By Meghan Peterson, Ph.D.
Editor’s Note: Part 1 (which can be found HERE) covered the First Selectman Candidates, Brenda Buzzi (Democrat) and Bob McGarry (Republican). Part 2 covers the Selectman Candidates. The forum can be viewed in its entirety on Valley Shore Community TV, Channel 19 and at www.vsctv.com.
On Oct. 2, 2019, a Haddam Board of Selectmen Candidate Forum was held, hosted by the Brainerd Memorial Library’s Director Tom Piezzo, and Kent Jarrell, a Library Trustee and former journalist. The first portion of the forum involved the First Selectman candidates; the second portion involved the Selectman candidates: Kate Anderson (Unaffiliated; Republican-endorsed); Mark Lundgren (Petitioning candidate); Sean Moriarty (Democrat); Joe Rizzo (Democrat).
The order in which candidates spoke was determined by a drawing of names, as was the case for the First Selectman component of the forum. Rizzo introduced himself as an “educator at Hamden High School.” He continued, “I teach environmental science and had never been really politically involved before now. I got involved with the politics in town with the closing of Haddam Elementary School, started going to BOE meetings.” Rizzo noted that people are the “strong points in our town.” Rizzo described his two young sons’ involvement with Little League and the life here in Haddam. “I want to help unite our town by focusing on outdoor resources as your selectman.” He added, “I’ll be here for life. We have a great property. We’re here to stay.”
Moriarty said that he has “lived in Haddam for a little over 30 years with his wife and two children, both graduates of the HKHS school system.” He explained that he has been “involved in Haddam politics” by serving on a number of boards and committees, including the board of ethics and currently on the Board of Finance. Moriarty stated that he is a Gulf War veteran as well as a retired police captain of Middletown, where he managed over 80 people – both “sworn and civilian” and that he “helped develop” and “administer” the “police department’s multi-million dollar budget.” Moreover, he added that he “worked closely with many diverse community groups to reach a common goal.”
Anderson noted that her “philosophy has always been to research with an open mind and vote the best person for the job.” She graduated from HKHS in 2007, received a full scholarship from CCSU and earned a bachelor’s degree in business marketing. Anderson talked about the activities and accomplishments she has pursued in town, including working for 9 years at the HK summer camps, purchasing her own house when she was 23 years old, and serving on the economic development, infrastructure, charter revision, and POCD implementation committees – emphasizing that she holds a “strong attendance record for all these committees.” In addition, she listed her work on projects such as “revitalizing the farmer’s market in town, decorating downtown for the holidays, coordinating the Haddam River Days, and running their social media pages” – all the while having a “full time job as a proposal and marketing communications specialist” and that her “experience, knowledge, commitment to our town make me the best choice for BOS.”
Lundgren pointed out all of the volunteers from the fire department to Board of Finance to Planning and Zoning, saying that he thinks “that’s wonderful.” He described being “involved in town government for 40 years.” As such, he says he brings “some experience to the job. There are a number of things I would like to see us ‘tighten up’ if you will.” Namely, Lundgren said that “I might help the most in initiating some civic pride” as “all civic pride starts with the Board of Selectmen.” He said that “we need to look after our own house first.” Lundgren also indicated that he would like to see more meetings held in Haddam Neck. He closed by saying “my experience will help the town.”
Questions asked of the First Selectman candidates were also asked of the Selectman candidates, beginning with:
What is your position on Haddam’s use of long term bonds to pay for infrastructure and other projects? Are we increasing our debt burden to keep the mil rate at its current level or are we just kicking the can down the road for future taxpayers to pay? Moriarty said that he was one of the two “No” votes on the Board of Finance for bonding the [Public Works] trucks. He said “we can’t keep borrowing money for things that aren’t going to last,” noting that one million dollars more in revenue than anticipated came in, “which is exactly what the trucks would cost.” Moriarty added that bonding needs to be done “wisely, effectively.” Anderson said that bonding is “appropriate in certain circumstances.” She noted a great turnout at the bond hearing. She framed the issue as a “bigger question” of “how did we end up” in the situation of needing to buy vehicles all at once “in the first place” and that she would “really like to advocate a long-term plan and strategy” as well as “to make it affordable for everybody to stay in town and need to look hard at capital projects and appropriate wisely.” Lundgren said, “I was the other No vote.” He asked, “Why are we buying 6 trucks in one year?” He added, “I would rather see one or two trucks purchased a year” because “in 10, 15, 20 years, there will be a lot of trucks to buy at once.” Rizzo said that, “he didn’t agree with bonding” and voted no at the bond hearing. He said that he did not think the bonding ordinance should have combined the fire department equipment with the public works vehicle items.
The remaining ten minutes of the forum included questions about which issues and projects to prioritize in town, what should be done with the old Haddam Elementary School, and candidates’ positions on economic development. To hear responses from the BOS candidates to those questions, visit www.vsctv.com or go to Valley Shore Community Television Channel 19.
