The supervisor candidates are Tim Follos (Democratic and Silent Majority) and Favor J. Smith (Honesty for Wilmington).

The town council candidates are Laura Dreissigacker Hooker (Honesty for Wilmington), incumbent Darin Forbes (Republican and Citizen’s Data Boy), incumbent Michelle Preston (Community First) and Forest “Randy” Winch (People’s).

Also, Devan Korn (Citizen’s Data Boy) and Alphonso Smith (Republican) are running unopposed for two assessor seats.

The Lake Placid News sent questionnaires to candidates running in the contested races. Below is the response for Forest “Randy” Winch.

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Forest “Randy” Winch

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Age: 66

Occupation: Retired, previously worked at Lake Placid Central School for 20 years, mostly in the custodial and maintenance departments.

Position sought: Town Councilor

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Q: Why are you running for this position?

A: I am running for town council because I think we should be focusing more on our full-time residents’ needs and concerns. I hope to represent all of the people in Wilmington all of the time, not some of the people all of the time. I am interested in maintaining the character of the town I love while still achieving reasonable growth.

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Q: What are your qualifications?

A: I am a lifelong resident of Wilmington as well as a taxpayer. I have attended most of the town board meetings this year and have been interested in town issues for many years. I am deeply invested in my hometown.

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Q: What are your main goals?

A: Increasing the availability of housing in Wilmington. There are very few, if any, places to rent long term.

Taxes are another important issue in Wilmington. Finding better ways to use our tax dollars is crucial, as is being more careful with our spending. We also need to make sure our town employees are paid a fair and livable wage.

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Q: What do you think are the three biggest problems in the town, and how do you propose solving them?

A: The biggest issue is lack of housing. We cannot keep our young families in Wilmington because there is nowhere for them to live.The Homestead Housing project on Route 86 is a start, but we need other projects like this if we want to keep our young people living in Wilmington. This is an issue that our town council should take much more seriously.

Another important issue is taxes. We need to use our tax dollars more carefully, find ways to cut costs and find other sources of revenue.

Housing is a far more urgent need than another “pavilion project” in a town park. A better use of those dollars would be to generate new housing options, keep our property taxes in check and update the community center, where the windows need to be repaired or replaced. And, of course, vacation rentals (STRs) in Wilmington are a hot topic that relates to taxes and the housing shortage. The short-term rental committee appointed by the town board has come up with suggestions to regulate the STRs in Wilmington fairly. These volunteers worked long and hard to come up with these suggestions. They deserve our thanks, and their suggestions should be seriously considered for being adopted.

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Q: Other comments to voters?

A: One of the things I love most about Wilmington is its beauty. But the tranquility I have enjoyed in Wilmington throughout my life is now harder to find. I know that change is coming to Wilmington, whether we want it to or not.

But I also know that we need leaders willing to control the type of growth we allow. Our current town board has not been proactive about addressing some of the most important issues in our town (taxes, STRs, employee wages, dredging the river, speeding on our roads and amending the zoning code to focus on maintaining the character of the community). Even when they acted, they have not treated these issues with much focus or a sense of urgency. We need leaders who will roll up their sleeves, not drag their feet.

No matter what is said or written in the weeks before an election, those who have attended many town board meetings know that some of the members of our current town board have not been respectful to the public or to the public’s input, and that this is a major cause of tension and division in town. We need new leaders or Wilmington will keep going down the same path. We need leaders who love Wilmington for what it is. The sole reason I am running for office is to give back to the town I love by helping the town move in a more positive direction.

I would appreciate your support on Nov. 7. If you have any questions or concerns, you can email me at frw57@yahoo.com.

Thank you.