Potential councilors discuss anti-highway referendum, updated charter

By Mike Lange
Staff Writer

    DEXTER — Having six candidates on the ballot for two seats on the Dexter Town Council is a rather unusual occurrence, but those who appeared at a public forum last week said they’re in tune with their constituents’ concerns.
    One candidate, Alan Wintle, was unable to attend due to a training session in Bangor, but responded to a phone interview later in the week. (See separate story)

Observer photo/Mike Lange

    DEXTER CANDIDATES — Five out of six candidates for Dexter Town Council participated in a public forum on Oct. 21 hosted by the Concerned Citizens of Dexter. Pictured, from left, are Adam Briggs, Deborah Fournier, Brian Sawtelle, moderator Art Jette, Fred Sherburne and Michele “Missy” Stone. The sixth candidate, Alan Wintle, was unable to attend due to a work commitment.

    The Oct 21 “Meet the Candidates’ Night” was hosted by the Concerned Citizens of Dexter who successfully convinced town officials to place a question on the general election ballot that would prohibit any construction of the proposed East-West highway within town borders.
    Specifically, the question reads: “Are you in favor of the town of Dexter prohibiting construction of private transportation and distribution corridors which include highways, pipelines and high tension transmission lines?”
    Technically, the question is only a sense of the electorate and — if passed — the council would have to draft an ordinance with language that meets legal requirements.
    The only incumbent seeking re-election, Michele “Missy” Stone, said that she would be “bound by my constituents’ wishes.” But she added that the ordinance would “have to be crafted in a way that would be beneficial to the town without any loopholes … But until I have something in front of me, I honestly can’t tell you what the end result would be.”
    Stone graduated from UMaine last year and is now the librarian at Ridge View Community School.
    Fred Sherburne, a dairy farmer who previously served 12 years on the council, said he has been opposed to the highway from the beginning “and at any public hearing (on the ordinance), people would have to convince me otherwise – and good luck trying.”
    Bryan Sawtelle, one of two schoolteachers running, said that margin of victory or defeat of the question wasn’t an issue “whether it’s by one vote or 100. But that doesn’t mean that my opinion couldn’t be changed at a public hearing.”
    He added that there are “too many questions about the highway that haven’t been answered – like where it’s going.” Sawtelle teaches at the New England School of Communication.
    Deborah Fournier, who retired from AOS 94 and teaches music at Greenville Consolidated School, said she agreed. “There are too many questions and not enough answers … Once it’s built, there’s no going back and I have real concerns about that.” Fournier said that she plans to “talk to as many constituents as possible, not just the people who agree with me.”
    Adam Briggs, who works part-time for the Katahdin Area Council of the Boy Scouts, said that his personal opinion was “irrelevant. Depending on the outcome of the question, that’s the way I’d go. Personally, I don’t think it (the highway) will ever happen. The last time I checked, we’re still in the USA; and a private company can’t take land by eminent domain.”
    On other issues, the candidates basically agreed on the same priorities: holding the line on taxes, opening better lines of communication between the town and school system, encouraging business growth and stemming the population loss.
    Briggs told the audience that the school budget “is driving me nuts. For two years in a row, it went up by $100,000. That’s 8 or 9 percent a year, compared to everything else that’s gone up 2 or 3 percent.”
    Fournier said that she wasn’t willing to “jump right in” until she found out what the council was currently working on. “There may be things in the works we’re not aware of. Things are different when you’re on this side of the table,” she said.
    Sawtelle noted that he’s also concerned about rising taxes “but I don’t want to be a Don Quixote tilting at windmills. There are certain things we can do and other things are out of our control. I think there needs to be better communication between the school and the town.”
    In Sherburne’s view, it’s important for the council and school board “to know what each other are doing.” He added that few people are willing to run for public office nowadays “because the respect for the office-holders seems to be diminished. I’d like to see that changed.”
    Stone said she’s keenly interested in economic issues. “We still have empty buildings and we still have people leaving town, but the pace has slowed down,” Stone said. “People are trying to relocate here, and I want to work with them and make sure they have what they need.”
    Marcia Delaware, chair of the Charter Commission, outlined some of the recommended changes in the document which hasn’t been revised in 10 years.
    Newly-elected or reelected town council members would begin their terms on Dec. 1 instead of Jan. 1, if the charter is approved; and department heads would serve indefinitely instead of being appointed every year.
    The proposed new charter also reaffirms the policy that “no person may serve as a member of the council when an immediate family member (spouse, parents, children, brothers and sisters) is employed by the town, unless said employee resigns that employment.”
    Moderator Art Jette asked the councilors and audience of approximately 40 if they had any concerns about the charter. “Is it overreaching, under-reaching or just right?” he asked. However, there were only a few minor queries and a few compliments about the Charter Commission’s work on revising the document.
    Dexter residents will also elect two SAD 46 directors, two Dexter Utility District directors for three-year terms and one for a two-year term; and two Hospital Administrative District 4 directors for three-year terms and one for a two-year term.
    To view a sample ballot, visit www.dextermaine.org and click on the News and Press Releases link.