A former State College Borough Council member will be seeking a return to office in this year’s election.
Evan Myers, a Democrat who served two terms on council from 2014-21, said on Wednesday that he plans to run for a new four-year term as councilman in 2023. He was term-limited in 2021, but is able to run for council again this year after the mandatory two-year waiting period prescribed in the borough’s charter.
Myers said he is focused on increasing citizen trust and input, which he called “the lifeblood of democracy.”
“I want to build on the accomplishments of my time in office and there is more work to do,” Myers said. “Progress has been made on gaining citizen participation by enacting proposals I have made, but we need to go further”.
Myers vowed to bring stability to council and to continue efforts to build an inclusive community that brings together all segments, from neighborhoods and homeowners to downtown residents and businesses to Penn State and its students. He cited his efforts encouraging Penn State to establish a liaison to council, and noted he has worked on legislation in State College for fair and affordable housing, racial equity and justice, immigrants’ rights and the rights of the LGBTQ+ community,
“I stand on my record, but with a full realization and understanding that the past is not the present and it certainly is not the future,” Myers said. “We as a community need to build on the gains we have made.”
Better solutions for parking, establishing an extensive bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure and addressing “a growing crisis around the need for inclusionary and affordable housing,” are among his priorities.
“There are important issues that need to be addressed forthrightly and urgently, such as our shrinking tax base, pressure on homeowners and a thorough review of zoning codes, covering everything from building size and height to the impact of development on density and safety,” Myers said.
He added that he supports “strong and sustainable neighborhoods, more citizen and community input in planning and development, an active and attractive downtown and a functional working relationship” with Penn State as an institution and with the university’s tens of thousands of students.
“State College has a strong future, if we work together,” he said.
A Centre Region resident for more than 50 years, Myers is senior vice president at AccuWeather. In addition to his two previous terms on council, which included a term as council president, he has served as chair of the State College Planning Commission, a member of the Consolidation Study Commission and the Downtown Vision and Strategic Plan Committee and chair of the Centre Region Council of Governments Finance Committee. He also is a past president and past board member of Congregation Brit Shalom in State College.
Five State College Borough Council seats are up for election in 2023. They are currently held by Jesse Barlow, Deanna Behring, Janet Engeman, Nalini Krishnankutty and Peter Marshall. Barlow, the current council president, and Engeman are both reaching the end of consecutive four year terms and will not be eligible to run for council this year. Behring, Krishnankutty and Marshall have not yet announced if they intend to run.
Primary Election Day is May 16, and the first day to circulate and file nomination petitions is Feb. 14.
