Throughout the area, signs are popping up that state simply: “Why Not Fred?” That is a question that residents are encouraged to thoughtfully consider before voting in the upcoming North Elba Town Council elections on Nov. 7. Our communities are in need of politicians who will stand up for year-round residents, show up and ask the tough questions, speak up against powerful interest groups and spend time listening to and working for those of us trying to make a living, raise our children and run our businesses. If North Elba elects Fred Balzac, that is who they will receive.

The people of North Elba deserve a public servant who will show up and ask tough questions. Noticeably missing from the Oct. 16 candidate forum sponsored by the Adirondack Daily Enterprise and Lake Placid News was the incumbent who Fred is challenging. Fred has a history of relentlessly showing up for community members and enacting change. In 2022, Fred spent days speaking to a group of neighbors who felt powerless and voiceless to take on a development that the former mayor of Saranac Lake was attempting to push through the mayor’s self-appointed Development Board. Fred organized the neighbors to call out the clear conflict of interest, publicly question ethics, and ultimately the grassroots neighborhood succeeded in making sure the rule of law was followed.

The people of North Elba deserve a disruptive leader who will speak up against powerful interest groups, shine a light on conflicts of interest and publicly question the ethics of people regardless of party. A little over a year ago, Fred and a group of citizens showed up at a Democratic insider rally to protest the perceived ethics violations and politically retaliatory actions of a local politician — not a popular thing for anyone to do in Saranac Lake but in Fred’s mind, the right thing to do. Fred also isn’t afraid to publicly question the actions and ethics of interest groups like the Regional Office of Sustainable Tourism and the many other organizations that, for years, have been brushing aside the negative impacts of over-tourism, including the rapid expansion of short-term rentals (a percent of every rental going to ROOST) and the resulting lack of housing have had on our communities and businesses. It is voices like Fred’s that have pushed ROOST and local governments to finally acknowledge and then begin to do something about the housing problem that they played a part in causing.

The people of North Elba deserve a selfless maverick who will speak up, especially when speaking up isn’t popular. Fred shows up to meetings and events and routinely brings up community members’ issues long before they make it in the paper.

I may not agree with every stance Fred takes, but his passion for doing the right thing for the people of our communities and speaking up regardless of the political winds is something no other local politician can match.

It is time to elect someone that doesn’t represent the status quo. So why not Fred?

Jake Vennie-Vollrath

Saranac Lake