Town Politics

It's official. 

I filed the paperwork yesterday to run in the special election for the Charter Commission here in Newmarket.

The filing period opened yesterday and honestly, it wasn't something I was planning to do. But then I found myself at Town Hall anyway.

As I started telling people yesterday, people said things like "Good job", "Congratulations" and "Good for you." My friends and family have been very supportive of this decision.

And then quite a few people followed that up with "So, what IS the Charter Commission exactly?"

Here's my understanding---The Town Charter is the governing document for how our town operates. (You can think of it as our constitution.) The role of the Charter Commission is to review the document to ensure that it continues to be in compliance with State law and also to make sure that it continues to meet the needs of our community.  This will all take place within the next several months, with the bulk of the work done by Oct. 31, at which time it will be sent to the State for approval. Then it will go before the voters next March. 

There have been rumblings from a few that this is an opportunity to change the structure of our Town so that the School Board reports to the Town Council. I'm not sure that this is possible for Newmarket, but I imagine it something like what city governments have--a mayor and city council and all department heads, including the school superintendent reports to them. 

Personally, I've come to love and respect the role of Town Meeting, and I can't imagine not having that direct voice in our government. We'll see what happens.

There will be 9 people elected to this Commission, so there's plenty of room if you're thinking about running. The filing period will last through April 5th. 

In the meantime, mark your calendars and plan to vote on May 14th. 

Vote Yes.

I think this says it all. Please vote today.

Public Speaking

These are comments that I made at the Town Council meeting last night. You can watch the video here. (I start around the 7:13 mark) 

My comments started as a response to Al Zink's facebook post last week, but I decided to use this an opportunity to address the entire council:

Last week a Town Councilor posted a statement on Facebook that I believe was incendiary and inappropriate which he then followed up with an email to me. 

I first want to point out that Facebook is not the appropriate venue to conduct town business nor is it the forum to resolve town problems. 

We need people who will bring us together, not continue to divide our community. That's what leadership is to me and that is what I expect from our elected officials. 

I am excited by how far the school and town have come in working together and am hopeful that efficiencies can be expanded. I wish that everyone could take a step back to recognize and celebrate the progress we have made while we continue to move forward, rather than lament what hasn't been done yet.

But, tonight, I'd like to put the school facility crisis in Newmarket in front of you, the Town Council.

You are leaders in our community and  though you are not school board members, this is the single largest decision that our community will make and I believe it will take everyones' participation in the process to make a solution work. 

This is a community problem and a solution for our facilities will effect our entire community.

But a real solution won't be easy. 

A real solution will involve working with the school board and Dr. Hayes on this complicated issue.

A real solution will involve educating yourselves on the concerns of everyone in Newmarket.

A real solution will involve understanding the limitations of the current Jr. Sr. High School building.

A real solution will involve trying to understand the dynamics of our relationship with Oyster River and Durham.

A real solution will involve understanding the cost associated with a tuition agreement in both the short and long term. 

A real solution will involve having conversations with the architect about the requirements involved with building a school. 

A real solution needs facts. 

I do not expect everyone to agree on the correct course of action. Some of you have publicly stated that you do not support tuitioning and some have stated that you do not support a new school building. I do, however, expect people to search out the facts and stop spreading misinformation. 

As a member of this community, I have to say that doing nothing is unacceptable. I expect our community to act on this issue and I urge you all to be more involved in the process. 

And they have their summers off.

While making a statement about the teachers' contracts tonight at the Candidates Forum, Roseanne Kwaks said "And remember, they don't work full time." 

I wonder if my teacher friends would agree with that?