Submitted by Lisa Loomis. Loomis is a member of the Board of Education, and the great-granddaughter of Sicilian immigrants to our city.
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I was canvasing yesterday and had a lengthy conversation with a neighbor of mine who is 80 years old. He was frustrated with the current state of Middletown. He has seen his taxes go up and up and he doesn’t feel like he has much to show for it. At that moment, I couldn’t have been more proud to be knocking doors for Ben Florsheim.
Ben’s experience working with municipal leaders across the state as a representative of Senator Murphy has allowed him to see what is working elsewhere that could be brought to Middletown, such as the SeeClickFix app being used in New Haven, Hamden, and Windsor to expedite repairs such as the filling of potholes. Anyone who dismisses Ben because of his age has not had a real conversation with him, because when you do, it is very clear that he possesses a deep understanding of the issues municipal leaders face as well as the decisions that have been made specifically in Middletown affecting our riverfront, route 9, downtown, etc.
Ben’s role in Senator Murphy’s office has also led him to value the importance of building coalitions. While Ben is smart, he knows he’s not an expert on everything, which is why he believes in finding the experts on an issue and making sure they are at the table influencing the decisions being made on that issue. He is also committed to making sure all the people affected by those decisions have a seat at the table as well. His commitment to equity and social justice is evident in his platform positions such as wanting to make sure the riverfront is developed to insure free access by all and that downtown and the North End are developed to be a thriving place to live in addition to being a nice place to visit.
If you’d like to “test” Ben on his knowledge, or just hear from his own mouth why he is running for mayor, I encourage you to call him, as he’s made his cell phone number available on his campaign lit and his website. That is another reason I support Ben. He doesn’t just say he believes government should be accessible and accountable to the people, he lives it by doing things like giving out his cell phone number and refusing to take donations from city contractors.
While some people make jokes about the fact that we have a 4-way Democratic mayoral primary this Tuesday, I think it’s great that all Middletown’s Democrats get a say in who they want on the ballot this November and that they have so many options. This is what democracy looks like. I urge Democrats to get out and vote Tuesday, and I urge them to vote for Ben on row B.
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