Essex Junction City Council candidates answer forum questions for contested April 11 race

ESSEX JUNCTION — City Council candidates Marcus Certa, Elaine Haney and Jason Struthers met Friday, March 25 at Town Meeting TV’s candidate forum. 

The three candidates are campaigning for the two open seats on the council, which will be decided by voters April 11. The forum questions focused on issues like City finances, housing, redevelopment and public safety. 

The answers to the below questions are written in the order they were delivered at the forum.

Will you be voting “yes” on the FY24 budget?

Struthers does not support the budget, specifically the .4% increase it will bring to the taxpayers. A decrease in taxes had been projected when the city council was first discussing separation.

“I will be voting no on the budget as it is outlined,” Struthers said.

As someone with a background in science, Struthers appreciates numbers and facts. The lack of a job description for the adult program director is something Struthers finds concerning. He would like to see more information regarding this role before he would vote yes on the budget.

Certa will be supporting the budget, but he agrees with Struthers that it is disappointing City residents will not see the projected decreases. He said he can’t ignore though the role inflation has played in the budget.

“I think that there are ways to improve the budgetary process,” Certa said. “I have budgetary experience. I think there are ways to use metrics and other systems in order to make understanding the budget and developing a budget easier. I would like to bring that experience to bear on the city council.” 

Haney supports the budget and said she is proud of the City staff for the work they put into the proposed budget.

“It’s important to remember that the savings we realize from separation had to be used to reinstate the services and the staff that the village used to have before we started consolidating with the town many years ago,” Haney said.

On top of inflation, Haney pointed out the increased cost Essex Rescue is facing and the increased health insurance costs which are out of the municipality’s control.

Does Essex Junction have a housing crisis?

“Yes, we do have a housing crisis, but our housing crisis is not just our own,” Certa said. “This is a state-wide problem, this is a nationwide problem.”

One difficulty in Essex Junction addressing the housing crisis is the amount of land in the entire municipality is less than five square miles, Certa pointed out.

Certa would like to see more opportunities for single family homes and more affordable housing, which he said is housing affordable to everyone and accessible to those in low-income situations.

“Essex Junction families, like families across Vermont, are struggling to find affordable housing,” Haney said.

The City currently has various apartment buildings available and more to come in the future, but Haney said the apartments are being rented out before the buildings are completed.

With single family homes too expensive for new families and young professionals, Haney feels the City needs the apartments and more options such as accessory dwelling units, which are apartments located in an owner-occupied home.

Struthers would like to look more into “short-term rentals” and taxing out of state second-home owners in Vermont. He also wants to pay attention to the upcoming reassessment and make sure budgets don’t “price out” current residents.

“Not only is there a housing crisis in Vermont, but it is nationwide,” Struthers said.

Which Essex Junction locations need to be addressed with redevelopment?

Struthers is excited for the results of the Crescent Connector Project, which will turn Five Corners into four corners and eliminate the congested traffic that currently surrounds the area.

He would also like the City to become more suited for walking and biking to ensure it’s more accessible and will reduce people’s carbon footprint.

Certa is happy with the development happening at Five Corners and would like to take a look at Pearl Street. He would like to improve the look and feel of the area which is one of the main roads into the Junction. His suggested improvements include a full-service grocery store.

Haney would like to see Five Corners thrive with the new road the Crescent Connector Project is breaking ground on this summer. She would like to see new small businesses, sidewalks and greenspaces so residents can have an attractive and walkable downtown.

Haney would also like the city council to take the lead on creating a downtown organization and is excited for the funding the City has to renovate its train station.

Final thoughts

The forum ran over its allotted segment time forcing the moderator to cut three questions touching on language access in local democracy, public safety and climate change. Each candidate was offered one minute to touch on the question they most wanted to answer.

Certa chose to speak about public safety, which he says is extremely important to him.

“While I admire what the Essex Police Department has done, we are contracted with the Town for these services. We need to make sure that we are getting our fair service from that particular contract,” Certa said.

Certa would also like to ensure members of the EPD are receiving the correct resources and training so they do an “outstanding” job. One way Certa believes this assurance will be provided is through a community advisory board, which the City Council will be discussing on April 12 and the Town has already approved.

“There is literally nothing more important than making sure every resident in our community is healthy and safe; and doing so with our police department in as responsible and equitable way as possible,” Haney said.

She would be interested in the City working with the Howard Center again to address non-criminal issues that otherwise might put them over capacity.

The Howard Center is the designated provider for mental health and developmental disability services and the preferred provider for substance use services in Chittenden County, according to its website.

Struthers spoke to language access and public safety, first noting the importance of making Essex Junction a City that is welcoming to all, then touching on how the City can start planning for its future with public safety once its contract with the Town of EPD ends.

“We have a 12-year time frame to figure out some creative and some new ideas,” Struthers said. “We could do something along the lines of offering bonds to the residents to buy the police station.”