In the town of Manlius, six candidates are running for three positions on the town board. Town council positions have four year terms.
Sara Bollinger
DEM, WOR
Occupation: Town councilor, management consultant
How will your experience serve you in government?
I have served on the town board since 2018. During this time, I chaired the Planning Process Committee, rolled out new commercial zoning, launched the Comprehensive Plan and co-chaired the Solar Study Group. I have previously served on the Fayetteville Planning Board.
As a former director of nonprofit agencies, I am used to listening to – and responding to- the needs of constituents. I have experience managing employees and budgets.
I currently operate a consulting business based in the town with clients from all over the state. My family has lived in the town for 30+ years.
What do you think are the biggest challenges in your community?
Times have changed. People want more balance in their lives. The town of Manlius needs to adapt to include greater diversity of residents and businesses. Transportation infrastructure is very vehicle focused. The town of Manlius and our great school districts take pride is in providing top-quality programs and services for residents, but this excellence comes with taxes that have become a burden for some.
What are your ideas for addressing these challenges?
Planned Growth: I believe having a comprehensive plan for future growth will help Manlius attract the kinds of development that residents want, while preserving our historic character and green spaces.
Resident Engagement: Live-streamed meetings are here to stay. I am always willing to speak directly with constituents.
Diverse Constituents: I support making Manlius more welcoming to a wide variety of people and types of businesses. We need supportive, wellness and recreational opportunities for people of all ages and abilities, including creating better access for pedestrians.
Quality Services: I am working to streamline town activities utilizing technology to preserve quality at lower cost. I support modernization of town business to allow more work to be conducted electronically. We need to balance the need for service with the need to limit tax increases. One way to save in the long term is to convert more town assets to renewable energy sources.
Katelyn Kriesel
DEM, WOR
Occupation: Town councilor, financial advisor
How will your experience serve you in government?
As town councilor, my professional experience has been tremendously valuable. During the pandemic we faced a decrease in revenue and state funding. As a member of the Budget and Finance Committee, I leveraged my background in finance to balance our budget. I am a business owner in Manlius and also serve on the board of the Chamber of Commerce. I have brought stakeholders together to draft an economic development plan as chair of the Economic Development Committee. My background in renewable energy and community engagement has allowed me to grow Sustainable Manlius, our sustainability committee, and take local climate action.
What do you think are the biggest challenges in your community?
Like communities across the county, we are navigating division and conflict in the town of Manlius. The job of a town councilor is to hear all of these concerns and differences of opinion, and evaluate the best course of action. There are major decisions on the table, and we need to work together to address them.
As we continue to deal with the pandemic, there are going to be significant changes in how we work and live in our community. There are more people working from home, an influx of people moving here, and many empty storefronts.
At the local level, I most frequently hear about traffic, too few sidewalks, and a lack of connectivity between our villages, schools, and recreation. Town government is in a unique position to be able to address these concerns and to implement solutions.
What are your ideas for addressing these challenges?
Now more than ever, we need to work together. I have great working relationships with my colleagues across the aisle and on the town board we have remained respectful even when we have disagreed. In the community, I work as a convener. I seek to bring in people from diverse backgrounds to create solutions that will work best for our community.
The town is currently writing our first comprehensive plan. As we continue this process, we are reaching out and getting feedback and input from residents and business owners in our community. This will allow us to write a plan that addresses issues such as transportation, sidewalks, and trails, in addition to updating our zoning code so that we can preserve our agricultural and green spaces. Working collaboratively with many community members will ensure the needs of the town are met, improving the quality of life of residents.
Kiernan May
REP, CON, IND
Occupation: Medical Dosimetrist
How will your experience serve you in government?
My 26 years of experience as a medical dosimetrist treating patients with cancer has taught me to work with a purpose and to be detail oriented. Decisions have to be made that can have both short term and long-term effects on people. In addition, I owned a craft beer producer and wholesaler for over eight years. I know what it entails to start a business and what goes into growing a business. Since 2006 I’ve coached youth lacrosse. Countless hours on the sideline have taught me how important the youth of our community are to our future.
What do you think are the biggest challenges in your community?
In the coming years we will need to become more sustainable while balancing the cost to the taxpayer and the impact on our community. The young people of today need to become more engaged in the community and learn what the local government’s purpose and job is.
Local businesses people need to be given an opportunity to start new businesses and grow existing businesses in the town with the support of the Board and residents.
What are your ideas for addressing these challenges?
The town needs to explore all opportunities to become more sustainable in our energy consumption through smart and affordable means.
There needs to be internships for high school and college age residents in the town government. Involving children will be good for families and great for the town.
Economic development projects presented to the town must be evaluated from their impact on the town and its residents. Both short- and long-term benefits must be objectively evaluated and in a reasonable amount of time.
William Nicholson
DEM, WOR
Occupation: Case worker
How will your experience serve you in government?
I was born and raised in Fayetteville, returning in the late 90’s to raise my son. But more important than that, I have spent over 25 years working in direct human services, fighting for full inclusion of our elderly and disabled loved ones, and for our brothers and sisters struggling with mental illnesses.
I have a degree in public affairs, focused on intergovernmental relations and civil rights law. I am also a graduate of both Leadership Greater Syracuse (2019), and the Political Leadership Institute (2021). I have been administering vital publicly-funded services for our community for decades, regardless of politics.
What do you think are the biggest challenges in your community?
Our community faces a dire shortage of Long-Term Care resources for our home-bound residents, and a persistent lack of safe, affordable housing for seniors, service workers and young families.
Climate change has accelerated our need to adapt our planning and development efforts, in order to secure lasting resiliency, while also building-in social and commercial diversity. This will ensure that we also achieve the additional resiliency in our economy, as investors can see that we have a long-term view in our town, and that sustainability is key to our continued growth and prosperity.
We need to continue to increase resident engagement and consensus-building in order to meet big challenges with greater agility. In this time of fractious political conflict, it is more important than ever for local government to illustrate how working together for all, regardless of party or national trends, is the best way forward.
What are your ideas for addressing these challenges?
Improving intergovernmental partnerships with our county Departments of Health and Aging, advocating for more resources to go into EISEP (in-home supports for elderly) and other innovative home-based care services will immediately improve the state of long-term care in our community.
Incentivizing development of more safe, affordable housing options through creative zoning and mixed-use planning will create more diverse communities, with the character and amenities that are repeatedly ranked highest in constituent surveys.
By emphasizing sustainability within our comprehensive plan, and by integrating climate-related concerns into all planning, we are “future proofing” our town, while protecting our most vital asset, our environment, with its pristine land and freshwater resources.
Joining my fellow progressives on the town board in transparency and citizen engagement efforts. Continuing to facilitate more community engagement and focus groups around our comprehensive planning process. Frankly, continuing to increase citizen participation is how we repair our bruised democracy.
Rebecca Shiroff
REP, IND
Occupation: Program analyst with the Onondaga County Office of Economic Development.
How will your experience serve you in government?
Over 20 years of experience as both a business owner and an employee has given me perspective on issues from both sides. Economic development is crucial for any town to continue thriving and Manlius is ripe for new opportunities that will enhance the quality of life for residents and infuse our local economy. In my role as a program analyst with the county, I connect small businesses with the resources and incentives available to grow their businesses. There are other areas that will benefit from my experience, such as finding grants for a town park our residents are eager for.
What do you think are the biggest challenges in your community?
Safety is a major concern in the town of Manlius as we have seen crime slowly escalate. Our police department is crucial when it comes to keeping the town and villages safe for our families. They must be provided with all the resources and funding necessary to continue protecting our citizens. Taxes are at an all-time high, yet our taxpayer dollars are being spent on projects that are based more on personal preferences and ideals, rather than on what our constituents find most crucial in their daily lives. There were so many decisions made during the COVID shutdown that are now affecting us all. Transparency is not only streaming town board meetings, it is also disclosing any possible conflicts of interest town councilors may have that can affect their decision making. And the comprehensive plan currently being designed must be based on sensible ideas, not personal agendas.
What are your ideas for addressing these challenges?
Elected officials have a duty to their constituents; listen, build consensus, and consider what’s important for the majority. I’m willing to work with anyone, regardless of party affiliation, when it comes to making the best decisions for our town. Checks and balances are crucial in effective governing, and the current lack of that has been glaring. I plan on encouraging economic vibrancy through available incentives such as state and county grants that may take some burden off of our taxpayers. I will always stand with our police department and support them any way I can when it comes to ensuring they have the resources necessary to do their job effectively. Veterans and seniors have been ignored far too long. I am honored to have received the endorsement of the Onondaga County Veterans Party and will do what I can to bring attention to issues that affect our veterans and seniors.
Ari Spinoza
REP, IND
Occupation: Website developer and limousine transportation
How will your experience serve you in government?
In regard to our town board, the need for technical expertise is paramount. It is inadequate that the board’s only technical achievement of the last two years has been live-streaming meetings. The lack of technical thinking is costing the town in how it can better operate and make decisions. My past work in back-end development, data analysis, and developing front-end user interfaces would be highly useful to the board. As a town with exceptional schools, it’s shameful that the board can’t make fast decisions due to a lack of technical and scientific comprehension.
What do you think are the biggest challenges in your community?
• High taxes
• Lack of recreational activities
• High number of vacant commercial properties
• Too great of a focus on national politics in local government
With almost 60% of our town being under the age of 49, the town board should prioritize community and improving the livelihoods of our friends and young families. The undersupply of small business, recreational development, and the lack of a supportive business environment are all hindering further improvements in quality of life for those that seek to be more active in the community.
Additionally, the lack of diversified councilors on the current board whether it be of age, background, or culture deprives the town of representatives that can adequately provide a working relationship to residents unfamiliar with the way local government operates.
What are your ideas for addressing these challenges?
As our town exits the pandemic and our economy becomes healthy once more, we should not forget the role community played. The town’s future should incorporate a more communal influence with the support of more cafes, small shops, and eateries as well as encouraging walking and cycling. The greater town lands can also be of large opportunities such as art parks, scenic views, and outdoor events. With a board that seeks funding, sponsors, grants, and investors for these endeavors we can create these opportunities for us all while being smart with our own money. These changes are possible with the cooperation of the county and their focus on similar main street developments as well as cooperating with local developers and investors.
My agenda focuses on developing the small businesses and recreational activities that will make this town prosper. I hope to earn your vote on November 2nd.
