Election 2022: Deidre DerAsadourian, Shrewsbury Borough Council

SHREWSBURY, NJ — Republican Deidre DerAsadourian is one of four candidates seeking two full-term seats on the Shrewsbury Borough Council in the Nov. 8 general election.

In these profiles, candidates provide voters with background about themselves and their positions on the issues. Patch will publish individual profiles leading to the election.

DerAsadourian is an incumbent, seeking re-election and cites keeping the municipal tax rate flat for four years as an accomplishment of the Borough Council. She is also a proponent of improving pedestrian safety in the borough. "We have been able to designate multiple streets as Safe Routes to School corridors which enabled us to decrease speed limits on those roadways," she says.

Learn more about candidate Deidre DerAsadourian :

Name: Deidre DerAsadourian

Residence: Shrewsbury

Position sought: Re-election to the Borough Council

Party affiliation: Republican

Family: Married with two children.

Education: MBA, Fordham University

Occupation: Competitive employment specialist

Issues facing the borough:

• One of the biggest issues facing residents in New Jersey is property taxes. Keeping the Shrewsbury municipal tax rates flat for the previous four years has been one of the greatest achievements of our current council and something every member of our council is very proud of accomplishing.

We will continue our work and dedication toward keeping our property taxes as low as we possibly can for residents. When we look at the record high inflation numbers, the increase in gas prices over the past year and the double digit increases in healthcare premiums for municipal workers, we know from our years of experience serving the residents of Shrewsbury that we will have to continue to work hard on maintaining a fiscally responsible budget.

• Another area of concern is pedestrian and cyclist safety.

We have been able to secure several grants to rework roadways and sidewalks to create a safer environment for those walking and biking in town.

Additionally, we have been able to designate multiple streets as Safe Routes to School corridors which enabled us to decrease speed limits on those roadways.

We have invested in many different traffic calming measures, including high visibility crosswalks, digital speed boxes and traffic calming signage throughout the town to name a few.

We have implemented four-way stops to reduce the speed of cars driving through town. We will continue our strategic approach to work on the safety of the roadways in our town through our street by street analysis. We will continue to make safety improvements on our roads and work with county and state officials to address roads within their jurisdiction. Recently, the borough was awarded a Safe Routes School Silver award. While we are very proud of this achievement, we are setting our sites on a gold level award in 2023.

• A third area of concern in our borough is recruiting members to our volunteer Fire Department and First Aid Squad.

We have two of the most impressive and qualified volunteer squads in the area. Our volunteers are highly trained and incredibly dedicated. Like many other municipalities, we need to recruit additional volunteers. We are working with our volunteer Fire Department and First Aid Squad to assist with their recruitment efforts. Additionally, we have recently restructured our LOSAP (Length of Service Awards Program) program to aid in the recruitment and retention of volunteers in our community.

Goals for 2023:

Our goal on the council is to keep Shrewsbury a fun and safe community where people choose to live and raise their families. We need to keep a very Shrewsbury-Centric focus and ensure that we are serving ALL of the residents of Shrewsbury by addressing issues within our town.

The main areas of focus need to be our budget, our roadways and our buildings and grounds as well as the safety and security of every resident.

An area where we can continue to work on keeping taxes flat is through shared services. We will continue to explore services we can share or consolidate with surrounding communities while keeping our services at a high level.

Experience:

During my years serving the residents of Shrewsbury as a volunteer soccer coach, Planning Board member, a member of the Environmental Commission and a Borough Council Member, I have had the opportunity to learn so much.

Through this experience, I am able to locate appropriate grants to fund projects, understand how to structure our municipal budget, work with our police department and first responders as well as bring members of the community together to ensure that all of the projects we undertake are a benefit to everyone in the neighborhood.

Candidates for Shrewsbury Borough Council:

Mayor: Full Term – Vote for One

• Erik Anderson (Republican)
• No Nomination Made (Democrat)

Borough Council: Full Term – Vote for Two

• Jason N. Sena (Republican)
• Deidre DerAsadourian (Republican)
• Carol P. Loeffler (Democrat)
• Donald J. Sena (Democrat)

Borough Council: One Year Unexpired Term – Vote for One

• Jaclyn R. Woehnker (Republican)
• Judith A. Kramer (Democrat)