HONESDALE BOROUGH, PA — Honesdale Borough Council candidates shared their positions at a candidate evening hosted by the River Reporter, talking about the borough’s issues and their own priorities.
Four four-year seats are available on borough council: incumbents Jim Hamill, William McAllister, Kim Fisch, Jason Newbon and James Cordaro, as well as newcomer Joesph Mele, are vying for those seats. One two-year seat is available, with Patrick Resti and Larissa Ann Llewellyn competing for those seats.
For the full recording from the event, visit https://bit.ly/RR-2025-Honesdale-election-discussion. Newbon did not participate.
Joseph Mele said he wanted to “discuss certain things that I’ve found out just walking around the neighborhood, meeting people, saying hello.”
Mele said he noticed a lot of appliances left in people’s yards, causing an eyesore, especially at the homes of elderly people living on a fixed income; he asked if the borough could do something to assist them with proper disposal. Another eyesore was trash behind Main Street businesses; he said fines should be levied against people who don’t dispose of their trash.
Traffic safety was important, he said; people speed on Ridge Street, and “Main Street is, you take your car and life in your hands trying to cross it” during rush hours. He recommended better signage, with more words and fewer symbols.
Larissa Llewellyn said her background is predominantly in the construction industry, where she currently serves as the safety director at Pioneer and ROW Resources.
“My intention for Honesdale is to put safety first,” Llewellyn said. She said the borough has issues with its streets and crossings and with ponding water, especially with the winter coming.
“I feel like safety is our number one issue in Honesdale and something needs to be done,” she said. She floated the idea of Main Street having stop signs, like Scranton does—”something to just slow traffic down.”
William McAllister said he hoped to be able to continue some of the work he’s done on the financial situation of the borough.
The borough’s financial challenges have meant it raised taxes two years in a row, while also considering an earned income tax, he said. The borough is working with consultants to study its operations, and is working to secure funding for some of its bigger projects, but challenges remain.
Fixes to safety issues such as street safety and flooding require money, he said. “We are making honest efforts to minimize the cost to the citizens [and] at the same time maximize the benefit of what we fix or what we repair,” said McAllister.
“I think we’re all here because we love Honesdale. We want to see it grow; we want to see it progress,” said Kim Fisch.
Fisch said she has been a part of the Greater Honesdale Partnership since 2016, and has enjoyed the ability it gives her to make a difference, and hopes to be able to make a difference on borough council as well.
Fisch said she brings a “grounded, result-oriented mindset” and works well with others even if they don’t see eye to eye.
“I’m not just here to maintain the status quo; I’m here to look ahead,” said Fisch. She highlighted the work that has already been done to improve the design and aesthetics of Main Street, updating it for businesses and the community.
Patrick Resti said that he had decided to run for council for a couple of reasons, infrastructure primary among them.
Resti said he worked for Leeward Construction for 20 years, doing a lot of storm drain work and roadway work—”I was actually responsible for the one-way traffic. Don’t hold that against me. It wasn’t my idea”—and has 37 years of construction experience all told.
“I worked in every small town between here, Pittsburgh [and] Philadelphia, doing street-scape projects, signal projects, lighting, red lights, green lights, street lighting, buildings and roadways,” Resti said, adding that he thought his knowledge would be very helpful to the borough.
Resti added that his vision is to help create a unified borough council.
James Cordaro identified a couple of priorities for his service on borough council.
The revitalization of downtown Honesdale and supporting businesses is key to keeping the community alive, he said. Infrastructure improvements, such as enhanced walkability, are crucial. Marketing to bring in tourists helps bring money into the borough.
Cordaro highlighted public works as a key issue, including mapping and updating the borough’s stormwater management and creating more efficient traffic flow on Main Street.
Community services and quality of life were important as well, he said. “Honesdale’s identity is tied to its strong sense of community [and] recreational spaces,” he said.
In addition, good governments require good financial management, he said.
James Hamill said he’s running again to serve on the council because “I feel like there’s still a lot to do… we have done so much work over not [just] the past four years but prior years to put in a good foundation for the community that we have.”
Hamill highlighted the mobile stage placed in the park as a community draw, as well as other amenities including the dog park and pool at Apple Grove. He said the town’s participation in the Outdoor Town initiative will solicit input on how to elevate and further market the town’s green spaces and amenities.
Hamill also said that council needs to find ways as leaders to show that they’re neighbors and care about each other. “Criticism does not mean that you dislike somebody or even hate somebody,” he said.
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