Montpelier ballot set for March 2
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A candidate petition is stamped received Monday at Montpelier City Hall as the deadline arrived for those seeking public office on the Town Meeting Day ballot. STEFAN HARD/TIMES ARGUS |
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By SUSAN ALLEN TIMES ARGUS STAFF - Published: February 2, 2010
MONTPELIER – The Montpelier Town Meeting Day ballot offers voters a two-way race for mayor, a three-way election for one City Council seat, a blank space where no one is running for auditor, and an unchanged school board.
The final slate became clear Monday at 5 p.m., as the deadline expired for filing petitions to run.
City Clerk Charlotte Hoyt outlined the lineup, which features Mayor Mary Hooper seeking re-election against challenger Gary Schy; School Board members Sue Aldrich, Lowell VanDerlip and Steve Robinson running unopposed; and City Council member Nancy Sherman challenged by Jack Lindley and Richard Sheir for the District 2 seat.
Council members Alan Weiss and Andy Hooper are also unopposed this year.
Budget issues are also facing voters.
The school budget of $15.6 million (the local budget of $14,715,484, plus a grant budget of $863,919, for a total school budget of $15,579,403), was a reduction over last year's spending level.
The School Board – acting on the advice of the school administration – made reductions to track with the decline in student enrollment. For example, two classroom teachers were eliminated at the middle school, with enrollment dropping from 152 students this academic year to a projected 122 next year.
"All the reductions reflect our decline in student enrollment," said School Board Chairman John Hollar on Monday.
He said he hopes voters approve the spending plan, adding, "We have been very fortunate to receive strong community support for our budget. I don't have any reason to think this will be any different."
The City Council approved $6,520,363 for the municipal budget, an amount that departments worked to ensure would not require an increase in the property tax rate to cover that share.
The spending level was held down in part because city employees agreed to health insurance changes that saved $200,000.
The funding requests also include $605,230 for the Recreation Department, $125,707 for the support of the Senior Citizens Activity Center, $2,700 for the mayor, and $293,975 for the Kellogg-Hubbard Library.
In addition, voters are being asked to increase the veteran's exemption in the property tax rate amount from $10,000 of appraisal value to $40,000 of appraisal value; and $25,000 for the Cross Vermont Trail Association for the design, easements and construction of a bicycle-pedestrian path connecting the Montpelier Recreation Path to a two-mile section of the Cross Vermont Trail, which parallels the Winooski River.
Finally, on a petitioned item, residents are asked should "the voters of the City of Montpelier advise the Vermont Legislature to pass a bill to replace criminal penalties with a civil fine for adults who possess a small amount of marijuana."
Among the races on the ballot:
* Hooper is seeking re-election to the post she has held since 2004.
"I look forward to talking with the people of Montpelier about the city and about the work that I've done for them in January, when it's time to be looking to the future of the leadership of our community," Hooper told the Times Argus recently.
She will be challenged by Montpelier resident and landlord Gary Schy, who has been a self-appointed watchdog for city government.
Schy said the disclosure of the city's $462,000 overpayment to Scott Construction Inc. of Newport was a key factor in his decision to run for mayor. "It just was such a flagrant violation of so many things." Schy said recently of that situation.
* Sherman, who is seeking re-election to her District 2 seat on the City Council, faces a challenge from residents Lindley and Sheir.
Sherman said balancing the need to preserve important city services while holding the line on spending — particularly in these tight economic times — will be a priority if she's re-elected. She highlighted expanding public transportation for the city, adding, "There's certainly a need to expand public transit in Montpelier, especially if we're going to take the pressure for parking off downtown."
Sheir said he feels city management is the top priority for the council, particularly following disclosure last fall of the 2004 overpayment by $462,000 to Scott Construction Inc. of Newport, and the council's decision to retain accounting firm Sullivan Powers & Co., which did not catch the error in auditing city books.
"The integrity of the city's books is in question," he told the Times Argus in a previous interview. "The council has been too lax in fiscal oversight."
Lindley outlined several proposals he could support for the council, including granting families a $1,000 property tax break if they volunteer 100 hours of their time to city projects or programs; moving forward to restore the bus terminal and additional parking to the Carr lot; improving the city's tax base, creating collaboration opportunities with the private sector to develop a new office park, and business growth and housing development in the city.
"I am committed to bringing new energy, new ideas and an open transparent government to the people of District 2," Lindley said recently.
The polls are open at City Hall on March 2 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
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