Westfield Ward 4 General Election 2023: Scott Katz

WESTFIELD, NJ — Westfield's general election on Nov. 7 has eight candidates running for four open seats representing each ward in Town.

Democrat incumbent Scott A. Katz is running for the one, three-year seat representing Ward 4 against Republican David Kiefer.

Other candidates include Democrat Emily L. Root and Republican Todd B. Saunders for Ward 1; Democrat Erika J. Vargas Garrison and Republican Michael Armento for Ward 2; and Democrat Dawn Alicia Nichol-Manning and Republican Michal D. Domogala for Ward 3.

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.

Scott Katz

Age: 51

Town of residence: Westfield, NJ

Position sought: Town Council, Ward 4

Party Affiliation: Democrat

Family: Married to Caroline Katz for 21 years, Son Nate- Sophomore at Virginia Tech studying computer engineering, Daughter Amelia, senior at Westfield HS

Education: Bachelor’s degree in Economics from Tulane University

Occupation: District Sales Manager, Maximum Quality Foods

Previous or current elected appointed office: Currently Town Councilman, Ward 4, Westfield

Campaign website: www.katzforwestfield.com

Why are you seeking re-election for Town Council?

I am seeking re-election because I want to finish what this administration has started as well as continue to move forward with initiatives I have been involved with.

As part of the finance committee, I am proud of the low 1.4% tax levy that we have delivered to the residents of Westfield from the years 2018 through now in 2023. This is a huge reduction from the 2.4% levy of the previous administration from 2012 through 2017. Additionally we have historic grant funding of 1.6MM for this year so far (through August), allowing us to do more without affecting our own budget. This level of grant awards is significant because it reaffirms our strategic thinking and planning in areas such as Historic Preservation and Sustainability with our Green Team. And we are one of just 44 out of 565 NJ municipalities to reaffirm our AAA bond rating.

Our road paving efforts have really been taken for granted in recent years. Only a few years ago it was commonplace for main roads such as Rahway Ave. to have a virtual obstacle course down the middle of the road, making for unsafe and uncomfortable driving conditions. This administration
prioritized assessing and fixing our roads and also holding the utility companies accountable when they tear them up.

I really appreciate being a part of HRAC, the Human Relations Advisory Commission, and the efforts put forth to date in both celebrating our differences and confronting difficult issues such as publicly written messages of hate and bias. We have made great strides on this journey; however there is more to do and I want to be a part of it.

The Westfield Library is a great resource for our residents. Not only does the library offer outstanding programming, I am proud that our Board just designated the library as a Book Sanctuary, which allows individuals to choose what they want to read, not administrations. Notably, the library was just awarded a grant of $32K which will go towards further improving the library’s automation services and access to resources.

We have made progress with our parks but there is still more work to do. Windsor Park’s phase II improvements were completed in time for this year’s Unity Day. The Friend’s of Brightwood and Mindowaskin have been great partners over the years in helping to beautify these parks. Memorial Park’s playground is next on the list, with a grant to replace existing playground equipment, as well as making it fully ADA compliant. Sid/Fey Houlihan is in desperate need of increased parking and a permanent bathroom facility. Improvements here are forthcoming as part of a cell tower project at the conservation center. As any resident of Westfield between LambertsMill, Willow Grove and Clifton street is aware, improved cell service is much needed and will be greatly appreciated.

Tour de Westfield, our community bike ride through blocked off downtown Westfield streets is one of my favorite events to be a part of as a councilman and I want to be a part of making it even better. TDW is an event that is appreciated by all participants, but it is also a shining example of the benefit of having multiple organizations working together towards the same goal.

Development in Westfield including the Westfield One Project and development in general has become a hot topic in town. How do you feel about development in Town?

I believe there is no better way to revitalize our downtown than through the opportunity provided by One Westfield Place. We are already seeing its impact as business owners are choosing to invest in our downtown by renting space in Westfield following the announcement of the OWP. They
understand the impact that a project of this size will have and are seizing upon this opportunity. They are doing this in advance of any building starting at OWP. Further, there is demand for curated class A, highly amenity-rich office space in walkable, transit oriented downtowns like ours.

OWP is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity allowing Westfield to partner with our largest property owner to create a vibrant downtown that will deliver foot traffic to local businesses, provide public spaces for the community and will enable housing options which will be particularly attractive to a diverse group of people including newcomers and those downsizing with the 55+ units at the Lord & Taylor site.

Already, One Westfield Place has won two prestigious awards. In August, New Jersey Planning Officials selected One Westfield Place for their 2023 Planning Award. This new award is in addition to the Smart Growth Award that OWP is being awarded from NJ Future.

This month, OWP will be awarded a 2023 Smart Growth Award from New Jersey Future, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that promotes sensible and equitable growth, redevelopment, and infrastructure investments. The One Westfield Place submission covered many components – including community impact and engagement, as well as climate resilience, expanded housing choices, mix of uses and accessibility, green stormwater infrastructure, and justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion.

To quote Peter Kasabach, executive director of NJ Future, “People want to live in compact, walkable places. They want to be able to drive less, and that’s historically how our cities and towns and downtowns were developed, before the car was king. The best downtown redevelopments offer pedestrians a variety of experiences: window shopping, people watching, getting coffee,
eating in a restaurant.”

The Edison Fields Bond Ordinance has been added to the ballot to go up for public vote in November. What do you think of the project and the use of turf over natural grass?

The issue is not turf over grass, the issue is increasing our capacity to meet the needs of our student athletes. Simply put, a grass-only option does not increase the playing time capacity needed to meet the needs of our athletes and our teams. The Edison Fields Project is part of a larger plan that includes grass fields. This plan requires a lit turf “workhorse” field to pick up capacity that unlit grass alone simply can’t deliver.

The Edison field site is unique in that unlike the rest of the town owned property, Edison field is owned by the Board of Education and is not a NJ Green Acres facility. As such, it can be used exclusively by Westfield residents and leagues unlike nearly every Town-owned park/field that has to allow for public usage (ie: teams and clubs from other towns.)

This rare shared services agreement between the town and the BOE provides enhanced services for our taxpayers. The Edison project equally benefits the Town sports leagues, WHS athletes, WHS marching band and students. This is possible at Edison due to its proximity to WHS and Kehler locker room and storage facilities. This agreement allows for improvements that the BOE could not provide to the overused, out-dated Edison field on its own.

Over the past two years, there have been many public meetings on this project, as well as smaller meetings with neighborhood groups surrounding the Edison location and countless opportunities for public input at both town council and BOE meetings. As Ward 4 Councilman, I have listened to design and engineering professionals, the public, and the Board of Education’s perspective.

After listening to public input, the scope of the project has changed based upon the feedback received from individuals and groups. The size of the project was greatly reduced and leaves 40% of the fields behind Edison as grass. The fields are designated as primarily practice fields and there is no stadium seating for spectators. This reduces the amount of parking and traffic at the fields and the impact on the surrounding neighborhood.

New technology in sports lighting allows the playing field to be lit for player safety without spillage or glare reaching the surrounding roadways or residences. It also includes many automated controls on lighting timing which allows for “remote override” to turn off lighting on evenings when weather or other factors lead to cancellation of field usage. Further, the plan
improves upon drainage issues, reducing stormwater runoff into Robinson’s branch of the Rahway River over the current field conditions. By law, the design must comply with the latest, tougher design standards as regulated by the NJDEP.

Now it is up to the voters to decide. A YES vote on November 7 will move the Edison Fields project forward, and a NO vote will stop the project.

If the referendum fails, the bond ordinance would be formally repealed, which means that the Edison Fields project will not move forward, and any funding bonded and allocated for Edison Fields cannot legally be repurposed for any other initiatives, including upgrades to grass fields.

There have been more discussions about crime in Town in regards to car and home burglaries. Are you happy with how the Town and Police are handling this? And how would you like to improve this?

Our police force is one of the best in the state, as proven by our Accreditation by the NJSACOP for both our Police Department (3/21) and our 9-1-1 Police Fire EMS Comms center (6/22). This makes us the first in Union County and the fifth in the state to be awarded accreditation for both our agency and Public Safety Emergency Center. Chief Batilloro is one of the most respected
Police chief’s in the state, and I trust that we are doing the absolute best we can to fight the car thefts and home burglaries that have been hitting Westfield as well as our neighboring towns.

As a member of the finance committee, we have prioritized helping the WPD receive all of the tools necessary to effectively do their jobs. We have increased the police operating budget over $2 million from $6.18 million to $8.22 million since 2013 and our sworn officer roster strength has increased 17% in that same period.

We are constantly upgrading our equipment such as new body worn cameras and mobile video recorders, updated dispatch terminals, upgraded surveillance cameras and the addition of more Flock Safety License Plate Readers (LPR’s) that have helped stem many of the attempted burglaries and car thefts over the last several months. This administration is fully committed to providing our police force with the tools they need to continue to do their jobs at a high level. I fully support our police department and I am confident that we will continue to do everything we can to protect our residents.

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

For Ward 4, the most pressing issue we have to tackle in the next four years and beyond is dealing with our storm water runoff. In my role as chair of the Public Works Committee, I believe the most important decisions we will be making over the next few years will be geared toward how we can improve in this area. We have implemented the use of our new underground sewer visualization equipment, which has already helped us remove debris and spot issues as we find them. This has allowed the Public Works Department to hone in on the exact locations of blockage. Additionally, the Westfield Infrastructure Resilience Committee (WIRC) was created after Tropical Storm Ida to help plan for short-, medium- and long-term solutions necessary to improve our stormwater management holistically.

What sets you apart from the challenging candidates?

My innate ability to connect personally to the people I serve with on committees, commissions and boards, as well as the residents of Ward 4, helps to foster a feeling of trust and serves to bring forth well-rounded solutions to issues.

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

During my first campaign, I received some unexpected input from my neighbor’s son, Mason Garnhart, who was then still in high school. I asked Mason what he thought about my running and if there were any issues that mattered to him. He had been spending a lot of time fishing in Tamaques Park over the years and asked if it would be possible to stock the ponds and possibly host another fishing derby. I assured him that I would try my best if I was elected. Unfortunately, I was unable to stock the pond during my first term. However, if I am re-elected I plan on working towards bringing back our fishing derby.