GREENE – Four candidates running for two boards faced a near-vacant room at the recent Candidates Night.
Selectman Kevin Mower sat opposite challenger Sheldon Bubier as the two voiced their opinions on where the Board of Selectmen should focus its attention in the future.
Bubier said change needs to be made and that the current system is not working in the town’s favor. “We need to focus more on lowering taxes,” he said. “We have become dependent on property taxes.” He believes a stricter user-fee system would help reduce the tax burden.
Bubier said also that the board has become stagnant and that the Planning Board and townspeople need to address business growth in a different light if the town wants to attract more commerce.
Mower, a selectman since 1986, said the board is very active and has a strong chemistry with the community.
“Since I’ve started, we have capped our landfill, got cable TV, went from three to five board members and started up many committees,” Mower said. “There has been a big change and we will continue to see a change. Our comprehensive plan allows the people in this town to control town growth. I don’t think we are a stagnant board by any means. I think we have learned and are progressing towards tomorrow with renewed energy.”
Looking to fill a three-year seat on the SAD 52 school board, sisters-in-law Barbara Dupuis and Deborah Dupuis are going head to head on the ballot in hopes of raising awareness of community schools and taking some importance off standardized tests.
“Standardized testing is not the only way to measure achievement,” Deborah Dupuis said. She hopes to highlight ways to make the community see that a school and its students can be evaluated by different practices.
Barbara Dupuis is hoping that by having both her and her sister-in-law run for the position, it will raise awareness of the need to have the community involved in town government. Like her sister-in-law, she has a vested interest in the school’s direction. Both have children enrolled in local schools.
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