Four candidates for Rutland City mayor spent Wednesday night debating how best to bring more employment opportunities to the city.
The mayoral hopefuls took part in a 90-minute forum inside Tuttle Hall on the campus of College of St. Joseph. The topic was economic development, though others issues worked their way into the discussion.
Incumbent Mayor Christopher Louras, who is seeking a sixth two-year term, stressed the need for the city to continue on its current path, while his three challengers urged voters to elect someone new.
“Change at the top is our greatest risk to ongoing success,” Louras said.
About 100 people attended the debate. It was the last major forum featuring all four candidates prior to the vote on Tuesday.
David Allaire, a 19-year member of the Board of Aldermen, Michael Coppinger, executive director of the Downtown Rutland Partnership, and Kam Johnston, a candidate for three city offices besides mayor, each made final pitches.
“We’ve made great strides,” Coppinger said, “but I believe we can do better.”
Each candidate highlighted different approaches to economic development.
Louras said he would grow the workforce; Allaire said collaboration with nearby communities would be beneficial to the city; and Coppinger wants to broaden the tax base to fund infrastructure improvements that would benefit businesses.
Johnston hammered on the need to cut taxes as a way of attracting new companies and giving existing businesses a reason to stay.
If elected mayor, Johnston said he would talk with officials in Bennington, which he described as a city on the move.
“I would find out what they are doing,” he said.
Coppinger said he would conduct a market survey. “That’s going to point us in the right direction,” he said.
Coppinger would propose a 1 percent local option sales tax to fund infrastructure improvements. Other communities, including Killington and Rutland Town, have used a local sales tax as a way to expand the tax base. Upgrades to the city infrastructure, he added, would help businesses in the city and would help to attract new companies.
Allaire, making his third attempt to unseat Louras, repeated the word collaboration several times, saying he would work with business organizations and neighboring towns to foster economic growth.
“We need to step up our recruitment,” he added.
Louras said attracting more people, “millennials and post-millennials,” is key to the city’s economic future. Rutland employers are having difficulty recruiting qualified workers because of a decline in local population.
“We need to establish a way to bring young people here,” he said. “One of the ways to do that is to embrace diversity.”
Louras is a strong supporter of refugee resettlement in the city, which became a hotly debated issue for several months over the spring and summer.
The first two Syrian refugee families arrived in the city earlier this year, but the resettlement program ground to a halt after President Donald Trump suspended it shortly after taking office.
Allaire said, if elected, he would bring “trust, transparency and leadership to the city” that had been divided over the refugee resettlement debate. In the past, Allaire has been critical of the refugee resettlement program and the mayor for not opening up a discussion earlier on with the Board of Aldermen.
Louras, who has defended his handling of refugee resettlement, pointed to the media and television cameras in the back of the room, saying the eyes of Vermont, and even the country, were on this election.
The mayor said he didn’t bring the refugee resettlement issue to the Board of Aldermen earlier because, if he did, it would have led to a citywide vote. And, Louras said, a community doesn’t get to decide who can and cannot be their neighbors.
“We are on a statewide stage, we are on a national stage,” he said Wednesday night. “This community will be defined by the election results next Tuesday.”
An economic development sales pitch
Louras, Allaire and Coppinger, often on opposite sides of the issues, did find some areas of agreement.
They would all push to transform the dilapidated Center Street Alley into a community gathering spot and marketplace. Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., secured a $1 million earmark for the project more than a decade ago, but there has been little visible change to the site.
Johnston, the only candidate to speak against it, said he wouldn’t spend another dime of city money on the project.
He also said he wouldn’t fund a new city pool project and spoke out against a proposed dog park in the city, saying the planned location is too far out of the way.
“That’s sort of a yuppie park instead of a dog park,’’Johnston said.
Louras, Coppinger and Allaire found common ground on another issue — efforts in the Legislature to expand Tax Increment Financing options, also known as TIFs, to more communities, including Rutland. Coppinger said he first proposed the idea when he entered the campaign and he’s happy that others have since jumped on board.
A TIF district allows tax money collected in a designated area to fund public improvements in that location, with the goal of attracting new businesses there.
While Louras, Coppinger and Allaire at times found areas of consensus, Johnston was often out on his own.
Johnston drew the loudest responses from the crowd. He said he was the only candidate who wasn’t afraid to cut spending and taxes.
“If they don’t like me,” Johnston said, “I can live with that.”
Asked how he would sell Rutland to outsiders, Johnston, who ran unsuccessfully for mayor two years ago, replied, “I’d say go away.”
After a brief pause and near silence from the crowd, instead of the laughs he appeared to be waiting for, he added, “No, I’m kidding …Tough audience.”
Allaire, who said he’s been an “over-the-road” salesman for some 30 years, said he would highlight the city’s many assets.
“Be truthful with people,” he said, adding, “and put your best foot forward.”
Louras said that while he was no salesperson, he would point out the traits of those who live in the city.
“There’s real people, there’s no pretension,” he said of Rutlanders. “Sell who we are, sell us, sell our place.”
Coppinger said he would first want to know who he is trying to reach. If it were younger people, he said, he would stress the advantages of living downtown.
For a family, he would tell them about the many recreational opportunities and caliber of the city’s schools.
“You have to know who you are selling to,” Coppinger said.
Unlike a more freewheeling debate that took place last week, Wednesday’s affair featured much less interaction between the candidates.
One of the exceptions was when each candidate was asked to describe the attribute they most respected in their opponents.
• Louras said he admired Johnston’s candor, Coppinger’s energy, and Allaire’s commitment to the city.
• Johnston pointed to Louras’ knowledge of issues, calling him a “super wonk.” He added Coppinger displayed lots passion and Allaire always had a smile on his face.
• Coppinger said he respected the difficult steps Louras took when he first became mayor to help right the financial problems the city faced. Johnston, Coppinger said, is always willing to throw out ideas, no matter how radical, for discussion, and Allaire cares “deeply” for the city.
• Allaire said Johnston had a great sense of humor, Louras knows a great deal about budgets, and Coppinger is full of enthusiasm.
