East Windsor Candidate Profile: Alan Baker, Board Of Selectmen

EAST WINDSOR, CT — The 2023 municipal election season is heating up in East Windsor, and there are plenty of races with candidates eager to serve in elected office.

Windsor Locks-East Windsor Patch asked candidates to answer questions about their campaigns and will be publishing candidate profiles as Election Day draws near.

Name: Alan Baker

How old will you be as of Election Day? 56

What city or town do you live in? East Windsor

What office are you seeking? Board of selectmen

Party affiliation: Democrat

Education: Champlain College

What is your occupation? Senior IT analyst

Do you have a family? If so, please tell us about them.

Wife of 36 years, two children, three grandchildren

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government? No

Have you ever held a public office, whether appointive or elective?

If elected this will be my fourth term on the board of selectmen. I also served on the board of finance.

Now we'd like to ask a few questions about your reasons for running and your general views on politics and government. First, why are you seeking this office?

I'm running again to continue our work in making government more efficient and responsive to the residents of town. I want to continue focusing on growing the commercial grand list to help alleviate the tax burden on residents and provide proper funding levels to schools and town services.

Please complete this statement: The single most pressing issue facing my constituents is \_\_\_, and this is what I intend to do about it.

Currently the most pressing issue in our town is the solar companies buying farmland for solar installations. Our approach is to work with the state legislature to get more local control in siting decisions. Additionally I want to see more local investment in our open space fund so we can conserve the best pieces of farmland in perpetuity.

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

The current board of selectmen works in a bipartisan way to deliver solutions for everyone, making decisions without self interest. The three petitioning candidates are part of a group in town that has consistently voted against every budget, denying funding to schools and pretty much any project that is presented to residents.

What other issues do you intend to address during your campaign?

We will continue to find efficiencies in government using technology and good customer service to provide excellent service to businesses and residents. We will also continue to keep taxes low. We will ensure the community center project gets completed on budget and provides excellent services for senior citizens and parks and recreation.

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

We got funding for the community center that will be paid for without bonding, so there will be no additional cost to taxpayers. We rebuilt the planning and zoning, and building departments to male them more efficient and customer friendly. We fixed the double taxation issue in the Warehouse Point fire district. We improved oversight of the police department and brought in new leadership there that improved morale and answered the needs of our excellent team of officers. We strongly supported East Windsor businesses during covid with an innovative financial support program that was copied by other towns. We kept costs down, made the right decisions that made our pension program one of the healthiest in the state. We renegotiated numerous labor contracts that are fair and balanced. We have not shrunk from any issue and worked as a team to really straightened out numerous issues that had languished for years without resolution.

What is the best advice anyone ever gave you?

A senior Republican in town once told me, "never start a project with a group of people that you aren't willing to finish on your own."

Is there anything else you would like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I've lived in town for 36 years, raised my family here, volunteered on numerous youth sports teams, was a volunteer firefighter for 10 years, served on the board of finance, board of selectmen, AHRC, chaired wetlands, and chaired the pension committee. I am proud of the hundreds of residents that volunteer their time every month for decades to provide the excellent community that East Windsor is.