The Gloves Are Off in Holden’s Annual Town Election
Friday, April 06, 2012
The race for selectmen has four candidates for two seats, pitting the two incumbents, Anthony Renzoni and Kenneth O’Brien against a former selectman (Mark Ferguson) and political newcomer Jeremy Kurtz.
There are four candidates for three seats on the Wachusett Regional School Committee, which will have at least one new member from town, since current committee member Dawn Torres-Gale did not seek re-election to her seat. On the ballot are: incumbent Steven Hammond, Deidre Kosky, Richard McWaters and Erik Scheinfeldt.
Selectmen’s Race
Ferguson, who has never shied away from controversy and was a polarizing force on the board during his first stint, said his goal is to become chairman of the Board of Selectmen.
“There’s totally a lack of leadership up there,” Ferguson said, referring to Town Hall. “The town manager has shown that she is all about increasing taxes and sewer rates and exorbitant fees, and she’s abandoned economic development in the town.
“I won’t tolerate it. She will be replaced,” Ferguson said.
Kurtz , who has lived in town for four years, said he was running for Selectman because he was tired of the same old, same old, and he was concerned about the town’s finances.
“We have incredible sewer fees and electric rates, and now it turns out that the Recreation Department wants to double some of their programs, I think that shows a lot of mismanagement.”
Renzoni, who was first elected to the board in 2009, said he was running for re-election to represent the good people of Holden.
“I’m not running against anything or anyone,” Renzoni said. “I’m not against technology, and my position on the school budget hasn’t changed.
“The town cannot support the 9 percent increase that the school department is asking for, but I’m optimistic that there is a willingness on both sides to work it out.”
O’Brien, who was re-elected to a one year seat on the board last year, after giving up his seat to run for State Representative. He did not return calls seeking comment.
School Committee
Kosky who was appointed to the school committee in February following the resignation of Kristine Goodwin, is firing off against challenger McWaters.
“He said he’s opposed to the iPads in the schools, and he said that they will replace teachers,” Kosky said. “They’re not going to replace teachers; they’re going to enhance the educational experience. I was against the iPads too, until I went to the meeting about it.
“If you’re going to get involved, then you need to do the research,” she said.
"Teaching is looking into kids' eyes and seeing that they get it, not the number of problems they did on a computer," he said. "The school is not flush with money this year, and the towns are not flush with money. Initiatives like iPads for everyone would better be put on hold."
Scheinfeldt, who also sought appointment to the school committee back in February, said he was shocked that the district was second lowest in the state in terms of per pupil spending.
"In my opinion, the budget problems are partially a result of a general lack of public awareness," he said. "I’m a product of the system, and I have a 16 month old daughter and I want to be sure she has the same education I had.
McWaters disagreed, noting that while the per pupil expenditure was low, the district's MCAS scores were in the top 20 percent of all school districts of similar sizes.
Incumbent Steven Hammond, who is seeking re-election for a third term, said he not only favored the iPad initiative, budgeted at $81,000, but the entire 21st Century Skills initiative.
“The district has fallen pretty far behind ,” Hammond said. "I'm the head of engineering for a social networking company, and we can't find people with the skills the superintendent is talking about. In terms of spending, it's hard to find the money, but this is an investment that we need to make."
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