Two face off to succeed retiring alderman in Ward 5
Two political newcomers are facing off for the Ward 5 seat on the city’s Common Council.
Madeline R. Hoetger, a registered Democrat, is running on the Republican and Independence Party lines in the upcoming election. Donald Tallerman, a Democrat, is running on the Democratic and Working Families Party lines.
The winner will serve a two-year term beginning Jan. 1, 2020, and succeed Democratic Alderman Bill Carey, who chose not to seek re-election.
Hoetger, 48, is a self-employed memorial maker who also works for Barre Memorials. She received an associate’s degree in 1994 and attended SUNY Albany and Arizona State University.
Hoetger is president of Friends of the Kingston Library and a member of Sacred Heart parish and parent groups in the Kingston school district. She is married to Karl Hoetger and has two children.
Common sense and accountability are her priorities, Hoetger said.
“I am truly committed to keeping Kingston a city that people can work and live in,” she said. “I have lived, worked and raised a family here and want others to be able to do the same. We need good schools, job opportunities and a sense of security.”
Tallerman, 57, is the owner of the Senate Garage, Dragon360 and CoWork Kingston. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Connecticut in 1984.
Tallerman has volunteered for the Local Planning Committee for the city’s Downtown Revitalization Initiative and for its Wayfinding Technical Advi
sory Group. He and his wife, Judy, have two children.
Jobs and housing are his priorities, Tallerman said.
“If we can create more jobs in Kingston and Ulster County, money becomes available for housing, infrastructure and more government
services,” he said.
Tallerman said he believes the area can attract more small businesses that will come here for the same reasons he and his wife did: a better quality of life, a great community, and qualified workers seeking quality jobs.
Tallerman also said the city needs housing of all types, including 1,000 units of affordable “workforce” housing. He said the increased
supply would lower the cost of housing for everyone.
Tallerman said marketrate housing, such as that proposed for The Kingstonian, is necessary for professionals and empty-nesters who want to live in the city’s “dynamic, walkable business districts.”
Voters can cast their ballots at any of the county’s eight early voting sites between
Oct. 26 and Nov. 3. Election Day is Nov. 5.