LEBANON — Two candidates are vying for a two-year term representing Ward 2 on the City Council.
Sixth-generation Lebanon resident Eric Cole is challenging incumbent Councilor George Sykes, a retired Lebanon firefighter who has been on the Council since 2019, and also serves as a state representative.
While both candidates say rising taxes are a crucial concern in Lebanon, they split on how to approach the problem and how housing development fits into the equation.
Eric Cole
Cole, 52, believes the city is at a “crossroads” when it comes to affordability, making this a critical time to throw his hat in the ring for Council and, he said, for more people to come out on voting day. He has never held elected office before.
“When I opened my most recent tax bills, my stomach kind of fell,” said Cole, who with his wife owns and operates Ascutney View Farm on Poverty Lane, which produces lamb and maple syrup, and works as a licensed real estate agent. “I started to really worry about the long-term sustainability” of life in Lebanon both for himself and for other long-time residents.
Cole believes the city needs to address affordability in the long term, such as by getting spending “under control,” reducing long-term debt and reevaluating the approach to housing development. In the short term, Cole said the city should consider offering immediate support for those most impacted by rising taxes such as seniors on fixed incomes by expanding its elderly tax relief program.
Cole said the council should look at more creative solutions to the city’s tight and expensive housing market such as encouraging senior housing development because it is clear that building more one-bedroom and studio apartments will not solve the problem.
“I just think we’re kind of stuck in this mindset of add, add, add, more units, more units and we’re not being curious enough about why our situation isn’t improving,” Cole said.
George Sykes
Sykes, 74, served on the City Council from 2008-10, and has been on the Council since he rejoined in 2019. A Democrat, he also has represented Lebanon in the New Hampshire House of Representatives since 2012.
The city faces “significant challenges,” such as high property taxes, which require “thoughtful nuanced approaches,” Sykes said. He is wary of putting off projects and investments until they become more expensive and has often questioned seemingly “easy” budget cuts.
“We can be careful about how we determine what’s important and what’s not in the city and we do not have to just look at it from the lens of where are we going to cut,” Sykes said. “We should be looking at it from, where are the most important things we need to do, and if we don’t do some of those things, who are the persons who are most affected.”
Sykes is also “laser-focused” on promoting more housing development in areas with existing infrastructure in order to increase the tax base while keeping costs relatively low. He supports quickly approving zoning changes to increase housing density and opening up vacant commercial properties for residential development.
“Communities that adopt limits to growth stagnate and eventually they fail,” Sykes said. “Now what we need is smart growth, which is what I’m advocating for.”
Voting for Ward 2 will be by ballot on Tuesday, March 10 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the United Methodist Church, 18 School Street.