Meet Newtown Candidate: Christina Roberts Lightcap

Name:  Christina Roberts Lightcap

Municipality: Newtown Township

Party: Republican

Running For (include district/ward if applicable): Board of Supervisors

Positions Held Previously/Years in Office: Member of Newtown Township Planning Commission

What are the larger issues facing the township and how would you like to see them resolved?

Future development and how it impacts the community. Newtown Township’s future is being decided right now and it needs to be guided by the citizens of Newtown to reflect what its citizens want it to be—not guided by developers. My experiences enable me to be the citizen’s advocate for responsible development of Newtown with proper planning, traffic and congestion controlling measures and infrastructure development that makes sense for everyone in Newtown, not just developers. 

Open space is also a huge issue facing the township and we need serious discussion and a shared understanding about how to address this, including understanding the costs and benefits of preserving open space in Newtown. My opponents’ advocacy for open space lacks any substantive understanding of the costs of preserving and/or acquiring open space, and I promise to ensure that all issues about open space are discussed in an open and collaborative manner.

Finally, infrastructure is a large issue, particularly completing the 537 plan that provides public sewers to parts of the township still not connected. The Act 537, enacted by the Pennsylvania Legislature in 1966, requires that every municipality in the state develop and maintain an up-to-date sewage facilities plan for public sewer for the entire township.

Would you welcome more transparency with the taxpayers? How could you make that possible?

I welcome significantly more transparency with the taxpayers. Transparency happens through communication and inclusion, and not rushing to approve projects and plans without ensuring that all interested voices in our community are heard. I support televising Newtown Board of Supervisors meetings on our local cable TV, and I believe more information should be shared with the community, on a more frequent basis, to ensure that the citizens of Newtown are an integral part of what the board of supervisors does.

If elected, what changes would you like to see in the township or what is working well and you'd like to continue?

I’d like to see better communication between residents, businesses and township government. One issue that has been rather divisive was the CR zoning plan that the board of supervisors rightly rejected earlier this year. There is a feeling among some residents that this zoning change was rushed through without giving residents an opportunity to fully digest its impact and express our opinions.

We also need to update Newtown Township’s Comprehensive Plan in as inclusive a manner as possible, including meeting with residents in their neighborhoods to discuss what is going on in the township and to hear their concerns.

Why should residents give you their vote?  

Extensive real estate development experience, working relationships with state government agencies. Understand complexities of development and the impact it has on traffic, infrastructure.

My husband Stephen and I have lived in Newtown Township for 17 years and we have three sons, John a sophomore at Marple Newtown High School and Will and Sam fourth graders at Culbertson Elementary. My children are one of the reasons I have decided to run for the board of supervisors. I want them to proud of the town that they live in and I want them to remain here in the future. The future is why I believe that my great depth of experience in development, real estate and governmental procedures makes me the right candidate for Newtown’s future. 

As the Senior Vice President for Tower Investments, one of region’s most accomplished and respected urban real estate development firms, I have been responsible for developing, coordinating, and implementing many of Tower’s most complex initiatives in the city of Philadelphia, including the development of the acclaimed Piazza at Schmidt’s and Tower’s proposed $700 million Provence Resort and Casino on the site of the former Inquirer building, among others. My development focus is in urban redevelopment and brownfields development, NOT open space development, and I value the quality of life that open space brings to Newtown Township’s character and personality.

I also have extensive experience working with with PennDOT, which is helpful in dealing with projects like the Gradyville Road bridge project. In my role with Tower Investments, I have become expert in issues of codes, permits, environmental compliance, stormwater management, taxes and so much more that will be of great benefit to Newtown Township.

Additionally, one of my most important roles at Tower Investments is to create and nurture lasting partnerships and ensure communication among municipal officials and local neighborhoods. If elected as township supervisor, I will ensure that this communication is key during my tenure on the board.

I currently serve our township as a member of the Newtown Township Planning Commission. In this position I have carried out my duties faithfully and always with the best interests of our community at heart. I believe in the very essence of public service, that our elected officials are elected by us to serve, not be rewarded with perks that might come with the position, because of this, as I have previously stated, I will not be participating in the township health benefits program.

Lastly, because of this belief and my knowledge and experience as a member of the planning commission—combined with my vast experience in development and real estate along with my strong desire to protect and preserve our great quality of life here in Newtown Township—I believe I am the best candidate for Newtown Township Supervisor.