ALLENTOWN – Two men who currently serve in Allentown’s municipal government will face off for the position of mayor on Election Day, Nov. 5.
Greg Westfall, who is serving the final year of his first four-year term as mayor, and Thomas Fritts, who is the president of the Borough Council, filed nominating petitions on June 4 and will seek the mayor’s seat as independent candidates.
June 4 was the deadline for residents who wanted to run for office as independent candidates to file a nominating petition with the Monmouth County Clerk’s Office.
Westfall said he is seeking re-election because he wants “to continue progress on the implementation of the long-awaited waste water treatment plant upgrade as well as the implementation of the borough-owned Waker Avenue parking lot to serve businesses in the core of downtown Allentown.”
The mayor said he and his family have lived in Allentown for 33 years. He said he has formed ad hoc committees made up of residents and business owners with particular expertise and passion for the sewer, parking, senior citizen and traffic issue to address long-standing needs in the borough.
Westfall is serving the final year of his first term. In November 2015, he ran as an independent candidate and defeated Democrat Wil Borkowski in a race to succeed Republican Stuart Fierstein, who did not seek re-election after serving as mayor for more than two decades. Westfall took office in January 2016.
Fritts has been a resident of Allentown for 10 years. In the November 2016 election, Fritts won his first council term after falling just short of winning a council seat in November 2015.
He has served on the Planning Board Committee, Public Safety Committee, Personnel Committee, Ashby Park Committee, as chairman of the Sewer Committee, Traffic Committee and Streetscape Committee.
“If elected mayor, I will accept responsibility for the decisions made. Residents will always know where I stand on all issues and I will be accessible and transparent at all times,” Fritts said.
“Through effective negotiations and implementation of new shared services, I have saved the borough hundreds of thousands of dollars over the last few years.
“I will continue to reduce costs, strengthen shared services and lead by example, not only in the borough, but with our neighboring municipalities, county and state officials. My priority will be on making it affordable to live here while protecting Allentown Together,” Fritts said.
In addition to the mayor’s position, there will be two three-year council terms on the Nov. 5 ballot. Four residents are seeking the two council seats.
Westfall is running on the Allentown First Committee ticket with council candidates Thomas Braunworth and Martha Johnson.
Fritts is running on the Allentown Together ticket with council candidate Daniel Payson.
Democratic Councilman Rob Schmitt is seeking his third term on the council.
