GOSHEN —

The Democratic primary for the two at-large Goshen City Council seats will showcase four-year council member Jeremy Stutsman and entrepreneur Adam Scharf. As there are only two Democratic candidates, both will pass through to November’s general election.

Spending

Despite a call for spending cuts and freezes, Stutsman said the issue is not so cut and dried. He said city expenditures have to be decided on a case-by-case basis.

"It depends on what’s important for Goshen," Stutsman said. "It’s important to stay ahead of the curve ... and try to look at things that are beneficial to the overall community."

He referenced the proposed industrial land on the north side of town owned by Forest River CEO Pete Liegl and efforts to design utilities to extend to the site as one way the city is trying to stay ahead of the curve.

Scharf said that before any cuts or changes are made, it is important to look at what the majority of city spending currently affects.

"Such a huge percentage of the city’s budget goes toward basic services and infrastructure — road maintenance, trash pick-up, police fire — things that really we can look for efficiencies in, but aren’t realistic options for drastic cuts," Scharf said. "That’s a really important thing to keep in mind."

That said, Scharf explained that the real improvements in spending are going to be made in things like energy saving measures in public buildings, trimming funds from various small projects and the like.

"There are a lot of places that careful and studious attention can pay off," Scharf said.

Grant funding

Along with spending, the use of grants has also raised the ire of some residents. In Stutsman’s eyes, the issue is not one of yes or no, but one of appropriate use.

"I support grants if we can get them, provided the job we’re getting them for needs to be done," Stutsman said.

He said for those projects that truly need to be done, seeking federal or state grant funding is "absolutely appropriate," pointing out the Shanklin-Millrace Park Tunnel on Plymouth Avenue as one essential project that would not have occurred so soon without grant funding.

"I would support that again if I had the opportunity," Stutsman said.

According to Scharf, any situation where a low amount of spending yields a multifold return is a good investment.

"I challenge anyone to find a better investment than that," Scharf said.

He added that despite that point of view, grant funding does not come out of thin air, it is still generated through taxation. Scharf also noted that cost matching — situations in which the city must provide a specific percentage of costs with the remainder provided through a grant — are a little trickier, and must be decided based on whether you can afford or would have spent that matching amount in the first place.

"It’s also an important point to recognize that there are state and federal standards we might not agree with, but we also have to look out for Goshen," Scharf said. "We can’t afford to put Goshen at the end of the line behind thousands of other communities."

Economic development

With regard to economic development efforts pursued by the city, Stutsman said the council was on the right track

"I really want to start watching the money we give to outside groups and make sure we’re getting value," Stutsman said.

He said he is afraid that if it continues too much longer, city departments may start losing some of the "really good people."

Scharf said he believes there is more that can be done, although he acknowledged a significant amount of money is already being invested in efforts such as programs, grants and the like. But he had other ideas.

"I would like to see some barriers to small business start-ups loosened or removed to encourage more grassroots diversification," Scharf said.

He said the council needs to work to create an environment that is friendly to small businesses such as technology start-ups and web design firms, allowing, for example, businesses to be located in homes.

"I would like to see us get away from use-based zoning in a general sense and deal with interactions between neighbors and neighboring properties," Scharf said.

In Scharf’s opinion, there are zoning and building standards on the books that create artificial expenses and stress for reasons not directly relevant to protecting the needs of neighbors.