New Albany candidates speak at Hoosier Action Town Hall

Brooke McAfee, The Evening News and the Tribune, Jeffersonville, Ind.
·5 min read

Oct. 11—NEW ALBANY — Candidates in the New Albany municipal election spoke about issues such as transparency in government and affordable housing at a recent forum.

The Ohio River Valley Chapter of Hoosier Action, a nonpartisan organization, presented a town hall for the city candidates on Tuesday at Park Christian Church in New Albany.

All candidates in the Nov. 7 city election were invited to the town hall, and 16 out of 25 candidates attended the event.

The candidates in attendance included nine out of 11 Republican candidates, four out of 11 Democratic candidates and all three Libertarian candidates.

MAYORAL RACE

Republican Ed Clere was the only mayoral candidate at Tuesday's event. He is a state representative who is challenging Democratic incumbent Mayor Jeff Gahan.

Gahan is seeking a fourth term in office. The mayor did not respond to invitations to attend the town hall, according to Will Stauffer, community organizer for Hoosier Action.

Clere said his goal is "open, transparent [and] accountable government." He said he is committed to having open office hours every month if elected.

"So every month during the day and in the evening, I will have several opportunities for people to walk in and talk with the mayor," he said. "No appointments, no pretense."

He also plans to introduce a "navigator" position in the New Albany government to act "as liaison with city departments."

"This will be a position within city government that will be responsible and accountable for making sure that people don't get the runaround," Clere said. "[It] seems basic, but it's not something a lot of people experience right now in their encounters with City Hall."

He also would like to open the door of City Hall along Main Street, and he would expand livestreaming to include all public meetings in New Albany City Hall.

Clere said he also plans to focus on affordable housing, saying he would take a "Housing First" approach to issues of homelessness, and affordable housing would be a key focus of planning and zoning discussions.

CITY CLERK

Libertarian Andrew Nicholson was the only candidate for city clerk at the Hoosier Action town hall. He is challenging Democratic incumbent Vicki Glotzbach and Republican Tracy Lynn Skaggs for the position.

Nicholson said he wants to make information more accessible to the public.

"As I go to these meetings and I check things out, I cross reference the things that they release out to the public," he said. "Sometimes they don't match. Sometimes it'll include the whole story, and most of the time you can't find the information."

AT-LARGE

Elaine Gunterman-Murphy, a Democratic candidate for New Albany City Council, discussed her background as a public school teacher and administrator in New Albany Floyd County Schools, saying she has experience working as a team. She also served one term on the NAFCS board.

"That's the kind of experience I want to take to the New Albany City Council," she said. "I want to be part of the team that solves problems for our city. My dad's a wise man, my dad would always tell me, 'Elaine, you never learn anything new when you're the only person in the room doing all the talking.'"

Maury Goldberg, a Democratic candidate seeking an at-large seat, emphasized his history of serving five terms on the New Albany City Council, and he described his vision for leadership on the council.

"My favorite quote is from the late Robert Kennedy...," Goldberg said. "He said some men say why, I say why not. Why not? Let's get together and do something. Talk is cheap. Action is everything."

Scott Whalen, a Republican at-large candidate, noted his history of pushing for changes in plans for the Mount Tabor Road intersection project about a decade ago, and he described his vision to increase access to information if elected.

"I like talking about transparency as information availability," he said. "In government, all your information should be an open door. You should be able to get it where you want, when you want and as easy as you want."

Stefanie Griffith, a Republican at-large candidate, has served on the council since February when she was selected via caucus to fill a vacancy. She wants to focus on making homeownership more accessible, and she said that "transparency first off and foremost is an easy fix."

"The [city hall assembly room] was set up to livestream all the council meetings, and they've been doing that for a year, but they're not doing any of the other 17 public meetings in that room," she said.

Libertarian Josh "JT" Turner said he is committed to "complete clarity in government" as an at-large candidate. He currently represents District 5 on the council.

"Our vision encompasses transparency, people-centric values, proactive representation and unwavering fiscal responsibility," he said. "Our new energy is about changing the dynamics of council, getting away from partisan politics and short-term decisions."

Republican Jay Papp and Democrat Don Unruh were the only at-large candidates absent from Tuesday's town hall.

DISTRICT RACES

For the New Albany City Council district races, Hoosier Action presented breakout sessions so people could hear from candidates from their own districts.

Republican David C. Betz was the only District 1 candidate in attendance. Democratic incumbent Jennie Collier did not attend.

Two District 2 candidates attended, including Libertarian Jeffery Mayott and Republican Dan Coffey. Democratic incumbent Adam Dickey did not attend.

Republican Darrell L. Neeley was the only District 3 candidate at the event, but Democratic incumbent Greg Phipps did not attend.

Both District 4 candidates attended the event, including Republican incumbent David Aebersold and Democrat Christopher Fitzgerald.

Both District 5 candidates attended, including Republican Ross Heinz and Democrat Louise Gohmann. For District 6, Republican incumbent Scott Blair was at the event, but Democrat Jo Krause-Graves did not attend.