Grafton Voter Options: Consistency or New Perspective

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Sandy Meindersma, GoLocalWorcester Reporter

Even though he is spending more on the election than $1000 stipend he will earn if elected, Brook Padgett is running for re-election to the Board of Selectmen as a way to give back to his hometown. Padgett, who cut his teeth in politics while running the lights for Grafton’s Town Meeting as a kid, said he has no other political aspiration beyond being a selectman in town.

“I grew up here, and went to school here,” Padgett said. “My dad was on the Finance Committee, my mother was with the housing authority, and my brother was on the Board of Assessors. I still feel the drive to do it.”

Challenging Padgett is Planning Board chairman Bruce Spinney III, who also ran last year for selectman, but lost to John B. Dowling III and John L. Carlson.

Grafton’s May 15 election also has a race for School Committee, with incumbents Kathleen Halloran and Peter Carlson facing off against challenger Margaret McDonald.

Padgett Claims He Brings Consistency

“It’s like being a call fireman, where they do it for the love of it, and not for the money,” Padgett said. “What you earn as a selectman covers the cost of going to events and the donuts you bring.

Brook Padgett

“My signs are all paid for, and I haven’t done any solicitations,” he said. “I’m spending between $1500 and $2000 on the campaign.”

Padgett said that he lends a voice of experience and stability to the board. “The town has had a lot of change in the last few years – we have one selectman with less than a year of experience, one with less than two, and one with less than four. I would think the town would want a balance, and to have someone who knows the history and struggles of the town.

“Bruce is a nice guy, but he’s only been in town for about six years, and I don’t know his position on things, I only know where I stand,” Padgett said.

Spinney Says Long Term Fiscal Plan and Transparency are Needed

Spinney, who said he is running because of his passion for municipal government, countered with the fact that he is familiar with the town, having served on the Planning Board, the Economic Development Committee and Capital Improvement Planning Committee.

Bruce Spinney III

“I am now more prepared than ever to be Grafton's next selectman,” he said. “We have gone too many years without a long term fiscal and capital plan. This has led to missed opportunities and has hindered public awareness of the needs of the town. My first goal as Selectman would be to work diligently with the necessary people and committees to develop, and then implement, such a plan.”

Despite a great deal of popular support for Padgett, Spinney remains confident in his candidacy.

“I am not worried about my chances, I'm just trying to run the best campaign I can,” he said. “There are over 10,000 voters in town. Some of them have lived here for many years, some have not, but either way, each person has only one vote. I am trying to reach out to as many Grafton voters as I can.”

Spinney said he believes the Board of Selectmen should work together as a unit, and gain a consensus before presenting issues to the town.

“I respect Brook for his years of service to Grafton, but I think I would bring a fresh approach to the table that would benefit the town and the challenges it faces today," he said.

“I also believe that nothing should be done behind the scenes, and I would ensure a high level of transparency for what is our town's chief executive board. I am known for applying this approach on the Planning Board and on other committees, and in applying it to the Board of Selectman, I would be able to succeed at presenting and promoting projects that would appeal to a greater percentage of Grafton's citizens.”

School Committee Race Has Irony

School Committee chairman Kathleen Halloran and fellow member Peter Carlson, who are both finishing up their first terms on the school committee, are being challenged by Margaret McDonald.

Halloran, a teacher at the Jacob Hiatt Magnet School in Worcester, said she decided to run for office in 2009, after there were too many uncontested seats in 2008.

“I was unopposed then,” she said. “I think it’s fantastic that there is a race, even though it means more work. It’s a huge commitment, even if you don’t win, and I think it’s great another person is willing to step up. I don’t take it personally at all.

“The Selectman’s race has heated up, but the School Committee race has been much more low key,” she said.

Carlson said he is feeling confident that he will retain his seat. “But if I lose, I’m not going away – I still live in town. I think I’m the right person to help with all the change management.

Carlson and Halloran both said their term on the school committee was filled with many large projects, from building the new high school, to the entire redistricting of the town, to working with the new superintendent and the launching of full day kindergarten in the fall.

“That’s (full day Kindergarten) been talked about since I was in school here,” Carlson said.

McDonald, chairman of the Parent-Teacher Group at Grafton Elementary School did not return calls seeking comment.