Enfield Candidate Profile: Donna Szewczak, D-3 Town Council

ENFIELD, CT — Enfield's election season is heating up, and there are plenty of contested races with candidates eager to represent their town in November's municipal election. One position which is not being contested is the town council seat representing District 3.

Enfield Patch asked candidates in the town council and Board of Education races to answer questions about their campaigns, and will be publishing candidate profiles each weekday as election day draws near.

Town Councilor and Deputy Mayor Donna Szewczak is running unopposed for re-election as a Republican in District 3.

Name: Donna Szewczak
Age (as of Sept. 1, 2019): did not answer
Position sought: Town Council - District 3
Party affiliation: Republican
Family: Married, 2 children, 1 grandchild
Does anyone in your family work in politics or government: No
Education: BA-UConn
Occupation: retired business manager
Previous or current elected or appointed office: current Deputy Mayor, Town Council; previous Town Council at-large for 2 terms and Board of Education secretary for 2 terms
The single most pressing issue facing District 3 is: balance of development and preservation.
List other issues that define your campaign platform: We maintained our town's bond rating at AA stabilizing our long term debt despite an $8 million dollar cut by Gov. Malloy to our municipal funding. We funded the elderly tax credit ($750,000) after the state cut the funding, thus helping 600 Enfield seniors stay in their homes. We implemented a 12-month budgeting process to review the budget line-by-line. We implemented "sinking funds" to have the funding streams needed to maintain our buildings, rather than needing yearly referendums. We increased our collection of unpaid taxes to 98 percent and focused on getting back taxes paid, and collected $700,000 of unpaid sewer fees last year alone. We installed cameras and increased police presence in town. We have modified and updated our zoning regulations and added a Blight Board to move blighted properties back onto the tax rolls.
What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job: During my term on town council, we completed:

• Work from Roads 2010 completed and we are midway into the Roads 2015 work
• Implemented a Vehicle Replacement/CIP Plan which creates a predictable/affordable budgetary plan
• Accepted the Comprehensive Energy Strategy (prepared by Enfield Clean Energy and funded by Bright Energy Grant)
• Passed the Performance Contract Referendum, which was completed in spring of 2018 with the most visible part the plan street lights, HVAC at the main library and Eli Whitney School, town hall and energy and water saving equipment throughout our municipal buildings has been completed. Saving in approximately $750,000 in energy costs.
• We completed construction of the Enfield High School additions and renovations and the unified high school opened September of 2016, to an extension STEAM curriculum on time and under budget.
• Passed the JFK referendums and anticipate construction to start in the spring.
• We have completed the installation of the basketballs/volleyball courts at Brainerd Park and skateboard park at Green Manor, and anticipating the completion of the pickleball complex for the spring. New playscapes have gone at Prudence Crandall, Eli Whitney, Enfield Street School and Hazardville Memorial Schools. Higgins Park an expansion of the Town Green is back in the design stage.

The best advice ever shared with me was: Not advice but a philosophy. First we shape our building, then it shapes us, then we shape it again ... ad infinitum.
What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions: That I am committed to giving Enfield the infrastructure to be ready to face the challenges of tomorrow.