Retired resident David Wilson, currently serving as school board president and seeking reelection to the school board, also is running for the borough assembly. He is running for a one-year term, competing against incumbents Phillip Mach and Brittani Robbins in the three-person race on the Oct. 7 municipal election ballot.

Wilson said he is running for assembly to focus the borough’s attention on core issues he believes are critical to long-term stability and growth, with education at the top of the list.

“We’ve been dropping and failing, and it’s getting less and less emphasis,” he said of the declining local population. “We need to put more emphasis on education and jobs, because that will help grow our community. It will bring people in if they’ve got something to come here for.”

Wilson said several pressing questions need clear direction from the assembly, including what to do with the 6-Mile property and how the borough should plan for growth in the next few years. The assembly is considering moving the town’s barge landing to the borough-owned property.

He said education ties into those plans for growth.

“For me, developing our education to higher levels than what we have right now is one of the biggest things we need to stand behind. … If we don’t protect and continue to educate our children, then we’re going to be losing the future.”

Wilson said he would prioritize education funding if the assembly faces spending cuts. While he agreed that all borough services matter, he argued that a community’s future depends on strong schools.

“I agree … that everything is important. We need to have it all working together, but I think that if we don’t protect and continue to educate our children, then we’re going to be losing the future,” he said. “It’s not going to matter how well we oil it right now if it’s going to be less in the future and the engine is going to seize up.”

He also pointed to the marine sector as an economic engine worth further investment. He said the community benefited when it “put something into our marine industry” with the Marine Service Center, and that the same approach could help attract more cruise traffic.

Wilson said he supports efforts to bring in more cruise ships, particularly smaller lines. “We have to make it easier for these cruise lines and more accommodating … especially smaller cruise lines.” The borough is working to see if it can strike a deal with American Cruise Lines, which wants a new downtown dock to accommodate its ships’ overnight stays.

If elected, he said he would bring time and focus to the job. As a retiree, he is prepared to balance assembly service with his ongoing school board duties by setting a daily schedule devoted to reading, research and outreach.

“I’m retired, so I’ve got lots of time to study and to read,” Wilson said. “I’m good at researching things out. I’m good at learning as much as I can. I would be putting time in every day … to study out the issues, learning what I can do.”

He also plans to seek input from residents and subject-matter experts.

“I don’t mind going and bending other people’s ears,” he said. “I’ll be going out and asking, ‘What can I do?’”