CLAREMONT — Eight residents, including two incumbents, are running for four at-large seats in Tuesday’s City Council election, when all nine seats are on the ballot.
Incumbent Nick Koloski is seeking his eighth two-year term, and incumbent William Limoges is running for a second term. Also on the ballot are Wayne Hemingway, Michael Huse Jr., Joel Tremblay, Kevin Tyson, Gary Savoie and John Woods-Giosi.
One at-large incumbent, Matt Mooshian, is not seeking reelection, while another, Spencer Batchelder, is running unopposed for the Ward II seat.
In other races, Ward I incumbent Andrew O’Hearne and Mayor Dale Girard are running unopposed. Assistant Mayor Deb Matteau is on the ballot against Brian Zutter and incumbent Ward III Councilor Jonathan Stone is being challenged by Jonathan Hayden.
Here’s a look at the at-large candidates on Tuesday’s ballot.
Hemingway, 60, is retired after a 38-year career in the military and has lived in Claremont 18 years.
He said he chose to run to be part of positive change the city is undergoing and believes his background makes him well-suited to continuing that progress.
“As a councilor at-large, I will use the skills that I developed during my military career; problem solving, asset management, leadership, and budget management are just a few of my skills,” Hemingway said in an email. “I will be fiscally responsible and will work hard for every citizen in Claremont.”
He lists safety, affordable housing and infrastructure as his priorities.
Hemingway said it is important to have well-paid and well-trained employees in emergency personnel departments, as well as planning and zoning and public works.
“Safety within our communities is important,” he said. “Knowing your neighborhood is the first step in keeping your kids, family, and personal property safe.”
Working with developers, landowners and contractors is key to building more and better housing and for infrastructure, Hemingway said he will work to balance fiscal responsibility with the need to improve paving and road maintenance.
Huse, 56, is retired after a career in law enforcement and is currently the president of the Board of Trustees of Presidential Oaks, a senior living facility in Concord that offers retirement, assisted living and long-term care options.
If elected, Huse said first and foremost he will focus on the city’s finances.
“I don’t have a particular agenda other than I want the city’s finances straightened out,” Huse said in a phone interview. “We are two years behind in the audit and they are not taking it seriously enough. It has put this city in a stagnant position. We don’t know how much money we have.”
Without its financial house in order, Huse said, the city could not borrow for a bond. He said the city treasurer and finance director are doing a great job but they need more help.
Koloski, owner of the Timeout Americana Grill on Mulberry Street has served on the council for 14 years. His decision to run again, he said, had a lot to do with candidates he said are “confused” about the council’s duties and role in government.
“I have heard talk about the School Board and that has nothing to do with the council,” Koloski, 46, said. “That is why I am offering voters another choice and hopefully I will get the opportunity.”
Housing, making city government information more accessible and the community center are three areas the Koloski wants to focus on if re-elected.
“I am constantly getting phone calls from people telling me they do not know what is going on in the community,” Koloski, 46, said. “Those are not negative comments, they are just what I am hearing.”
Difficulty finding the City Council packet online or knowing when work on a street or road will be finished were two examples Koloski said he heard from residents.
Koloski wants the city to lead in addressing the issue of housing, of which there is a shortage statewide, perhaps by offering incentives to developers.
“I think this is a major issue and we need to showcase what we have available,” Koloski said.
As a member of the council when it voted to bond for construction of a the community center, which first opened in March 2013, Koloski said he takes it “personally” when he sees declining membership and an increase in the annual taxpayer subsidy to support the center.
“I think it has great potential and I am not happy with the direction it is headed,” Koloski said, adding that he has been pushing for a council tour of the facility. “I am not getting straight answers as to what is going on.”
First elected in 2021, Limoges, 63, owns an oil and gas heating business. He supports the incumbents in the election and points to accomplishments of the council the last two years.
“We have worked together really well,” Limoges said. “We privatized the transfer station and that will save us $100,000 a year. We got new lights on Washington Street, did the Arrowhead agreement (with The Wheel House bike shop) and started a plan to seal our roads which will make them last longer. We have taken care of a lot of things that have been lingering and managed to get a lot done.”
In a second term, Limoges said trimming the community center deficit by at least $100,000 — it totals more than $550,000 — should not be hard to do and he is confident it will happen.
Also on his list of priorities is more road paving and making the city’s website more user friendly for residents seeking information.
“We want to keep getting things done for Claremont,” Limoges said.
Kevin Tyson, 70, is a retired computer scientist who moved to Claremont four years ago.
He is a member of the City Council’s policy committee, a board member with CCTV and a member of the team advising the city manager on the redesign of the City’s website.
Tyson said his three main issues that he will focus on if elected are roads, access to city information and what he terms: “value proposition to taxpayers.”
“We pay high taxes yet get schools and infrastructure that disincentivizes potential residents and business growth,” Tyson said in an email. “We need to improve information access on many fronts drastically. From online access to current city ordinances to emergency notifications regarding road closures, water supply faults, etc., finding, accessing, and acting upon important city information takes too much effort.”
Tyson said transforming the city’s website is critical to making government more transparent and the information must be easily accessible.
“Everyone must be able to easily find what they’re looking for, access it by simply clicking, be able to see it on your phone, laptop, or desktop, and easily use the information in an email to your elected representative, accountant, legal representative,” Tyson said.
Savoie, 67, is a consulting engineer who has lived in Claremont his whole life. He remembers when the city was part of a strong manufacturing “triangle” with Springfield and Windsor but after those jobs left, the communities had to “pivot for their survival.”
“Now it is pivoting again,” Savoie said. “That is not wrong. It is natural growth.”
With politics being at the heart of government decisions, Savoie said one has to be in that arena to have an impact.
“Our life, or lifestyle, is governed by elected officials. It is necessary to let those representatives know how you feel. I have seen some difficulty in that. I’ve tried doing nothing and that didn’t work so I want to try something.”
As for issues or priorities, Savoie said the first step is listening to his constituents and, as a councilor at-large, he will be able to hear the needs and interest of the city’s divergent neighborhoods.
“Beyond that, you are just talking platforms and policies which are great but that doesn’t mean your particular issue is going to come to fruition,” Savoie said. “You are a representative and you first have to hear from the constituency. You represent them as best you can and make decisions predicated on what you hear as councilor at-large.”
Neither Tremblay nor Woods-Giosi, whose listed address is a property co-owned by O’Hearne, responded to messages seeking an interview.
Voting in city council elections is Tuesday, Nov. 7:
■Wards I and II will vote at the Claremont Middle School on South Street, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
■Ward III will vote at Disnard Elementary School on Hanover Street, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Patrick O’Grady can be reached at pogclmt@gmail.com.
