I was first elected to City Council in 2017 and was re-elected in 2019 and I am in the middle of my 4-year term. It is an honor and a privilege to serve in this capacity for my hometown community. Now I want to expand my public service. Many people consider the council’s and mayor’s roles to be just part time, but I disagree. While official council meetings are held just twice a month – and once a month during the summer – I spend many hours between those meetings studying city topics, researching facts on issues, and talking with potential businesses and developers on the benefits of locating to Canfield. I meet with community stakeholders specifically around our central Green to find ways they might be willing to develop their vacant properties. I serve on our planning and zoning committee as well as the Millennial Moments JEDD for the community being developed at the corner of Route 224 and Palmyra Road. I am happy to respond to any and all comments or questions, my website, www.electbruceneff.com, has a form to ask questions and has my cell number if you prefer to speak in person. My city email, bneff@canfield.gov, is listed on the city website, www.canfield.gov. My company website is www.LED3.us. I believe it is council’s responsibility to hold our city department heads, including our police chief, financial director and city manager, accountable. The mayor and council members are accountable to the citizens of Canfield and are responsible for keeping Canfield a safe and welcoming community. Each of our city department heads and employees are dedicated to keeping Canfield a great place to live and work. Water Rates: A most difficult issue facing all of us at this time is the high and seemingly ever-increasing water rates. The previous administration had a challenging and frustrating task of negotiating with the city of Youngstown, our best source for water. At that time, Youngstown wanted to double the cost of water to Canfield. Our previous Mayor Bernie Kosar and previous City Manager Joe Warino worked hard to keep the rates as low as possible and minimize the increases over the years. I understand that Youngstown wanted to double our rate immediately. They felt, at the time, it was advantageous to lock the rates in for 20 years, to avoid a massive increase during 2017. Is it perfect? No. Can we do better? We’re trying. City Manager, Wade Calhoun, has been tasked with trying to negotiate with the City of Youngstown and we will report what happens. The Village Green: What used to be called “The Commons”. There are empty stores, and buildings in disrepair on our green. Empty lots without enough effort to encourage developers to utilize them. When I was first elected, I wanted to hire a firm that specialized in “Downtown Development”, but I could not get the support of our administration and Council to move forward. In my opinion, there are the same problems and challenges that were there four years ago, are still unaddressed. Sidewalks: Homeowners wanting sidewalks for better walkability and safety. Sidewalks needing repair and patching. Currently our city ordinances place the responsibility for maintenance and new sidewalk installation on our homeowners. If sidewalks are not installed by a developer, residents can petition neighbors to agree to the financial commitment of installing them and paying through tax assessments over a period of time. Could the City of Canfield participate in absorbing some of this cost? It would improve our entire community. Perhaps grants or programs are available from state or federal programs, so let’s investigate this. Broadband: This issue is analogous to our water rate dilemma. As in many utility services, a homeowner must decide which provider to purchase services from, and there are typically not many choices. A provider makes a large investment in the infrastructure to build out the service, whether it is water, electric, gas or data and the consumer has few options. Many residents have expressed the frustration of no alternatives to cable and internet rates. Our city should be attentive to this issue and investigate upgrades and other options addressing the situations. Redgate Development: Redgate is one of the reasons I decided to run for office. Canfield began as a farming community. The Redgate Farm was a showcase, although tucked on a corner of the city in Canfield Township. Purchased shortly after my family moved back to our hometown after a twenty-year hiatus, I couldn’t understand why it would take so long for something to be happening at this property. Many of us are upset with how such a beautiful farm property could be allowed to fall in such disrepair. It has been an educational process for me of how slowly the wheels of government work. Now we are finally getting there. The land has been annexed into the city. I believe a “Lifestyle Community” is envisioned, health focused, with walking trails and all the associated amenities. I believe this will become a huge asset to our city and overall community. Education: One of the most important topics. Canfield has the stellar reputation it has because of its schools. We should embrace this fact, and the city should do all in its power to support our local school system. I graduated from the new high school in 1967. It is still called “The NEW school” and it is 55 years old! Don’t forget the Board of Education building, where I attended kindergarten, was built in 1922 (my grandfather’s first big plumbing job) and turns 100 next year. Let’s support a new campus for our school system. What I Believe: There are many important issues and topics to address when we discuss the future of our city. The ones I have talked about are just a few. I have touched on many of my ideas on these issues and topics. I think that good governing should be about ideas, and who has the best ideas. It strengthens a community to be diverse and inclusive, and focused on the future. Let’s get together on our best new ideas.
