VOTE411 Voter Guide

Public safety continues to be of paramount importance to our community. Bensalem shares a border with Philadelphia, and the culture of lawlessness that exists in the City, fostered by a liberal D.A. who supports criminals instead of the police, spills over that border into our community on a daily basis. Our costs for crime prevention and public safety are almost 70% of our overall General Fund Budget, but this level of funding allows us to maintain a Nationally Accredited Police Department that prevents crime and keeps us safe in our homes and on our streets. We have also worked hand-in-hand with our brave firefighters to restructure our Fire Services, and worked with our Rescue Squad to address their staffing and equipment needs, helping both our Fire and EMS Services to save precious minutes when they are responding to a fire or EMS call. The quality of life we enjoy in Bensalem starts with our public safety, and public safety must therefore remain our most important issue.

Mayor of Bensalem is the only political office I have ever sought or held. The same cannot be said of my opponent. I was born in Bensalem, I was raised here, I've raised my family here, and I've worked here my entire life. My deep community roots, my business experience, my love for this community, and my desire to serve the people of Bensalem made the Office of Mayor the only elected office that ever interested me. That still remains true today. I stepped away from my family's business so that I could run for Mayor, and since taking office, I have worked tirelessly to make Bensalem a safe place to live, work, and raise a family, achieving success by running our government like a business. I am proud of all that we have accomplished, but there is always more to be done, and I fear for what will happen to our community should an inexperienced, political opportunist suddenly be put in charge. Simply put, I am running for re-election so I can continue serve the citizens of Bensalem!

Bensalem is the 9th largest municipality in Pennsylvania, with over 60,000 residents and over 144 miles of roads within the 21 square miles that make up our Township. We have over 200 employees, more than 100 of whom are officers in one of the largest Police Departments in the Commonwealth. The Township has an annual budget of over a hundred million dollars. The Mayor oversees all of it. As Mayor, I have led this community, responsibly and successfully, for over 30 years. Before I was elected, I was CEO of DiGirolamo Farms, then one of the largest and most successful agribusinesses in the region. During my time in office, Bensalem has earned a reputation as a safe place to live, work, and raise a family, and our strong financial position, and our unrivaled quality of life, have over the years earned us national praise as “One of the 50 Best Places to Live in America,” "1 of the 100 Best Communities for Young People,” and most recently as “1 of the 50 Best Places to Live for Families.”

Bensalem has many great features, and many residents want to keep it that way. I do too! But we are stagnant and becoming faded. We are nearly overrun by opportunistic development, discarded buildings, and vape shops. Large tracts were sold to developers but sit as eyesores either overgrown with weeds or vacant buildings. Street Road is little more than a drive-through to better areas. We need redevelopment, not overdevelopment which takes our remaining open spaces and trees. We lack proactive planning to address vital infrastructure including storm water management, a lack of sidewalks which compromise safety, and safeguards to address speeding in our neighborhoods. Now is the time to take steps to promote a vibrant small business community, family friendly with community social spaces for our children and young adults, and assure a safe, small-town feel. We need a Mayor with the energy and determination to not stop until we have found a way to achieve this tranquility.

I never before considered running for Mayor. A strong education changed my life, making my two terms on Bensalem's School Board a good fit. The reason I accepted the call of my party to run for Mayor lies in a deep-seated belief in the power of community and the urgent need for a fresh perspective. I come from very humble beginnings – a survivor of pediatric cancer, raised by a single mother for whom making rent was always a struggle. To succeed I had to work hard, never give up, and in my faith know that He would guide my path. Bensalem is a beautifully diverse community, with much talent and promise among us, yet run as if only a few of us have a say. For 30 years just two families represented us as Mayor, State Representative and State Senator. We have had the same Mayor for 32 years and now he wants another four years! But this campaign is not simply to replace a long-serving leader; it is about ushering in a new era of collaboration, innovation and responsiveness.

I have been an attorney for 30 years here in Pennsylvania. While my practice is in family law, I have experience in general contracts and as a unionized attorney, personally negotiated union contracts. Working at a non-profit legal agency for 17 years, I have experience in grant-writing and looking for alternate revenue sources. On School Board we are responsible for an $180mil budget, twice that of the Township. Were I not in the minority party, I would insist on transparency and reducing unnecessary spending which bloats our budget. Most importantly, I will bring the same tireless dedication and passion as I have to our School Board. My professional background is not in development or urban planning. It is in bringing together the right people, thinking outside of the box, cutting through bureaucratic excuses to identify productive action steps, and harnessing the energy and ideas of all of the stakeholders. My first priority would be to hold townhalls to hear from neighbors.