Last year, a Binghamton University sophomore announced his campaign to run for City Council. Now, Conrad Taylor is over a month into his term and is already making strides to change the city.
Taylor, a sophomore majoring in political science, was elected to Binghamton City Council’s fourth district seat as a Democrat. The area encompasses the North Side of Binghamton as well as Downtown neighborhoods, and is one of seven districts on the council.
Taylor ran on a campaign focusing on fixing blighted housing Downtown, code enforcement on the North Side and the development of buildings Downtown. One thing that wasn’t on Taylor’s radar but emerged at the start of his term is the lack of North Side street repair. According to him, in the past three years, only two streets on the North Side have been repaired with government money, while over 150 have been repaired in other parts of the city.
Taylor’s immediate desire to help the city sets him apart, according to seventh district Democratic City Council representative Bill Berg. He said that he mentored Taylor, and that he thinks he will be successful going forward.
“I do believe once he gets his feet firmly set on the ground, he’s a person who will make his own decisions based on what is best for his district and what he believes in,” Berg said.
Taylor has already begun working with the code department at City Hall, addressing four code concerns for houses on the North Side. He has also advocated for money for the demolition of seven run-down houses, and is now turning his attention to fixing up the parking garages Downtown.
The legislation that is needed for Taylor to get these projects started is new to him, but he says he has picked it up quickly and it is not something he thinks sets him back.
“I think that there’s definitely a learning curve; I am new, I’m not going to hide from that,” Taylor said. “But I think that it’s sort of the fact that I’m so passionate about doing this job, that I’m so excited to do this job, that that doesn’t really matter because I’m still going to do the same job as someone who might have known a little more about the process going in.”
Taylor’s age played a factor in negative rhetoric surrounding his campaign, and he is currently 19 years old. However, Taylor says that he is proud of how young he is, and that it gives him an advantage as an enthusiastic councilman.
“I think that I really showed that as long as you’re running for the right reasons, and as long as you’re passionate about making a difference, your age doesn’t matter,” Taylor said. “I’m fighting just as hard, if not harder, than anyone else for the people of my district.”
Giovanni Scaringi, a fourth-year Ph.D. candidate studying political economy, serves as a Republican representing the first district. He said he was aware there were initial concerns regarding Taylor, but that his win proves his qualification.
“There are different residents who view things in their own respective ways, which of course they have the right to,” Scaringi said. “But I think that at the end of the day, if a person wants to do good and they have the support of the people, then they obviously should be given the opportunity to do that.”
According to his campaign manager Harris Weiss, a senior majoring in political science, Taylor’s unique perspective as a student will allow him to help in moving the city forward.
“I believe his future is bright,” Weiss said. “I just hope he is able to bring a new voice, a student voice, to the issues and topics that the city deals with. I hope to see Binghamton University play a big role in the revitalization of Binghamton, and I believe it will be Conrad leading that charge.”
The story formerly stated that Taylor secured money, not advocated for it, for the demolitions of seven houses and that only two roads had been repaired in his district, not on the North Side, in the past three years. Pipe Dream regrets the error.