Queensbury Ward 2: Scott Gushlaw, Kim Bullard vie to finish term of Harrison Freer

By Ben Westcott, Chronicle Staff Writer

Republican Scott Gushlaw, 55, and Democrat Kimberly Bullard, 53, are vying to fill the Queensbury Ward 2 town board seat left vacant by the death of Democrat Harrison Freer. Election Day is Nov. 5.

Mr. Gushlaw moved to Queensbury eight years ago from the Niskayuna/Glenville area. He graduated from Troy High School and earned a bachelors degree in accounting and a masters in taxation from the University at Albany.

Mr. Gushlaw is AngioDynamics’ global tax director, a role he has held for nearly a decade. “I believe my extensive 28 years of tax leadership positions with large companies focused on a proven track record of efficiently and effectively managing departments and reducing spend is my forte,” he said.

As a candidate, Mr. Gushlaw emphasizes “fiscal responsibility” and says the town needs to focus on infrastructure to address issues with roads and flooding, and on retaining young people in Queensbury.

Mrs. Bullard moved to the area as a teenager with her family after growing up in Maine. She graduated from Warrensburg High School. Her three daughters all attended Glens Falls High School (the district extends into Queensbury).

Mrs. Bullard says she was involved in “everything under the sun in the community as far as their PTA, spring fair days or town shows. Anything that they were involved in, so was I.”

Mrs. Bullard owns and operates Legacy Nine Realty, which she founded in 2021. She has been a local real estate broker since 2001. She was the Southern Adirondack REALTORS Association board president in 2019 and currently represents that association on the NYS REALTORS Association board of directors and several committees.

“I think that leading a group of people has taught me to make hard decisions and put the citizens above my own needs,” she said.

Mrs. Bullard says Queensbury needs adequate housing and she emphasizes the importance of keeping watersheds safe, specifically “working on septic plans and really being responsible to our resources.”

On housing, she stressed “looking at the zoning of some of the areas in Queensbury and seeing where we can maybe make things a little bit more accessible to a housing option” and “looking at some of the buildings that we’re not utilizing properly, and maybe reutilizing them to add housing.”

“I think it’s really about starting the conversation with all the players and seeing where we can responsibly put some housing to bring people in, keep them here and keep moving forward,” she said.

Mr. Gushlaw said, “I know from talking to folks out in the business world and on the street that it’s very hard to retain young folks to work in the businesses that we have up here, other than maybe tourist kinds of stuff.

“People leave here, and I don’t know if they really come back to work. I think that’s a big challenge. We’ve got to be mindful of what careers these folks are looking for. And we’ve got to make sure that we can bring businesses and jobs.”

Overall, he said, “Folks out there are living paycheck to paycheck. They’re stressed about the economy and taxes and a lot of things.”

Mr. Gushlaw said he started knocking on doors after Labor Day. “Every day, every night, every weekend, all I do is plan, knock on doors and talk to people, and I’ll continue to do that all the way through Nov. 5,” he said. “I won’t stop. I’m hoping I’m going to hit every door within Ward 2.”

If elected, he said “I’m going to be sincere and transparent, and I will definitely work my butt off and provide what I believe is an asset to the board so we can do the right thing and manage the finances and taxes.”

Mrs. Bullard said, “We’ve been knocking on doors. We’ve been to many neighborhoods and I greatly appreciate everyone’s warm welcome. We’re going to continue to do that.”

If elected, Mrs. Bullard says she would strive to be a good listener and understand her neighbors’ issues and concerns and what they think should be done going forward.

She has served as a Queensbury Planning Board alternate since January.

She said she has been a Realtor Political Action Committee activist for many years, traveling to Washington D.C. and Albany for lobby days.

“I believe in this community,” Mrs. Bullard said. “I’ve spent a lot of time pouring myself into this community.”

Mr. Gushlaw said he volunteers for “a lot of things,” including with the Glens Falls Rotary Club to help with events like the Adirondack Balloon Festival and the Special Olympics.

“I came from a poor background,” Mr. Gushlaw said. “My mother raised me and four other family members by herself. We didn’t have a lot. We knew what we needed to do to work hard to get to where we’re at. I have a lot of compassion for people who are less fortunate, and I see that in some areas of Queensbury.”

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How do the candidates feel about Proposition One, the proposed state constitutional amendment titled the Equal Rights Act, that became a town board topic after Supervisor John Strough proclaimed his support and sought a Town Resolution in favor of Prop One. It lost, 3-1.

Mrs. Bullard says she supports Prop One because she supports equal rights for all. “It’s unfortunate it is being stretched and misinterpreted to scare folks that their lives will negatively be affected,” she said.

Mr. Gushlaw says he supports equal rights for all but that “as written, Prop One is very unclear to me in what it truly represents. When I read it and other literature out there, it is unclear and ambiguous to me and left me with more questions than answers.

“As we get further along down the road, I am hopeful there will be more clarity on Prop One so that I can make an informed and educated decision when it is time for me to vote on November 5.”

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