GREENFIELD — Town Council at-large candidate Ashli Stempel said she feels confident going into the Nov. 7 General Election after getting the second highest number of votes during September’s preliminary.
Stempel, 31, has served on the council since November 2015, when she was elected to her current seat. A Greenfield native, she moved back to the area in 2012 after living in Boston for six years.
She hopes to use her role on the council to help put Greenfield on the map and lower the town’s tax rate.
“I think residents of Greenfield are really concerned about seeing their bill increase and unfortunately we can’t give people more for less, so what that means for us is we have to do a better job of finding efficiencies and perhaps finding new revenue streams,” Stempel said. “Hopefully with a four-year term we’ll see more opportunities to capitalize on something like GCET and maybe do a little more digging now that we’re more comfortable in the role, finding more opportunities to find more revenue streams so we’re not constantly tapping into our residential homeowners so much.”
Formerly a Precinct 8 councilor, Stempel is hoping to solidify her role as a representative of the entire town by making a run for an at-large seat. She says what she brings to the table is an open mind and a willingness to learn.
She is running for one of two open seats against three other candidates.
“It’s really important to have all kinds of thinkers at the table, and being able to listen to everybody on every side and not come to the table with a decision already made,” she said.
Over the next year, Stempel hopes to focus on ways to use infrastructure more creatively to increase revenue streams, focus on diversity and inclusiveness on a town level, and anticipate and prepare for change in Greenfield.
“I think a big issue — and we saw it come before the council — is Greenfield and our feelings toward diversity in town,” she said. “We have neighbors of all different ethnicities and backgrounds, but what I tend to see is ethnic and cultural groups are in silos — maybe we need to work on having more opportunities to bring all cultures and all ethnic backgrounds together and make sure that we really have an inclusive government atmosphere.”
For example, Stempel said, she’d like to organize voting drives in neighborhoods with low voter turnout, and is urging Greenfield Community Energy and Technology — the new quasi-governmental organization bringing low-cost internet to Greenfield — to focus on promoting the service in neighborhoods that are most likely to be below the poverty rate.
While she doesn’t believe the town has been irresponsible with revenue, Stempel said she anticipates higher costs in the future, as infrastructure in town is failing. And while businesses are coming to Greenfield, Stempel said the town needs to find creative solutions due to a lack of commercial space.
“We’re seeing the need for new buildings, so there are a lot of things coming through the pipeline that are going to cost a lot of money,” she said. “If we can be more creative with the infrastructure we have and the space we have available, I think we can find additional revenue streams to help us pay for these things that we absolutely need to do in the future.”
Stempel said one way of doing this is to encourage multi-use buildings that serve multiple generations, such as the new senior and community center. Along with that, Stempel said she hopes to focus on creative housing solutions, such as the new “tiny house” development sited for Deerfield Street.
When it comes to the proposed new library and public safety complex, Stempel said public safety and education are two of the most important resources for any community, but added that the proposals should be carefully evaluated. For example, she questioned whether the cost of a new public safety complex would result in a cut to the number of police officers on the street.
“A town budget isn’t just dollars and cents. It’s a moral budget,” she said.
As far as the idea of turning the former First National Bank building into a downtown cultural center, Stempel said she thinks it’s a viable plan that would help bolster downtown, but said it should be carried out in a smart way — weighing needs versus wants.
“I always encourage people to see what money is available, how can we do this project smarter, and save money to get the wants done, too,” she said.
Stempel said change is inevitable, and would like to see the council and town department heads work together to figure out how to best anticipate change and prepare for it — instead of getting stuck with enormous bills because something went wrong.
“I do feel like our (current) Town Council is getting hit with all these huge costs, so it’s that moral piece — what’s a need, what’s a want, and how can we fit it in over time?” she said.