Westfield Council Candidate Profile: David Contract

WESTFIELD, NJ —Are you ready for the Nov. 2 Westfield mayor and council elections?

Westfield runs under an unusual form of government in which the governing body consists of a mayor and eight-member Town Council. Half of the council seats are up for election this November. Fewer than 5 percent of New Jersey towns run under this "special charter" form of government.

Democratic Westfield Mayor Shelley Brindle and four incumbent members of the Town Council will face a Republican slate led by former 2nd Ward Councilwoman JoAnn Neylan, who is running for mayor. READ MORE: Two Slates Will Vie For Westfield Mayor/Council Spots

Brindle will run with councilpersons Linda Habgood, Mike Dardia, David Contract, and Dawn Mackey, known as the Westfield Together team. Neylan's slate consists of Amanda Como, Denise Garrett, Shawn Mullen, and James Restivo.

Here's Contract's responses:

Age (as of Election Day)

50

Party Affiliation

Democrat

Family

I'm married to Valerie Latona (who is a freelance writer and editor), have three wonderful kids (a junior at Westfield High School, a 7th grader at Edison Intermediate School and a 3rd grader at Tamaques Elementary School), a spunky Shih Tsu named Bodhi and two cats (Hershey & Daisy)

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

No

Education

I graduated from Princeton University where I majored in Political Science and East Asian Studies. I also have my MBA from the Kellogg Business School at Northwestern University where I majored in Marketing and Organizational Behavior

Occupation

I currently lead the marketing, innovation and business development teams for a privately held consumer packaged goods company. In total, I have 24 years of brand marketing experience at both large and small companies like Kraft Foods, Merck and Jarden Corporation leading brands including Milk-Bone, Dr. Scholl's, Nilla Wafers, NUK and Baby Brezza.

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office

Ward 3 Councilman

Campaign website

https://www.westfieldtogether....

Why are you seeking elective office?

I am running again for Ward 3 Council to continue the progress that I’ve helped lead to make Westfield better. When I ran for Council four years ago, I promised to bring “Fresh Ideas and Proactive Leadership” to the Council for Ward 3. And this is exactly what I’ve done – leading to tremendous progress in many areas I promised to focus on including paving more roads, creating robust two way communications with residents, and maintaining strong fiscal discipline and low taxes. I'd like to continue this momentum because there is still more work to do to move Westfield forward. Key focus areas for the next four years include:
 Continuing to improve quality of life by investing further in our town’s infrastructure including paving more roads, improving drainage and increasing pedestrian safety
 Implementing the recommendations of the Master Plan Re-examination to promote the long-term economic vitality of our downtown
 Implementing the recommendations of the Parks Master Plan to ensure we continue to enhance and expand recreational offerings in town for all user groups
 Making our community more sustainable to help fight the effects of global warming
 And making sure that we continue to operate in a fiscally sound manner, keeping taxes low and maintaining a robust surplus

The single most pressing issue facing our (board, district, etc.) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

Hopefully not another pandemic 😊. Seriously no one can predict the challenges that Westfield will face over the next four years. But given how the town has addressed COVID, I think we are well positioned to weather any challenges that come our way. The key is to handle it in the same manner that we’ve demonstrated over the past three plus years which includes transparency, ongoing fact-based communication, creativity in identifying and enacting solutions, engaging our talented residents as part of driving the town forward and remaining fiscally conservative. By doing all of these things, we can continue to address any challenges that the town faces and continue to drive positive change in Westfield.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

I am excited to run again for Ward 3 Council and believe the voters will recognize my strong record of accomplishment in moving Westfield forward. This includes what I've done such as tripling road paving and reducing municipal tax increases by 44% during my four years in office vs the prior four years. It also includes helping to build a stronger sense of community and greater emphasis on sustainability through my roles on the Lifelong Westfield and the Green Team. It also includes how I've done it such as creating robust communications with residents by sending out email and social media updates after every Council meeting, sending out COVID updates nearly every night during the pandemic and being highly responsive to residents when they contact me which has led many Ward 3 residents to tell me that they've never had a Councilman who was as "responsive and informative" as me.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community (or district or constituency)

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

I look forward to serving for another four years to maintain the momentum that I’ve help start (along with Mayor Brindle and the entire Westfield Together team) so we can continue to move Westfield forward including:
 Investing further in our town’s infrastructure including paving more roads, addressing drainage issues and improving pedestrian safety
 Implementing the Master Plan Re-examination findings to ensure the long-term economic vitality of our downtown
 Implementing the Parks Master Plan recommendations to enhance sports and recreational offerings in town
 Increasing our community’s focus on sustainability
 And continuing strong fiscal management, keeping taxes low and maintaining the town’s strong financial position
Please visit https://www.westfieldtogether.... to learn more about my accomplishments over the past four years and my goals for the next four. And feel free to contact me at any time to discuss what’s on your mind by emailing me at david@contractforwestfield.com, calling/texting at 917-589-1197 or sending me a DM on Facebook to @councilmancontract.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I am proud of the positive impact I've had for Ward 3 and Westfield during my first term. Key accomplishments include:
1) Pave More Roads – Under my leadership as Chair of the Public Works Committee, the town has tripled the number of roads paved from 2018-2021 versus the prior four years of 2014-2017. This adds up to paving nearly half of Westfield’s roads (47 miles to be exact).
2) Create robust two-way communications with Ward 3 residents: I’ve been sending out regular updates to Ward 3 residents to keep you informed. In fact, since joining the Council, I’ve sent out over 500 emails and countless social media posts, including updates after every Council meeting and near daily updates since COVID started.
3) Strong fiscal management and low taxes: As both Vice Chair and a member of the Finance Committee, I directly contributed to the development of town budgets that have reduced municipal tax increases by 44% on average during the past four years vs the prior four years. And I’ve also ensured the town maintained its AAA bond rating, a robust surplus and significantly increased investments including holding public events, strengthening communication, purchasing needed equipment, increasing use of mobile and digital technology and upgrading our downtown so our town operates more effectively and efficiently.
A full list of my accomplishments is available here: https://www.westfieldtogether....

The best advice ever shared with me was:

The only thing in life you can control is your "Attitude" so make sure to choose a good one every day.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I have thoroughly enjoyed being a Councilman for Ward 3 and contributing to making a difference in Westfield. If you like what you've seen over the past 3+ years including all of the positive changes in town, then I'd encourage you to vote for Mayor Brindle and the rest of the Westfield Together team including myself because we're committed to continuing (if not accelerating) this same type of progress over the next four years.

Watch Westfield Patch for more election coverage. Want to be the first in your neighborhood to get breaking news alerts, or a daily morning newsletter of news in your town? You can sign up for Patch alerts and/or a free a daily digest of news here: Sign up and choose your preferences.