SARANAC LAKE — The Enterprise will host a debate between the three candidates vying for two seats on the Saranac Lake Village Board of Trustees.

The event will take place Tuesday from 5 to 6 p.m. in the auditorium of the Harrietstown Town Hall, 39 Main St. All three candidates have agreed to take part: Fred Balzac, Tom Catillaz and Rich Shapiro.

The election is Wednesday, March 18, with polls open from noon to 9 p.m. at the town hall downstairs. To vote, one must be a village resident and be registered to vote with New York state. The board terms are for four years.

Shapiro, a Democrat, is seeking a second term on the board, having been elected in 2016. He and his wife, Franklin County Legislator Lindy Ellis, own a bicycle business, Gear-to-Go Tandems. The pinnacle of their local volunteer efforts is that they led a project to build a skateboard park, which has proven to be popular among local young people.

Catillaz, also a Democrat, has served on the village board on and off for 18 years, seven of them as mayor. He opted not to run for reelection in 2018, but after Trustee Paul Van Cott stepped down from his position in December 2019, Mayor Clyde Rabideau appointed Catillaz to fill that vacancy. At the time Catillaz said he didn’t intend to run for election, but he changed his mind — he said he enjoys working on the board again. He is a manager for Hyde Fuel and this year was honored as grand marshal of the Winter Carnival parade.

Balzac, a freelance writer and publicist, is running on the Green Party line. He has lived in the North Country since 1993, and he and his wife Kathy Recchia owned a bed and breakfast in Jay for more than two decades before moving to Saranac Lake in 2018. This is his seventh time running for local office, but he has never been elected. He ran four times for Jay Town Council, plus once for Jay town supervisor and most recently for North Elba town supervisor last year.

No Republicans or independents are running this year; none ran in the village election two years ago, either. All five current village board members are Democrats. Throughout the North Country region, however, Republicans hold a majority of registered voters.

Shapiro and Catillaz have told the Enterprise that facilitating new businesses in Saranac Lake is a main goal of theirs. Balzac said his main concerns are affordable housing, environmental protection and a sustainable economy.