Candidate Statements
Dear Hilltoppers, Election Day is Tuesday, November 4, and we are reaching out to encourage you to vote. Your vote matters: local races can be decided by only a few votes. We believe the choice for Summit Council is clear. Summit deserves leadership that listens. Leadership that is responsible with ...
Every election season brings a lot of noise — mailers, misinformation, and finger-pointing. I ask you to block it out and focus on what really matters. Over the past three years, I’ve had the privilege of serving and leading all 22,000 Summit residents — with the support of Republicans, Democrats, ...
This election is about more than politics. It is about the future of Summit, and what kind of community we want to be.Over the past two years, city spending has risen 16%, including “nice to haves” like paddle tennis courts.Meanwhile, basic projects, from sidewalks to playgrounds, have fallen ...
Bottom line up front - stadium lights for Tatlock Field were approved by the current Summit Council. The contract for the lights has been signed. Now it’s up to Summit leadership to bring the community together and do everything it reasonably can to address the concerns of the Tatlock neighborhood.
I hope to serve on Summit’s Council in part because I want to bring more neighborliness to town. Our older neighbors have invested, and continue to invest, a lot to make Summit great. Unfortunately, the current Council disbanded Silver Summit, a group that had been dedicated to improving the ...
Dear Residents,Early voting begins on Saturday, October 25th, and the choice before us couldn’t be clearer. Over the past three years, the Together for Summit team has delivered real results. We have fought overdevelopment and preserved the character of our neighborhoods. We have made Summit safer ...
This is the story of how Summit saved my life. It is also the story of how I came to run for Summit Council.Last November, on an ordinary morning, my husband, Corey, and I dropped our daughter off at preschool. Then, something happened that changed just about everything for me; a moment in time ...
Imagine running a business and projecting revenues and expenses for only the next year.Budgeting for a limited period of time like that would be irrational. Yet, the State of New Jersey operates this way every single year. If New Jersey systematically considered budget forecasts several years ...
Hamlet vs. Lasaracina: Facts Over Politics The old firehouse property is one of the most valuable pieces of city-owned land. It sits in the heart of Summit—right next to the YMCA and the Library, two of our community’s most treasured institutions. What happens on that site will shape the character ...
I am Dan Crisafulli and I am running for the At-Large seat on Summit’s Common Council.We recently lost my dear mom, Lorys, who was 98 years young and spent her final years with my family here in our Summit home. She regularly beat us at family card games and taught us so much about aging with ...
As someone who has spent 20 years covering scholastic sports, I know how important it is for communities to invest in facilities that reflect the commitment, hard work and pride exhibited by their youth and high school athletes.Tatlock Field is more than just a playing surface — it’s the heart of ...
Vote-by-mail ballots arrive this week. Your vote matters . . . a lot. Please vote your ballot up and down and get it submitted. Resources on this below.I also want to take this opportunity to get back to the beginning – the ‘why’ of my effort to join Summit Common Council.Living in Summit is a ...
Last year, one in three registered voters in Summit didn’t vote. That’s one out of every three residents who stayed silent during one of the most consequential elections of our time. With another election approaching, Hilltoppers have an opportunity to have their voices heard. For the good of the ...
These comments are adapted from a statement I made at the September 16, 2025 Summit Council meeting.I’m here to talk about the school budget. Bottom line up front - we need to budget better for our kids and teachers. I just came from Back to School night at Jefferson Primary. Our teachers are doing ...
Public safety is the foundation of a strong community, and in Summit, we’ve made it our top priority. The Together for Summit team has backed that commitment with action. In 2024, we hired two additional police officers, with two more budgeted for 2025. We passed the Resident Protection Ordinance, ...
Three years ago, against all odds, the people of Ward One put their trust in me. I was a write-in candidate who won by fewer than 40 votes. I promised to be a voice for all of Summit—not for a political party. I’ve kept that promise. My team has always included Republicans, Democrats, and ...
Three lawsuits have been filed against the City of Summit in response to the Affordable Housing Plan approved by Council earlier this year. If we lose any one of these lawsuits, the results could be catastrophic, dramatically changing the Summit we know and love — impacting our schools, traffic, ...
I’m Dan Crisafulli, and I’m running for the At-Large seat on Summit’s Common Council.I want to bring to your attention the troubling actions at the latest Council meeting, a striking example of how poisoned our local politics have become. Councilman Kevin Smallwood attacked two of his Council ...
I’m Dan Crisafulli, and I’m running for the At-Large Seat on Summit’s Common Council. My career has been dedicated to sustainable investment—advising endowments, financial institutions, and family offices. Earlier in my career, I led teams that worked with governments in emerging economies, helping ...
Earlier this year, I sat down with a mentor to talk through an important decision—whether or not to run for Common Council here in Summit. He encouraged me, but also offered one piece of advice that has stayed with me:“If you run, make sure you let the community know why you’re doing it.”So here’s ...
Our federal government has become a masterclass in chaotic leadership - ignoring constituents, making major decisions without due diligence, evading accountability, and shifting blame. Unfortunately, we are seeing echoes of that dysfunction right here in our own municipal government.Locally, we’ve ...
The threat of overdevelopment in Summit didn’t end when the Broad Street West (BSW) project was stopped. If anything, it’s resurfacing—and the next set of decisions will determine whether we move forward responsibly or repeat the mistakes of the past.BSW wasn’t just a flawed proposal—it was a ...
Summit’s downtown is the place to be. We have wonderful locally-owned shops, cafes, restaurants, and more. And we have beautiful public art from Summit Public Art and fabulous programming from Summit Downtown, Inc. How lucky are we?!We need to make smart investments in our downtown to keep it ...
In August 2022, my wife and I were three months away from our wedding. We had spent the previous few years in a small co-op apartment on Summit Avenue but were looking to find a more spacious environment to begin our life as a married couple. We contemplated our options and ultimately decided to ...
Over the past 3+ years, I’ve fought to protect Summit from unchecked development while working to expand affordable housing the right way—with transparency, planning, and community input.When we elect candidates who cater to developers and special interests, we risk losing control over our ...
Walkability is one of the top reasons people love Summit. Yet, when I’m talking with neighbors about their hopes and worries for Summit, pedestrian safety is often raised as a top concern. We need to make smart investments in pedestrian safety to protect our community. Smart problem-solving starts ...
Bottom line up front - the affordable housing plan created by the Summit Planning Board puts our community at risk of losing control over our development destiny. In addition, the Planning Board is inviting overdevelopment on its watch. The ProcessBack in October 2024, the New Jersey Department of ...
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/bb8tsg6wKNI
On this Flag Day, I was deeply moved by our Council President’s speech about the history and symbolism of the American flag. Recalling September 11th, his voice trembled with emotion as he described the surge of patriotism that united us—not by party or politics, but by shared purpose and pride in ...
To have a productive community discussion on tough issues like land development and affordable housing law, we need to be open and honest. Councilwoman Hamlet did not share a piece of really important information in her recent statements about affordable housing published on June 6, 2025. I believe ...