Stratford Election 2021: Laura R. Hoydick Running For Mayor

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

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

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

Republican Laura R. Hoydick, 61, is running for re-election as mayor of Stratford.

Occupation: Mayor, Town Of Stratford

Family:
Husband, Paul Hoydick, former 10th District Councilman, 2009-2015, Park & Recreation Committee member, 30+ years
Daughters Brooke, Jillian and Paige. Stratford educated and raised. Brooke is married to Stephen Prusaczyk and has a son Jonathan Paul (JP), Jillian is married to Asa Routledge.

Experience: Mayor of Stratford 2017-present Former State Representative 120th District from Stratford 2010-2018 Former member and Chair of Stratford Board of Education 1997-2001 and 2004-2007

Family in government: Many family members work in education but no one else works in government.

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

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

Stratford has had a remarkable reset. The Town Council has joined me in lowering taxes and the mill rate over the past four years and restructuring our bonded debt to save taxpayers millions of dollars. We have also embarked on an economic expansion that will result in continued lower taxes for Stratford residents.

Stratford is once again a town that people want to live, work, and retire in, and a desirable location for businesses to locate. The proof of this is in our rising property values, the hundreds of new businesses that have opened, and the thousands of new residents who now call Stratford home.

Before we came into office, Stratford faced annual tax hikes on Stratford’s hard-working residents. With smart budgeting and defining our priorities, we have lowered taxes without cutting town services or issuing any layoffs.

The pandemic certainly has a human toll, but it has also had an economic toll. Despite the pandemic, Stratford still managed significant personal property and business growth – our grand list increased last year over $78 million. The proof of this positive growth is in the hundreds of new businesses that have located here in the last four years, and our increased property value. We’ve been blessed with a professional council majority that understands all of this- that supports our business community and supports our administration in working to make sure our economic development continues to grow.

Critical differences between me and my opponents:

I have called Stratford home my entire life. It is where I was raised, and where my husband Paul and I raised our three daughters. Experience in this role is indispensable, particularly when it comes to short-term crises such as storm events, large-scale emergencies, and especially through long-term health emergencies such as the pandemic which have sustained consequences for the safety and well-being of our residents, as well as economic and financial consequences to our businesses and taxpayers. I have lengthy experience in both the private and public sectors, as a former state representative and board of education chair, as a former property manager and director of the Stratford Chamber of Commerce. I have and am still an active volunteer and coordinator for key local nonprofits such as Sterling House Community Center and Perry House. Connections and relationships in all these spheres and experience in all these areas are essential to bringing all available resources to bear when it counts the most. I have experience serving on several boards such as the Connecticut Metropolitan Council of Governments, Sustainable CT, and am the chair of Greater Bridgeport Valley Metropolitan Planning Organization. Most recently I have been nominated to the CT Greenbank board of directors. These leadership roles and relationships provide beneficial connections for Stratford.

Accomplishments:

Apart from our four-year record of lower taxes, mill rate reductions and bonded debt restructuring, we have seen important projects through such as the remediation of Raymark waste, the expansion of the Complete Streets design along Main Street, important infrastructure projects such as the Exit 32 improvement, the Exit 33 addition, and the realignment of Route 110 at the entrance to Sikorsky Aircraft.

We also mobilized to meet the unique challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic head-on. We have made tremendous investments into our public health and public safety infrastructure to combat the virus. We have established and promoted testing and vaccination clinics, launched a ground-breaking program to vaccinate the homebound at their residences, expanded lunch programs and food pantry options for families in need, and organized the Stratford Strong Task Force to mobilize a unified response team comprised of local government and nonprofit community providers to help residents and businesses in need.

We are setting a better standard of what residents should expect from their town government, leaving party politics aside and focusing on results. All of this progress couldn’t be possible without our entire team working together in a collaborative fashion, and being receptive to new and different ideas.

Other issues:

We restored civility and professionalism to town government over the past four years, working toward collaboration with those who have different ideas, delivering transparency, and giving everyone a seat at the table. All of our four budgets were passed with bipartisan support, including one which was passed unanimously by Democrats and Republicans. Sustainability and protecting the environment are important aspects of our focus recognized by our investment into solar panels on town buildings, the Big Belly trash receptacles powered by solar power, town wide textile recycling and the art and beautification program evidenced by plantings, and hanging flowers and murals and street art.

What else would you like voters to know about you?

Stratford has had tremendous success over the past four years, and it is important to return our full team to keep the progress moving forward. I ask for the vote of residents – not only for me, but for our great team Town Council, and Land Use and Board of Education on Row B.

See also: Stratford Election 2021: Immacula Jo Cann Running For Mayor