Town Council Supervisor candidates Dan McLaughlin and Theresa Mohan went head-to-head at a debate hosted by the League of Women Voters last Thursday at the Town Hall.

In McLaughlin’s opening statement, he noted his six years as supervisor on the council, as well as the board’s ability to “offer outstanding programs within a sensitive and responsible budget” under his leadership. He highlighted the success of the newly configured Emergency Medical Services program in Pelham, which has proven to be far more responsive than the previous system of a few years ago.

“I’m running for re election because I care about Pelham,” said McLaughlin, who moved to town in 1985. “I want to make sure my grandkids will feel the same about Pelham in the next 40 years to come.”

In her opening statement, Mohan said it was time for a change at the Town Council.  “Our current leadership does not have a road map for our future,” she said. “They are reactive, not proactive. We deserve a government that doesn’t maintain what we have but plans boldly for what’s coming next.”  Mohan also pointed to her success as a Village of Pelham trustee in getting grants for sustainability initiatives from the county and state.

In terms of economic development in the downtown area, McLaughlin said that the supervisor and town council have nothing to do with developing the downtown because they have no authority to interfere. In contrast, while Mohan agreed the council has no authority to interfere, a supervisor can get the community in alignment about an issue and influence how the mayors of the two villages approach issues.

In the next 3 to 5 years, Mohan said she aims to plan for and protect the programs already sponsored by the Town Council. She also hopes to publish an extensive town-wide survey on what Pelham values as a community. McLaughlin pointed to the many accomplishments he and the current council have achieved under his leadership, and touted his responsiveness to the town’s needs.

In what was the sharpest area of disagreement, Mohan said she has been reviewing the minutes of the council’s monthly meetings going back several years and was surprised about the lack of a plan for how to use the space that was going to open up in Town Hall when the Village police moved to the new Municipal Building. “One of the things I noticed in those minutes is that oftentimes there was discussion among the town council about creating a facilities plan…a strategic plan for our facilities. And that plan never was created.”  

“Sorry, no, no, no, no,” McLaughlin responded. “I disagree that the town council has not done anything….If you read the minutes and came to meetings…you would know that we’ve talked, and we’ve spoken multiple times about when the police department was leaving downstairs and what we were going to do with downstairs.” McLaughlin said that once the police left, the space was quickly converted to suit the new EMS services which would be housed there.

Mohan pushed back. “I’m not disagreeing that you have done things with the facilities,” she said. “My point is that they haven’t been communicated to the community. They haven’t been part of a strategic plan for the community. The community has not weighed in on what kind of use they wanted to use the downstairs.”

In her closing statement, Mohan said she wants to make sure residents are heard. McLaughlin, who said he was on the ballot under the Republican and Neighborhood political parties, said this election is “not about politics, it’s about people,” and he said experience matters when dealing with “real responsibility.”

In the second forum, town council candidates Rae Szymanski, Kara McLoughlin and Michael Jenks debated similar issues. Cristina Chianese, another declared candidate for a town council position, did not attend.

In her opening remarks, Szymanski said the election is “about Pelham, our families, not what is going on nationally.” She highlighted that she is the first female Deputy Supervisor in the Town of Pelham and that she played an important role in configuring the town’s new EMS service. McLoughlin, an incumbent, said she wants to “build a great town” but that there is a need for a forward-thinking plan. She also talked about her role in the formation of Pelham’s new EMS system. Jenks, who moved to town a few years ago,  said that he hopes to bring the perspective of a newer resident to the Council.

When asked by the forum moderator about any changes the candidates believe need to be made to the council, all three discussed a theme of increased transparency about the Town Council and its progress. Syzmanski said there should be more disclosures, Jenks said that there should be a roadmap of a strategic plan with the Town of Pelham website updated frequently with milestones, and McLoughlin echoed Jenks.

In her closing statement, Syzmanski talked about the importance of listening first, acting with accountability, and bringing people together. McLoughlin said she aims to continue to manage critical services as well as fun programs for the town, but also focus on creating a strategic plan and figuring out how to fund it. Jenks also said he wants to work to create a strategic plan for the Town Council, within the budget.