Stamford Candidate Profile: Jeff Curtis For District 14 Rep

STAMFORD, CT — Election day in Stamford is getting closer and there are plenty of candidates running for various positions in town. To help residents make an informed decision on Nov. 5, Stamford Patch asked candidates to answer questions about their campaigns and will be publishing candidate profiles as the big day draws near.

Democratic candidate Jeff Curtis, 63, is running against Republican incumbent Tony Spadaccini for the chance to represent Stamford's 14th district on the city's Board of Representatives. A Stamford resident, he previously served on the board from 1992 to 1998. He also served on the Democratic City Committee and the Stamford Planning Board as an alternate.

A graduate of J.M. Wright Technical School (class of 1973), Curtis also spent over three decades working as a facilities management operations manager before his retirement.

Are you running for office in Stamford? Contact RJ Scofield at rj.scofield@patch.com for information on being featured in a candidate's profile and submitting campaign announcements to Stamford Patch.

The single most pressing issue facing our town/district is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

To ask what the single most pressing issue is facing the town/district is unfair. If I were to ask 100 people in Stamford what they thought the most pressing issue was, I'm sure that taxes/fiscal responsibility and transparency in government would be high on most of their lists. But there are also mold issues, public safety issues, infrastructure issues, rampant over development issues, traffic and pedestrian safety issues and potholes that would most likely be just as high on some peoples lists as taxes and property values.

All I can promise is to work as diligently as I am able to work on ALL the issues facing the people of the 14th District and Stamford.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

Experience, willingness to listen and serve the people of the 14th District and the City of Stamford.

Infrastructure - As Stamford continues to grow, the needs and maintenance of our city infrastructure has been neglected, and the can has been kicked down the road so to speak. It is time to rebuild and in many cases improve our infrastructure. To wait any longer will be detrimental to the Stamford.

List other issues that define your campaign platform:

Proper funding of schools and maintenance of school buildings. I believe that the Board of Education needs to hire a Chief Operations Officer and a Chief Financial Officer to oversee budget, buildings, buses, etc., and let the superintendent focus on education of our children.

Repairing the city infrastructure, improving public safety, and traffic and pedestrian safety, and most importantly, fiscal accountability and transparency in city government.

I would also concentrate on quality of life issues that concern the people of Stamford.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

• 2017 - Current Chairperson, Sacred Heart Church Parish Council
• December, 2004 - 08 Appointed - City of Stamford Planning Board, Alternate
• March, 2000 Elected to Democratic City Committee, 14th District
• March, 1998 Re-Elected to Democratic City Committee, 9th District
• November, 1997 Re-Elected - 25th Board of Representatives, Committee Assignments: Chair, Urban Redevelopment, Member of Appointments, Steering, Operations, and Public Safety and Health Committees
• June, 1996 - Named to Special Committee on Labor Contract and Negotiations for the 24th Board of Representatives.
• March, 1996 - Elected to the Democratic City Committee, 9th District
• February, 1996 - Co-Chair - 24th Board of Representative’s Task Force on the Hart School Expansion and Renovation Project.
• November, 1995 - Nov. 1997 - Elected to the 24th Board of Representatives, Committee Assignments: Chairperson, Public Safety and Health, Member of the Appointments, Public Works and Sewer, Steering
• Nov. 1993 - Nov. 1995 Elected to the 23rd Board of Representatives, Committee Assignments: Co-Chairperson, Public Works and Sewer, Member of the: Steering, Public Safety, and the Transportation Committees. Participated in Stillwater Avenue Cleanup and Westside Anti-Crime Vigil
• January – March, 1995 - Charter Member Citizen Policy Academy
• April 1992 - Nov. 1993 - Appointed to vacancy in 9th District - 22nd Board of Representatives, Committee Assignments: Public Works and Sewer, Transportation, and Housing and Community Development
• Thirty Five years experience in Facilities Management of Hospitals in Connecticut responsible for everything from landscaping to snow removal, preventive and predictive maintenance, construction, and day to day operations of maintenance crews consisting of various trades people.

The best advice ever shared with me was...

Be honest, always be willing to help people and never ask anyone to do something you aren't willing to do yourself. And give back to the Community you grew up in.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I want the people of the 14th District and the city of Stamford to know, that if elected to the seat on the Board of Representatives, I will serve faithfully, I will always be ready to listen and to help the people of the district and the city in general. I want to be their voice in City Hall, and I hope they will trust me with their vote.