The most interesting moment of yesterday afternoon’s Candidates forum at The Council on Aging (COA) came not from one of the candidates but from the Town Clerk.
The COA held their 10th annual candidates forum. The candidates for School Committee, Board of Selectmen, Assessor, and Planning Board engaged in their final public forum prior to next Tuesday’s election.
Mary Ann Sullivan, the Director of COA moderated. Each candidate was given the opportunity for a 5 minute opening remark. Remarks were followed by questions from the audience.
First up were the School Committee candidates. There are four candidates vying for two seats. They are: Glenn Pavlicek (the incumbent), Margaret Eberhardt, Denis Keohane, and Murray Regan.
In their opening remarks, the candidates hewed to their respective campaign messages. For Regan and Keohane, it is their experience in business. For Pavlicek and Eberhardt, it is their experience as educators. Pavlicek also cited his experience as a chairman of the Warrant Committee, which provided him an education on the nuts and bolts of the town and its finances.
The candidates were asked by audience members about two key issues: what would they prioritize (i.e. not cut) and what could be done to ensure security in light of recent incidents at the high school where live ammunition was found. The candidates were largely in agreement on both. All would prioritize keeping teachers in front of the students. Regan and Keohane both cited the upcoming teachers’ contracts as an opportunity noting that “money doesn’t grow on trees.” Both emphasized the notion of fairness between the private and public sectors. Regan also questioned the number of administrators earning more than $100K and wondered why that had “bloated” over the last 9 years. Eberhardt would also like to take further loss of programs off the table, and Pavlicek noted that a significant number of costs such as Special Ed are required by law.
Next up were the candidates for Selectman, Kathy Fagan (incumbent) and Bob Sweeney. In her opening remarks, Ms. Fagan referenced the promises she made when she last ran for office. She referenced the bonding of the library, the wind turbine initiative, and instituting bulk purchasing as examples of how she addressed those promises. She said making the decision to go for an override was the most difficult decision she had to make but added that the town would not look the same if it had not passed.
Mr. Sweeney, a lifelong resident, said that he did not seek to run but was encouraged to run and was now committed. He voiced concern about the plight of the taxpayers and noted that the average daily tax for a person with a $500,000 home has gone from $13 a day to $26 a day. He also emphasized that “all public business needs to be discussed publicly.”
The first question they received was with regard to the defeat of the Temple Shalom zoning overlay article. Ms. Fagan supported the article but noted that once Town Meeting voiced itself, it was time to move on. She and Sweeney are in agreement that they do not want the Temple to leave. Sweeney, who voted against it, acknowledged it was a difficult vote. He has family ties to the Campbell School, which is a tenant of the Temple. The candidates were also asked about transparency in town government. Sweeney observed that the Stoughton Committee on which he served was cited “and rightfully so” for violating the open meeting law. He reiterated the need to have all meetings open to avoid the perception that officials are “a bunch of spenders.” Fagan spoke to ongoing efforts to continue to make information more readily and easily available. As an example, she said a committment has been made and a process is being implemented to ensure meeting agendas are published in a timely fashion.
And then the Milton Town Clerk James Mullen asked a question of Ms. Fagan and Ms. Fagan only. The question was: What percentage of the $3.4 million override was attributed to salary increases?
Ms. Fagan spoke to the challenges presented by rising health costs and noted that the present board had realized better savings than previous boards.
Mr. Mullen said that due to his age maybe his hearing wasn’t what it should be, so he asked the question again in his uniquely stentorian fashion. Fagan responded by light-heartedly commenting that she didn’t realize Mullen was running for office.
Fagan did not have the precise answer Mullen was looking for. He then answered his own question: “It was $2.9 out of $3.4 million.” And then he left the room.
Mr. Mullen also used the opportunity to distribute a flyer to a portion of the audience. At the top of the flyer someone wrote, “This bylaw was written by Kathryn A Fagan Selectman.” The bylaw was titled ARTICLE SS and is an amendment to Chapter 6 (Police regulations) of the general bylaws. It concerns the responsibilities of property owners (homeowners, apartment and condo owners, and businesses) with regard to snow removal. Underlined was a portion that says failure to remove snow and ice could be punishable by a fine. It goes on to say that the Selectmen is authorized to exempt citizens from compliance due to age, disability, health or financial circumstances. That part is not underlined. However, this is all moot.
It was an article that was drafted by Fagan and considered by the Board of Selectmen approximately two years ago. However, it never made it out of committee. It never went before town meeting, and it is not a bylaw.
The candidates for Assessor (Kathy Heffernan, Jim Henderson, and Todd Greenwood) largely reiterated the positions they have taken in the previous forums. Heffernan discussed one of the reasons why she initially ran, which was to introduce geographic and gender diversity to the board. Henderson said that, “I believe givers gain. The more you give the more you gain.” And Greenwood restated his platform succinctly: “access, convenience, and transparency.” The tone in general was lighter than the last time these three met. At that time, Henderson and Heffernan both said they felt somewhat “insulted.” Greenwood related a funny anecdote about the perils of campaigning door to door and negotiating with dogs. Henderson acknowledged that listening to an accountant is not exactly a lively way to pass an afternoon. Henderson and Greenwood both repeated a commitment to making the Assessor’s Office more open. Heffernan again noted that she did not accept campaign contributions, because the office “demands fairness and impartiality.”
The Planning Board candidates, Ed Duffy and Cheryl Tougias, also returned to themes they have voiced previously. One question they fielded that is a major issue is the parking situation in East Milton. Tougias noted that the funds are now in place to do a study and that recommendations of what to do will be coming. Duffy is concerned not only with the parking but the traffic congestion that will result from two major construction projects. There is the water main work on Adams Street and the bridge work in Quincy, both of which will affect East Milton and for which Mr. Dufdy noted, “There is no plan in place.”
In another light moment, Mr. Duffy asked Ms. Sullivan when lunch was coming. Watching this final gathering of the candidates, one got the sense that they were comfortable with each other and respected each other. There is just under a week to go.