3 Takeaways From Summit's Ward 1 Candidate Debate

SUMMIT, NJ — Candidates for Summit's Ward 1 seat this November faced off at the Summit Public Library on Wednesday at a debate hosted by The League of Women Voters.

Democrat Councilman Danny O'Sullivan and Republican Delia Hamlet are both running for one open seat on Summit Common Council for the General Election. Councilwoman Lisa Allen is also running for re-election unopposed.

No audience participation was permitted during the forum, but all questions posed to the candidates were generated by members of the public and screened by the League to eliminate duplicates and personal attacks.

Each candidate had two minutes for opening statements, 90 seconds for answering questions, 30 seconds for rebuttals and two minutes for closing statements.

Three Main Takeaways From The Debate:

1. Broad Street West: O'Sullivan said he is content with where the project is headed and would like to see two four-story buildings with green space and "enough" affordable housing. Hamlet, on the other hand, argued that the council has not been transparent through the process and said the city should eliminate the "area within redevelopment law," which O'Sullivan disagreed with. Hamlet also argued that the council should expand the Broad Street West Advisory Committee to include design, affordable housing and traffic efforts, not just financial experts. O'Sullivan disagreed. Hamlet said the whole project should be scrapped and re-evaluated.

2. Car Thefts/Pedestrian Safety: Both candidates acknowledged the increase of car thefts in the city. Both agreed that Summit is an overall safe city, but Hamlet reiterated that car theft remains to be a huge issue in the Union County area. O'Sullivan praised the council for providing more pedestrian safety features in the city, but expressed concern about people driving too fast. Hamlet suggested police increase ticketing.

3. Addressing Homelessness, Affordable Housing: Both candidates recognized the increase of homeless people in and around the Summit Train Station. O'Sullivan emphasized that a way to address this issue is to create more affordable housing. Hamlet said a priority would be to provide homeless people with mental health services. She also disagreed with O'Sullivan's point about affordable housing and said it's unclear how many affordable units the city is required to create.

Here's A Full Breakdown Of The Debate Below:

Why They Chose To Run

When asked what motivated the candidates to run for Common Council, Hamlet first responded that her initial interest was because of safety. Hamlet said she lives on Fernwood Road where several traffic incidents have occurred.

"That was one of the things that really ignited my interest in local politics and really lit a fire for me to serve," Hamlet said.

O'Sullivan said he was inspired by former Councilwoman Beth Little to run for council. He said she ran on the platform of creating a full-day kindergarten and that she eventually "delivered on that promise."

When he first ran for council, O'Sullivan said one of the main issues he ran on was creating outdoor recreation spaces.

"I delivered on those promises," O'Sullivan said. "We renovated our town pool, it's all brand new inside, and we delivered on new basketball courts at Memorial [Field] ... and at Tatlock [Field]."

Safety/Car Thefts

Both candidates agreed that Summit is one of the safest cities and praised the Summit Police Department.

Hamlet said she recently spoke with the Monmouth County Sheriff who told her that auto theft is one of the number one problems in the Union County community.

"It is a huge problem, and I would say that a lot of these criminals can be armed. And although Summit is one of the safest cities, I believe we can always make an attempt to [improve]," Hamlet said.

Citywide Environmental Initiatives

While O'Sullivan cited several green initiatives that the council has already achieved, such as planting trees around Summit, food composting at the Transfer Station and planting a Tiny Forest, O'Sullivan said one of his main goals for his second term would be to capture federal grant money.

He said these funds would come from the Inflation Reduction Act and the Infrastructure Bill.

"We need to convert our city fleet of vehicles to electric," O'Sullivan said. "We also need to find a way to have solar installation so that we are more resilient against power outages in the future."

Hamlet said she wished the Broad Street West proposal included a lot more green space and green initiatives, which is something she would push for. She also spoke about bringing a water source closer to the Tiny Forest for trees to be watered more often.

Solutions To Provide Food, Shelter To Homeless People

Both candidates were asked how they would help provide food and shelter to homeless people that are in and around the Summit Train Station.

Hamlet commended organizations like Grace Community Services and Bridges that help homeless people in the city and said fighting homelessness is an important issue to her.

O'Sullivan responded that finding specific solution to this problem on the city level is "very difficult."

"We don't have budget money for care of homeless [people]," O'Sullivan said. "But I think the overall theme of taking care of people that are homeless is affordable housing. There is not enough affordable housing in New Jersey; there is not enough affordable housing in the City of Summit."

O'Sullivan said that part of the reason why the council is pushing the Board Street West redevelopment is to add more affordable units to the community.

Hamlet added that a priority would be to provide homeless people with mental health services. She also disagreed with O'Sullivan's point about affordable housing and said it's unclear what the city's requirement is to provide affordable housing.

Encouraging Diversity, Inclusion

O'Sullivan noted some initiatives that the council made to promote inclusion in Summit, such as raising a Pride flag at the Community Center, lighting a Hanukkah menorah on the Village Green and celebrating Juneteenth for the first time ever in Summit.

"When you're driving into Summit for the first time and you see a Pride flag at the Community Center, you know we are a welcoming community," O'Sullivan said.

In order to create more inclusivity in the city, Hamlet suggested that the city provide the council's meeting minutes in Spanish, as well as just English.

Improving Pedestrian Safety

Hamlet cited an incident that occurred a few weeks ago where an 84-year-old pedestrian was hit by a car between Morris Ave. and Walnut Street, and O'Sullivan later added that he will make a full recovery.

Hamlet commended Mayor Nora Radest for saying the city will start cracking down on reckless driving and ticketing more.

"Unfortunately I think we really need to start ticketing because someone is going to get hurt," Hamlet said.

She mentioned that a current safety issue exists where children cross from the High School to the football field on Bedford Road.

"It is an accident waiting to happen and people are fired up down there about that issue," Hamlet said.

Despite concerns about people driving too fast and not paying attention, O'Sullivan argued that overall Summit pedestrians are safe.

"We're fully confident that we have measures in place, even more so now than ever," O'Sullivan said. "There are more sidewalks than ever, we have bump-outs to control speed, we have traffic beacons to help people cross the street, we have narrow intersections, we have speed humps on Woodland Avenue [and] Ashwood Road."

O'Sullivan, however, emphasized the point that people are driving too fast and "are out of control."

Broad Street West Redevelopment Plan

Both candidates were asked what sorts of modifications they would make to the Broad Street West redevelopment plan, which is currently on pause (Read more: Broad St. West Redevelopment Process Stalled By Summit City Council).

O'Sullivan said he would like to see two four-story buildings with a path in between and enough affordable housing and market-rate unit apartments out of it. He said green space and sustainability features are also things he is hoping for.

"It's been a really difficult process," O'Sullivan said. "It's been a democratic process though."

Hamlet argued that the process has not be transparent and noted that more than 1,700 residents have stood against the project by signing petitions.

"Topology has been horrendous, the financial advisor was just removed and now we are starting a process with only a financial committee," Hamlet said. "I think we need to be very specific ... around where we are at with the affordable housing requirement because I think a lot of residents are really confused."

Related: Financial Experts In Summit Sought For Broad St. West Committee

Hamlet said the city should eliminate the "area within redevelopment law," which O'Sullivan disagreed with. He said eliminating this law would cease the city and public's control over the project.

"I think the important thing that everybody needs to ask themselves is, 'Who owns this land?'" Hamlet said. "Is it the council or is it the 22,000 residents in Summit."

Hamlet said that the Broad Street West Advisory Committee should not just include financial experts but also design, traffic and affordable housing experts, as well.

O'Sullivan said he is "comfortable" where the council currently is with forming a financial-only advisory group.

Hamlet reiterated that the council needs to scrap the redevelopment and start over to reevaluate the city's needs.

What Do You Hope To Accomplish On Council

Hamlet said she hopes to "bring some civility back to Summit" if elected to Council.

"We are all neighbors," she said. "We should not have divisive local politics. This is insanity... We should only be focused on making Summit better."

O'Sullivan said he is proud of his accomplishments he has already achieved on Council and reiterated that his main focus is to capture federal grant money in order to convert city vehicles to electric.

You can view the complete debate on YouTube below, and read more about Hamlet and O'Sullivan via their Patch profile pieces.

Have a news tip? Email remy.samuels@patch.com.