Matthew Wahila is the Democratic candidate for Broome County’s 7th district in the Broome County Legislature. Wahila has earned a Ph.D. in physics from Binghamton University in 2017 and is currently research scientist and educator at BU.
What are the biggest concerns you have with your district and how do you plan to approach them?
“A lot of big changes are coming to District 7 that could radically reshape our community and our local economy, but I’m concerned that our current government doesn’t have the knowledge and expertise to address all the challenges this will bring. With the global push for “green” renewable energy technology and domestic high-tech manufacturing, Upstate [New York] has a shot at a massive economic revival. We have a new battery factory in Endicott and well over $100 million coming from the state and federal governments to help make Broome County a hub for domestic battery manufacturing. And we also have historic investments from companies like Micron being made into other nearby areas of Upstate [New York state] for chip manufacturing, drone development, etc. That means good-paying jobs and other economic opportunities in Upstate NY on a scale we haven’t seen for generations. But that in turn means our local governments need to ensure we have appropriate housing opportunities, infrastructure, community services, workforce development, and more or else these initiatives will fail. As an expert in renewable energy technology, semiconductors, and microelectronics fabrication, I know how these technologies work and what these industries need to be successful. As a life-long resident of Broome County, I know our community and its needs too. Once elected, I can be a bridge between this industry and our community, working to ensure this economic growth benefits all residents of Broome County.”
How do you plan to engage with members of your community and address some of their concerns? More specifically, how do you plan to do this for BU students?
“As a lifelong member of this community with family ties to the area and preexisting relationships with many community groups and local organizations from my years of activism, I already have the best interests of this community at heart. I plan to be open, accessible, and communicative with residents in a way that my opponent hasn’t been. As a current employee of BU and former BU graduate student, I also have close ties to the BU community. Part of my job is to help service the education and research needs of BU students and faculty, and to work with them to identify areas where we could further develop and expand our offerings to better serve our community. So my work as a legislator will be a natural extension of that. I want to ensure our community is a place where BU students can thrive both during their college career and after they graduate.”
What do you believe has the highest priority when allocating funds from the county budget?
“I believe our county services are essential and must be properly funded and even expanded to better serve our residents. So that includes things like infrastructure repair and upgrades to deal with our changing climate, improving our public transportation, maintaining our county parks and libraries, expanding our workforce development programs and other social services. At this critical time for our economy, I don’t think we should be reducing or cutting services. We need to figure out how to rapidly expand services and make our community more attractive in preparation for the thousands of workers these new industries will need to employ in the coming years.”
Many students and community members are concerned about the increasing prices of housing in the area as well as many reported infractions made by landlords. How do you plan to address this?
“I believe our county government needs to take a proactive role in rehabilitating our current decaying housing stock and developing new affordable housing units. There has been some movement in this area recently thanks to funding from the state and federal governments, and work by some of the more progressive and active members of our local governments. But my district has been left out of this progress, in part thanks to ineffective and insufficient representation. I plan to work together with the state government and smaller municipality governments to develop more opportunities for new affordable housing, help rehabilitate or replace decaying properties, encourage and incentivize local home ownership, and hold absentee landlords and other bad actors accountable for the harm they’ve caused our community in the name of personal profit. We need code enforcement across the smaller municipalities to be more proactive and cohesive. And we need countywide policies and programs to provide municipalities with the tools they need to address these problems.”
What do you offer the students and youth of Broome County and why should they vote for you?
“I offer the students and youth of Broome County a voice in our county government that they’ve never had before. For too long our county has been run by the same old, out-of-touch politicians. Young people — BU students in particular — have often been looked at by our representatives as a problem to be fixed rather than valuable residents to be welcomed. But BU students have for a long time been a lifeline for our local community and economy that it’s high time we learn to embrace. We need more young people to keep our community vibrant and alive. I want BU students to not only come here for four years, but to stay after graduation. I want District 7 to be a place where young people can get a good-paying job in an exciting field with opportunities for advancement. I want them to be able to build a life here, buy a house, start a family, or whatever else. I don’t believe that will happen if we keep the same old representation in power so they can keep doing what they’ve been doing for decades. I believe we need young people like me in government to make a change.”