinated person with antibodies because they had COVID should be given a card that is equal to getting the shot. I feel children should be tested for antibodies before they are given a shot and then it is up to the parent. The city has received $2,365,697 in COVID relief and is supposed to get an additional $2,365,697 under ARPA and they have also received $1,409,537 under CARES. So far, they have not spent any of the ARPA money. This money is available for antibody testing and I would like to see all children tested for antibodies. Union Street will be going under construction and if we want the current businesses to survive, they will need help. The city has money, but a lot of it has restrictions. I believe it can be used to help businesses. The cannabis money restriction, COVID money restrictions and CPA tax has restrictions. The worst part is the state and federal government tells us what we can and cannot do with it. With regard to the CPA tax the state reneged on their 100 percent match and this year only gave us 30 percent. I would like to see some changes. The 70 percent the state doesn't match; we should be able to use it for whatever we want. I would hope our state representative and senator would lead the charge to free up our money. We need road repairs.
RP: Affordable housing has been another hot topic in Easthampton. How would you address this issue for residents in Easthampton, and make the city an even more viable place to live?
Berzins: I will go to great lengths to not increase the tax burden on the citizen, while still maintaining a purposeful and practical budget.
LaChapelle: Through an extensive planning process, we have looked to create a data-driven set of strategies for retaining our affordable housing and creating affordable housing. There is no one single solution, but the first step has been to aggressively pursue grants to provide funding for the city to reach these goals. We continue to implement our Housing Needs & Production Plan and the Downtown Strategy Plan, and it is exciting to see those concepts and grant money coming together to impact our community. We’re looking at establishing a more robust first-time homebuyer program, adding workforce housing options and housing for seniors 55+, and planning thoughtfully about the changing building stock within the city.
Torrey: The last project was Parsons Village. It cost $17 million and created 38 units for an average cost of $447,000 per unit. It is a 1950’s style development without washer/dryers in units, but a laundromat on site. I recently heard LA bought new privately built apartments at a cost of $350,000 per unit to try and ease the homeless problem. They said it was cheaper than what they could build. They bought this with federal COVID money. If that is one of the uses, I would consider purchasing already constructed apartments and making some affordable housing units.
Next, I would like to turn to the unfair treatment of senior homeowners. While the council raised the tax exemption for seniors to $1,000 and lowered the age from 70 to 65, they left the income and means testing so low that only 55 seniors qualify. These people are on fixed incomes and the guidelines are ridiculous. Seniors can’t earn over $21,167 and can’t have more than $43,000 in assets. While the rental COVID relief guidelines were $59,800 in income and no asset testing. This is not fair and I would do my best to correct it. With regard to the senior exemption, I would look at number of years of residence and age as the only guidelines. I feel at 70 these folks have made the city what it is today and need a break.
RP: What is/are other issue(s) that you may want to address as mayor, and why?
Berzins: My main objectives as mayor would be to address the following 3 topics.
1. Taxes – I think the town needs time to recover from COVID and the recent tax increase. I think that maintaining a fiscally responsible budget is critical and that we should only engage in projects we can afford.
2. The new school – As a community we have spent a tremendous amount of money on the new school – it is an asset. Let’s keep it a high-quality asset by providing high quality resources so we can be competitive in the School Choice Program … ultimately decreasing our financial burden by attracting students from outside towns.
3. Roads – Some of our roads are shameful. How on earth did anyone think that the paving job on Ferry Street and Clapp Street was acceptable? I do want to introduce a plan where the citizens have a say in what roads will be scheduled to be paved next through an online vote. Although the head of the DPW will have the final say, I do think I can implement a system in which the DPW’s decisions are guided by the voice of the citizens.
LaChapelle: We have really invested in the modernization of our city government. We have launched a new user-friendly website and we’re working to align reporting systems and processes across city departments. We’re working on important transparency and cyber security measures that require significant investment, like putting real-time data online. With the global pandemic, we had very real questions about our city services within the boundaries of COVID safety protocols. Just like our small businesses, the city of Easthampton had to make some significant changes very quickly to protect the health and safety of our people. We implemented virtual platforms like Zoom and DocuSign, we moved city services online, and we took a serious look at where we can benefit from more investments here. We will continue with our free COVID-19 vaccination and testing programs, as well as flu shot clinics as the pandemic continues. We have a lot more that we can and will do.
Torrey: I feel the biggest challenge as mayor will be how to increase wages for all city employees. If something isn’t done, we will find ourselves in the same predicament as other businesses that can’t find workers. Minimum wage went from $8 per hour in 2014 to $13.50 per hour and Jan. 1, 2022, it will be $14.50 per hour. I am pretty sure our employees did not keep pace. I would have told the council it was a bad idea to give the mayor a $15,000 increase during the pandemic. If elected I would ask them to take it back and put it in the raise budget for others.
It is vital that we get back to open meetings. If elected I would expect it. There is very little public speak on Zoom.
In addition to in-person voting, residents also have the option to participate in by-mail voting. People can do that by sending a written request to the City Clerk’s office. More information on that can be found at https://www.easthamptonma.gov/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=68.
Routhier was unable to respond to the questions as of press time.