Five candidates compete for four seats in Mars
Five candidates are running for four seats up for election on the Mars Borough Council. Four incumbents — Robert Bost, Christine Clutter, Michael Fleming and Julie Schlutheis — are running to keep their seats. One challenger, Anastacia “Staci” Nelson, is running for the first time.
A longtime member of the borough council, current council president Fleming is finishing out his sixth term as councilman. He is running as a Republican and believes that his experience in dealing with the borough's day-to-day affairs is one of his greatest strengths.“At this point, it's the history, of knowing the historical data on the infrastructure and equipment,” Fleming said. “It's probably something that I have maybe a little bit better feel than each and every member. They all have some idea of what is going on with that stuff, but I've always gotten involved with it pretty consistently and daily.”Fleming originally joined the borough council to secure a permit for the water plant that was in limbo at the time.“I knew without that revenue source that the borough would struggle immensely,” Fleming said. “So, I got involved to push that through and to achieve that operational permit, which ultimately we did.”He looks ahead to the proposed NASA Discovery Center project, which is still in the early stages of discussion.“I am going to stay a while longer to see if we can see that through,” he said.
Clutter, who is running as a Republican, has been a council member for six terms, and was originally drawn to involvement in Mars Borough because she wanted to be engaged with her local community after moving in in 1972.“My kids were going to school here, and it was a nice quaint community,” she said.She considers her area of expertise to be public safety.“I was in the fire company and EMS for a while in town, and the historical society,” she said. “I joined every group that I could. I'm involved with a lot of Mars things.”Looking ahead, Clutter is also involved in early discussions on the Discovery Center project, and anticipates future infrastructure improvements in Mars Borough.“(I want to see) the rejuvenation of (Mars), and we're trying to get some nice scenery,” she said. “We have some ideas on the entrance to the borough out on Route 228, so that would be nice to do some upgrading.”
Anastacia “Staci” Nelson is new to running for elected office, but not new to Mars Borough. Her mother was on the Mars Borough Council when Nelson was young, and she credits her family's involvement and history of community in Mars with her interest in running for council.“Mars really is my home,” Nelson said. “The reason I'm running is (because) I am so passionate about Mars Borough. I love the people who live here, the community we have here, and seeing the town grow and still be true to our roots, and I love the diversity between younger and older generations.”Nelson works in the health industry with COBRA, and has worked in health care for 10 years. She is running as a Democrat. She and her husband also ran a dog rescue out of their home, which she recently retired from because of her health.“It was kind of an organic thing that came to be,” she said. “It started out with a dog showing up on our property, and then I became known as the person to help rescue dogs, and so people would call me. So, we just kept doing it, and we loved it.”She hopes to bring that desire to help others with her if she is elected to borough council.“I know we have a lot of fantastic people (on the council) who are really good at the numbers. Whenever I have gone to the council meetings and read the notes, I wanted to make sure we stay focused on the actual people living here and why they chose to live here,” she said. “There are so many people living in Mars who have lived here for generations, and I want to make sure that we respect that.”
Bost, running on both tickets, is a retired college professor who taught special education at Slippery Rock University. He has served on the Mars Borough Council for 15 years. If elected, this would be Bost's fourth term.The desire to be directly involved with the community originally drew Bost to running for borough council.“I liked some of the things that were going on and didn't like some of the things, and so I just got involved,” he said.He believes that on a council with a diverse variety of expertise — among members who bring knowledge of business, construction and infrastructure — his specialty is in administration and organizational planning. His main priority going into another term is maintaining financial stability as a borough.“We're not spending it all wildly, I think we are being very responsible in our spending, but as prices go up I think we need to look at income,” Bost said. “We're doing what's expected of us as a borough council, and listening to everyone in town's ideas about what we need to do to keep moving forward.”
Schultheis, running on both tickets, has been on the council for one term so far. She values accountability and clear communication, both in her personal life and as a member of the borough council.“I fairly represent all of our residents and business owners with honesty and integrity,” she said. “I've enjoyed serving our community for almost six years now as the parks, recreation and celebrations representative.”Parks and recreation work has been a priority for her over her time on council.“Our three borough parks are slowly being improved upon and I look forward to future improvements, utilizing grants and community involvement,” she said. “I believe the most important issue in our borough is the need for major improvements to our road and water infrastructures. If re-elected, I will continue to be committed to these issues.”
