Rockport Election Notebook: Forum, debate heat up race; Ring takes stands

By Gloucester Daily Times, Mass.
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services

April 28--With the town election looming eight days from today, Rockport residents will have two chances this week to meet the three candidates for this year's two selectmen's seats and hear their views on local issues.

First up is a candidates' forum set for tonight at 5:15 p.m., hosted by the Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce at the Rockport Inn & Suites.

The event, billed as a "Meet the Candidates" forum, will be held in the lower-level meeting room at the 183 Main St. complex, and will include incumbents Erin Battistelli and Paul Murphy and challenger Jonathan Ring. Chamber Senior Vice President Peter Webber noted that the forum is not a debate, but rather designed to give residents a chance to meet and speak with the candidates, and for the candidates to share their views.

Times debate Thursday

The candidates will, however, engage in a full-fledged debate to be presented by the Gloucester Daily Times on Thursday night beginning at 7 p.m. at the Rockport Art Association.

That event is also free and open to the public, with all questions to be based on those submitted by readers to the Times.

Anyone looking to submit one or more questions for the candidates for that event may do so by emailing them to Times Editor and debate monitor Ray Lamont at [email protected], or by mailing them to Ray Lamont at the Gloucester Daily Times, 36 Whittemore St., Gloucester MA 01930, or by bringing them to the Times' Whittemore Street offices by Tuesday at 5 p.m.

All questions must be posed in a manner so as to be answered by all three candidates. No question will target an individual candidate. Also, all questions to be considered for the Thursday night debate must be submitted to the Times in advance; there will not be any questions allowed from the floor the night of the debate.

Election Day is Tuesday, May 6.

Ring maps out stands

Selectmen's challenger Jonathan Ring, says that increasing town spending and a growing strain on property taxes and local businesses are among the issues he would tackle if elected next week.

"While we owe a huge debt of gratitude to the Finance Committee for (its) leadership at Town Meeting and for making sure that we are on sound financial footing," Ring said in a prepared statement to the Times, "a number of voters have raised the issue of the overall direction of the town; many feel that we have no one at the financial helm in the Rockport Board of Selectmen.

"One example of this, unfortunately, was the Town's purchase of the Granite Savings Bank for $700,000 a few years back, over the objection of many voters, just to turn the bank in to a town hall annex," he said. "Another example is that the Board of Selectmen are allowed, as part time employees of the town, to have a town government subsidized health insurance program, which can cost taxpayers as much as $120,000 a year if all five Selectmen take the family plan.

"Many selectmen have employers that provide health insurance, and for those that do not provide insurance the state and federal government provides an insurance program; there is no need to place this burden on our property taxes anymore.

"Whether it is money spent to buy banks or to pay for a Selectmen's health care plan, or whether it is hiring a Dog Control officer or deciding how to change the rules regarding alcohol licensing, I am hearing from many voters that the Board of Selectmen and town government are not going in the right direction," Ring continued. "As a selectman I will not only fight for sound fiscal management of the town budget, but... make sure policies are fully vetted and that every attempt is made to encourage voter participation at town meetings. The Board of Selectmen needs strong fiscal and policy leaders that will protect voter rights and eliminate any conflicts of interest."

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