Liam Sweeney said Friday that he will not run for reelection in November.

By Ronni Newton

Deputy Mayor Liam Sweeney announced Friday that he will not be running for a fourth term on the West Hartford Town Council.

“It was not an easy decision, but it’s the right decision,” the life-long West Hartford resident told We-Ha.com.

Sweeney, 39, was first elected to the Town Council in 2017. “That was two children ago,” he said.

Sweeney and his wife, Whitney, both have full-time and demanding jobs, and their three children are now 6, 4, and 17 months. Sweeney is a principal in the government relations firm, Penn Lincoln Strategies, and while he said it has been “the absolute pleasure of my life to serve my hometown as deputy mayor and council member,” he wants to be able to focus on his work as well as his family life.

His colleagues elected him as deputy mayor in November 2021, after he received the second-highest vote total in the municipal election.

Liam Sweeney (top left) on his first visit to the teen center. Courtesy photo

“I think the thing that I am most proud of is moving forward with the new community center,” Sweeney said. Early in his Council tenure, he visited the teen center at the current Elmwood Community Center, and was shocked that it was a closet-sized space. Since then, he was hoping to find a solution and when the former St. Brigid School property became available he was a strong advocate for purchasing that property to create the new community and cultural center, which will incorporate a teen center, senior center, and library. The next step in that project will be issuing an RFP for the design work as well as exploring opportunities for grants to help offset the cost.

Supporting the town’s nationally-ranked schools, and smart growth in housing development are also efforts he is very proud of, “especially the affordable housing plan,” Sweeney said. “I’ve been proud to work  alongside Mayor Cantor and my colleagues on the council to accomplish so much and truly establish West Hartford as not just one of the best communities in Connecticut, but in our country.”

“Serving on the Town Council is a significant commitment and Liam has dedicated so much time and energy in his service to the town especially in leadership as deputy mayor,” Cantor said Friday. “It is challenging to balance service with family demands and work and I totally understand and respect Liam’s decision. He is a wonderful, responsive, and extremely devoted public servant and we are all better because of his service.”

As Cantor noted, holding office in a thriving and busy town, and having a growing and busy family creates many challenges. “They are all really good problems to have,” Sweeney said, but he said it is time to step aside and give someone else the opportunity to serve.

Sweeney said he will most miss the opportunity to help people with what may be considered “the little things” but are everyday issues that are important to their lives, like permits or paving.

Deputy Mayor Liam Sweeney visits with Aiken Elementary School students. Courtesy photo

Sweeney said both he and Whitney – a managing director with communications coaching and consulting firm The Latimer Group and past president of the Junior League of Hartford who was one of the co-chairs of the Designer Show House last year – have been extremely active in community activities, but look forward to focusing primarily on their children and jobs.

“We have such a great group of people on the Council, and it’s really hard to walk away,” Sweeney said. But he’s not going far.

“West Hartford has and will continue to be my hometown and where my amazing wife Whitney and I will raise our children. Whether it’s at local basketball games or walking around Morley school we won’t be going far and we will continue to be active members of our community,” he said.

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