Town of Elon leaders compete for office
MAGGIE BROWN I ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR
Davis Montgomery (left) is up for re-election on the board and Emily Sharpe (right) Is running for the first time. Opponent Chanas Is not pictured.
Two of the three community
members will be elected to tt
Board of Alderman Nov. 7
Maggie Brown
Assistant News Editor | @maggieAbrown_
Many major decisions are made
through the Town of Eton’s Board of
Alderman, which is currendy going
through the election process to find new
representatives for the board.
Davis Montgomery, Emily Sharpe
and Jim Chanas are all running for the
two positions that are open. The board
holds two monthly meetings and over
sees the town manager.
Of the three candidates, both
Chanas and Montgomery are known
faces in the Elon community. Chanas
has run for office three times, while
Montgomery has served on the Board
of Alderman and led the Parks and
Recreation Committee.
Sharpe, on the other hand, is the
newest face in the Elon community and
has been working tirelessly to make her
name known.
“I would say I’m out there and doing
a lot,” Sharpe said. “I’m doing as much
as I can, but it’s hard with a family. It
definitely takes my time away from
other things.”
While Sharpe is new to the scene,
Montgomery is up for re-election af
ter his 12th year on the board. Mont
gomery has said that he has admired
seeing the town grow since he moved
in 1992, but assured that this will be
his last time running.
Following Montogmery’s steps,
Sharpe is now currently serving on
the Parks and Recreation Committee.
Sharpes involvement has pushed her to
be more engaged in the community by
running the quasquicentennial festival
and serving on the board.
“The aldermen made a joke about
all of them starting on the Parks and
Rec board,” Sharpe said. “But now here
I am, next election running.”
While standing before the Parks and
Recreation Committee nomination
board, Sharpe noticed that no women
served the committee.
“Women are about 56 percent of
Elon, but they aren’t represented,”
Sharpe said. “In addition to the board
being all men, there aren’t any current
Board of Alderman with young chil
dren. There’s a huge gap in what their
priorities are for things like recreation,
health, well-being and education.”
Sharpe’s passion for change and di
versity paired with her love for the com
munity of Elon is the reason why she is
currently running for a position on the
board. If elected, Sharpe hopes to start
a town gown committee composed of
university leaders, students, retirees and
government leaders to make sure every
one’s voice is heard, and that everyone
stays informed about what is going on
in the town. Sharpes drive to build up
her community is fueled by her love for
the town.
Her opponent, Chanas, also shares
this love and passion for community.
As a resident of the Town of Elon for 41
years, Chanas sees himself as a voice for
the retired tax payers and those seeking
a fresh perspective.
Chanas fears that Elon Universi
ty will buy too much land, causing the
Town of Elon to not receive enough
tax revenue. With the lack of revenue,
Chanas worries that businesses will be
unable to operate.
Though not completely opposed
to the university buying land, Chanas
wants to prioritize local businesses
starting in the Town of Elon, rather
than trying to bring the university and
town together.
“The university has purchased land
that has decreased the amount of what
I’ll call ratables — or taxable income —
from the town’s purse,” Chanas said.
Taxes are one of the biggest problems
facing Elon voters today. For many, the
issue goes back to the university’s rela
tionship with the town.
Mayor Pro-tempore Ron Klepcyk
has served on the board for 18 years.
Before that, he worked at Elon Univer-
BOARO OF ALDERMAN
ii
ITHINKTHEBOARD
MEMBERS ARE COMMITTED
TO DOING EVERYTHING
THEY CAN TO MAINTAINING
THATSMAEL-TOWN EEEL
ANDSTIELAELOWEORTHE
GROWTH OF THE TOWN.
RON KLEPCYK
MAYOR PRO-TEMPORE
sity for 33 years in human resources and
sUident affairs.
Klepcyk has seen how the university
in the town has created division in the
community. There have been instances
where Klepcyk has had members of the
Town of Elon tell him that they would
not vote for him because of his previous
affiliation with Elon University.
Like Chanas, Sharpe agrees that tax
es are a difficult issue facing the com
munity. She sees the public concern of
having the university in the town.
“It is a small number paying taxes,
we have to support these 6,000 peo
ple nine months out of the year; hut
4,000 residents have to pay for 10,000
people worth of services,” Sharpe said.
“Overall, our biggest issue and asset is
Elon University.”
Currently, Elon University is en
gaged in a Payment in Lieu of Taxes
(PILOT) agreement, paying the town
$135,000 yearly.
If elected, Sharpe hopes to encourage
the university to partner with the town
1. Aldermen have four year terms
2. Aldermen have to be residents of
the town of Elon and involved in the
community
3. Decisions made by the board in
clude how to use tax payers dollar
WHEN AND WHERE TO VOTE
When; Nov. 7
Where; Designated voting precincts
Voters can find where to vote by going
to the Alamance Board of Elections
website under the “polling places and
districts” tab.
to pay more.
“I want to find better ways for us to
work together,” Sharpe said. “The rela
tionship is really good. I would like to
see it be more strategic.”
As well as improving the relation
ship between the Town of Elon and
Elon University, each candidate wants
to improve the Town of Elon’s down
town area.
Chanas says there are not as many
local businesses in the town of Elon as
there should be, and wants to encourage
local businesses by decreasing taxes.
Montgomery has already been im
proving the downtown area through
his Downtown Committee that is part
nered with Elon University. He hopes to
improve the downtown area in the next
few years without having to raise the
taxes.
“Moving forward for me is going to
be downtown and economic develop
ment,” Montgomery said. “We are at
such a critical point where we need to
transform the dovratown. If we could
create a destination-type place where if
people could come into Elon because
there is something here that they can’t
find anywhere else, to create niche retail
and events, that would be great.”
Since his time in the Town of Elon,
Montgomery has seen the university
and town benefit from a relationship to
gether. By partnering together to better
develop the downtown, the Downtown
Committee will be no different.
“The university is a great partner for
us. Almost every milestone we’ve come
across is a benefit to the university”
Montgomery said. “They are going to
look at it strategicaUy and say Tf it’s good
for the downtown, then it’s probably go
ing to be good for our students.’”
The university’s growth and involve
ment in the town is a huge factor in the
decisions that the board makes in the
town, and how the voters choose can
didates.
‘The university is constantly grow-
ing, Klepcyk said. “These people see
the potential of the university possibly
changing the town. And I think the
board members are committed to doing
everything they can to maintaining that
small-town feel and still aUow for the
growth of the town.”
Elon students have
front seats to
Catalan’s protests
Alex Hager
Web Producer I @awhager
The Spanish region
of Catalonia has been
embroiled in political tur
moil for months in the
midst of a growing separat
ist movement. On Friday,
that turmoil came to head
when Catalan lawmakers
voted to declare indepen
dence. The Spanish govern
ment dismissed the region’s
presiden, and dissolved its
parliament.
As protests have over
whelmed the city’s streets, a
number of Elon University
students found themselves
caught in the chaos. Elon
junior Ashley Follenweider,
who began her study
abroad in Barcelona this
semester, has a firsthand
experience to the outcries.
“There are always pro
tests up and down my
street,” Follenweider said.
“The whole entire street for
as far as I could see was full
of people. They all had can
dles. I ended up walking
through it coming home
from the gym. I had no idea
what was going on.”
Pushes for Catalan
independence have gained
momentum in recent years,
but political action by the
regional and national gov
ernment has picked up in
importance this September.
“Over the summer,
when I read an article say
ing, ‘Catalonia is going to
break free from Spain,’ I
was like, that’s the most
stupid, pointless thing I’ve
ever heard,” Follenweider
said. “I was very ignorant
about it, but once I got here
... I learned the reasons they
wanted to be independent,
I saw the passion behind
it, I talked with my Spanish
friend and [she explained]
how they’ve always felt that
they’re a different nation.”
Many visitors to
Barcelona have encoun
tered protests, parades and
vocal support out in the
citys streets. Follenweider
felt it was not enough to
just watch.
Inspired by the pro-in
dependence fervor, she
bought herself an “inde-
pendentista” flag and
joined a parade of sepa
ratist protestors clad in the
region’s striking yellow and
red colors.
Any Elon student who
has studied abroad might
notice that Follenweider
is defying the Global
Education Center’s strong
suggestion to “avoid partic
ipating in demonstrations
and other political activ
ities.”
Follenweider said she
knows the risks and has
taken steps to avoid putting
herself in harm’s way even
while being a part of multi
ple demonstrations.
“I’ve never felt unsafe.”
Follenweider said. “But I
also haven’t put myself
ii
I HAVEN’T
PARTAKEN IN ANY
OF THE PROTESTS
SINCE CATALONIA
VOTED TO BE FREE
BECAUSE I JUST
DONT KNOW WHAT
THEY'RE GOINGTO
TURN INTO.
ASHLEY FOLLENWEIDER
“My perspective
has
changed because I took
advantage of this histot'
ical moment going on,
Follenweider said,
opened my eyes to diffet'
ent ways of thinking, and
different ways of politics in
other countries in general.
hostile situations. 1 haven’t
partaken in any of the pro
tests since Catalonia voted
to be free because I just
don’t know what they’re
going to turn into.”
Follenweider said police
have been brutal at pro
tests, citing videos of police
shooting protestors with
rubber bullets and “push
ing old people down stairs,”
To make sure she was
removed from protes
tors’ clashes with police,
Follendweider stayed away
from voting precincts
because of the danger.
While Follenweider has
participated in some pro
tests and avoided others,
she has made it a point to
keep abreast of the region’s
political happenings during
her stay in Barcelona.
Whether she is hav
ing conversations with
her “homestay mom” or
taking to the streets with
her friend, Follenweider
has been immersed in the
maelstrom of separatist
activity.
Despite Follenweider’s
passion, she says her level
of interest and feelings
toward the movement are
not shared by all of her
classmates.
“They don’t really care,”
Follenweider said.
While some of the other
Elon students in Barcelona
have kept tabs on devel
opments, Follenweider said
more students see the pro
tests as an “inconvenience
while on the way to go
drink on the beach.
“It depends on who you
talk to,” Follenweider said,
“but I really think the Elon
kids haven’t taken the time
to immerse themselves in
this.”
Follenweider sees this
fall as a chance to learn
something new and make
the most of her proximity
to history-shaping political
events.