Westfield Primary Election 2023: Emily Root

WESTFIELD, NJ — Westfield's primary election on June 6 has eight candidates running for four open seats on the Town Council.

Incumbent Democrat Emily Root is the only candidate running in the uncontested primary for Ward 1.

Other candidates include Democrat Erika Vargas-Garrisonand Republican Michael Armento for Ward 2; Democrat Dawn Alicia Nichol-Manning and Republican Michal D. Domogala for Ward 3; and Democrat Scott Katz and Republican David William Kiefer for Ward 4.

All of the candidates are running for a three-year seat on the Town Council.

Are you running for office in Westfield? Contact Alexis Tarrazi at alexis.tarrazi@patch.com for information on being featured in a candidate's profile and submitting campaign announcements to Westfield Patch.

Emily Root

Age: 49

Town of residence: Westfield

Position sought: Westfield Town Council, Ward 1

Party affiliation: Democrat

Family: I am happily married to my husband, Bruno Tedeschi, and have two wonderful stepchildren, Zoe, who is completing her junior year in college at the University of Rhode Island, and Dylan, who just finished his freshman year at Michigan State University.

Education: I received my master’s in speech-language pathology from New York University and my bachelor’s in language studies from the University of California Santa Cruz.

Occupation: I am a speech-language pathologist specializing in treating children and young adults who stutter. I have been a small business owner for nearly two decades, running my own private practice. I am also an adjunct professor in the graduate departments of speech pathology at Kean University and San Francisco State University.

Previous or current elected appointed office: I was appointed to Ward 1, Town Council in April of 2022, and I was elected in an special election to serve a one-year unexpired term in November of 2022.

Campaign website: rootforwestfield.com

Why are you seeking election to the Town Council?

I’m seeking re-election to continue serving the residents of Ward 1. Since my election in November 2022, I’ve worked diligently on the Finance Committee to hold the line on taxes while prioritizing investment in our community to ensure long term tax stability. I’m also a fierce advocate of maintaining what we love most about our charming community while continuing to revitalize our downtown. I support smart development like One Westfield Place, which will result in more than $400 million in private investment in our community and $57 million for public improvements.

As Public Safety Chair, I am working closely with our Police Department to ensure Westfield remains a safe town. I remain committed to combating car thefts, keeping our streets safe, providing a support system to the community and supporting needed capital improvements, such as license plates readers, radar speed boxes, pedestrian crossing beacons and improved lighting in streets and parks.

Balancing the town's budget becomes more difficult each year with inflation and the loss of revenue since COVID. How do you plan to address this?

The Town of Westfield has successfully bounced back since the early days of the pandemic. We are rapidly recapturing parking and court revenues and expect to get back to pre-COVID levels in the next year or two. We continue to create resilience for future budget challenges by bringing in new sources of revenue. We've had an increase in revenue from the Westfield Memorial Pool, which is now at full capacity and has a waiting list. We also continue to look for ways to reduce our costs by sharing services with other municipalities. We continue to maintain a AAA bond rating and are one of only 44 (out of 564) New Jersey municipalities to achieve that status. I am proud of the fiscal acumen and cost savings our finance team has brought to taxpayers and look forward to continuing to build on that momentum.

Having trust and transparency in the town government is important to residents. How has the town improved on this or how would you improve this?

Just five years ago, there was no ability to view live Town Council meetings online, access archived videos of meetings with ease or have live discussions with town officials. All that has changed, improving transparency in our town. I have always been a champion of constituents becoming involved and to do so, they must be informed. To assist in this, I post agendas and townwide news on social media, and engage with constituents on a daily basis, whether it be email, phone, or in one of my many Facebook Live videos. I make it a priority to share the happenings of town government whether it be road paving information or answering questions about One Westfield Place. I will continue to hold Ward 1 "chat with your councilwoman" events, either downtown or with weekly Sunday runs and walks where we can enjoy the outdoor beauty of our neighborhoods while engaging in ideas to keep moving Westfield together.

What other issues do you feel need to be tackled in the township?

Other issues that are still important to me, just as they were last year when I ran in my special election in November of 2022, are focusing on public safety, including finding even more ways to slow traffic in our neighborhoods and make our streets safer for pedestrians and cyclists so the infrastructure is there for more families to feel that they can walk, run, and bike on a daily basis. Also, I look forward to having more discussions about One Westfield Place and the benefits of this particular development, which will result in more than $400 million in private investment in our community and replace surface parking lots with offices, retail and housing while we solve traffic issues. Lastly, I remain dedicated to supporting our downtown businesses and preserving what we love most about our community by diversifying our tax base while still supporting small businesses.

What sets you apart from the challenging candidates?

I am never complacent nor do I rest on my laurels. Quite the contrary. I remain ready to serve, and prepared for challenges that may come my way. Most importantly, I prioritize serving the residents of Westfield and believe it to be one of my greatest privileges and accomplishments in my lifetime. I am asking Ward 1 residents to re-elect me this November.

What else would you like to share about yourself or your campaign?

I had a successful and fruitful year thanks to the residents of Ward 1 putting their faith and confidence in me this past November. I will keep my promise to work hard and be a distinct voice for residents in Ward 1. As always, I remain a proud stepmom, small business owner, stuttering specialist, and college professor. You most likely will see me on my daily runs down Mountain Avenue as well as engaging with business owners downtown in addition to knocking on your door on any given day to hear what you have to say.

We are so fortunate to live in this beautiful and loving community, so please come say hello and let me know what matters to you and your family and how we can make our wonderful town even better. It would be my honor to continue to serve the residents of Ward 1 over the next four years and I can’t wait to keep my commitment to the residents of Ward 1. Thank you!