City of Montclair Township

What is your age and where were you born?  I am 83. I was born in Payne, Ohio, the first of five children, each of whom was born in a different midwestern town.

When did you move to Montclair and why?  I and my wife — my partner of forty-two years — moved to Montclair in January of 2018, priced out of NYC. We were invited by friends who had bought a home here several years earlier. We visited and loved the town. We now reside in the second floor apartment of our friends’ house.

Are you currently employed?  If so, doing what?  If you had a career, what was it?  I have had a lengthy career in public radio, WBAI and WNYC; public television, WNET-13; and public relations, Public Interest Public Relations (now M. Booth & Associates). I am currently working as producer/writer on two documentary films in association with On the Road Productions, Inc.

How are you currently engaged in the community?  I am a founding member of the newly formed Montclair Housing Action Group, the purpose of which is to focus public awareness on our town’s housing needs — especially in terms of affordability, accessibility, and walkability — and to advocate immediate and long-term remedies.

With the help of experts, we spent months studying the issues affecting housing policies in Montclair, issues including zoning restrictions, municipal decision-making processes, parking space requirements, etc. We learned of housing options such as accessory dwelling units, multiplexes, co-housing, and intentional communities, among others. And were schooled on the principles of “universal design.”

While we place some emphasis on the most at-risk members of our community, seniors who wish to age in place, we are also concerned to protect all persons of all ages from being priced out of their hometown and to protect our ethnic and economic diversity. And while striving to maintain the dominant aesthetic of Montclair, we acknowledged the inevitability of change in its population density and seek a form and scale that accommodates it appropriately and creatively.

In short, we endorse a development strategy that pairs growth and continuity.

What organizations or clubs are you affiliated with or a member of?  I am a member of Aging in Montclair, as is my wife, former Broadway show manager, Leslie Victoria Vega Butler.

What are some of the most important lessons you feel you have learned throughout your life?  Never be afraid to fail at something new: success is always an unexpected surprise.

What is your mantra or words you live by?  Lightning rods are useful as long as they remain well-grounded.

What are your plans for the future? How does Montclair fit into these plans?  I plan to keep at both my creative and political projects as long as health and fate allow, and I plan to “age in place” in Montclair while watching the engaging twins downstairs, Chloe and Connor, grow up, and while cheering my working actor stepdaughter, Yancy Butler, on to new career heights.