FENNER — The Madison County General Election will be held on Nov. 7, 2023, from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.
In the Town of Fenner, Town Supervisor Dave Jones, Town Clerk Lisa Dolan, Highway Superintendent Robbie Conklin, and Town Councilors William Wester and Adam Pushlar are all seeking reelection. The candidates, who are all running as Republicans, are unopposed.
The town supervisor, highway superintendent, and clerk positions are all two-year terms. Town councilors serve four-year terms.
Each of the candidates responded to the same three questions from the Cazenovia Republican. Their responses (max of 300 words total) are printed below.
For information on how to vote in the Nov. 7 election, visit madisoncounty.ny.gov/1547/Board-of-Elections.
Fenner Town Board meetings are typically held on the second Wednesday of each month at 8 p.m. at 3151 Fenner East Rd., Cazenovia.
To learn more about the town board, visit townoffenner.com.
Dave Jones for town supervisor
Occupation:
Crop farmer
How will your experience serve you in local government?
I have been on the town board since 1988 and supervisor for the last almost 10 years.
What do you think are the biggest challenges in your community?
The biggest challenge is trying to navigate the renewable energy projects that are being proposed in the Town of Fenner.
What do you think are the biggest challenges in your community?
I have no comment addressing this challenge. We are just gathering information at this time.
Lisa Dolan for town clerk
Occupation:
Town clerk
How will your experience serve you in local government? What do you think are the biggest challenges in your community? What are your ideas for addressing these challenges?
I started working for the Town of Fenner as deputy town clerk in 2015 and eventually became the town clerk. I am seeking re-election to this position because I enjoy serving our community.
My family and I have lived in Fenner since 2003. We raised our five children here and are very active in community events.
We enjoy the rural lifestyle that Fenner provides. Helping Fenner maintain its rural charm is one of our biggest challenges to date. Working for the town affords me an opportunity to provide our residents with the confidence that their elected officials are listening to what they want.
I’m proud to be part of a team that works hard to make sure our community is safe and prioritizes the best interests of our residents.
Robbie Conklin for highway superintendent
Occupation:
Highway Superintendent
How will your experience serve you in local government?
My experience as a highway superintendent could bring valuable skills to local government, such as knowledge of infrastructure maintenance, budget management, and project planning. These skills could be beneficial when overseeing local public works projects, road maintenance, and other infrastructure-related responsibilities in a municipal government role.
What do you think are the biggest challenges in your community?
Working in the Town of Fenner has its own unique set of challenges. I am working with limited budgets, limited workforce, aging infrastructure, and seasonal weather variations. Public expectations are still high despite my need to be resourceful, prioritize effectively, and find creative solutions to address these challenges.
What are your ideas for addressing these challenges?
Collaborating with neighboring jurisdictions by sharing resources and equipment can help maximize efficiency and reduce costs. It’s always helpful to implement a proactive maintenance strategy to address issues before they become major issues as well.
William Wester for town councilor
Occupation:
I retired in 2015 after forty years with a company called Dairy One, which went to dairy farms and gathered information on the cows each month.
How will your experience serve you in local government?
We’ve lived in Fenner since 1984 on Moraine Road. We know all the neighbors. When we had the snowstorm back in the late 80s, everybody got together and worked to get the driveways plowed out, and this year, we got together and had the speed limit reduced on Moraine Road from 55 to 45 mph. We have a lot of pedestrian traffic, and the road is very winding. The state and the county went along and reduced that, so that shows that the people were working together. Myself and two other people spearheaded the drive with that. Meeting with the farmers every month gave me first-hand information about what their concerns were in the town.
What do you think are the biggest challenges in your community?
In 2000, they put in 20 wind turbines, and we became the poster child for renewable energy. Now they want to put in a large-scale commercial solar farm and another company wants to do nearly 700-foot-high wind turbines, and some of the people who own the land don’t live in the town. Fenner is a very unique and beautiful town; we can look and see as far as Oswego on a clear day. We have the rolling hillsides, and we have the FREE Center where people can come and see the wind turbines and how they work. The character of the town may be subject to change, which a lot of people aren’t really in favor of.
What are your ideas for addressing these challenges?
I think we have to go really slow on this. The people who come in with these solar and wind projects want to put them on the best farmland in the town. We need farmland. We should put these facilities in areas where the land isn’t that good. Fenner has good farmland, and we need to have food.
Adam Pushlar for town councilor
Occupation:
Owner/operator of Pushlar Farms
How will your experience serve you in local government?
I have had the pleasure of serving on the Fenner Town Council. My experience will enable me to make informed decisions and contribute to the town’s overall well-being. My background in agriculture has instilled a deep sense of responsibility to our community and a commitment to sustaining a good quality of life for the residents in the community.
What do you think are the biggest challenges in your community?
I believe the biggest challenge for the Town of Fenner is NYS’s Clean Energy Bill and the proposed large-scale commercial solar and wind energy that want to come to Fenner. Though I am certainly not against green energy, it is important to acknowledge that while clean energy initiatives have numerous benefits, they can also have potential negative impacts as well.
What are your ideas for addressing these challenges?
It is important to listen to the residents of Fenner as not everyone has the same opinion on the proposed wind and solar farms. The town is doing everything we can to educate ourselves on the advantages and disadvantages of these proposed commercial solar and wind farms and examining land use regulations to determine if they adequately address solar use. Ultimately, with the Clean Energy Bill, NYS can override a town’s existing laws, but in the meantime, we will continue to address these proposals in a way that balances the potential benefits with the town’s specific needs and values.
