CONSHOHOCKEN, Pa., Jan. 30, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ — Conshohocken Mayor Yaniv Aronson is proud of what has been accomplished since he took office in 2018 and excited about the opportunities that lie ahead. «Conshohocken is energetic, vibrant and evolving,» Aronson said. «My role has been to help ensure that nobody is left behind and that all residents feel heard and represented.»
Aronson is a public-school teacher and Instructor at the Montgomery County Community College, a calling that he believes helps in his duties as an elected official.
«Being an effective mayor requires working collaboratively with council and borough staff, much as I have to do in a school setting. Nothing happens in a vacuum,» added Aronson. «I have a strong relationship with our council members, borough administration and our emergency services, and those discussions have yielded real results for residents.»
In his initial run for mayor, Aronson highlighted safety as a major area of focus. «Safety is my top priority,» he shared. «I wanted to help bring major changes to Conshohocken and I believe those have happened on a number of fronts. Working with the state, PennDOT and using resources within the borough, we have new traffic lights and pedestrian crossings at 1st, 3rd, 9th and 11th Avenues along Fayette, the West 6th Avenue stop sign was made permanent, and the 300 and 400 blocks of West 6th were narrowed and realigned with new road markings. Additionally, new lighted pedestrian signal crossings are coming at 4th and 7th Avenues along Fayette.»
The county and SEPTA have also been a source of major pedestrian improvements within the borough. «We have seen safety upgrades along the trail with new signage, paving, line-painting and lighting at road crossings. The crossings along SEPTA’s tracks were also painted bright yellow for increased visibility. The Schuylkill River Trail is of particular importance to me. It is where I met my wife, Sarah, and I even proposed to her there!»
Aronson hopes to bring more pedestrian safety improvements to Conshohocken, whether through borough services, the county or the state.
As a major second priority, Aronson has worked to bring a spirit of service and volunteerism to Conshohocken. «I decided to run for mayor three years ago because I was involved with our local nonprofits,» he said. «I wanted to do more for the community and on a larger scale.»
In 2019, Yaniv and Sarah started Destination Conshohocken, a 501(c)(3) dedicated to local causes. «We have a wonderful team of volunteers who have helped us provide everything from the Annual Conshohocken Arts Festival and Car Show, clothing and food drives, as well as virtual events during the pandemic for the community.»
Providing mental health resources for residents has also been a major initiative. Sarah Aronson organizes yearly panel discussions for suicide awareness and prevention. The first included members of the business community, the Conshohocken Police Force, local teachers and experts in the field. Sarah also provides quarterly suicide loss survivor support groups and QPR suicide prevention trainings, while working with local organizations such as the Peyton Heart Project and the Montgomery County Suicide Prevention Taskforce to help include as many residents as possible. «The idea is to make suicide a subject that we can talk about as friends and neighbors, and I believe Conshohocken is now a regional and county leader for these conversations and related programming,» said Sarah Aronson.
The environment has been another area of tremendous progress thanks to collaboration with borough council, residents and borough administration. «We now have full-sized recycling bins which helps encourage the community to recycle. We updated our recycling graphic to make it easier to read and the Shade Tree Team planted more than 40 trees in 2019, with plans for more in 2020 before the pandemic hit,» added Yaniv Aronson.
Additionally, the borough runs classes about the lanternfly invasion and provides resources for helping residents manage these pests. Perhaps the most important development of all is the passage of the «Ready for 100%» resolution by council, setting Conshohocken on a path toward energy sustainability by 2035.» Again, we see Conshohocken as a leader in this critical work. I hope to continue working on environmental issues, and solutions, for residents.»
Most recently, Aronson started the «Conshy Strong» initiative during the COVID-19 pandemic to help bring together the community, residents, businesses and nonprofits, as well as support Conshohocken’s local food pantry, Colonial Neighborhood Council.
«The last three years have been a true honor,» he said. «I love being able to serve my community both as a teacher and as mayor. The quarantine has been one of the hardest times I have experienced professionally and in my personal life. Helping us to manage the pandemic and then recover even stronger will be the biggest challenge of 2021 and beyond.»
Media Contact
Sarah Aronson, Friends of Yaniv Aronson, +1 (484) 532-8144, aronsonformayor@gmail.com
SOURCE Friends of Yaniv Aronson
