GREENE — Residents will choose two selectmen from among five candidates Tuesday in a hotly contested election brought on by dissatisfaction with the current town governance.
Donald Bedford and John Soucy are seeking reelection to the board for their fifth and third terms, respectively. Sheldon Bubier, Robert Hack and Amanda Leclerc are seeking their first term.
Anthony Shostak will challenge incumbent Yuri Kowalski for a seat on the Maine School Administrative District 52 board of directors. Shostak has been a regular attendee at board meetings this year, often speaking during public comment.
Also on the ballot is the revised $30.2 million school budget. Voters rejected the first proposal last month, 146-93.
Another question on the ballot will ask residents if the two-vote approval process for the budget should continue. The state requires it to be on the ballot every three years.
Elections will take place at the Town Office from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday.
Candidate profiles for the five selectmen candidates are listed below.
Donald Bedford
Name: Donald Bedford
Occupation: Retired Central Maine Power lineman and safety specialist for 35 years
Community Involvement: Board of Selectmen, four terms; Army reserves, six years; former worker for Western Maine Transportation Services; on the cable committee since 1987; former assistant scoutmaster; various town committees.
Why do you think you are the best candidate for this seat?
I have lived in Greene since 1972. I feel I am qualified for the selectmen position because I have been involved with town policies for a number of years. I have listened to the people about their concerns and brought their concerns to the board. I am committed to the townspeople and trying to keep the taxes down.
Please name two issues that you believe are critical to Greene’s future, and how you would address them.
Two issues that I feel the town should focus on are staying within the budget and working on the infrastructure of the town.
Name: Sheldon Bubier
Occupation: Retired self-employed logger
Community Involvement: Served over 10 years on the Planning Board; over 10 years on the Budget Committee; eight years on the Solid Waste Committee; five years as MSAD 52 director.
Why do you think you are the best candidate for this seat?
I think I’m the most qualified because of my experience in all branches of the town government and being a lifelong resident. I was very active in all of the town’s actions over the last 50 years. Now, I’m not satisfied with the direction that the town is going in. Instead of complaining, I decided I should probably try to make the changes that I feel are necessary.
Please name two issues that you believe are critical to Greene’s future, and how you would address them.
I think the town needs an education in civics because the current Board of Selectmen is behaving as a town council. They’re not bringing the information to … the people and allowing the people to make the necessary decisions which affect their taxes. They’ve taken those rights away from the voter, and I think it’s caused anger. We have to get over the anger and start discussing all of the expenditures, that we make large investments as a community again, like we did years back. The selectmen cannot be making all of the decisions … I think I have the ability to bring the people into the conversation.
Robert Hack
Name: Robert Hack
Occupation: Retired
Community Involvement: Worked in the construction industry for 50 years; owner and operator of a mobile home business in eight Maine towns; driver training instructor for a large national company
Why do you think you’re the best candidate for this seat?
I have a business degree from the University of Maine and was the owner of a business for 18 years. I worked for the town of Greene in 2003. I already understand the workings of the town and I don’t need training. I’m ready to go on day one. I have a plan to reopen the transfer station and attract small businesses to lower the tax rate.
Please name two issues that you believe are critical to Greene’s future and how you would address them.
Reopen the transfer station and create a share station rather than crushing good items that can be reused. Families need to dispose of their trash but can’t now because they work all week long and go to sons’ and daughters’ school sports games on Saturday. Now they have to rent a dumpster and pay $600 a year more.
Attract a small sandwich or pizza shop, give taxpayers 90-day notice of when tax bill is due, inform and hold public hearings on large purchases for the town, have agenda one week before the selectmen meeting to inform taxpayers of issues coming up and voted on.
Amanda Leclerc
Name: Amanda Leclerc
Occupation: Childcare owner and director
Community involvement: Child care center owner in Greene for 20 years and Turner for six years; seven-year member of the Leavitt Field Hockey Boosters; two-year Project Graduation coordinator; Greene field hockey youth program coach
Why do you think you are the best candidate for this seat?
I was born and raised in this community. My husband and I have raised our children here and are so blessed to be watching our grandchildren grow up in our beloved town. I have seen and heard many comments about change that people are hoping for. I feel that working together to make positive changes here in town is long overdue. As a selectman, I feel strongly that I could bring innovative ideas and perspective to the board and our town. I will bring my love of this community, my knowledge as a business owner, and my commitment to you, my fellow community members, to help make your voices heard.
Please name two issues that you believe are critical to Greene’s future, and how you would address them.
1.) I want to balance the budget and bring relief to taxpayers. One idea is to bring businesses to the town, such as a coffee or pizza shop. In the past, similar businesses have been denied and this needs to change to help decrease the tax burden on citizens. 2.) Communication is especially important to me. I would love to help implement a plan to improve communications within the town. It is important to find a way to allow citizens’ voices to be heard and for them to have input prior to and during the decision-making process. One way is to ensure that citizens are aware of upcoming meetings and agendas.
John Soucy
Name: John Soucy
Occupation: KL Jack Co. account sales
Community Involvement: Greene Youth Athletic Association coach and assistant baseball director; Greene Fire Department; MSAD 52 board; Board of Selectmen, two terms; Greene Village Day and Solid Waste committees.
Why do you think you’re the best candidate for this seat?
Having been a resident of Greene for the past 28 years and being as involved as I have been in the community, I have a solid understanding of what this town means to its residents and what they expect out of it. As part of the town’s chief executive body, my goal has always been to maintain a high level of integrity and compassion, and feel it’s important to conduct ourselves in a fair and professional manner and collectively work with the board to solve problems.
Please name two issues that you believe are critical to Greene’s future, and how you would address them.
Infrastructure being one of the two most important to Greene’s future. Keeping up with road paving, edging, ditching and dirt roads are all challenging to any small town today. Greene, like most towns in Maine, has a small Public Works crew. That’s why it’s important to plan wisely and to utilize state resources to keep up to date on innovative ways to reduce time and costs on projects. Next is public safety. Keeping the citizens of Greene safe is paramount. It’s important for a town to have a good relationship with our local law enforcement agencies to identify areas of concern and work with those agencies to come up with solutions.
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