LORDSTOWN — Voters in Lordstown village will have seven candidates to select from for four council seats in the Nov. 4 general election.

Incumbents Robert Bond, Ernest Bowen, Jamie Moseley and Howard Sheely are seeking reelection with Mark McGrail, Ron Radtka and Jiryes Rafidi all seeking to serve on council.

Former resident Danielle Watson withdrew from the race.

ROBERT BOND

Bond served on council for 16 years, including a role as council president and having served on all council committees. He said he wants its meetings broadcast online and noted he worked to get the meeting agendas and minutes on the village’s website.

Bond said he will look at attracting and assisting new business to the community. He said it is important the village be fiscally responsible with all financial decisions.

Bond said it is important for council to rebuild the public’s trust with council being open as much as possible.

“Every opinion should be heard,” he said. “People want the council to be open about what is happening.

“Our village exists for the people. We need to take care of the concerns and needs of the public.”

ERNEST BOWEN

Bowen, who was appointed to council in March, said that as chairman of the utilities committee he wants to address the village’s 24-inch waterline project to get more water to businesses and residences. He said there also is a need for a water booster station to be completed.

Bowen said it is important to bring in new business to the community as the village plans for what Lordstown will be in the future.

“Council as a whole with input from the residents need to discuss what Lordstown will be in the next five, 10 and 15 years. We need to focus on the village’s needs in the future,” he said.

Bowen said there is a need for a new fire department and noted that other communities have built such buildings for fire, police, and emergency medical service.

He said he will also focus on infrastructure improvements in the community,

JAMIE MOSELEY

Moseley, appointed to council in January 2023, said it is important for officials to work at maintaining its current infrastructure.

Moseley said while he supports businesses and residential growth he wants the community to remain a village, which the residents also want.

He said the needs of the residents is what comes first with decision making by council.

“When council makes a decision, we need to be focusing on how what we decide to do will make things better for the residents of the village,” he said.

Moseley said he wants to see safety services and utility services upgraded.

MARK McGRAIL

McGrail, who previously served 12 years on the village board of education, said he is familiar with serving the community and wants to improve communication and transparency with the public.

“There is a serious lack of transparency and accountability by the council in dealing with the residents. I will work to change this,” McGrail said.

He said he will get the council meetings and other village meetings recorded for public viewing on social media so residents can have 24-7 access to past meetings.

McGrail said he will focus on being more efficient with village finances and making online payments available for village water bills.

McGrail said there is a need for the village to have responsible economic development and growth when bringing in new business.

RON RADTKA

Radtka previously served on council for 12 years, being elected in 2011. He said he wants the village to move into the 21st century with online and credit card services available for people to pay water, sewer, garbage and utility bills along with cash or check options.

He said this will make bill payments more convenient for residents and cost effective for the village.

Radtka said he wants to see the village get started on engineering and design for a new fire / EMS building. He said the current building is from the 1960s, and the staff and equipment have outgrown it. Radtka said some equipment has to sit outside.

He said there is a need for additional waterlines from Mahoning Valley Sanitary District to better serve the residents and businesses. Radtka said it is important to work with Niles city and MVSD on the issue since water is sent to the power plants operating in the village.

He said a grant writing company could help the village secure needed Environmental Protection Agency grants and other funds for water and sewer projects.

JIRYES RAFIDI

Rafidi, marking his first time to seek public office, said he wants to see more collaboration between different generations in the village in planning for a stronger future.

He said it is important to support the smaller businesses with residents telling him they would like to have a grocery store, restaurant and other such offerings.

“We need to support the local businesses that we have. These businesses are important to our community and to the residents who live here,” he said.

Rafidi said he will work to get more grants for the village to help make the fire, police and EMS stronger.

He said grants also are important for maintaining current infrastructure.

Rafidi said he will focus on housing development and residential growth for the village.

HOWARD SHEELY

Sheely, who has served on council for 12 years, said he will work “to continue to proudly serve all the residents of the village” and address their needs and concerns.

He said he wants to see more residential growth and families moving into the village through promoting what the village has to offer.

Sheely said he wants to see either building a new fire department building or add on to the current building to best provide needed space for fire staff, vehicles and equipment.

He said he will work with department heads focusing on continued road paving, street upgrades and getting the 24-inch waterline installed for better water flow in the community, especially for the Bailey Road, Hallock Young Road and Route 45 areas.

“It is important that the residents have our trust as we did what is best for their needs and concerns and the future of the village,” Sheely said.