Politics & Government

Meet the Lansdale Council Ward 3 Democratic Candidates

Liz Troy and Leon Angelichio face Republicans Cory Brown and Pete Schmitt in the election Tuesday.

With the choice of council President Matt West not to seek another term on Lansdale Borough Council, and with the usurping of incumbent Republican Dan Dunigan in the Primary, two seats have opened up in Ward Three for Election Day.
Republicans Walter "Cory" Brown III and Pete Schmitt are the two Republicans with their eyes set on the prize. Vying for the same seats are Democrats Liz Troy and Leon Angelichio.
Troy has lived in the Lansdale area since 2001. She has a degree in Spanish from Lebanon Valley College. Troy is a document quality analyst for vaccine research for a major pharmaceutical company. 
Troy previously served as a Democratic committeewoman in Towamencin Township and volunteered with the First STEP school board campaign in 2011. She is the secretary of the North Penn Democratic Committee and the Lansdale Democratic Committee.
Troy believes her skills and experience are well-suited for council, as she has heard complaints that councilmembers often vote on motions that they have not read through completely or not at all, she said.
"That is risky and should not occur—Thoroughly understanding what we vote on is a basic expectation of the public, and I intend to fulfill that expectation," Troy said.
A thorn in Troy's side: Council barely acknowledging citizens who speak at public comment and not thanking citizens for speaking up.
"It seemed rude as well as unproductive. Why use time to allow people to speak if they are not really being listened to?" she said. "I was so struck by this that I spent time in Summer 2012 attending other neighboring municipalities’ meetings to see if this attitude was unique to Lansdale, and it was."
She said the two main issues facing Lansdale now are overspending and overborrowing, and councilors not listening to residents' concerns.
Troy said she was against the spending of the brand initiative in Lansdale.
"We need to return to taking full advantage of pursuing the various grants that are available, which seems to have been forgotten—or rejected—in the last few years," Troy said. "I feel strongly that borrowing money should be a last resort, not a first step. And we need to stop spending on items like a new borough logo and a new website."
Troy said she and Angelichio will excel at listening to resident's complaints and addressing their issues.
"We have been listening to people as we meet them during the campaign, and we intend to act on what we have learned from voters once we are elected," she said. "I still have all of the notes that I scribbled down during the primary season, as well as this general election season."
That listening of concerns doesn't stop at residents, she said. Case in point: Her opinion of the borough complex renovations of borough hall and the police department. For the record, Troy supports the municipal renovation.
"Nobody had mentioned (at the public meetings) what the police themselves preferred," she said. "During a break at that meeting, I asked the two police officers in attendance what they preferred; their response was that any of the options would be much better than what they have, but they relish the idea of combining the police station and borough hall into one building because it facilitates frequent communication."
Troy said the design for the renovation is too grand for what Lansdale can afford at this time.
"For building such a large, probably-more-than-$10 million (when all is said and done) project, I believe council should have asked for RFPs, as has been suggested quite vocally," she said.
Troy also believed there is a disconnect between what is in the bank for the project and what is being told to the public about a range of costs.
"How can you promise that the funds in the bank are sufficient if you don’t yet have a good idea of even the range of the cost? Then, last month, a current Council member let the cat out of the bag that the stated 'money in the bank' is actually the $10 million that was approved through 'a capital project bond approved last year,'” she said.
If elected, Troy said she will focus on responsible spending, with borrowing as a last resort. She would also like to see meetings televised and an improvement on responsiveness to questions from taxpayers.
"Working with councilors of the other party will not be a problem. The 7-member voting bloc that is responsible for the borrowing and spending of the last four years is made up of people registered as Republicans as well as others registered as Democrats," she said.
Angelichio did not respond with comments for this story.


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