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PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. This March, the Village of Pleasantville will hold a village election with four candidates vying for two spots on the board of trustees. Two incumbents, Stephen Lopez and Jonathan Cunningham, will be on the ballot as well George Dolce and Colleen Griffin Wagner. Residents will have the opportunity to choose two out of the four candidates. Kevin Martin was originally slated to be on the ballot but it was recently determined that his petition was invalid and his name was removed from the ballot. None of the candidates are affiliated with a national political party.
The Daily Pleasantville spoke with challenger candidate Colleen Griffin Wagner about herself and her plans for Pleasantville if she is elected on March 20.
Can you tell us a little about yourself?
Colleen Griffin Wagner: I am 49 years old, I have lived in Pleasantville for 12 years and for the last 18 years Ive been a stay at home mom who volunteers a lot around town.
What ballot line are you running on?
CGW: Independent
What do you think qualifies you to be a trustee in Pleasantville?
CGW: Ive done a lot of volunteering with organizations. I think I have a very good handle on whats important to the people that live here. I ran AYSO soccer for 10 years, I was involved with the CYO basketball and I was on the parks & recreation board. I have a good handle of what makes things run smoothly.
What would you like to accomplish in Pleasantville if youre elected?
CGW: I certainly would like to see us balance the needs of the residents with the needs of businesses. I would like to see us reinvest into our parks & recreation department. I would like to make sure that the village is fiscally sound. One of the big things that I would like to see quickly happen is to improve the level of communication. I think there are really great outlets today but there are no village newsletters or anything anymore and its really difficult to get information if you want it. For example, right now we have this whole cell tower issue and if youre not at the meeting its sometimes difficult to learn about what went on at the meeting. And lastly I would like to see the board get things done a little quicker.
What do you think are the three biggest issues in Pleasantville right now?
CGW: Communications is one of them. Balancing the needs of residents with attracting and maintaining businesses is another one, and also keeping fiscal soundness.
How do you plan to resolves these issues?
CGW: I would like to see the village take advantage of some e-newsletter and also some sort of web survey system for the people that arent able to make it to the meetings. I would definitely like to do something about the recreation department and their headquarters building. And I think its important to look at balancing what we spend to keep residents happy and also businesses happy.
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