On Tuesday November 3rd, Fairfielders will have the opportunity to vote for candidates up for election on the Board of Education and the Representative Town Meeting. These are important elections for both entities. The Board of Education is tasked with hiring a new superintendent of the school district, and the RTM will be faced with another tight budget. Your vote is meaningful. In light of this, we will be interviewing the candidates, and posting individual Q&A to help voters understand who the candidates are and what they stand for. To ensure you do not miss an article, subscribe to HeyFairfield’s daily newsletter in the box at the top of the righthand column. Today’s Q&A is for Democratic RTM candidate Paul Cramer – Ed
Paul Cramer is a 5-year resident of Fairfield. Mr. Cramer earned a BA in Political Science from the University of Connecticut, and a JD from Western New England School of Law. He is a member of the Elementary Space Utilization Committee, as well as the Eminent Domain Committee. He has been a member of the RTM since 2006 and is Vice-Chair of the Legislation & Administration Committee. Mr. Cramer resides in Fairfield with his wife and 2 children, and is an Attorney at the Law Offices of Paul M. Cramer, LLC.
What made you decide to run for re-election the RTM?
When I was appointed to the RTM I was new to town and I realized between work and tending to a new born it would help get a better picture of the issues in town, and the people involved in politics. To get involved, understand what the issues are and make a difference.
What is the most immediate issue facing the RTM today?
Obviously the budget, is probably the biggest issue for voters. It brings with it it’s share of complaints from different constituencies. We need to figure our how to provide a fiscally sound budget in these uncertain times. Creating a quality education and funding for it, without leaving out other members of the community who don’t have as much say with education, such as seniors
Education is something I have a great interest in because I think that a lot of people move to Fairfield fbecause of the great public school system. And there are some issues with respect to space, both at the elementary school level and middle schools. We need to address those, not in a piece-meal fashion but with a long-term plan.
I certainly want to see the portables eliminated. I served on the Elementary School Space Utilization Committee
What experience do you bring to the table to resolve the budget issue?
The skills I bring as a trained lawyer, I am trained in negotiation and mediation. Looking at both sides and finding a common ground.
After that issue, what other priorities need to be addressed, and how can the RTM impact that?
Ordinances for environmental concerns and green building standards. In addition, while the RTM has a say on the education budget, I think that the most important issue is town development. We want the town character to remain. We need a master plan of how we would like to see the town. The school space issue needs a long-term strategy.
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