PITTSFIELD, Mass. — James Conant admires Ward 4 for being a traditional Pittsfield neighborhood and wants to see it looking its best with infrastructure improvements such as re-paved roads and sidewalks.

 

Conant is running for Ward 4 city councilor with an emphasis on ensuring adequate city services in the area and constituents getting the most of out their taxpayer dollars.

 

"I think that the big issue is how to make sure that services are delivered effectively, I think the services need to be done efficiently and are we really sure that we get the most out of our taxpayer dollars," he said.

 

"I really don't know that at this point in time, but if I get elected, I'm going to make sure that I do know, and I want to give confidence that we are."

 

A Pittsfield native and the golf course superintendent at Country Club Of Pittsfield, he has been involved in local politics for around 20 years serving as a member of the School Committee and Parks Commission, and chair of the Community Preservation Commission. He is currently chairman of the Conservation Commission.

 

In addition to political participation, he has also donated his time to the community.

 

"I've been involved in different things in the community, the Pittsfield Boys and Girls Club, the Pittsfield Babe Ruth League, when my children growing up," Conant said, "And I just feel that I have an outstanding record in the community."

 

Conant has called the ward home for 20 years, allowing opportunities to form relationships with the people who encompass it and hear their points of view.

 

Ward 4 has a long history of great representation, he said, and when current Councilor Chris Connell announced he wasn't going to be seeking re-election, Conant wanted to be the next representative. He will be facing Andrew M. Wrinn in the November election.

 

While going door to door for signatures in support of his bid, he heard a lot of concerns about pavement conditions and some about plowing services during the wintertime.

 

"I really know the people in Ward 4, and they know me, I really know what their interests are, what their expectations are," He said.

 

"My focus and Ward 4 is the neighborhood, it's a great traditional neighborhood area and what's important to the residents is the schools, the parks, and there's a level of frustration about the condition of the roads and sidewalks, and so I think, moving forward, that's going to be really my main focus."

 

Conant is excited about the $34 million in American Rescue Act funds the city of Pittsfield is receiving and said he would "certainly" like to have a voice on its application.

 

"I would like to expect that a large sum of that money is gonna be spent on catching up on road and sidewalk repairs," He added.

 

Though Ward 4 doesn—t have many businesses, he supports the citywide economy and believes that a valiant effort needs to be taken to support the existing economy and encourage growth while coming out of the pandemic.

 

"The good news is that the housing market is just sizzling right now, and that tells us that people want to live here, and that's really exciting to me," he said.

 

"And so, it tells me that people not originally from the community come in here and look and say, 'Hey, you know, this is a good community, we want to live here.'"

 

For campaign outreach, Conant has relied on interpersonal communication by hosting coffee hours with constituents.  There have been around six so far and will be continued throughout the summer.

 

He will also be creating a website to reach constituents.