With 2 more candidates filing, there’s a contest for Town Board
July 11. By Dave Yochum. Two more candidates—one a previous commissioner who lost in 2023 and the other a political newcomer—will run for a seat on the five-person Cornelius Town Board.
—Colin Furcht, the former commissioner, was part of a wave of new commissioners who swept to office in 2021, with all four challengers defeating all but one incumbent on the five-person Town Board. Commissioner Denis Bilodeau survived, and ran unsuccessfully for mayor in 2023, losing by five votes.
Furcht
Furcht lost in 2023, then served on the Planning Board. He says he wants to serve again on the non-partisan Town Board.
Quotable
“My priorities remain clear: Promoting reasonable, manageable growth; advancing critical road projects; keeping taxes low; and preserving the livability and appeal that make Cornelius one of North Carolina’s most desirable towns,” Furcht said.
First-time candidate
John Caldwell, a resident of Peninsula Cove Lane, is running for public office for the first time.
Caldwell
If elected, Caldwell said he would focus on:
—Infrastructure to manage our previous growth, let alone future growth. We need another exit off I-77. The lights on Catawba need to be synced. And we need to expand to two lanes each way.
—We passed the $20m parks and rec bond – let’s put it to good use.
—Business friendly decision making – balancing development with or peaceful “small town feel.”
6 candidates
As of 9 am Friday, there are six declared candidates for the five-member board. Incumbents Robert Carney, Susan Johnson, Michael Osborne and Todd Sansbury filed earlier this week.
Candidate filing for the municipal elections opened July 7 and will run through Friday, July 18 at noon.
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Very excited for “new blood”. Much needed for some hard work to get done and restore out town to some order (especially when it comes to traffic).
Furcht’s major achievement during his one term was complaining about working late. If I remember correctly, did he not use tax dollars to pay for his supper when working late? Or at least complain that he should not have to pay for his own supper when working late?
Mr. Stanford. I find it interesting that you found time to misrepresent a comment I made in response to a former Commissioner’s attack about meals served at Town Meetings. I never complained about late nights. I spent over 20 hours a week serving this town and did it willingly and happily. The claim was to eliminate those meals to impact our $30M plus budget. My point was that when folks are asked to be at a meeting at 4pm and not leave until after 9 or 10pm, that they should not be treated like animals. That previous Commissioner, as well as everyone before them, were all given the same courtesy. Not complaining, just stating a fact.