Candidates call for civility

By Taryn Plumb
Turley Publications Reporter

STURBRIDGE - While the two candidates vying for selectman stand at opposite ends on some issues, they steadfastly agree on at least one point: The town simply can't move forward without some measure of civility in town government.
“We don't have to like each other when we sit on a board together,” selectman hopeful Mary Dowling noted before an intimate crowd of around 30 residents gathered at the Sturbridge Senior Center on Tuesday night.
However, she said, polite disagreement can keep doors open. “Treat people with respect, and better relations will always follow.”
Her opponent James Ehrhard, meanwhile bluntly discussed the most recent, at times noxious, process of appointing a town administrator.
“People can be uncivil, they can be insulting,” he said. But he stressed his moderation skills as chair of the committee that ultimately brought forward incoming administrator Shaun Suhoski. “I have shown that I can calm things down.”
Topics touched upon during a one-hour selectman candidate's forum ranged from taxes to development to infrastructure – all debated issues that are pertinent to the town's future.
Moderated by Michael Caplette, questions ran the gamut from where candidates stood on the sovereignty of the board of health and its agent; to how they planned to support seniors; to their position on meals and hotel taxes.
On this last point, the candidates were in sharp disagreement.
Dowling, who has been on the finance committee since 2006, voted in favor of both; she called them “appropriate” and “prudent.”
The meals tax, she said, has a “minimal negative impact for a big collective yield.”
That yield, she explained, would be a projected $200,000, based on a .0075 percent rate.
She pointed out that meals taxes have been adopted in 72 communities in the state, and haven't been shown to have a “chilling effect.”
Similarly, Dowling said it simply isn't “reasonable” to think that hotel patrons will bypass Sturbridge to avoid the 2 percent increase in the hotels tax (which was raised from 4 to 6 percent at last fall’s town meeting). All told, that measure is projected to bring in $250,000 in revenues for the town.
Ehrhard, on the other hand, is staunchly opposed to both taxes, calling them “a bad vote.”
“At the end of the day,” he said, “you lose hotels, you lose restaurants, you lose revenues.”
However, the candidates do share opinions on a different tax issue.
Both support a single tax rate – of $14.55 per $1,000 valuation – for commercial and residential property.
Dowling noted that only about one-third to one-quarter of communities in the state have split tax rates. If Sturbridge did the same, it could deter businesses from locating in town, she said.
“A split tax rate is not going to be a business draw,” she said. “It could very well be a deal breaker.”
As a result, taxes are going to increase, she acknowledged, but she urged residents to view it as an investment in the community.
Ehrhard was also sympathetic to economic pains, saying he was “acutely aware” of how the increases are affecting people, especially those on fixed incomes.
But, he noted that, if elected, his goal would be to run town services through “fiscal prudence,” with flat-line budgeting over the next three to five years.
“I will not vote to increase taxes anywhere, on anything,” he said.
He also emphasized the need for the town to find other streams of revenue – and he specifically pointed to long-term planning and upgrades along Route 15 and Route 20.
“I have been beating this drum for years now,” he said.
Little changes could make fundamental differences: Such as a river walk, historical lighting and new crosswalks along the Route 20 corridor, he said.
Meanwhile, when it comes to any proposed changes in zoning or water/sewer infrastructure along Route 15, selectmen should pledge their support, he said.
Overall, of the Route 15 area, he said, “I'm not talking Ferris wheels, I'm not talking 10-story buildings.”
Instead, he said, he'd like to see businesses like Federal Express and UPS, or a University of Massachusetts satellite office. But without changes to zoning and the water/sewer system on Route 15, the town simply can't reach out to such businesses, he said.
Dowling, for her part, questioned whether the town's wastewater infrastructure could accommodate Route 15 – and, like Ehrhard, she said that the stakeholders should provide the funds for their own sewer and water upgrades and improvements.
Meanwhile, when it came down to talking about themselves, both candidates stressed their work background, level-headedness and consensus-building.
Dowling described an objectivity that she's gleaned from her work in labor relations arbitration.
“I have the ability to listen,” she said, and underscored her cooperative spirit. Just as importantly, “I love Sturbridge, I feel rooted here.”
Ehrhard similarly drew upon his work in bankruptcy law, saying that he runs an office that is fiscally tight and efficient.
He also has strong opinions, he said, and he's running for office because he believes that there are certain things that need to be accomplished in town.
“What makes me distinctive is that no one doubts where I stand,” he said.
But at the same time, he's willing to negotiate and cooperate if it means working toward a greater good, he said. “I want a seven-foot fence, but I'll settle for a six-foot fence, if I can get one.”
The annual town election will be held on April 12. To find out more about Dowling, visit www.dowlingmary.com. For more about Ehrhard, visit www.jamesehrhard.com.