MEXICO — Four men are vying for two seats on the Board of Selectmen.

Voters go to the polls on June 8.

Albert Aniel, 62, of Backkingdom Road, is making a first-time bid for elective office. He is a member of the Planning Board and a past Budget Committee and SAD 43 member. He maintained a private medical practice until 2006 when he joined River Valley Internal Medicine.

“I care about this area and believe the taxpayers are being abused by some decisions made by the town government, and I hate injustice,” he said. “For example, the $400,000 Community Development Block Grant. Why would Mexico ever consider co-signing a loan for Rumford? We don’t have to pay it back because we’re poor.”

He said the budget continually increases with no effort to restrain spending.

“The Budget Committee recommends less raises and increases, and the selectmen usually ignore the recommendations and go with the manager’s recommendation. The Budget Committee is just for show,” he said.

He believes job descriptions should be developed for each municipal position so people would be accountable for their actions. He said some department heads do not report monthly at selectmen’s meetings.

“I just love this place. The people are very kind and very honest. I have felt acceptance,” he said.

Reginald Arsenault, 57, of Meadow Street, is seeking a three-year term on the board. He is completing a term begun by former Selectman Arthur Bordeau, and also served as a selectman 2001-2007. He is a member of the Planning Board, Northern Oxford Solid Waste Board, Med-Care Ambulance Service and sits on the Post Polio Support Group Board of Directors. He is also on the Fast Start board, which aims to improve the economy. He is a former bus driver/custodian for Peru Elementary.

“I like serving as a selectman. I have the experience and knowledge to serve as a selectman,” he said. “We’re doing major road construction. I want to stay with that. We need to keep up the roads to get economic development.”

He said Mexico’s signing for the CDBG grant showed that it was the only town that had foresight in the area.

“If people had stayed on board instead of being so negative, especially Rumford, the tech center would have got off the ground and businesses and jobs would have come to the area. It was the right thing to do at the time,” he said.

He said being aware of what’s out there, such as updating the comprehensive plan, working with AVCOG (Androscoggin Valley Council of Governments) and maintaining a positive image will help the local economy.

He said up to 73 percent of residents support the town budgets and surveys show that they want to maintain the current services.

“We have no control over the school budget or Oxford county taxes. I feel people are getting their money’s worth,” he said.

George Byam, 72, of Swett Avenue, is seeking a second three-year term. He finished a term begun by Monique Aniel. He is on the Board of Directors for the local food pantry and serves as a trustee for the Mexico Congregational Church. He drives bus for the HOPE Association and is a retired small business manager/owner, salesman, truck driver, and truck driving instructor.

“I want to fulfill my commitment to giving back to the town. We run well and the town manager has very sound principles. When I started on the board, we had a negative surplus. Now, we have between $300,000 and $500,000 to pay our bills until taxes come in,” he said.

He said surveys show that people want the current services.

“We’re entrusted with providing these services. We try to run these as efficiently and as prudently as possible and I believe the town has material assets and employee assets,” he said. “The employees are knowledgeable and dedicated and are something you can’t replace. We have no overstaffing. It’s been cut before,” he said.

He said this year’s municipal budget is lower than last year’s.

“You can’t run a town by continually cutting the budget. Continued cutting of the budget several years ago led to a negative surplus and the town had no money to operate. Taxes went down last year. The budget is lower and providing the same services,” he said.

Byron Ouellette, 62, of Highland Terrace, is making a second bid for a seat on the board. He sits on the Budget committee, the Water District Board of Trustees, and is a past Planning Board member. He is a 29-year owner of a small business, and a former police officer and past Lions Club member.

“I want to see the town prosper. I’ve seen so many ups and downs. I attribute that to poor management. It’s hard to get a consistent bunch of selectmen to look at the town first. Selectmen need to be the leaders. Mexico has had one of the highest tax rates. I attribute that to living next to a wealthy town,” he said.

He said Rumford and Dixfield have trimmed their budgets, but not Mexico.

“We keep spending and spending,” he said.

As a selectman, he said he’d have better access to information so that he could cut back on some expenses or employee hours when necessary.

“I have a lot of experience. I understand budgets and money and that we need reserve accounts. The money wasn’t set aside because it was spent on other things,” he said.

He also takes issue with the surveys asking residents their opinions on municipal services.

“They were too general. Voters expect selectmen to be conservative, but that’s not happening,” he said, citing the purchase of a pickup truck for the Police Department rather than a cruiser, and the use of a public works pickup truck by the town’s code enforcement officer.

All four believe some kind of regionalization or sharing of services could benefit the town if a plan shows costs savings. Ouellette believes working more with Dixfield and/or Peru might be a good first step. Byam said sharing services or regionalizing could be good, provided individual towns realize that once a quasi-municipal board is set up, towns don’t have as much say. Arsenault has participated in many regional meetings that have most often gone nowhere. He said he’d continue to work toward regionalizing as long as the other towns are serious about it. Aniel believes Mexico has more in common with Dixfield and Peru, and he is leery of Rumford because of the mill.

Residents will cast their ballots for two seats on the board from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. June 8 at the Mexico Town Hall.

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