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Fritts, Westfall seek four-year term as mayor in Allentown election

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ALLENTOWN – Greg Westfall, who is serving the final year of his first four-year term as Allentown’s mayor, and Thomas Fritts, who is the president of the Borough Council, are vying for the mayor’s position in the Nov. 5 municipal election. Polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.

In 2015, Westfall ran for mayor as an independent candidate and won his first term. He took office in January 2016 and is now running for a second four-year term as mayor.

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In 2016, Fritts won a three-year term on the Borough Council and joined the governing body in January 2017. He has served on the Planning Board, Public Safety Committee, Personnel Committee, Ashby Park Committee, as chairman of the Sewer Committee, Traffic Committee and Streetscape Committee.

In a statement he provided to the Examiner, Fritts said Allentown is “a place my wife and I chose 10 years ago to raise our daughter, who is now a freshman Redbird, and we have never looked back.

“The amazing sense of community here motivated me to run for council three years ago and with unanimous votes by fellow council members, I have served as council president for the past two years.

“My occupation as director at Community News Service requires effective communication and relationship-building skills, strengths I put to use in negotiating agreements with neighboring communities that result in cost savings for Allentown,” he said.

Fritts said examples of these agreements are:

• Allentown moved its shared court services to Upper Freehold, reducing costs from 65% to 48% annually;

• A shared services agreement with Upper Freehold jump-started a long-delayed effort to eliminate abandoned houses;

• A first aid shared service with Robert Wood Johnson helped prevent our volunteer first aid service from going out of business;

• Replaced estimated $5.6 million refurbished waste water treatment plant with $4 million new, energy efficient plant, saving over $1 million for taxpayers;

• Seniors have seen more services, including a county senior mobile service program being introduced this spring, free vital exams and flu shots through a Monmouth County program, and increased funding for senior events.

Fritts said as mayor, “I will complete the following projects and initiatives by working with all council:

“Progress on preservation of our fringes while stopping unwanted warehouses and other harmful development;

“Complete the waste water treatment plant project on time and on budget;

“Focused on traffic calming and pedestrian safety. We hope to implement speed enforcement zones and install elevated crosswalks as well sign changes removing buses and trucks off Interstate 195 Exit 7 to Exit 8 bypass;

“Complete parking solutions;

“Develop shared services and initiatives that increase the quality of life for residents and reduce costs;

“Reduce the tax burden by 10% through newly negotiated contracts, implementation  of sustainable practices, reducing waste and cutting wasteful spending.”

In a statement he provided to the Examiner, Westfall said, “My wife, family and I are 33-year residents who chose to live in the borough for its rural setting, historic charm and walkability. I am a retired water resource planner and program manager as well as a certified floodplain manager. I previously served on the borough’s environmental and shade
tree commissions.

“During this term as mayor, I have focused on creating committees, made up of local residents, focused on long-standing issues or needs for seniors, sewer, parking and traffic in the borough. These volunteers continue to be critical players in making Allentown a great
place to live,” he said.

Looking forward to a possible second term, Westfall said, “Completing the long-delayed waste water treatment plant upgrade is one of the reasons I am seeking another term.”

He added, “I have pursued open bidding on borough projects to save money and the current Ashby Park design is one outcome. I will continue to pursue shared service agreements and contracts with others that truly reduce the cost and maintain services to borough taxpayers.

“Preserving land at our municipal borders and continuing to work on a strategy with
neighboring communities and other partners is another goal in a second term. I have
helped to lay the groundwork for preserving Heritage Park and Breza Preserve as well
as formed partnerships (providing $150,000 in grants) to preserve Sgt. George Ashby
Memorial Park that was paid for this year.

“In 2017, I led the Borough Council to approve a Green Acres Planning Incentives Program application which has resulted in a $500,000 funding commitment from Green Acres to be spent by February 2020.

“My work and life experience have resulted in a quiet, humble servant leadership style. I
believe my background as a borough volunteer and my strong work ethic as mayor
will bode well in the future for the borough’s residents,” Westfall 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.

Council candidates Thomas Braunworth and Martha Johnson are running with Westfall on the Allentown First Committee ticket.

Council candidate Daniel Payson is running with Fritts on the Allentown Together ticket.

Democratic Councilman Rob Schmitt is seeking his third term on the council.

The council candidates will be profiled in a separate article.

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