Lauren Garrett, the Democratic candidate in Hamden’s mayoral election, is campaigning on the promise of better finances and infrastructure.
Garrett wants Hamden to have a more sustainable infrastructure. Powerful storms have caused significant property damage. Climate change can also cause ecosystems to be destroyed, farming to be interrupted and can cause peoples’ health to be in jeopardy.
She has prioritized combating climate change by reducing the carbon footprint. Going forward, Garrett would like to see citizens advocate for the state joining the multi-state Transportation and Climate Initiative, which requires companies with carbon emissions pay for their contributions to climate change.
Garrett thinks voters should be confident in her ability to make the environment safer for Hamden, because she has put it into practice in her own life.
“I’m incredibly excited for the rest of Hamden for our town’s buildings to be outfitted with solar panels, to switch to electric vehicles and have emission standards for our town fleet,” Garrett said. “It’s just doing what I have done on a smaller scale and just scaling up to municipal use.”
Her plan to address climate change in Hamden is to shift to electric vehicles, modernize infrastructure, plant trees and convert to green energy sources.
Hamden’s financial issues motivated Garrett to run for mayor; she believes it is essential for Hamden to have more fiscal transparency and a long-term financial plan.
I’ve had experience on the town’s budget and a very good understanding of what we’ve done wrong and what it’s going to take for us to do the right thing, to get our finances under control.
Lauren Garrett, Democratic candidate in mayoral election
“I’ve had experience on the town’s budget and a very good understanding of what we’ve done wrong and what it’s going to take for us to do the right thing, to get our finances under control,” Garrett said.
With her previous experience, Garrett believes she is prepared to take on the challenges of Hamden’s financial issues by “having careful planning and sound financial strategy.”
Garrett said that it is important that the town does what is in the best interest of its residents. Furthermore, she said that she shares the same goals and vision as Hamden, which she believes will provide her the opportunity to create positive changes for the town.
What it’s going to take is for Hamden to negotiate with our unions and make sure that we’re getting the best deal we can for taxpayers…
Lauren Garrett, Democratic candidate in mayoral election
“What it’s going to take is for Hamden to negotiate with our unions and make sure that we’re getting the best deal we can for taxpayers,” Garrett said. “We also have a lot of contracts for service. An example [of this] is our medical. We spend about $60 million a year on town, and board of education, employees and retirees. Now I’m not suggesting that we don’t provide medical insurance, but what I am saying is that we should send that contract out to bid so we can have a competitive bid process and get the best possible deal.”
Garrett is comfortable taking on the role of mayor because she has paid off her debts, grown her business and negotiated deals. Garrett plans on addressing financial stability by having a “lower mill rate,” which are used to calculate property tax liability.
We also need to take a look at our five-year projections and develop a five-year plan so that we know what we can expect and allow our residents to take a look at what we can expect.
Lauren Garrett, Democratic candidate in mayoral election
“By having revenues that can rely on and budgeting more, we start to come in the back at the end of the year, but we also need to take a look at our five-year projections and develop a five-year plan so that we know what we can expect and allow our residents to take a look at what we can expect,” Garrett said.
She wants to have a strong economic development plan as a deterrent against crime. During the pandemic, crime rates in Hamden have increased by 25.22%, with the property crime rate reaching 21.93% and the violent crime rate hitting 3.29%. The most common crimes are robberies, assaults, burglaries, thefts and motor vehicle thefts.
Garrett wants to address crime rates to ensure that all residents are safe.
“Black and brown community members don’t feel the same level of protection from our police department that white family community members feel,” Garrett said. “It’s important for us to have a police department that reflects the diversity of the town, so that Black and brown officers, when they respond to crime in our different communities around Hamden, [these communities] feel supported, represented and protect[ed] by law enforcement.”
It’s important for us to have a police department that reflects the diversity of the town, so that Black and brown officers, when they respond to crime in our different communities around Hamden, [these communities] feel supported, represented and protect[ed] by law enforcement.
Lauren Garrett, Democratic candidate in mayoral election
Garrett said the town needs to attract more businesses to Hamden, and that it will be critical for the mayor to be involved in this effort.
To bring more businesses into the town, Garret said that Hamden needs to take a look at zoning regulations and push for zoning throughout all the business districts.
“I plan to be very available to our businesses, to court businesses, and convince them that it’s the best for them to come here, but we need to make it a smooth process to get through so that because right now it’s not a smooth process,” Garrett said.
Hamden’s Building Department is not properly staffed due to the lack of a town building inspector. Garrett thinks that there should be more opportunities for the workforce in Hamden, making the town stronger because Hamden residents would not have to worry because their options would not be limited.
Garrett wants Hamden to become a better place to raise a family.
“There are really good organizations around us, like the carpenters union out of Wallingford, they have a great facility where you can learn to be a carpenter,” Garrett said. “It takes about four years. You get paid while you’re training and the job opportunities after going through the program are amazing. We need to make sure these students at Hamden high have these opportunities in front of them, so that they can become part of a strong workforce development operation in Hamden.”
Improving roads and traffic issues will also contribute to the economy. Garrett said business owners don’t want to come through Hamden hitting every pothole.
Having roads that are paved and maintained is really important, but we also have opportunities for what’s called traffic calming,
Lauren Garrett, Democratic candidate in mayoral election
“Having roads that are paved and maintained is really important, but we also have opportunities for what’s called traffic calming,” she said. “That’s where you engineer the road and the area around the road, so that people naturally slow down, sometimes that’s narrowing lanes, having trees that kind of have a canopy that cover the road, sometimes it’s going to speed bumps to slow people down or and additional stop sign.”
Garrett said that undecided voters in Hamden should vote for her because her goals align with Hamden’s. Garrett views herself as a good leader because of her emphasis on collaboration.
“I work incredibly hard,” she said. “We won the primary because of our organization and our hard work. We’re going to bring that to the government center in Hamden, and we need a government that works for us, and I’m going to be that person.”
Garrett will face Republican candidate Ron Gambardella on Nov. 2. Garrett is looking to become Hamden’s first female mayor in the last 20 years.