Four Democrats are challenging four incumbent Republicans for their seats on the Slippery Rock Borough Council on Nov. 4.

The borough’s voters will be tasked on Election Day to choose three out of six candidates to serve a four-year term and one of two to serve a two-year term on the council.

For the four-year seats, Robert Bowser, Jonathan Foust and Douglas Cook are running against incumbents Jeff Campbell, Alexandra Franco-Tuten and Paul Lueken. For the two-year seat, incumbent Denton Zeronas is set to face off against Sean Logue.

Jeff Campbell

Campbell works for WNA Engineering in Portersville and is currently council president. He is running for reelection for a four-year term as a Republican.

Previously, he worked as an electrician, operations manager for power strategies and as the director of buildings and grounds for the Moniteau School District before retiring in July. Besides two four-year terms and one two-year term in the borough, he also served 12 years on Rimersburg Borough Council in Clarion County.

Campbell said he is proud of council’s accomplishments during his tenure, including keeping public safety at full strength, making major changes to streets and eliminating the borough’s debt service all without raising taxes.

Campbell said he’s satisfied with the borough’s current trajectory and progress and would like to continue said progress for another term.

Alexandra Franco-Tuten

Franco-Tuten has served on the borough council for four years and currently works as a substitute teacher and the producing liaison and assistant director for the Slippery Rock Area High School musical. She is running for reelection for a four-year term as a Republican.

She said her family has a long history in politics, which encouraged her to work as a page in the House of Representatives, an intern for the Joint Tax Committee and D.C. Superior courts and finally as a lobbyist for a law firm.

Some of Tuten’s favorite accomplishments are the establishment of a junior borough council member position and voicing concerns for constituents to the Slippery Rock school board. Since moving to the borough, she said she’s continually looked for ways to give back and that, with her experience, serving on council was a “no-brainer” decision.

Franco-Tuten said she will work to continue making Slippery Rock a community where families want to live and feel safe. She said continuing events and programs help to both bring new people into the community and bring residents together.

Paul Lueken

Lueken has been serving as the streets and facilities liaison in a two-year term that he was appointed to. He is running for election to a four-year term as a Republican.

He retired as Slippery Rock University’s director of athletics in 2021. While working for the university, he also served on the borough’s park commission, planning commission and strategic plan committee as well as the Butler County Tourism and Convention Bureau.

Lueken said he enjoyed working with council and serving the community, something he hopes to do if he is elected to a four-year term.

Lueken said his goals will be to continue to assist council in maintaining a sustainable budget and quality services for residents. He said ideally, these things can be done without any tax increases.

Robert Bowser

Bowser is a retired printer who has lived in Slippery Rock for 25 years. He is running for election for a four-year term as a Democrat.

He previously served on borough council between 2005 and 2017.

He said he decided to run again after conversations with borough residents who expressed dissatisfaction with the negative impact local politics are having on the borough’s reputation.

Bowser said his biggest focuses on council would be initiatives to improve public safety in the area, working to ensure low prices for residents and trying to stimulate development in the borough.

Douglas Cook

Cook is an alumnus of Slippery Rock University and currently serves as the chairman of the borough’s planning commission. He is also seeking election to the mayoral office as a Democrat.

Previously, Cook worked across the nation, from Pennsylvania to Nebraska, as a municipal employee before retiring and moving back to Slippery Rock in 2020.

He said he decided to run because he has never been on the “other side of the table” when it comes to municipal government.

Cook said he wants his vision of Slippery Rock to match the vision of its residents, and said he would encourage massive open communication to recognize, and eventually realize, that vision.

One idea he suggested was hosting periodic town halls. He also believes the comprehensive plan, which he helped create, will serve as an excellent guideline and reference for the borough.

Jonathan Foust

Foust is a Slippery Rock University graduate who pursued his 3D modeling hobby as a career and currently serves on the borough’s planning commission. He is running for election for a four-year term as a Democrat.

Previously, Foust said he pursued his 3D modeling hobby as a career and supported himself through contractor work by taking part-time jobs throughout the borough. He said as he spent more time there, he fell more in love with it and his residents.

Between his work on the planning commission and feedback from “people wiser than me,” he decided to run for a position on council. He said he is always looking for ways to give back to the community that enriched his life.

Foust said he would love to encourage and incorporate public participation as well as strong communication between the borough and the entities around it. He said institutions including the township, emergency services and the Slippery Rock Business Association would be open to a forum. For businesses, he said he would perform market analysis to recognize gaps and court businesses to relocate to the area.

Denton Zeronas

Zeronas currently serves both on borough council and as executive director at Slippery Rock Parks and Recreation. He is running for reelection for a two-year term as a Republican.

He said he first moved to Slippery Rock in 2014 for college and ran for borough council in 2017, where he has served for seven years.

Zeronas said during his time on council, it has reduced fees for new businesses; balanced the budget and expanded services without raising taxes; and updated restrictive ordinances that hindered business development. One of the biggest accomplishments in his mind, however, is building collaboration between the borough, township, university and other entities.

Zeronas said he views his role on council as an opportunity to give back to the community and has worked to make the borough grow, rather than being restrictive or condescending to students or younger residents. He said if he is elected, he would continue serving that role into another term.

Sean Logue

Logue is a senior at SRU where he is majoring in political science and philosophy with a minor in gender studies. He is running for election for a two-year term as a Democrat.

He said he believes he has the education and training in politics and policy that would make him a good fit for the role, where he would aim to serve as both a more progressive voice on the council and as a representative of the university’s student body.

He said he felt the desire to run because borough government has not always been receptive to university students, especially the younger and more progressive of them.

Logue said he would like to forge stronger bonds between the university and the borough through more partnerships, either in infrastructure or in community involvement.

Campbell

Campbell said his top priority right now is lessening the economic impact on residents by refusing to raise taxes, as the cost of everything has skyrocketed in recent years.

He said he was originally against the sale of the lot at the corner of Main and New Castle streets, but realizes that financially, the borough must move forward with the sale.

Last, he said he is committed to listening to every resident’s voice, regardless of political opinion. He said he thinks the borough needs more civility and cooperation as a community.

Franco-Tuten

Franco-Tuten said her top priority is taxes and that she will never vote in favor of increasing taxes for residents.

She also mentioned growth and revitalization efforts on Main Street, which she called a necessity for families and students alike. She said she supports the incentives for new businesses already in place.

Last, she mentioned strong support and maintenance of the borough police and public safety in general, especially after recent threats against Mayor Jondavid Longo. She encouraged peaceful participation in politics from residents.

Lueken

Lueken said his highest priority is maintaining quality services and infrastructure for the borough’s residents.

He also said it is important for the borough to grow the tax base by increasing business and single-family homes in the borough.

Third, Lueken said he will aim to provide a safe, thriving environment for all residents, students and commuting workers in the borough.

Bowser

First, Bowser said he would investigate the possibility of establishing a joint police department with the township.

He said another priority for him is to ensure the Slippery Rock Municipal Authority remains independent, and he would seek collaboration with the township and university to keep it that way.

Last, he said he wants to find a better way to market the remaining parcels around the Fairfield Hotel, located off Franklin Street, to hopefully attract new businesses to some of the last marketable land left.

Cook

Cook believes the borough is in good shape, but also recognized the constant upkeep needed toward infrastructure. He said one specific thing he would ask residents about is expanding sidewalks throughout the borough to create a more walkable community.

Second, Cook said parks and recreation does an amazing job, but would like to consider further expansions, especially to the facility’s trails. Ultimately, he said, it would be a conversation to have with the parks board and borough residents.

Last, Cook noted the importance of finding something that makes the borough unique and attractive to new residents. He said he would gather both residents’ and students’ opinions when it comes to the borough and downtown.

Foust

Foust said the most important challenge the borough is currently facing is replacing the street lights that have rotted out under their bases. He said it is both a public safety concern and a serious undertaking for the borough.

Second, he said he recognizes flooding is on an upward trend, so stormwater management has become a growing issue. He said he would explore creative ways to include water-absorbing landscaping, such as swales — vegetated runoff channels.

Last, he said the borough should quickly attend to road hazards, such as the collapsed entrance to the park. He said the borough cannot budget for everything that will happen, so strategic paving decisions must be made.

Zeronas

Zeronas said the top priority in the borough for the past few years, and likely in the future, is the growing amount of rainfall and stormwater needs in the borough. He said the borough will continue trying to stay ahead on stormwater management.

Second, he recognized the growth the borough is seeing and feels that the borough must be ready to support those new residents as they establish themselves.

He said over the past few years, costs of almost everything have increased, and it is more important than ever to be conscious of the borough’s budget without resorting to increasing taxes.

Logue

Logue said he is prioritizing forging a stronger bond between the university and the borough as well as the students and residents. He said he believes partnering with the university to address infrastructure, such as repairing and expanding sidewalks as well as adding bike lanes.

He said that bond can be further supported by hosting more festivals and community events, especially those tailored toward students. One idea he has is putting on an event in the beginning of June to celebrate both Pride month and the end of the spring semester.

Last, Logue said he recognizes a lack of housing which he believes can be addressed by updating the zoning policy. He said he will look into allowing more multifamily or multiunit buildings and freeing up single-family homes from renters for families.

Campbell

Campbell said his focus is on continuous improvements to infrastructure, with a special focus to stormwater system improvements.

Campbell said the goal of council should be to make sure it remains ahead of growth with infrastructure, public safety and code enforcement.

Franco-Tuten

Franco-Tuten said the council works to try and fix infrastructure issues as quickly as possible in both the downtown and residential neighborhoods. She said she hopes the new vision for the corner of Main Street will beautify the area while creating a space that brings families and students together.

She said she has seen economic damage across the region and will fight against the same happening in the borough.

She said Slippery Rock has a healthy mix in the population, but that each part has unique needs to meet.

She encouraged the borough to continue to offer incentives and bring events, and therefore business, to Main Street.

Lueken

Lueken’s focus for downtown would be on continued improvement of infrastructure with specific goals of upgrading the street lighting and sidewalks.

He said he would aim to bring in a developer to add more single-family housing and would look into improving student housing.

Bowser

Bowser said he prefers that consumers, entrepreneurs and homebuyers shape the community rather than council having to “dictate winners or losers.”

He does question, however, whether the population in and around the borough is strong enough to support multiple businesses of the same type. Nevertheless, he said a private business plan would address that better than government regulation.

For the downtown area, Cook said he would want to involve the businesses in conversations and focus on thinking outside the box. He said a borough that tries to offer the same amenities ends up competing with neighbors, when municipalities should actually work together to grow the entire region.

Bowser said he has not noticed “rapid” growth in the township, as the land available for development near the hotel is still empty eight years after he left council.

Cook

For residents, Cook said he would like to see things go back to how they used to be with neighbors getting along and working things out among themselves.

He said people should be able to respectfully disagree with one another.

Cook said one of the reasons he moved to Slippery Rock was the small college town feel, but as the borough grows, he said he would look into mixed type housing developments that include spaces for families and homeowners as well as renters.

He said he recognizes the borough’s limited space and would aim to maximize it.

Foust

Foust argues that comprehensive zoning reform to address blighted and vacant properties is essential. He would like to explore business facade “face-lifts” to create a cohesive style. He said would also explore a partnership with Butler Area Rural Transit as the borough is designated as an underserved area for those without cars.

For residents, Foust said he would explore relaxing some residential zoning restrictions and would try to appeal to developers as he said the planning commission found residents want the borough to have more housing opportunities, especially for families.

Foust said he wants Slippery Rock to grow as rapidly as possible, as long as the small town character of the borough is preserved. He said as long as the borough is diligent about the way it expands, the amount of services provided by the borough can increase.

Zeronas

Zeronas said the borough has pursued grants and communicated with business owners about their concerns. He said the borough recognized a desire for more community events, which led to the creation of Independence Day and Oktoberfest events.

He said the events serve as fundraisers for the park while providing economic opportunities for Main Street businesses.

Zeronas said he is aware of the growth coming in from areas such as Wexford, Cranberry Township and Pittsburgh, and will take steps to ensure the borough can support that growth as it continues.

Logue

Logue also argued for comprehensive zoning reform to address blighted and vacant properties. He also said he would look to expand transportation methods for both residents and students.

He said denser development would give businesses that are interested in the borough but unable to support an entire storefront a way to operate in the community. A similar thing can be done with residential zoning, as more multifamily buildings will encourage more families to come to the borough.

Logue said as the university enrolls more students and population grows, it is imperative for council to keep a guiding hand involved.

He said as long as housing and rental options remain affordable and continue to grow, he believes the borough will be in a fantastic position to grow into one of the county’s preeminent communities.

Campbell

Campbell said he believes the youth to be the future and considers it “extremely important” to hear their wants, needs and opinions. He said he hopes students will decide to settle in the borough.

Franco-Tuten

Franco-Tuten said she loves living in a college town and appreciates all the wonderful opportunities the university offers the community. She said she talks to her husband, a professor at the university, who can offer an insider’s voice to the students’ concerns or questions. With those, she said she has asked and will continue to ask her fellow council members, “What do our university students want?”

Lueken

Lueken said he will continue to work closely with the university’s leadership to provide a safe environment and good infrastructure to residents and students. He also said he wants to work with the university to attract businesses that provide opportunities to students and residents alike.

Cook

Cook noted that the university is the biggest draw of people into the borough, and his focus would be on asking how to keep those people in the community. He said he would approach the university and collaborate to find new ways to sell the community back to students.

Foust

Foust suggested bike lanes, limited service restaurants and community spaces as attractive to students. He suggested current students check out the Slippery Rock farmer’s market, which occurs every Saturday for a portion of the year.

Zeronas

Zeronas said the borough has done a lot for the university by maintaining infrastructure while not having students as a direct part of the tax base. He said the borough and university have worked in unison to partner on mutually beneficial grants.

Logue

Logue said he would focus on further integrating the university’s students into the community. Beyond bike lanes and enhanced sidewalks, he said the borough should look into establishing a small bus line similar to the university’s.