Town Council Primary Candidates 2026: Austin Nieves

Lifelong Dover resident following a 'call to serve' for the Ward 4 position.

Austin Nieves touts his experience on the Zoning Board as a stepping stone to Town Council. (Photo/Austin Nieves)

1. What led you to run for Council?

It boils down to service. In my household, I was raised to love the Lord and love my neighbor as He loves me. We were taught that serving my neighbors is the best way to honor both of those commands. So I grew up with the deep desire to be of service. Thus I spent most of my life involved in community programs, local volunteering, and good community stewardship.

As I grew, so did my faith, so did the love of my neighbor, and so did my desire to serve them. I spent my 20’s increasing my efforts— first in 2021 when I completed a self-guided fundraiser effort to install THE HUMANRACE exercise park in Crescent Field, to bring easy, tangible access to fitness in the community; and in 2025 when I got involved in the Zoning Board of Adjustments to create impact legislatively. I don’t want to stop there.

Running for town council is maturation in my life’s work to serve others, and the scale to which I can do that. The responsibility of making decisions that impact so many in our community will be placed in the hands of someone who genuinely loves our residents. As a 3rd-generation Dover resident myself, I received love and support from the likes of my father's friends and my grandfather's friends. I want to make sure that the next 3 generations of Dover residents receive that kind of generational support also. Current residents can rest assured that I will be faithful in this pursuit because loving them well also means loving my Lord well, too.

2. What specifically qualifies you to serve your constituents?

First, is that I have lived in Dover all of my life, and my family has been in Dover, in the same house, for over 6 decades. I know this town and its people well, and they know me. Folks want to know that the person that is representing them sees them, hears them, feels them— and that takes time because relationships need to be developed. The fact that I have seen Dover change so much over my 30-year life span, and even grew up hearing stories of old, I can speak specifically to peoples’ experiences across the eras. Because of that, when a change is made people will have faith in the decision, knowing that they were considered and can agree with it. And if they don’t, they can still respect the person who made it.

Second, the last 10 years have been spent putting rubber to the road. I saw a need for access to fitness and health, and responded to the call. As aforementioned, I began a self-starter fundraiser effort to restore the exercise park in Crescent Field. Over the course of a year, I organized various members of the community, local businesses, and local rights/service groups to contribute to the restoration of our exercise park. The effort taught me how to take massive, meaningful action; mobilize our community; and steward funds responsibly; all in the name of a single, unified initiative with the purpose of benefiting our home directly.

Finally, I am the Vice Chairman of the Zoning Board of Adjustments. This experience has allowed me to create change from within, on a municipal and legislative level. I entered this board with the intent of assuring the responsible growth of a town amidst a redevelopment effort- a large issue in town. The ability to make these kinds of decisions on behalf of my constituents as council is a great responsibility, thus working within the inner systems as Zoning Vice Chair has taught me to also steward that responsibility well.

3. What do you think is the most important issue for Fourth Ward residents?

I think that the Fourth Ward is unique in that it is a meeting ground for all of the schools and wards— the middle school is here, where every elementary school joins; high school football games and track events take place at Hamilton Field; and the Dover Dairy Maid, Dover Grill, and Delizia’s are home here. Back then, it was Carmen’s; the 4th of July Fireworks happen here— for generations, families have been coming together in the Fourth Ward. And with that, a special spirit of community has formed and dwelled here too. I, along with many Fourth Ward residents have grown up under that spirit of love, care, and hospitality. We know one another well, and we also know the rest of our community well from gathering with them here.

That said, to me, the most important issue in the Fourth Ward is preservation of that special community spirit. It only lives here because, In my childhood and certainly my father’s childhood, we knew our neighbors well, and so we cared for our neighbors well, and vice versa. In my recent experiences, I have come to wonder how well do we know them now? And how does that effect how we treat one another?

I have learned, in speaking to residents, of some things that tell me we need refamiliarizing. For instance, one neighbor revved their tires in the front yard of another out of spite; in another situation, one resident spilled oil into the drains of another’s business; and some years ago, a hit-and-run occurred on Lincoln Avenue, resulting in the injury of one of ours. I wonder, would we do that if we knew one another better?

Where is that care for each other that I grew up with? That is specific to the Fourth Ward.

I must state clearly, that I am deeply committed to the issues that plague Dover at large— parking, redevelopment, and traffic safety— at the same time, I am especially committed to the Fourth Ward as their representative. And what I have aforementioned are specific concerns of the residents of our ward. In my judgment, they point to a larger concern: our collective care for each other. As a council member for Dover’s Fourth Ward, I have a special interest in keeping our community connected and its spirit alive, so we come back to caring for each other, rather than hurting one another.

4. What do you see your role as a Council member entailing?

I foresee, along with various scheduled meetings, events, and duties beholden to my position, myself diving deeper into my community. I want folks to know me better, and I them. Presence matters.

Thus, I see my role entailing being found hanging out with the Bertas, the Bauns, the Zarates, or any of the families I’ve met and will continue to meet along this process, learning more about our neighbors, friends, and loved ones, so I know how to better serve them.

I will, of course, be busy at town hall advocating on our behalf. Though, to me, the real work is getting to know our folks better so know how to advocate for us effectively. I will know our concerns and our strengths.

Most importantly, folks will know one another. As a councilman, I want to bridge the gap and link together the families I have met, so that we all know one another. This will restore community. Thus, a role I can fulfill is creating more ways for our community to get together.

5. What is the most important trait or skill you will bring to Council?

Over the weekend, I flew to Puerto Rico to lay my grandfather to rest. As I reflected on his life, I thought of how, in the '50s, he moved to Dover. It was here he married my grandmother, bought a home, and started a family. Together, my grandparents raised my father in that home. He eventually married my mother, also a generational Dover resident, and they started a family. My parents raised my brothers and me in that home. I still live in that home. The collection of all of their lives in Dover brought me here. That all

started with my grandfather.

I have to mention that when I answer this, because my most important trait as a council member is that I carry Dover’s long heritage with me. I know Dover across generations, either firsthand or from primary sources, because we have lived here long enough to have been afforded the opportunities to experience those moments or meet those people and their families. There is a deep level of knowing, trust, and familiarity that exists between my neighbors and me that can only be developed with time.

This is important because when other residents see me up on the podium making decisions, they can trust the man who voted. They have known me, of me, or know my family, long before I ever sat in office, or thought about it. My neighbors can place their trust in someone who has known them long before office— and if we are just meeting now, it is in someone who has long cared for families. That is special kind of generational stewardship in our hometown is a unique quality that only I can offer. I thank God for that extra, because it really is special.