Editor’s note: This is the third in an ongoing series of articles detailing issues and candidates before voters in the November election. All candidates were asked the same questions and given the same opportunity to respond.
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Three candidates are vying for two seats on the Jerome Township Board of Trustees.
Trustee C.J. Lovejoy is not seeking reelection, while incumbent Joe Craft’s current term expires this year.
Newcomers Barry Adler and Wezlynn Davis are running as well.
Barry Adler
Barry Adler, 69, is the owner and operator of a farm and greenhouse on Industrial Parkway.
Adler moved to Jerome Township 37 years ago to live on a 9-acre farm, with the desire to raise his family in a rural community.
He said he appreciated living in a community where “most people knew their neighbors and helped each other to meet everyday challenges.”
As a longtime resident, Adler said he has personally witnessed the recent surge of residential growth in the area.
“The 100-acre farm next door to me was sold and 164 houses are being built,” Adler said. “I watched acres of woodlands being destroyed.”
Living near the fire station, he said he sees the strain growth has put on the township’s fire and EMS services.
“I used to hear sirens once or twice a week, now the emergency responses are once or twice a day,” Adler said.
He added that he sees trailers at schools because classrooms are full and he sits in traffic on overcrowded roads.
“These concerns motivated me to seek public office, so I can better serve our township instead of just complaining and fighting the system,” Adler said.
Ultimately, Adler said his goal is to facilitate “controlled, balanced and sustainable growth” that supports the public welfare and safety.
To do so, he said trustees will need to slow the pace of new housing and allow roadways and schools to “catch up.”
Instead of residential development, Adler said township officials should encourage commercial growth to generate revenue that will fund community support services.
He noted that the township’s comprehensive plan and zoning standards should be updated, including improving buffering and preserving natural resources.
Adler said he feels as though his background and experience will allow him to effectively manage change.
He has a Master of Science in Horticulture and began his career in research and development at Scotts.
While working there for 22 years, Adler managed three different departments, including landscape services, the recreational park with pool and the associate store with up to 42 associates and budgets exceeding $1 million.
Following employment with Scotts, he worked part-time for 12 years with a nonprofit organization, Green Energy Ohio, to promote renewable energy in Ohio.
At the same time, he started his own farm business, where he has been growing fresh produce for local markets in an off-the-grid greenhouse powered by the wind and sun for the past 17 years.
He said this experience will help him to solve problems and work with others to manage growth in the township.
“I understand that change doesn’t happen overnight and that it will likely take several years to make a difference. Now is the time when we need to take that first step. Change happens one step at a time,” Adler said.
Joe Craft
Joe Craft, 49, was elected as a township trustee in 2013.
He and his wife are the owners of four pharmacies throughout Central Ohio, including Plain City Druggist, which they opened in 1999.
Craft grew up in rural Champaign County.
His father worked for the railroad and his mother was a stay-at-home mom.
Craft worked as a stockman at Walmart throughout high school and college, and commuted to The Ohio State University all five years of his college career. He said he was able to pay for his college education with earnings from his job and graduated debt free.
He graduated from OSU’s College of Pharmacy in 1995.
Craft and his wife, Robin, who is also a pharmacist, have lived in Jerome Township since 1999, when they purchased their first home. They met in high school and have been married 26 years.
“We love living in this community,” Craft said.
He was the president of the Plain City Business Association for four years. Craft is also a member of the Plain City Lions Club, National Community Pharmacists Association and Ohio Pharmacists Association.
In 2013, he was a finalist in the Next Generation Pharmacist Entrepreneur of the Year Award. He has also been honored by The Ohio State University College of Pharmacy with the Distinguished Alumni Award in 2013 and Preceptor of the Year (for educating pharmacy students) in 2010. Plain City Druggist was named Small Business of the Year by the Union County Chamber of Commerce in 2005.
Craft said he decided to run for trustee in 2013 because he felt his background as a business owner would be an asset to the township.
He said it has been an honor to serve the residents of the community during his time in office.
“I wanted to help other local businesses thrive in the township and provide residents, my friends, neighbors and family with the services our growing community needed,” Craft said.
He said Plain City and Jerome Township have changed “immensely” during the time he has been in office. He desires to continue to guide the township “to a vibrant future.”
Craft said he feels his experience, background and relationships with partners in the county and surrounding cities makes him “the right leader for this moment.”
He said he is proud of his accomplishments thus far and commits to preserve the character of the community, increase the level and quality of services in the township and promote a more healthy economy without raising taxes.
Wezlynn Davis
Wezlynn Davis, 36, is a small business owner and consultant.
She said she is a leader, mother of two, wife and entrepreneur “who gets things done.”
“My candidacy is primed with dedication, results and trust,” she said.
As a candidate for trustee, Davis said she brings a strong track record of advocacy to the table, along with the ability to manage balancing preservation and growth.
She said she is dedicated to ensuring the voices of the residents come first, as she believes they deserve a leader who will ensure their well-being and quality of life are protected and enhanced.
Davis said growth must be managed with care and strike a balance between preserving the township’s scenic nature and opening the community to local shopping, small businesses, restaurants and amenities.
“Our township is exploding with opportunity, and with growth comes growing pains,” Davis said. “Decisions we make today will directly impact our children and… generations to come.”
She said public safety services and proper infrastructure must be attained and should move to the forefront of the trustees’ decision-making.
Davis said her children will be driving the roads of Jerome Township in less than ten years.
“Today, any parent would feel compelled to shout from the front door to their driving teen, ‘Stay off (U.S.) 42!’” she said.
Davis said local families are her top priority, as “I love my neighbors and their children.”
She said she is dedicated to acting and serving now to secure Jerome Township children’s future safety and well-being.
Davis emphasized that one trustee’s vote represents 33% of the decisions made on any issue confronting the township. She said those on the board must act as team players and work together.
She vowed to be a “boots-on-the-ground leader.”
“The job of a trustee is not in the votes,” Davis said. “The job comes way before that.”
She said she believes the role of a trustee is rooted in advocacy and requires building relationships with residents and business owners. She said they will be honored in her decision-making.
Davis said she feels the township needs a skilled negotiator who stands firm in their convictions and deals in township business with integrity.
“It does not take living in Jerome Township for 20 years or attending trustee meetings for a decade for someone like me to get involved,” she said. “My name is on the ballot because I want to ensure my family and neighbors can continue to live in a community they are proud of.”
Davis said she has a background in building business, teams and relationships as well as successful advocacy in the Ohio legislature.
“I am the skilled candidate to swing the pendulum in the direction of progress and prosperity for the township and for the people I vow to lead and serve,” she said.