In response to Tim Buskey’s letter to the editor, “Be wary of candidates who are running as a block”:

I had an opportunity to communicate directly with Tim Buskey about his concerns that there were three candidates running as some sort of “voting block.” I thought it might be helpful to also share my thoughts with your readers, as I am one of the three candidates he was concerned about.

While it is true that we have been pooling our resources as we campaign, Eliza Spencer, Levi Barrett and I are not a “voting block” of any sort. It seemed more economical to send out our mailer together, since we are not running against each other, and producing and mailing a card like we did would have been either financially out of reach, or just wasteful if it was sent by each of us individually. It also seemed prudent when visiting our neighbors and knocking on doors to avoid interrupting anybody’s weekend multiple times (there are nine total Addison selectboard candidates, after all), so we’ve been doing that together too.

Though I personally support both Levi and Eliza, ideologically we are each very much individuals. Though we have no hidden agendas, we each have our own priorities and hopes for our town government, and sometimes they do not exactly align. I think that’s actually beneficial, as a healthy government requires respectful discussion of a diversity of thoughts and ideas. On the contrary, for me it has been troubling to see our current selectboard almost never has a split vote on anything, and if there are concerns about a “voting block” in our town, that is where mine are focused.

I believe our current selectboard membership is too homogeneous, and is missing representation from key parts of our community. That is one of the main reasons I’m running.

I hope that may go some way to alleviate your worries. I fully agree with Tim’s sentiment when he says, “Let’s vote for the “individuals” who can best lead our town.” My hope is that the voters of Addison will research their candidates and truly understand what they each can offer, and also reach out to them directly if they have questions.

Michael Hollis

Addison