Candidate Profile: Ellen Z. Calves For Bedford Town Supervisor

BEDFORD, NY — Election season 2023 is here and there are plenty of races with candidates eager to serve in elected office.

Patch asked candidates to answer questions about their campaigns and will be publishing candidate profiles as Election Day draws near.

Name: Ellen Z. Calves

Age: 51

Hometown: Katonah in the Town of Bedford

Running for which office: Bedford Town Supervisor

Education: University of Notre Dame, BA, Emory University, School of Law, JD.

Political experience: Town Supervisor (finishing 2-year term in December), Town Board Member (2 years prior to becoming Supervisor)

Work experience: Program Director at Bedford 2030, Associate Fund Manager for climate solution investments, Attorney.

Family: Married 23 years to Heberto “Herbie” Calves, a first generation Cuban American who works in marketing and product development in the health and wellness arena. Three children — two in college in VT and DC, one graduated from college who lives and works in Washington DC.

Campaign website: https://www.bedforddems2023.com/

Why are you seeking this office?

My colleagues and I on the town board are getting things done that help people — from sewers to cell service, housing to open space. I seek re-election to continue and expand upon the work that we have started to ensure Bedford is a great place to live now and in the future.

What are the major differences between you and the other candidate(s) seeking this post?

I am running unopposed for Town Supervisor; but two town board seats held by Democrats are being contested by Republicans.

What is the single most pressing issue facing your constituents and what do you intend to do about it?

Increased costs are having an impact on goods, services, and housing. At the municipal level I will hold the line on taxes and bring in grant funds and partnerships to continue to provide high quality services to our residents. I will continue to streamline and digitize town processes so homeowners and businesses don’t waste time and money when they need approvals and services. I will support more diversity of housing to help people stay in the community as they age and to help people afford to live in Bedford. I will ensure Bedford has a long term plan for both development and preservation and will build infrastructure that ensures our community is resilient in the face of change.

How would you address the affordable housing issue in the community?

I will proceed with updating the Town’s 2003 comprehensive plan to obtain resident input and set forth how and where we can build more rental apartments and cottages and zone for small cluster home development. A new comprehensive plan must identify how and where affordable housing will fit within the overall plan for the town and identify barriers that may be removed over time.

How would you protect the drinking water in the community?

One of the big projects I have taken on is to connect properties to sewer mains and to treat wastewater so that properties may close down aging septic systems and cesspools to protect the water supply. I will continue to seek grant funding to sewer more properties and more parts of town.

For those residents on local well water, I will ensure that the town continues to maintain municipal properties without the use of toxic chemicals, and I will continue to educate the public to do the same so that landscaping and lawn chemicals do not end up in groundwater.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

When I came into office 2 years ago I took on the challenge of finding a solution to the lack of cell service in Bedford Village and found a solution that has a minimal visual and community impact with the most coverage. I also seized an opportunity to protect the environment and increase services in the hamlet of Bedford Village by partnering with the school district to move forward a sewer project. I have maintained our Town’s commitment to environmental conservation and climate action, achieving top leadership levels in the state. I keep the community informed as to what is happening in the town, how decisions are made, and how anyone may get involved. I work tirelessly to be a community cheerleader, creative problem solver, helpful resource, and forward thinking leader, and I am thrilled to continue this work in my second term.

What is the best advice anyone ever gave you?

In any situation you may disagree with someone, but recognize they have worth and dignity, try to understand their point of view, and aim for a position of mutual respect.