LAWRENCE: Four file for primary race

No contests expected on June 2 slate

By Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
Township Councilmen Rick Miller and Greg Puliti have filed nominating petitions in their respective quests for re-election to the municipal governing body in the Nov. 3 general election.
    The deadline to file to run in the June 2 Republican and Democratic primaries was Monday. Each term is for four years.
    Mr. Miller, who is a Republican, is seeking his fifth consecutive term on Township Council. His running mate is Ginny Bigley, who is serving on the Lawrence Township Board of Education. If she is elected in November, she would have to resign from the school board.
    Mr. Puliti is a Democrat who is seeking his fifth non-consecutive term. He was appointed in January to fill out the unexpired term of former Councilman Mark Holmes, which ends in December. His running mate is Jim Kownacki, who ran unsuccessfully for the council in 2007.
    The 45-year-old Mr. Miller, who lives on Carter Road, has served on Township Council since 1993. He held the honorary post of mayor in 1995. He is a lifelong resident.
    Mr. Miller is a senior financial consultant at PNC Investments. He served on the Recreation Advisory Committee, including a stint as vice chairman, before his election to Township Council.
    “I am looking forward to this year’s campaign and to continuing to serve the people of our community as a member of the Township Council,” Mr. Miller said in a written statement.
    “The township faces significant challenges in the years ahead,” he said. “The difficult economy means we have to do more with less. People are hurting. Our local government needs to minimize the already heavy tax burden our residents face.”
    Ms. Bigley, 53, has lived in Lawrence for 18 years. She is in the middle of her second three-year term on the school board. She is the chairman of the school board’s Community Relations Committee and serves as the school board’s liaison to Township Council.
    The Dustin Drive resident, who does bookkeeping for a local business, said in a written statement that she is excited about running with Mr. Miller, whom she described as “a truly dedicated public servant.”
    “I have served on the school board for the past four years. I want to use that experience to build a close, cooperative relationship between the council and the board,” Ms. Bigley said.
    “By working together, I know we can find ways to save taxpayer dollars through shared services, greater efficiencies and eliminating the duplication of effort. After all, the money each spends comes from the same taxpayers,” she added.
    Mr. Puliti, 50, who lives on Bunker Hill Avenue, served on Township Council from 1996 to 2007, including one-year stints as mayor in 1998, 2000, 2003 and 2007. He is a lifelong Lawrence resident.
    Mr. Puliti is a planning associate in the public affairs office of the state Department of Banking and Insurance. He served on the Zoning Board of Adjustment and the Planning Board before his election to Township Council in 1995, and also served on the Recreation Advisory Committee in 2008 before his reappointment to Township Council.
    “I have been asked by many friends and political peers to share my knowledge of the township and (my ability to use) good judgment in making decisions. People want answers to their questions, regardless whether the answer is what they want to hear,” Mr. Puliti said when asked why he was seeking re-election.
    Acknowledging the state of the economy, Mr. Puliti said that one of the “key” issues facing Township Council is to keep the property tax rate stable while not reducing services. He added that “We’ll have to find creative ways to skin the cat.”
    Mr. Kownacki, 57, lives on Fillmore Place in the Society Hill at the Brunswick Circle condominium development. He is a maintenance electrician for the Ewing Lawrence Sewerage Authority and has lived in Lawrence for 12 years. He made an unsuccessful run for Township Council in 2007.
    Mr. Kownacki serves on the Planning Board, where he is the vice chairman. He has served on the Planning Board for nine years. He also serves on the Public Safety Advisory Committee and previously served on the Construction Board of Appeals.
    “One of my interests is public safety — the policemen and the firefighters. I want to see improvements to public safety. That’s a big reason why I’m running for Township Council,” he said, adding that he believes in filling vacancies in the Police Department.
    Mr. Kownacki also said he was concerned about the budget, adding that “I feel we could do better.” He said he was concerned about spending down the budget surplus and whether the township could regenerate that money in the following year.