MEXICO – Incumbent Selectman Louise S. Waterhouse is being challenged by former Selectman Ernest A. Robichaud for a three-year term on the board.

Robichaud, 75, served two terms on the Board of Selectmen in the mid-1980s. He currently serves on the Planning Board, the River Valley Growth Council and the Mexico Water District. He is a self-employed, semi-retired property owner/manager.

He said the town is experiencing some exciting times right now, particularly with the influx of new businesses to the region and the new opportunities he believes will follow.

“I’d like to be involved, to see proper growth. I don’t want the town’s services to be overburdened. Whatever comes in must justify the cost to the town,” he said. “I support what’s happened so far.”

Robichaud said he is a firm believer in regionalism and supports the town manager in his municipal and regionwide economic efforts. He also supports looking into joining with other towns for the purchase of supplies used by all towns, and said he believes many services could be eliminated through mergers.

In the long-term, he believes area people should think about consolidating several of the towns of the River Valley into one town with one town manager, one police department, one code enforcement officer and one fire department. This, he said, could eliminate the duplication of services and potentially reduce operational costs.

“If the area can work together as a school district, why not as a town?” he said.

Robichaud graduated from Stephens High School. He and his wife, Edith, are the parents of three children, the grandparents of five and the great-grandparents of five.

Waterhouse, 60, is seeking her fourth, three-year term on the board. She is a member of the Eagles Club and the Sons of Italy and a former member of the Mexico Taxpayers Association. She is retired from the Department of Human Services, Division of Public Health Nursing.

She strongly supports the economic and municipal successes Town Manager Joseph Derouche has achieved, she said, but her greatest concern is the management of the town now that he has a debilitating illness.

“He’s given 100 percent. I feel it is unfair for us to rely so heavily on Joe. It’s unfair to the town and it’s unfair to him,” she said. “We should give the man a break. He’s got to be under a lot of pressure.”

She said the board should look into alternative ways or a reorganization of the town’s administration. “The development of the town is moving rapidly, so much needs to be done,” she said.

She said she supports regionalization of the three area school districts as a way to cut costs, but she does not favor combining towns. She does support combining purchase needs of the towns, but does not favor police coverage by the county because she believes it would be too expensive. She said would consider merging the Mexico Police Department with the Dixfield department.

Waterhouse said she wants to stay involved in the town’s development. She said businesses have moved in and the appearance of the town has improved.

She graduated from Stephens High School in 1961 and is the mother of three adult children and the grandmother of six.