ELECTION 2022
Two School Board and two Selectboard seats are up for election at Town Meeting this year. With the filing deadline less than a month away, I thought I would check with the incumbents to see if they had made any decisions.
School Board member Lily Trajman has said she is running to retain her School Board seat. Dr. Trajman was appointed by the Norwich School Board on November 3 to fill the vacancy on the Board due to the resignation of Kelley Hersey.
Selectboard member Claudette Brochu is undecided about seeking another term. Ms. Brochu is in her second term.
Selectboard Chair Roger Arnold and Norwich School Board member Garrett Palm did not respond to my email seeking their input.
Information regarding the offices up for election is set forth on the notice below and posted on the Town’s website.
This is probably a great opportunity to bring up Term Limits as it relates to Selectboard members. A maximum 2 terms should be the rule. To be fair to the Town and its residents, it behooves the Selectboard to pass term limits. What we see today are thoughts and values and plans that are not necessarily shared by all. Sadly, few tune into the SB meetings (maybe more watch the videos or read the minutes) We’ve seen a financial scam, a plan for septic (both for the village and a connection to Hartford) a $3 million geothermal plan (including interest) A missing solar field (turns out it was in Lunenberg all along and without a purchase option) and now a $50,000 police study (cost of a new police car?)
The dark secret not secret is that there are blocks of voters put forth by schools and religious institutions to back candidates put forth as pawns. Then these “municipal policy” makers putter about with wonky policy ideas with little accretive impact on the Town.
In a few years, there will be a Town wide re assessment, layer that onto the various vanity projects and see how your taxes rise.
It’s time for a change. I encourage more diversity and fresh faces to run for the SB and to take a long term view on capital projects, budgeting and planning.
DItto what he said.
Norwich School Board member Garrett Palm is running for reelection. I plan to post an update after the filing deadline.