Four Republican Candidates Vie for Three Open Seats on Plum Borough Council

Four newcomers to the political arena will seek their party’s nomination for three open seats on the Plum Borough Council during this Tuesday’s primary.  The Republican candidates, vying against six other candidates, are: John Anderson, Paul DeSabato, Christopher Kozub and Christopher Zozula.

John Anderson

John Anderson, 45, has been living in Plum Borough for more than 15 years, and he believes that his experience in corporate finance will enable him to take a business approach to matters and be fiscally responsible as a member of the Plum Borough Council.

“Large and small companies alike are being asked to look closely at how they conduct their business in an age of financial constraints while remaining competitive; that same is true with local governments,” Anderson said.  “We need to be sure we think through implications as we make decisions that impact the community we live in.”

Anderson believes that for Plum to prosper, the council members need to “carefully plan and deliver projects and services while minimizing their burden on the taxpayers.”

“The residents of Plum desire to make our community a better place to live and raise our families.  I also believe that every person can make a difference in their job, school, church or community if they get involved, so I have made the decision to get involved,” he added.

Some of the major issues that Anderson sees as obstacles for the board include economic growth and controlling residential taxes, two factors that he believes go hand-in-hand.

“If we can attract new businesses to the community we can use the revenue that they would pay to offset potential tax increases, and we need to find innovative ways to do this. I also believe that we can be more efficient with the money we have and the projects that we choose to do.”

While the political arena is new to Anderson, community work is not.  Anderson has been both a youth soccer and a girls softball coach in Plum for the past five years.

Anderson lives in Plum with his wife Melissa, and their two children, Alexis, 9, and Connor, 5.

Paul DeSabato

After serving on the Plum Borough Planning Committee for a number of years, making the decision to run for Plum Borough Council was a natural transition for Paul DeSabato, 45.

“Being part of the Plum Borough Council would allow me to get more involved in the community and help the community grow,” DeSabato said.

The owner of two cosmetology schools, DeSabato has been self-employed since the late-1990s and feels that his “wide breadth of knowledge” comes from his life experiences and his basic understanding of key elements like real estate, government, business and budgets.  He hopes that all of this, coupled with his educational background in management and finance, makes him a viable candidate for Plum Council.

He is also ready to tackle the issues that face the council.

“I think a lot of the issues revolve around public safety and community growth.  It’s about handling tax money to provide services and prosper.  The growth comes with how you provide the services,” DeSabato said.

DeSabato can often be seen in the community as an active volunteer in the Plum soccer program, as well as many other church and charity events, like the Children’s Miracle Network.

He lives in Plum with his wife Paula, and their two children, Michael and Benjamin.

Christopher Zozula

The youngest of the Republican candidates, 28-year-old Christopher Zozula has been living in Plum Borough for the past two years with his wife, Camille.  The couple chose Plum to make their home because they saw the borough as a great place to raise a family—and that is also one of the reasons why Zozula decided to run for Plum Borough Council.

“I am running for council to promote a family-friendly, safe community while also doing what we can to encourage businesses to move in and stay in the borough,” Zozula said.

Zozula currently serves on the Plum Chamber of Commerce board, where he said he has become an advocate for the potential that the borough has to offer both businesses and families. He believes his “pragmatic approach to long-term objectives” that he uses on a day-to-day basis with his clients as a financial associate will also be a valuable asset to the council.

In terms of major issues facing the council, Zozula feels that in today’s economy being able to “hold the line on taxes” is going to need to be one of the council’s top priorities.

“This will take continuous review of the borough’s expenses to expose areas where money could be saved as well as expanding our tax base by encouraging businesses to open and stay in Plum. There are a number of opportunities, two of which being the possibility of a shopping center and Marcellus shale, that can be explored in a responsible manner so that all Plum residents would benefit,” Zozula said.

As an active member of the Plum Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, Zozula serves as a voting board member and recording secretary for the chamber and he chaired its inaugural golf outing last year.

Christopher Kozub

Thirty-six-year-old Christopher Kozub, of Unity, is another Republican-hopeful for one of the three seats on Plum Borough Council. With key objectives like low taxes, strict fiscal discipline and economic development, Kozub hopes to assist the other council members in meeting these goals.

With a degree in computer information systems with a focus on management, Kozub is currently a network engineer at CONSOL Energy, Inc.

Kozub is active in the community, especially at St. John the Baptist Church in Plum where he is a lector, Eucharistic minister and CCD teacher. He has also coached Little League in Baldwin Borough.

Kozub lives with his wife Rebekah and their two children, Nicholas and Madalyn.