Candidate Profile: Stephanie McCaine For Bedford Town Board

BEDFORD, NY — In 2021's general election, residents of the Hudson Valley will be voting for local officials. In anticipation, Patch asked candidates in the contested races to answer questions about their campaigns and will be publishing candidate profiles as Election Day draws near.

Stephanie McCaine is seeking reelection to the Bedford Town Board in November. The 52-year-old is running on the Working Families Party ticket and as a Democrat.

Learn more about McCaine on StephanieforBedford.com.

Check out Patch's full Q&A with Stephanie McCaine:

Family

Robin McCaine (52) Spouse, Shelby McCaine (15) Daughter, Inez Jones (92) Mom

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

No

Education

Skidmore College BA Psychology

Occupation

School Administrator 25 yrs

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office

Bedford Town Board

Campaign website

StephanieforBedford.com

Why are you seeking elective office?

I am passionate about Bedford and am committed to working to ensure that all town residents and business owners can thrive. I believe my lived and professional experience including currently sitting on the town board make me particularly suited to serving the residents of our town. I am a dedicated and engaged long-time resident of Bedford who has served our community as a volunteer, leader, and advocate. I recognize the need to balance preserving the character and charm of our hamlets with building the necessary infrastructure to ensure economic prosperity and growth. I believe that by building on our history of innovation and collaboration and engaging all stakeholders, we can meet the needs of our current residents and prepare for future generations.

The single most pressing issue facing our (board, district, etc.) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

The economic vitality of our hamlets is critical to the health and vibrancy of our community and therefore is of the highest priority. I intend to invest some of our ARPA funds into resources that will help our chambers of commerce, small businesses (including those without storefronts), and local organizations to develop a revitalization plan. I want to formalize a public-private partnership that is focused on strengthening commerce, bringing revenue into the community, and providing a mix of retail and cultural opportunities that serve the needs and interests of all of the residents of Bedford.

However, I am not a fan of declaring that there is only one issue facing the board that is most important as I see that as an oversimplification of what is at stake and fails to acknowledge the ways in which the issues intersect. That said, the issues that I believe the board must urgently consider are strategy, infrastructure, and communication. In order to bring our vision for the community forward, we must have a strategic plan with specific goals, objectives, and tactics to which we align and allocate resources. It is imperative that we continue to invest in our infrastructure (water, sewers, cell service, roads, sidewalks, etc.) to ensure that we have a strong foundation to build upon and that residents and business owners have the services that they need to thrive. Finally, the town board needs to make communication a strategic priority, with the intent of increasing awareness of the actions, policies, and programs of the town, to encourage broader and deeper engagement of constituents in the governing process, and ensure accessibility.

I intend to work with stakeholders and the town board to develop a strategic plan for our town, continue to support our investment in infrastructure, and launch a strategic communications task force to identify opportunities to share the town’s vision and plans, improve our website, streamline the methods by which messages are shared, enhance communication with the residents and businesses.

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

In addition to my lifelong connection to and deep understanding of the town, I believe the fact that I am currently serving on the town board is the most significant distinction between me and the other candidates. I have already established great working relationships with our department heads who are vital to the daily operations of our town, engaged residents and business owners in meaningful dialogue to gain a deeper understanding of their desires and concerns and started addressing them at the board level, worked to help resolve the library funding issue, and voted for legislation that helps our town get closer to achieving our climate action goals. In other words, I am already doing the work.

How do you think local officials performed in responding to the coronavirus? What if anything would you have done differently?

I think our local officials did an outstanding job. I think I would have offered more mental health and substance abuse information, resources, and services for our youth, seniors and essential workers in our community. Thankfully, we have the opportunity to address this with ARPA funding going forward.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

I want to bring more transparency to our town operations, increase the community-town partnership, and ensure that we have inclusive leadership and governance. It is important to me that when the town board considers actions and policies that we are considering the wide variety of residents in our community not just a narrow, maybe more vocal slice. Affordability and diverse housing options are also central to my aims in serving on the town board. I will support access to affordable housing and homeownership, so seniors, recent graduates, and the people who work in our community can also afford to live here.

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

Serving as the the Director of Admissions at Purchase College, SUNY is one of my proudest achievements. In that role I was responsible for managing a significant annual budget, supervising a large staff and working with various stakeholders inside and outside the college community. I was able to implement innovative and proactive strategies to meet aggressive enrollment and tuition revenue goals as well as innovated the handling of applications and data. Having a leadership position within a large complex public university system is excellent training ground for anyone seeking public office.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

Treat others the way you want to be treated.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I have been a Girl Scout Troop Leader, Youth Soccer Coach, Bedford Community Theatre board member and producer. I am on the board of Westchester Youth Alliance, The Westmoreland Sanctuary Advisory Board, I like indoor cycling, knitting, reading, baking, and live music.

Find information about absentee and early voting here: Election 2021: New Systems For Early Voting In Westchester. To find all your candidates, as well as statewide, county and local propositions, follow the links offered by the Board of Elections:

• View the 2021 General Election Candidates List.
• View the 2021 General Election State Propositions.
• View the 2021 General Election County and Local Propositions.