p>LINCOLN — Three candidates are vying for an open seat on the Lincoln selectboard come Town Meeting Day.
The position was formerly held by Donovan Mayo, who died in the fall. Ethan Ready was appointed to serve the remainder of Mayo’s term, but has chosen not to run for reelection.
The three candidates seeking the job are Jim Adams, Elwin Isham and Brian Goodro.
Adams has lived in Lincoln for 13 years. He works as a general contractor who specializes in weatherization, and is interested in issues having to do with energy efficiency. He thinks his exposure to roads, sewer and building issues during his career as a contractor could be an asset on the selectboard, as could his interpersonal skills.
“I have had a lot of experience working with divergent opinions,” Adams said. “Trying to make a reasonable judgment when there’s a contentious issue that falls squarely on the board does require a little bit of thought and consideration.”
Adams said that he believes one of the selectboard’s biggest challenges in the years ahead will be to hold town spending in line.
He said he’s also supportive of a conversation afoot in parts of the town to enlarge the selectboard to five members — a change that is on the warning for the annual town meeting by petition — but that he’d like to see more people run for elected office in town as well.
Isham, who resigned last fall from his position as auditor in Lincoln, told the Addison Independent in December that his chief concern about the selectboard is what he sees as mismanagement of the town’s highway department. A Lincoln resident for three years, Isham is also concerned about the state of town infrastructure.
Isham is also frustrated by the way the selectboard operates. He alleges that selectboard members often appear at meetings unprepared, and the agenda posted before the meeting doesn’t always reflect the content of the meeting that follows. In his opinion, the board doesn’t follow Vermont’s rules for board governance, and he thinks the board uses excessive executive sessions.
“What I would like to see is more openness, more accountability, and letting the townspeople know what’s going on, not trying to cover things up,” Isham said in December.
Goodro’s main interests are in preserving the town’s infrastructure while keeping taxes affordable for residents. He sees the biggest issue facing Lincoln in the next few years to be road maintenance, which he said is a necessity in a town like Lincoln.
Goodro has lived in town since 2002, when he moved to Lincoln from East Middlebury. He has family ties in Lincoln reaching back four or five generations. Currently Goodro works at Cooperative Insurance in Middlebury. He’s been active on the Lincoln Community School building committee and served on the principal search selection committee last year for Mount Abraham Union High School.
“I think a selectboard requires a diversity of experience, combined with people on the board who work well together,” Goodro said. He thinks his experience with finance, negotiation and mediation — as well as his knowledge of roads, equipment and vehicles — makes him a good candidate for the board.
“This is not about partisan politics,” Goodro said. “This is about common sense. We need to keep our roads maintained, our vehicles running, and our buildings (in good shape).”
Reporter Kathryn Flagg is at [email protected].