Robert Cavanaugh II is the Democratic candidate for the Binghamton City Council’s third district, running unopposed in the general election. A fourth-generation resident of Binghamton’s West Side, Cavanaugh is a local landlord and owns Cavanaugh’s Grocery and Deli, a family-owned business on Leroy Street. Questionnaire responses have been edited for clarity.
1. What motivated you to run?
I was motivated to run by a sense that we are at a critical time to shape what Binghamton, and our larger community will look like in the coming decades. We have struggled for decades as a post-industrial town trying to find a sustainable way forward. We finally seem to have shifted gears to embrace [Binghamton] University as a driver of our economy and community, rather than something adjacent to it — and that in turn is opening new pathways to the future, providing we prioritize the right projects and goals and have the fortitude to follow through.
2. How does your background and previous experience make you a strong candidate for this position?
As a fourth-generation West Sider, I’ve lived through the neighborhood evolution from mostly families, when I was in elementary school, to the diverse mix of residents we have today. I’m a local business owner that relies on both students and long-term residents to survive. I can draw on years of pragmatic experience dealing directly with the town and gown divide to help make Binghamton a livable and welcoming environment for all residents.
3. What do you believe are the biggest issues facing your constituents, and how do you plan to address them?
The fundamental job of local government is to foster and deliver an environment that residents want to live in and in which they can thrive. Binghamton has great “bones” in this regard — a history of communitarian thinking, cultural institutions, resources that larger communities would be proud to have and neighborhood based schools — just to name a few things. Despite a good foundation, we aren’t delivering well in the day-to-day. There is hardly a block on the West Side that doesn’t have an eyesore property that focused enforcement could help alleviate. There is unease at every door I knock on over mental health and drug issues spiraling into criminal justice problems. A revised and comprehensive approach to how we deal with fellow citizens in trouble is needed. We have aging housing stock and infrastructure that needs long-term planning to keep functional and desirable.
4. Many students and community members are concerned about increasing prices, including housing and household essentials. How do you plan to address these concerns?
Inflation is a concern at the national level, and price increases to basic goods are being felt by everybody. In Binghamton, where about 30 [percent] of residents are below the poverty line, price fluctuations are throwing more and more folks into states of food and shelter insecurity. From the perspective of City Council, government needs to consistently put its voice and resources toward affordable housing projects, preferably with experienced local partners, and at every turn foster community resources that bridge the economic gaps so that at least everyone has basic food and shelter needs met.
5. Why should students and young people vote for you?
I ask for my constituent’s support because I believe I can provide an empathetic ear to my community, a well-reasoned and stentorian voice for our concerns and needs and the will to undertake representing the community even in adverse conditions.