Tolland Election: Steve Jones For Town Council

TOLLAND, CT — Democrat Steve Jones, 31, is running for the Town Council in Tolland.

Occupation: Wholesale Buyer

Experience: First Term Incumbent

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

Recovering and rebounding from the Covid-19 Pandemic. When re-elected to Town Council, I am committed to continuing my role on the American Rescue Plan Subcommittee with the interim Town Manager to best use these funds to improve key pieces of infrastructure, support our recovering economy and combat climate change where possible. Our recovery also means seriously listening to town staff during our community planning meetings, and final recommendations from our Mental Health Task Force and ongoing needs identified by the Commission on People with Disabilities.

Critical differences between me and my opponents:

I believe our community planning and budget process should tell a story of what we value, who we value, and how we value the programs and services our town provides. We tell this story through listening to the voices of our town staff, our neighbor's experiences serving on other elected and appointed boards, and encouraging input from residents across our town. The next chapter of Tolland should not be numbers and negotiations, and but instead conversations and community collaboration.

Accomplishments:

Working as liaison to the Conservation Commission, our town’s trails saw record levels of use by residents of Tolland and visitors alike while simultaneously expanding our green space footprint with the first phase of the Wanat Senior Park reaching completion later this year. This would not have been as successful in it's funding and progress without the support of private donors, grants through Sustainable CT and AARP, and advocating for Town Council support. As liaison to the Tolland Public Library Foundation, the library has been able to expand digital services and remote programming through Zoom, establishing internet hot-spot rentals for neighbors in need and gradually re-open to the public. My personal advocacy for supporting this central hub of culture and learning for all residents keeps us connected as one community. As liaison to the Tolland Water Commission, the town worked to ensure minimal disruptions to service during several severe weather incidents, maintain open access to water to all customers regardless of finances and still have a record-breaking year for revenues. Finally, I have on multiple occasions served as the chair of the Town Council meetings despite being in the minority, and and have earned the respect and trust of colleagues on both sides of the aisle even when we ultimately disagree. I will continue that trend when re-elected to build bridges and craft consensus.

Other issues:

The new Town Manager search process being more community focused, establishing a long-term forestry management plan for our trails and conservation spaces, and positioning our municipal water systems to effectively serve residents for decades to come and ensuring our Firehouse Improvement and Replacement Project is successful are just a few key issues.