Troy LaPlante, candidate for Selma Town Council
Eight people are competing in the November election for two seats on the Selma Town Council.
Troy LaPlante, an engineer at Spectrum Reach, is running against former Council members Tommy Holmes and William Overby, and first-time candidates Monica Antes, Kayla Jentes-Sagester, Bruce McKay, Rich Nixon, and Amy W. Whitley.
Early voting in the nonpartisan election begins Oct. 14 and runs through Oct. 30.
To find polling places and full details on early voting, visit johnstonnc.com/joconcelections or contact the Board of Elections at 919-989-5095 or elections@johnstonnc.com.
Name: Troy LaPlante
Age: 53
Residence: Selma
Occupation: Engineer, Spectrum Reach
Education: New Hampshire Technical Community College, AAS in Fire Protection
Political or civic experience: Selma Planning Board, two different terms; Johnston County Local Emergency Planning Committee two terms
Campaign website: vote4troy.com
What is Selma doing right, and wrong, on managing growth?
For what we are doing right, Selma is working on a comprehensive planning ordinance to manage future growth and has on the surface been welcoming of new investment and development. A local group of citizens and business owners have banded together in a successful organization to encourage development and investment.
As to what we have been doing wrong, the town had ignored infrastructure needs for decades. We have not invested in water and sewer replacements and improvements that have been needed for many years, not to mention improving the system to plan for future growth. We have actually had to turn away planned development because of lack of water and sewer capacity to accommodate the growth.
The town has not focused on known problems and instead made side projects into priorities, drawing away funding and attention on what should be the focus of our efforts. Along with infrastructure needs, we also need to plan for public safety needs for the coming growth.
If elected, what would your two or three priorities be during your first year in office?
The first priority will be to actually set and declare our priorities so we can focus on and work them as stated goals. We seem to have lacked that in recent years. Those priorities need to be the improvement of our water and sewer infrastructure of both the existing system and for projected capacity needs with the development that we know is already planned and underway. This will also help attract more development if those needs are met.
We also need to reverse the “defund the police and fire” environment we have had from some in leadership. We have to plan on replacement and upkeep of public safety equipment, maintaining staffing, and growing those services as the town grows. We have known equipment and technology needs coming, and we need to plan to accommodate those now.
What unique skills or life experience would you bring to city governance?
In my career, I have worked with the federal, state, and municipal levels of government. I have served in public safety roles in two different agencies and am familiar with the needs that such agencies have with staff and equipment. I have volunteered to serve on advisory boards and have worked with town ordinances and seen how they affect staff and citizens alike. I have also encountered infrastructure needs as they relate to public safety.
In my career in private industry, I am a troubleshooter. I find problems, work to resolve them, and when engaged in projects and incidents both large and small that are sometimes national in scope, I work regularly across departments to accomplish a mutual goal. Interdepartmental and inter-jurisdictional cooperation is something that I am used to and have accomplished for decades in both public and private sectors.