Seven candidates are vying for four at-large seats on the City Council, the most crowded race since 2013.
On the Nov. 7 ballot are incumbents Joseph McCoy, Margaret “Peg” Conniff and Daniel R. Carey, and newcomers Cinzia Pica-Smith, Owen M. Zaret, William E. Lynch IV and Jared Hinkle. Incumbent Tamara L. Smith is not seeking re-election.
Conniff, Pica-Smith and Zaret are supporting Nicole LaChapelle for mayor, and Carey and McCoy are backing Joy Winnie, who is leaving the Precinct 3 council seat. Hinkle and Lynch declined to say who they are supporting.
Here is a look at each candidate:
A lifelong resident of Easthampton, Carey said he will remain involved in city affairs no matter what happens in the race.
He was first elected in 2013, serving on the School Committee for two years before moving on to the City Council in 2015.
“I wanted to give back to the community,” Carey said about his decision to get involved in local government.
Carey, 32, of 6 Newell St., works as the director of the drug diversion and treatment program in the Northwestern district attorney’s office. He said good people skills and an ability to listen serve him well on the City Council.
Carey added that he has gained valuable experience on the finance subcommittee reviewing the municipal budget each year.
Carey said an important issue in the city is encouraging more senior housing. He added that the city also should consider tax breaks and other measures helping seniors who live on fixed incomes.
Conniff, 58, of 35 Pine Hill Road, is seeking her second term on the council. She is director of automation solutions at UnitedHealthcare in Hartford, Connecticut.
After moving to Easthampton five years ago to live closer to her partner (the two have since married), Conniff said she wanted to get involved in the community and a friend encouraged her to run for city councilor.
“I feel like there’s more to do,” Conniff said. “Two years is not enough.”
Her job experiences have involved project management, which Conniff said requires a lot of research and problem-solving, and those skills are useful on the City Council.
“I look at everything as a problem to be solved,” Conniff said.
She said her first term on the council was a “learning curve,” especially working on the city’s budget. “Now I feel I can really speak out and have an impact,” Conniff said.
Important issues facing the city, she said, are creating a responsible ordinance regulating recreational marijuana, which would provide revenue to the city’s tax base, and building a consolidated pre-kindergarten to Grade 8 school.
Hinkle, 38, of 12 Monska Drive, a shift supervisor at Ryder Transportation, has lived in Easthampton for the past eight years.
He served as an E4 specialist in the U.S. Army during Operation Iraqi Freedom and was awarded a Purple Heart when he was wounded by pieces of metal from the vehicle in which he was riding during an ambush.
Hinkle has volunteered as a youth baseball and youth soccer coach, and is a Cub Scout leader. Seeking other ways to get involved in the community, he started going to City Council meetings about a year ago.
Hinkle observed that many candidates have been unopposed in recent years, and he decided to run because, “It’s time for some fresh ideas.”
Hinkle added, “I live paycheck to paycheck … I do everything just to get by. It’s time for a regular blue-collar working person to be on the council.”
He said some senior citizens living on fixed income have expressed concerns about the tax increase that will come with construction of a new school building. Nevertheless, Hinkle said he supports the project because Easthampton needs a new school.
Lynch, 35, of 2 Bryan Ave., said his job as manager of the Stop & Shop supermarket in West Springfield has given him skills in leadership, decision-making and budgeting that would benefit the City Council.
Lynch grew up in Easthampton and graduated from Easthampton High School in 2000. He has worked in management for the past 12 years for Stop & Shop.
He cited being voted “friendliest” in his class during high school as an important quality for a city councilor so residents can feel comfortable about approaching him and voicing their concerns.
Lynch said the city can move in a positive direction with more family-friendly events such as WinterFest and Big Rig Day. He is married and has a 3-year-old son.
As a councilor, Lynch said he would work to continue to grow the city’s economy and would examine whether changes in the city’s zoning would attract more businesses.
Lynch said he also wants to talk with people who are interested in starting a business in Easthampton about what may be holding them back.
Seeking his seventh term on the City Council, McCoy, 59, of 11 Clapp St., first got into politics around 2004 when he was advocating for same-sex marriage rights with the coalition MassEquality.
McCoy said that was when he “got the bug” to advocate for people’s concerns, and he first ran for City Council in 2005. He currently serves as the council’s president.
McCoy said he is proud the City Council in 2011 passed a resolution he introduced declaring that city officials do not condone or tolerate any form of discrimination.
He said the City Council is government at the grassroots level because issues are discussed directly with the public and a single resident can initiate big changes by voicing an idea.
McCoy, a veterinarian, runs Sage Meadow Farm with his husband, making goat milk soaps which are sold at local grocery stores, farmers markets and craft fairs.
As an associate professor of human services and rehabilitation studies at Assumption College in Worcester, Pica-Smith, 46, of 54 Ward Ave., said she can bring a unique perspective to the City Council.
She is a therapist who is trained to help people in conflict, which she believes would be useful as a city councilor. She said her expertise is in child, family and community wellness, with a focus on social justice and community development.
Pica-Smith said many of the city meetings she has attended are polarizing the community. nevertheless, she believes that “important conversations are happening” on topics including the construction of a new school and the city’s continued commitment to work on creating a diverse and equitable community.
When asked at a candidates forum in October if Easthampton should approve a so-called “sanctuary city” measure, Pica-Smith said there is a need to codify what the city’s Police Department already practices. She was the sole candidate to support such a measure, which brought some cheers from the audience.
Pica-Smith has lived in Easthampton since 2007 with her husband and 5-year-old son.
Zaret, 43, of 74 Florence Road, a physician assistant at Holyoke Medical Center, said the national political climate inspired him to get involved on the municipal level. He has lived in Easthampton since 2000.
He believes his work in health care has given him the leadership skills that would benefit the City Council.
Zaret said it would be valuable to have an urgent health care facility in Easthampton. As a councilor, Zaret said he would work with the city planner and mayor to make it a priority for increased medical services through direct recruitment.
“I think our city has evolved and modernized in so many ways,” Zaret said, but having old school buildings, with little or no space to grow, is unacceptable. That is why he supports building a new pre-kindergarten to Grade 8 school.
He also wants to create zoning and local ordinances to bring recreational marijuana to the city in a safe, responsible and respectful way, and supports a cannabis excise tax.
Zaret said he wants to work on creative ways, such as tax abatements, to benefit the elderly and other members of the community living on fixed incomes.
Caitlin Ashworth can be reached at cashworth@gazettenet.com.