Chris Shortell For Wallingford Town Council

One of my votes for Wallingford Town Council will be going to Republican candidate Chris Shortell. He is an energetic and established candidate who offers a variety of different and useful ideas.  He has done an excellent job in my opinion as a member of the Wallingford Town Council  He is a family man with two wonderful children.  

Some thoughts from his campaign information:

Fiscal uncertainty at the state level and its impact on Wallingford

Maintaining our strong finances and not wasting our surplus on frivolous spending.  This means potentially making tough decisions on services like Community Pool, which has seen a massive decline in usage and is in need of replacement.

Looking for ways to cut spending where possible.  As I have often said at our meetings, there should be “no sacred cows.”  That means that all departments--from police and fire to the school system--should be actively looking for ways to cut spending and be more efficient.

Modernizing our town health insurance program, which will help save money (more on that below).

Continuing to modernize our town health insurance program

Include an HSA or high deductible plan as an option in all future contracts that do not already include it.

Begin exploring strategies to migrate town employees into these lower cost plans via town payroll contribution.

Promote economic development

Support the Plan of Conservation and Development (POCD) initiatives, including exploring more aggressive tax incentives to spur downtown development.

Continue to explore opportunities to assemble parcels and package for developers

Assess the old train station and make a recommendation for future usage

Parking strategy for both uptown and downtown

Protect our community

Our police, fire and public works all do a great job, and we need to continue to support them while being mindful of the tough economy and budget limitations.

Education, advocacy, and support for both the police and organizations like the Coalition for a Better Wallingford, as we grapple with the devastating opioid crisis.  This is a situation, as the Deputy Police Chief said last year, that we “cannot arrest our way out of.”

I feel Chris Shortell would be an excellent candidate for Town Council.  I urge fellow Wallingford voters to vote for him in November.