Manchester Mayoral Election 2022: Robert Arace

MANCHESTER,NJ — When voters go to the polls in Manchester Township on Nov. 8, they will be asked to choose the town's mayor.

There are three people seeking the four-year mayoral term: Robert Hudak, Robert Arace and Ken Seda.

Patch asked each candidate to answer questions to give voters information about who they are and their stances on various issues. We are printing their responses in full, unedited except for spelling or punctuation.

Here are the answers for Robert Arace, who is 29.

Tell voters about your family: I was raised by my mother and grandmother and grew up in Beachwood. My wife, Deanna, and I knew we wanted to stay in Ocean County and chose Manchester for its beautiful rural and suburban character.

Tell voters about your education: I graduated from Monmouth University with a bachelor’s degree in finance.

What is your occupation? I’ve spent my entire career in the private sector as a technology consultant helping businesses become more efficient and freeing up capital for them to reinvest in their workforce and their communities. Additionally, I launched my own digital marketing firm that was born out of the need for small, local businesses to reach new customers, survive, and grow during the pandemic.

Previous elective office, if any: None.

Do you or anyone in your family work for the state, county or local governments? No.

Why are you running for mayor? I am deeply concerned with the direction our town is headed. The current mayor has a track record of overdevelopment that has followed him everywhere throughout his career. The lack of thoughtful planning put into our town budget, infrastructure, and open space has led to an increase in property taxes, unsafe roads, flooding, and reckless overdevelopment. Manchester needs a leader that will be proactive in maintaining our rural character and will fight for lower taxes all while providing residents with the services they deserve. I’m running for mayor to listen to our residents, represent their interests and to protect the character of our town.

What do you feel is the most pressing issue facing Manchester, and what do you want to do about it?

Currently, the most pressing issue is overdevelopment in town. Our residents are concerned with the changing landscape of our beautiful town and I for one don’t want to see our town become overcrowded and overburdened. We need fresh ideas and new solutions to save our town, not tired tactics that have only succeeded in turning towns into cities.

Manchester Township has struggled with trying to attract businesses to help its ratable base and take some pressure off homeowners with property taxes. What do you think Manchester can do to help attract more businesses?

Manchester needs a team that will advocate on behalf of the town to recruit businesses. As mayor I will seek out opportunities to bring new business to town that will not only provide a ratable to the community, but also create high-paying jobs in the process. We are uniquely located near the Jersey Shore, and we have a diverse community to support various types of businesses.

The Heritage Minerals site continues to be a sore spot for the town, between illegal ATV operation and trespassers swimming, and the ever-present concerns about part of it being developed. What do you think the township can do to mitigate both concerns?

Township residents have been opposed to the development of Heritage Minerals for years and I don’t want to see it developed either. It also draws a lot of visitors from other towns and has been the site of too many tragic accidents due to drowning and ATV collisions. This site is actually surrounded by state conservation and I promise to make it a priority to work with county and state officials to preserve this land to create a park with amenities such as hiking trails, a pavilion, and a skate park. Unfortunately, one of my opponents, Mayor Hudak, has had members of his administration meet with developers to discuss a plan that would build thousands of units worth of new housing on this site. This irresponsible plan is exactly why the current mayor cannot be trusted with another term.

If you could change one thing about Manchester right now, what would it be?

I would immediately make our township more business-friendly. The sooner we can attract high-quality businesses to town the sooner we can begin lowering taxes for our residents.