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A little more than two years ago in Williamsport's mayoral race, new City Councilman-elect Eric Beiter then graciously accepted defeat to Derek Slaughter, and write-in candidate and former mayor Gabriel J. Campana.
Slaughter won, and Beiter has been seeking a way to get what he called "fresh" ideas back on the table for discussion and eventually out to taxpayers to benefit from.
Beiter, a Republican, living on Highland Terrace in the Vallamont section of the city, was congratulated by Slaughter and others on council.
He also sat down with the Sun-Gazette and spoke about that eagerness to serve, beginning with sitting in on the upcoming 2022 budget sessions.
Beiter garnered 1,962 votes, according to the unofficial count by Lycoming County Voter Services. He was grateful to be the top vote-getter among the six candidates, and spoke about some of his goals as he joins the team of seven on the city's legislative branch.
Business-minded,community oriented
As the general manager of Beiter's, a family owned and operated home furnishing business, Beiter was grateful first to those who casted their votes for him and placed their faith and trust in him as a candidate and future councilman.
He also thanked the fellow candidates, including President Randall J. Allison, Councilwoman Liz Miele, Councilman David Banks, Jeana Longo and Bill Hall.
"The citizens of the City of Williamsport came out in great numbers on Election Day to show their support for me . . . I can't thank them enough . . . It is a great feeling to have that check mark next to my name and to be trusted by the citizens to present my fresh ideas that I have to council and the administration so we can start to move our city forward, not only from COVID-19 but from a lot of other issues that have been nagging us for a long while."
Such ideas, for Beiter, and as indicated by work sessions on use of the $25.4 million in American Rescue Plan funds allocated for Williamsport, include the levee recertification project, Grafius Run flood mitigation, public safety and proper distribution of the rescue plan dollars for other projects.
"We have a heavy responsibility on our shoulders to examine the needs that the city has and to make sure that that is done correctly in a way that we can have the biggest impact, the longest-lasting impact and also making sure that the citizens benefit from those dollars," Beiter said. "That is what the intention is -- making sure that our community benefits and prospers."
Following his victory Tuesday, Beiter, who said he values the council as a team, received correspondence from Democrat Councilman Jon Mackey, who apparently sent Beiter a text message, and Beiter said he was looking forward to being part of the team and "bringing everything that I can to it."
"That is exactly what council should view themselves as -- as a team," Beiter said.
For example, Mackey, a former Philadelphia police officer, recently took umbrage in more delays to honor a request by the Bureau of Police asking for replacement of subpar radios. The expense is not light, about half of what one mill of real estate tax would generate, estimated to be about $450,000 and the city has the available resources to cover those expenses through possible use of the American Rescue Plan funds.
However, in the discussion between the administration and council's finance committee, it was a request not given a recommendation until a more comprehensive plan was put into place on spending of the rescue plan dollars, a plan that would involve the mayor, administration, council, economic development consultants and solicitor(s) input.
"As I mentioned to you before, I completely agree with the police department and their needs for radios that is something that has to be looked at immediately and it should not be delayed," Beiter said. "But, we need to look at these departments and every individual aspect that we are going to be spending money on and make sure we do a correct audit. Whether that is on tangible equipment, software, buildings and so on. That is where you get the business perspective.
Are we squeezing everything we can out of our current resources before we invest in new and are we getting the best deal that we possibly can if we are going to invest in new?" he asked.
Beiter said such discussion and debate was healthy and should be part of the democratic process.
"You are going to have disagreements once in a while, but as long as you do not get emotional about it and realize that ideas are going to differ and the way to get the end result may differ, so having the ability to walk away from a disagreement, knowing that it is not personal, is going to be paramount to the success that is the team that is council but ultimately the city," Beiter said.
"Sometimes disagreements are healthy ways to foster growth," he said.
As a councilman-elect, Beiter will be given the opportunity to sit in on the budget work sessions and deliberation.
"I am very interested to be a student of the budget session and to fully realize how that process works and to fully understand what we can do," he said.
Moving forward, Beiter said he would like to offer his ideas regarding budget cuts, regionalization and ways to encourage economic growth without driving up property taxes.
The inter-governmental cooperative agreements that exist in Old Lycoming Township with the fire department is an example of successful partnerships, he noted, but there are 30 fire volunteer fire departments. Police also have mutual agreements that add safety elements and are cost-saving measures, he said.
As a father with children, Beiter said city recreation and park improvements will pay dividends by retaining families and attracting new ones. He cited the example of the Cochran Playground near his home as a place that attracts up to 30 children on any given day. Other efforts the administration is taking to improve Memorial Park, Youngs Woods Park, Shaw Place Park, and Newberry Park are admirable, he said.
Beiter said he is glad the election is over and is ready to get down to business starting next year.
"It is a humbling experience to go through the election," he said. "The citizens spoke at the polls. They stood up and said, 'let's hear these fresh ideas.'"