Democrat Eddie Sundquist addresses his supporters on Election Night 2019 after learning he will be the next mayor of Jamestown.

JAMESTOWN – Jamestown’s next mayor will be Democrat and local attorney Eddie Sundquist. Sundquist was announced the winner of the 2019 mayoral election Tuesday night, defeating both Republican and Chautauqua County legislator David Wilfong and Libertarian and current Jamestown City Councilman Andy Liuzzo.

Sundquist took 49.8% of the unofficial vote total, bringing in 2519 votes, while Wilfong came in second with 1959 votes, which was 38.7% of the vote. Meanwhile, Liuzzo came in a distant third with 11.4% of the vote (574 votes). Approximately 204 absentee ballots remain to be counted.

Following the victory announcement at Democratic Headquarters inside the Jamestown Brewing Company, Sundquist thanked those who helped to make him mayor elect.

“We fought long and hard, starting way back in the winter months. I can tell you that I am probably the proudest that I have ever been to see all of you here gathered to support what we are going to do for the future of the city of Jamestown,” Sundquist said. “I just want to say from the bottom of my heart ‘thank you’ to each and every single one of you who made this happen. Family, friends, volunteers, countless hours on the phone, knocking on doors, on social media – we could not have brought the city of Jamestown into the future without each and everyone of you. So for that, I thank you.”

Sundquist also said that in the coming weeks he will be working to prepare for the transition into the mayors office when he replaces current Mayor Sam Teresi, who decided not to run for a sixth consecutive term, on January 1, 2020.

“We have a long road ahead but we are going to do this and hopefully, we get through these four years and then work four more,” Sundquist said.

It was Sundquist’s second run for office in as many years. In 2018 he made an unsuccessful bid for Congress, failing to get the Democratic Party’s endorsement in that year’s primary.

CONTROL OF CITY COUNCIL TO BE DECIDED BY ABSENTEE BALLOT COUNT

While Sundquist was able to win the Mayor’s office, it’s not yet known if he will be working with a Democratic or Republican-controlled Jamestown City Council. That’s because the council is split with four Republicans winning and four Democrats also winning, with the ninth and deciding race still too close to call.

Brent Sheldon (left) and Tim smeal

In Ward 1, Republican incumbent Brent Sheldon (355 votes) leads Democratic Challenger Tim Smeal (348 votes) by just 7 votes. The outcome of that race won’t be known until absentee ballots are counted and according to the Board of Elections, 70 absentee ballots are left to be counted on Monday, Nov. 18.

City Democratic Chairman Jim Walton said he and the rest of the party are anxiously awaiting the results for the Ward 1 race.

“It looks like the fight for control of the council will come down to absentee ballots because we’re within several votes there. That Ward has always lived and died by the absentees that have come out of the Aldren Avenue area,” Walton said. “We’ll look forward to counting those and hopefully Tim Smeal did his work there and we’ll come out victorious. That will be the difference in who controls the city council.”

OLSON, RUSSELL WIN FIRST TERM ON CITY COUNCIL

Meanwhile, one of the ward races featured a challenger defeating an incumbent. In Ward 5, Republican Grant Olson (495 votes) was able to defeat Democratic incumbent Maria Jones (397 votes). Jones was first elected to the city council in 2011 and since then she’s served as chair of the council’s Public Safety Committee and has also served on the Jamestown Board of Public Utilities.

In the only other contested ward race, Democrat and current City Council president Marie Carrubba (630 votes) defeated Republican challenger Brittnay Spry (576 votes).

In the race for the council’s three at large seats, it was newcomer Republican Jeffrey Russell (2483 votes) joining fellow Republican and incumbent Kim Ecklund (2721 votes), along with Democratic incumbent Tamu Graham-Reinhardt (2173 votes) winning.

Those failing to get enough votes to be elected to the at large seats were Democrats Greg Rabb (2026 votes) and Taylor Scott (1985 votes) along with libertarian Raven Mason Thompson (293 votes).  Republican Greg Lindquist, who withdrew from the race earlier this year, also appeared on the ballot and was able to garner 1966 votes.

Winners of the 2019 contested Jamestown City Council races on election night (from left to right): Marie Carrubba (D-Ward 4), Grant Olson (R-Ward 5), Kim Ecklund (R-At Large), Jeffrey Russell (R-At Large), and Tamu Graham Reinhardt (D-At Large)

Candidates running unopposed this year were Tom Nelson (D) in Ward 6, Vickye James (D) in Ward 3, and Tony Dolce (R) in Ward 2 – although another person, Democrat Thomas Vitale, also appeared on the ballot for that office. However, Vitale had announced his withdrawal from the race earlier in the year.

JAMESTOWN – The deadline has arrived and election petitions have been submitted to the Chautauqua County Board of Elections with a total of 17 individuals running for Jamestown City Council in addition to the three who’ve announced their intention to run for mayor.

LIUZZO, SUNDQUIST, WILFONG RUNNING FOR MAYOR

According to information posted at the Chautauqua County Board of Elections website, Republican candidates Andrew Liuzzo and David Wilfong both submitted enough signatures to qualify as a candidate for mayor. As a result, a Republican Primary will take place on June 25.

Liuzzo is currently in his second year on the City Council while Wilfong is in his sixth year on the Chautauqua County Legislature.

Besides getting enough signatures for the Republican Party, Wilfong is also the only candidate to receive endorsement of the conservative party, meaning that even if he were to lose the June Primary election, he could still run as a third-party candidate in November.

Meanwhile local attorney Eddie Sundquist is the only candidate to submit petitions for the Democratic party, along with both the Independence and the Working Families parties.

With current Jamestown Mayor Sam Teresi saying in February he would not seek a sixth consecutive term, the 2019 race for mayor will mark the first time the seat has been open in seven decades.

17 CANDIDATES SUBMIT PETITIONS FOR CITY COUNCIL SEATS

Over on the City Council, there will be six different candidates vying for the three at-large seats. In addition, four of the six ward seats will also be contested – including one that will see a Republican Party primary take place. 

In the city’s Second Ward, long-time incumbent and Republican Tony Dolce is being challenged by newcomer Raven Thompson (AKA Raven Mason) for the Republican nomination. As a result the two will square off in the June 25 primary. The winner of that primary will advance to take on Democratic Challenger Thomas Vitale. However, because Dolce has also been endorsed by the Conservative and Independence parties, he would still have a spot on the ballot even if he were to lose the Republican primary.

Meanwhile, the council’s At Large candidates include incumbents Kimberly Ecklund and Tamu Graham-Reinhardt. Ekclund is endorsed by the Republican, Conservative and Independence parties while Graham-Reinhardt received backing from the Democratic, Independence, and Working Families parties. The other four at-large candidates are former councilman and council president Gregory Rabb (Democratic, Independence, and Working Families), Taylor Scott (Democrat and Working Families), Gregory Lindquist (Republican and Conservative) and Jeffrey Russell (Republican Conservative).

In the Ward 1 Race, incumbent Republican Brent Sheldon has also received the endorsement of Conservative and Independence parties. He’ll face challenger Timothy Smeal, who is running for both the Democratic and Working Families parties.

In Ward 4, Democratic incumbent and current council president Marie Carrubba also received the backing of the Independence and Working Families parties. She’ll face newcomer Brittnay Spry, who is running for the Republicans and Conservative parties.

And in Ward 5, Incumbent and Democrat Maria Jones will face Republican challenger Grant Olson.

The only two seats that are not contested are in Wards 3 and Wards 6, where Democratic incumbents Vickye James and Thomas Nelson are respectively running unopposed for reelection.

The number of candidates for the city council is the most

David Wilfong and Andrew Liuzzo

JAMESTOWN – The Republican candidates for mayor in the 2019 Election will appear at two separate events in the coming days to help raise awareness of and gain support for their campaign.

On Saturday morning, March 23, Candidate for mayor Andrew Liuzzo will host a campaign fundraiser and meet-and-greet breakfast from 9 a.m. to noon at Harvest Time Café in downtown Jamestown (108 W. Third Street in the Hotel Jamestown building).

Liuzzo is calling the event the “Better Days are Coming” campaign fundraiser, which will give Liuzzo the opportunity to meet city residents and talk about issues, as well as accept contributions toward his mayoral run. Breakfast will be provided.

Liuzzo’s campaign says that donations will be appreciated but are not necessary for those wishing to attend.

Liuzzo, who is currently serving on the Jamestown City Council (at Large), is one of two candidates seeking the Republican Party nomination for mayor in the 2019 General Election. The other Republican candidate is current Chautauqua County Legislator David Wilfong, who’s received the endorsement of the Jamestown Republican Committee. If both Liuzzo and Wilfong are able to collect enough signatures from registered Republicans in the city then they will square off in a city-wide primary on June 25.

• RELATED: WRFA Interview with mayoral candidate Andrew Liuzzo
• RELATED: WRFA Interview with mayoral candidate David Wilfong

Meanwhile, a second political event organized by the City Republican Committee is scheduled for Tuesday, March 26 from 6 to 8 p.m. at Sauce Restaurant in downtown Jamestown (306 N. Main Street).

The rally and meet-and-greet will feature Wilfong along with other endorsed Republican candidates for city council and county legislature, as well as an appearance by County Executive George Borrello, who is making a push for the recently vacated 57th State Senate District seat.

Organizers say the event is open to Jamestown Republicans, Conservatives and Libertarians in good standing, who will have an opportunity to interact and ask candidates questions. Food will be provided as well as a cash bar. Donations will be accepted at the door.

Endorsed candidates are:

• Mayor and current County Legislator David Wilfong
• Ward 1 Councilman Brent Sheldon
• Ward 2 Councilman Anthony Dolce
• Ward 4 Council candidate Brittnay Spry
• Ward 5 Council Candidate Grant Olson
• At large Councilwoman Kimberly Ecklund
• At Large Council Candidates Gregory Lindquist
• At Large Council Candidates Jeffrey Russell
• District 10 Legislator Paul “PJ” Wendell, Jr.
• District 12 County Legislator Elisabeth Rankin
• State Senate Candidate and Current County Executive George Borrello

• MOBILE APP USERS: LISTEN VIA SOUNDCLOUD

Originally airing Thursday, March 14, 2019

Jamestown Resident and Republican candidate for Jamestown City Council Greg Lindquist shares details on why he’s throwing his hat into the ring for Jamestown City Council and how he would help the city if elected.

Greg Lindquist

Under state law, any candidate seeking office and who wants to have their name appear on the November ballot must collect signatures equaling at least 5 percent of the number of active enrolled voters in the political party they want to run under.

Because the primary day for local elections was recently pushed up from September to June, candidates seeking local office are now on an earlier schedule and will begin circulating petitions starting Feb. 26, rather than later in the year during the Spring.

This year New York officially recognizes eight political parties: the Conservative, Democratic, Green, Independence, Libertarian, Republican, SAM, and Working Families parties. Candidates also have the rarely used option of creating their own political party to run under but must first wait until the petition period has ended for the recognized parties before embarking on the challenging task of creating their own political party designation.

Locally it appears all candidates who’ve already announced their intention to run for office will run as either a Republican or Democrat, with the option of seeking a cross-endorsement from an eligible third-party.

Candidates for Mayor

Eddie Sundquist

In Jamestown, current mayor Sam Teresi (D) announced at the start of February he would not be seeking a sixth term in office.

Currently, there are three known mayoral candidates running for the open seat who will be circulating petitions to get their name on the ballot for either the Republican or Democratic parties.

For the Democrats, Attorney Eddie Sundquist is the Jamestown Democratic Committee’s endorsed candidate for mayor and it appears he is the only person seeking the party’s nomination.

David Wilfong and Andrew Liuzzo

On the Republican side, two individuals will be circulating petitions. They are county legislator David Wilfong, who is also the Jamestown Republican Committee’s endorsed candidate, along with city councilman at large Andrew Liuzzo, who is running despite not getting the committee’s backing.

If both Liuzzo and Wilfong collect the required number of signatures from registered Republicans living within the city, then a Republican party primary for mayor will take place in June. As of Feb. 1, 2019, there were a reported 3782 registered Republicans in the city. That means the minimum number of signatures needed to qualify as a mayoral candidate for that party is 190.

Candidates for City Council

In addition to the mayoral candidates, there will also be city residents running as candidates for the Jamestown City Council who will begin circulating petitions on Tuesday.

The GOP committee endorsed candidates include incumbents Brent Sheldon (Ward 1), Tony Dolce (Ward 2) and Kim Eckund (At Large). Other Republican committee-endorsed candidates for city council include Brittnay Spry, (Ward 4), Grant Olson (Ward 5), Greg Lindquist (at large) and Jeffrey Russell (at Large).

In addition to the GOP committee endorsed candidates, WRFA has learned that city resident Raven Mason is also running for Ward 2 council seat and if she is able to collect enough signatures she will force a primary with Dolce. There are 575 registered Republicans in Ward 2, meaning both Dolce and Mason will have to collect 29 signatures apiece in order to qualify as a candidate for that party and force a June primary.

Meanwhile on the Democratic Side, there is a full slate of endorsed candidates for city council. They include incumbents Marie Carrubba (Ward 4 and current council president), Vickye James (Ward 3), Maria Jones (Ward 5), Tom Nelson (Ward 6), and Tamu Graham-Reinhardt (At-Large).

In addition, the committee is endorsing past council member and city council president Greg Rabb,who is again running as an at-large candidate after being defeated in 2017. The Democrats other at large candidate will be newcomer Taylor Scott. Rounding out the slate of candidates for city council will be newcomer Tim Smeal (Ward 1) along with Tom Vitale (Ward 2).

All candidates have until April 4 to collect the required signatures and return the petitions to the county board of elections, which will certify the petitions. That includes making sure voters did not sign a petition for more candidates than there are openings for an office. For example, if there is one council seat open, then the eligible party members signing a petition may only sign one petition for a candidate for that office. If there are three seats open (as is the case with the city council at large seats), the eligible party members may sign petitions for up to three candidates.

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JAMESTOWN – The Jamestown City Council has approved a resolution to move forward with selling the Board of Public Utilities (BPU) Wastewater Treatment Plant to the Jamestown Local Development Corporation (JLDC).

The Jamestown City Council during the Dec. 18, 2017 voting session.

During Monday Night’s City Council voting session, nine different people spoke to the council and asked members to vote against or table the waste water treatment resolution.

Despite the concerns, the council eventually voted unanimously to approve the resolution. However, prior to the vote city councilman and finance committee chair Tony Dolce assured those in attendance that the vote was not to sell the plant, but only to keep the process moving forward.

“There have been some excellent questions/concerns brought forward by many of the members tonight,” Dolce said. “I just want to assure the public and the people that are here that this marks the beginning, or the initiation, of the possible process…. This has to go through JLDC, it has to go through the BPU board, it has to come back through a series of resolutions to the city. Many of the questions that came up tonight are questions that will have the be answered before an actual sale can take place.”

Some in attendance said that matter appeared to be an 11^th hour effort by the city to address its financial challenges, which Dolce said is simply not the case.

“tonight’s vote is not an eleventh hour thing. It has to take weeks and possibly months to vet this out, look at the possibility, and if there are legal objections, or either of the boards or this council feel that that this is not an appropriate way to go, there will be plenty of time to put a halt on it, to stop it, and go in a different direction,” Dolce said.

Earlier this Month Jamestown Mayor Sam Teresi announced the city was looking into selling the plant to the JLDC as a way to inject a large amount of capital into the city coffers so it could be used to pay for infrastructure and equipment needs that will run into the millions of dollars, while also putting some of the money into a tax stabilization fund.  The plant is valued at $18 to $20 million. The BPU would then pay the JLDC to use the plant, with the money coming from wastewater fees collected by the BPU and used to pay off the bonds the JLDC would have to take out to make the purchase. The plant itself would be used as collateral.

• VIEW CAPITAL INFRASTRUCTURE AND EQUIPMENT PROGRAM (PRESENTED DEC. 4)

Teresi said that because the city has reached its constitutional tax limit, it can’t borrow money through traditional bonding methods. He said that the proposal gives the city an alternative method of raising a large sum of money and instead of using taxes to pay it back the city would use rate payments from wastewater customers, located both inside and outside of the city.

• LISTEN TO WRFA’S INTERVIEW WITH MAYOR REGARDING WASTEWATER PLANT PROPOSAL

PUBLIC CRITICAL OF PLAN, REQUESTS MORE DETAILS

Some of those who voiced concerns about the proposed sale of the Wastewater Treatment Plant during Monday’s city council meeting included (clockwise from upper left): Todd Tranum, Greg Lindquist, Dan Heitzenrater, and Edward Premo.

Members of the public, including the Manufacturers Association of the Southern Tier (MAST), question the plan and feel that it will hurt business and economic development while also risking the stability of the BPU and JLDC.

Attorney Edward Premo – from the Rochester area law firm Harter Secrest & Emery – is representing MAST on the matter and spoke to the council about the issues the organization has with the proposed sale.

“Members of MAST are very concerned about what the city council is considering doing. They are very concerned about this being a step in the dismantling of the BPU,” Premo said. “We believe that the sale of the wastewater treatment plant and facilities not only violates the laws in the city of Jamestown, but also violates the laws concerning the JLDC.”

Premo then raised five legal concerns MAST has with the proposal. They are:

1. The Wastewater System cannot be sold without a majority vote of all residents, per the city charter;
2. The Wastewater System cannot be sold while it is still in use;
3. The BPU cannot pass through JLDC debt service to system users;
4. Users will be charged double for the same system;
5. As a lending agency, the JLDC doesn’t have the power to acquire nor bond for the Wastewater System.

• READ FULL LETTER TO CITY OUTLINING MAST CONCERNS/ISSUES

Also addressing the council and raising concerns were Todd Tranum, president of MAST and the Chautauqua County Chamber of Commerce, former BPU chair John Zabrodsky, former BPU member and Weber Knapp financial officer Wayne Rishell, who said that so far there has been no transparency regarding what impact the sale would have on waste water rates, as well as specific details on how the money from the sale would be spent.

Others who voiced concerns included labor representative David Wilkinson, town of Ellicott councilman-elect Dan Heitzenrater, and residents Doug Champ, Greg Linquist,  Raven Thompson.

The matter will continue to be discussed, perhaps as early as Tuesday afternoon when the JLDC board meets at 4:30 p.m.

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JAMESTOWN – Jamestown city officials were bombarded with concerns and questions regarding a proposal to sell the Jamestown Board of Public Utilities wastewater treatment plant to the Jamestown Local Development Corporation (JLDC) in an effort to leverage money for infrastructure, vehicle and other capitol purchases, and to help address the city’s growing financial challenges.

Last week Jamestown Mayor Sam Teresi presented the proposal to sell the wastewater treatment plant, located in the Town of Poland, to the JLDC for between $18 and $20 million. The JLDC would take out bonds to purchase the plant outright from the city of Jamestown, and the city would then then pay to lease the plant for use until the bonding was fully paid off. At that time, the property would revert back to city ownership. The payments for the lease-to-own agreement would come from wastewater rates collected from throughout the wastewater service area, which includes areas outside of the city limits.

The mayor said such a move would be a monetization of assets, allowing the city to not only pay for infrastructure and capital improvements for the BPU and city operations, but also help establish a tax stabilization fund for the city.  In return, the mayor has said the move would benefit local business and even help spur job creation.

Chamber of Commerce and Manufacturers Association president Todd Tranum.

On Monday night, the Jamestown City Council held a work session in the mayor’s conference room, which was filled with individuals who had questions about the proposal, as well as numerous concerns.

Among those who spoke was Chautauqua County Chamber of Commerce and Manufacturers Association of the Southern Tier president Todd Tranum, who called the plan reckless.

“A point of concern is that no preliminary numbers or perfoma have been put together related to this transfer. It puzzles us as to how a decision can be made next Monday without at least a preliminary understanding of how this could impact rate payers, of how this is going to cash flow, and how this is going to be funded. From our perspective this sale to the JLDC is a reckless scheme,” Tranum said.

Tranum also said that it’s his understanding that the sale of the plant, even if from one city agency to another, would require a public referendum before it could be completed, saying that the council’s unilateral action to sell the plant would be a violation of the city charter.

“Under Sections 51 and 52 of the City Charter, neither the City Council nor BPU can sell or lease the waste water treatment plant to any person or corporation unless authorized by a special election vote. Our counsel has advised us that even a sale to a local development corporation still requires voter authorization under the Charter,” Tranum said.

A portion of Section 51 of the city charter states:

Neither the City Council of said City nor the Board of Public Utilities shall have the power or authority to sell or lease any public utility system to any person or persons, corporation or corporations except when authorized by a vote of the resident taxpayers of the City at a special election.

Joining Tranum in voicing concerns was former Jamestown BPU member and chairman John Zabrodsky.

“This sale will do nothing but subject this city and our greater community to legal, financial, and political difficulties, Zabrodsky said. “This type of decision needs careful consideration, a formal plan, and significant due diligence. One could say making such a decision without planning and due diligence is reckless. It seems as though the city administration is taking the approach in order to avoid transparency and make it easier to take profits of a successful enterprise fund to try and fill the bottomless holes of its budget.”

John Zabrodsky addresses the Jamestown City Council during its Dec. 11 work session.

Also addressing the council was city resident, development consultant, and former Jamestown Renaissance Corporation Executive Director Greg Lindquist.

“From my perspective and as a property tax payer in the city of Jamestown, I as much as anyone else would like to have property taxes under control. I would love to pay less in property taxes, but I do not want to leverage our future in order to accomplish that and that, I feel, is what would occur with the sale of the wastewater treatment facility to JLDC,” Lindquist said.

Lindquist was also concerned with what would happen to the lending funds at the JLDC’s disposal, since they may have to be used to leverage the bonding needed for the agency to purchase the wastewater plant.

City Officials Don’t Respond to Concerns, Questions, Due to Litigation

Tranum also stated Monday night that the chamber and MAST have hired the law firm Harter Secrest & Emery LLP as legal council and will be in touch with the city corporation council later this week. As a result, city attorney Marylin Fiore-Lehman instructed the council members and mayor that they shouldn’t address any questions or publicly comment on the matter because of the possibility of litigation.

“Based on Mr. Tranum’s comments that he has retained council, and that that council will be contacting the city, I would recommend that both the council members and the mayor refrain from making comments at this time until we have the opportunity to discuss the matter further with Mr. Tranum’s council,” Fiore-Lehman said.

Afterward, Tranum voiced his frustration with the city’s unwillingness to address the various concerns and questions that had been brought forward…

“responsible government is transparent and what we saw today at this meeting is one more example of things being done behind the scenes, things being manipulated in such a way that certainly doesn’t benefit the taxpayers or in this case the ratepayers when it comes to a utility and its really unfortunate that it’s come to this,” Tranum said.

Earlier this month Teresi had said that a draft resolution on moving the proposal forward would come before the council, though one wasn’t presented or discussed during last night’s work session.

WRFA will talk with Mayor Teresi about the proposal during this week’s Community Matters program, which will air at 5pm Thursday on WRFA.

• VIEW COMPLETE JULY VOTING AGENDA

Projects seeking funding from the state include:

• $1.7 million for Green Innovation Grant to fund a large portion of the Tracy Plaza renovation project – Total cost: $4.1 million
• $200,000 for the Jamestown Riverwalk Illumination Project – total cost: $400,000.
• $500,000 Main Street grant for preservation work to the Reg Lenna Center for the Arts complex – total cost: $4 million.
• Up to $738,000 for the St. Luke’s Episcopal Church exterior renovation project – total cost: $985,000.

Several of the projects are being coordinated by the Jamestown Renaissance Corporation with the city required to apply for the funding as the hosting municipality.

According to JRC executive director Greg Lindquist, even if the city doesn’t receive any money from the 2016 CFA process, several of these projects could still move forward based on $10,000,000 in funding the city could soon be receiving from the state.

Earlier this month Governor Andrew Cuomo made several stops in cities across the state to announce the recipients of the state’s Downtown Revitalization Initiative competitive grant program, which provides $10,000,000 each for communities in 10 different regions of the state. The governor was slated to appear in Jamestown earlier this month to make a special announcement but the appearance had to be postponed. Many suspect the announcement involved Jamestown being the recipient for the competitive grant for the Western New York region… though that has not been confirmed by the governor’s office.

Monday’s city council meeting begins at 7:30 p.m. on the 2^nd floor of city hall and is open to the public.

Mark Geise (left) is recognized by Chautauqua County Executive Vince Horrigan (right) during Wednesday’s legislature meeting. Geise is leaving his post as county deputy planning director to take serve as the Senior Project Director with the Jamestown Renaissance Corporation.

MAYVILLE – The Jamestown Renaissance Corporation will soon have a new staff member.

During Wednesday night’s Chautauqua County Legislature meeting it was announced that county deputy planning director Mark Geise would be leaving county government to work with JRC starting in January as it’s new Senior Planning Director. County executive Vince Horrigan made the announcement while recognizing Geise for his numerous accomplishments while working for the county.

JRC has been seeking a new number two since deputy director Peter Lombardi left the organization for a position in the private sector. However, Lombardi will still be assisting JRC as a contracted consultant.

The executive director of JRC is Greg Lindquist, who tells WRFA more details about Geise’s new role with JRC will be announced in the near future.

The Jamestown Renaissance Corporation is a public-private partnership founded in 2006 to support the development and implementation of revitalization strategies and projects in downtown Jamestown.