Cheshire Election 2021: Jami Ferguson Running For Town Council

CHESHIRE, CT — The 2021 municipal election is heating up in Cheshire with plenty of races on the ballot.

Voters will head to the polls Tuesday, Nov. 2 and cast their ballots for seats on the Town Council, Board of Education, Planning and Zoning Commission and more.

Cheshire Patch asked candidates to answer questions about their campaigns and will be publishing candidate profiles as election day draws near.

Democrat Jami Ferguson, 51, is running for election as Cheshire Town Council At-Large.

Occupation: Proprietor, Manager At Cheshire Craft Brewing

Family:
Daughter, Mary Ferguson, 17 yo, Senior at Cheshire High School.
Son, Owen Ferguson 19 yo, Freshman at Sacred Heart University
Partner & Spouse, Kevin Ferguson.

Experience: Commissioner and Economic Development

Family in government: No

The single biggest issue in town is ______, and I plan to do this about it:

Modernizing our expensive & failing school buildings.

I will support the Cheshire Public School District & Board of Ed's recommendation for the best first step to begin the modernization process. I will vote to advance their proposal to a referendum. This is a community decision, the residents must be given the opportunity to vote.

The last time Cheshire opened the doors of a new school building, Richard Nixon was president. Ideally, municipalities should either build or renovate a facility like new, about once every 10 to 20 years depending on the size of the town. Long term planning allows a community to strategically bond initiatives to manage debt while keeping residents' property taxes stable. Past councils have either blocked proposals from going to a referendum vote or not supported major school construction projects, contributing to failure at the polls.

Critical differences between me and my opponents:

A notable difference between myself and other council candidates is the length of time I have been engaged with the school facilities planning process. In 2014, Dr. Florio invited me to sit on a panel to provide insight to the consulting firm that developed the 2017 Facility Master Plan. I’ve been attending (or viewing) Town Council & BOE business, budget and school modernization & facility planning meetings regularly for seven years. As your councilor, I will work to build a consensus to develop a long term town plan. Currently, we look out five years during the capital budget process, but Cheshire lacks a comprehensive plan that sets goals or identifies objectives beyond that. It’s time to prepare for Cheshire’s future.

Accomplishments:

I’m confident I am prepared to serve our community on the Town Council from my experience in recently opening a small business in Cheshire. I'm also a lawyer and realtor, but opening Craft is where I earned my stripes.

The process was riddled with avoidable hurdles. None were fatal, however after more than a year of interacting with many of our town’s departments independently it was clear that both the town employees and businesses would benefit from a coordinated effort to streamline processes. Inefficiencies cause delays and time is often more valuable than money. The Town Council can define goals & objectives with the Town Manager to make it easier for new business ventures to open or grow in Cheshire. Expanding our taxpayer base through business development is how we solve a multitude of other problems. It’s time to do simple things better.

Other issues:

Cheshire has, and will continue to have, significant infrastructure needs for many years. The 20 to 50 year gaps between big projects means we're at risk of needing to address multiple projects because of an asset failing. These are issues with lots & lots of zeros. But ... we CAN'T JUST BOND OUR WAY OUT of our infrastructure problems, and we MUST GROW through them.

What else would you like voters to know about you?

Most of us came to live in Cheshire at some point because of our public schools. Our teachers have done a remarkable job working around the inadequate space they have. I am very concerned we will not be able to continue to hire the same caliber of teachers if we don't address their working environment. They've been a stop gap, but this set of teachers won't be here forever. WE MUST PROVIDE OUR STUDENTS AND TEACHERS WITH FUNCTIONAL BUILDINGS. And, we need to grow our grand list to pay for them. I'm a problem solver. I work really hard and I don't quit until the job is done. I would be honored to have your vote to serve our community on Cheshire's Town Council.

Are you running for office in Cheshire? Email vincent.salzo@patch.com for information on being featured in a candidate's profile on Cheshire Patch.