With New Ipswich Select Board Chair David Lage not seeking reelection for his seat this year, there is a three-way race to fill his slot on the ballot.
During a candidates’ Night on Tuesday, with candidates speaking both in person at the town offices and via Zoom, all three candidates made their pitch for the position. Lou Alvarez, Jason Somero and Charlie Jackman, all three of whom would be newcomers to the board, have put in for the position.
Alvarez, who has served on the Planning Board for the past four years, said he has lived in New Ipswich since 1989, but it was not until his recent retirement that he had the time to become involved in town boards. He said he’s enjoyed his work on the Planning Board, and wants to become further involved in the running of the town.
When asked his stance on the budget, and in particular the proposed raises for the police department and the prospect of constructing a new department for the police, Alvarez said he was very familiar with the issues related to the current, rented space for the department, since he was on the original committee that was tasked with looking into alternatives for a new department. He said the current department has several deficiencies that could open the department and the town to liability.
Jackman, who has been a resident of New Ipswich since 2015, is a volunteer firefighter for both New Ipswich and Greenville in addition to his day job as an engineer for JP Morgan & Chase.
He said the number one issue for the town was the increasing tax rate.
“That’s the biggest thing in this town,” Jackman said. While he said there are infrastructure issues that need to be addressed, the Select Board also need to sit down, reevaluate the budget, and find places to save.
“We need to be better at trying to save money in town,” Jackman said.
Somero, who has lived in New Ipswich his entire life, said the most important thing to him was to “keep the character and spirit of this town that I love.”
He agreed with Jackman that taxes were becoming onerous for the families in town.
“When taxes go too high, it limits the freedoms families have to do the things families do,” Somero said. “I know what it is when you’re trying to find pennies.”
There are four candidates currently running for the two open Planning Board seats.
Vice Chair Dee Dailey is seeking reelection after her first term on the board. She said her experience on the board so far and perspective as a relationship builder were assets to the position.
Current alternate Richard “Craig” Smeeth is seeking to be elected as a full member of the board. Smeeth has served as an alternate for the past two years, and said he is ready to move into a full-time position with voting power.
Josh Muhonen and Tim Somero have both also filed for the Planning Board position, but did not attend Candidate’s Night.
Ashley Saari can be reached at 924-7172 ext. 244 or asaari@ledgertranscript.com. She’s on Twitter @AshleySaariMLT.