The one contested seat in the Town Council election goes to Jim Gatto, according to the official tally of the election commislsion.
Gatto, who campaigned on his long record as an urban planner and his service as chairman of the Chestertown Planning Commission, won the First Ward seat with 158 votes. Community activist Frank Rhodes, known for his work to save the armory for citizen use, got 116 votes.
Unopposed in the election yesterday, Mayor Margo Bailey received 380 votes plus 21 write-ins for a total of 401.
Council member Mabel Mumford-Pautz, also unopposed, got 49 votes and 1 write-in.
Among Gatto’s promises to voters:
*“Addressing the growth issue, this includes working with Kent and Queen Anne’s counties. More growth has occurred in the adjoining counties than in Chestertown and we need their cooperation. We are drowning in their traffic.
*”Establish a fee structure so developers contribute to the capital cost of improvements.
“*Secure the economic well being of our community by actively pursuing programs that encourage new business and assist existing local companies.”
*”Begin to implement the traffic improvements called for in the comprehensive plan.
*”Adopt and implement a recreation plan that includes a hiker-biker trail system throughout Chestertown.
*”Provide up-to-date flexible and targeted communication via direct emails to Chestertown Households.”
JIM GATTO says
I want to thank Frank for an aggressive issues driven campaign; both us heard from First Ward residents as we went door to door; both learned more about our comunity. That is the pupose of a local campaign. WELL DONE CHESTERTOWN! I believe Frank and I will continue our discussions on on issues that actually began a year before the election…I learned a lot from our coffee discussions, an I believe he did too.
Carla Massoni says
It takes a village – to do anything!
Peter Newlin says
Although we are not close friends, I can say with conviction, Jim Gatto will make a wonderful First Ward Councilman. I have interacted with him professionally over thirty years.
Jim’s house, built (in the 1st Ward) a couple of decades ago to conserve and enjoy the woodlands back when that wasn’t fashionable, is as modest on the street as Jim is when you first meet him, and as full of creativity as you realize Jim is when you get to know him.
Jim sees the big picture. He spent years working as planner helping towns all over Maryland find creative ways to reinvent themselves economically. He understands it is business that makes a community sound, and it is planning for quality that makes a community a great place to live. That is why he moved here, and why he has never left.
It also explains the half a dozen years Jim served as a Planning Commission volunteer – Chairman for the last four years. Not only does Jim Gatto know what it takes to be a good a leader, he also knows how to be a good teammate, inside and out of government, at the local level (Town), at the State level (where he worked for decades) and interacting with the counties that surround us.
Jim Gatto will a cause of good things for our community, because that’s what’s in his heart and in his mind, and he will work with others to help these good thing happen.
I only wish Chestertown could have been so lucky to have gained Frank Rhodes as a Councilman, too. We are truly blessed to have such good men living here and leading our community. Whether we agree with them or not, both deserve our gratitude for actions already taken and yet to be.
Peter Newlin,
http://www.ChesArch.com