SWING VOTE

With three seats at stake, tone of Scarborough Town Council could shift for next three years.

SCARBOROUGH — In Scarborough, there exists the potential of a paradigm shift of sorts on the Town Council.

In addition to the race profiled last week in The Current – where either Kerry Corthell or Ron Ahlquist will finish out the term of retiring Councilor Michael Wood – there are three full-term seats up for grabs on the seven-member council.

Four people are campaigning for those offices, but only two are incumbents – Richard Sullivan Jr. and Karen D’Andrea. The challengers are political newcomer Paul Andriulli and James Benedict, who has mounted two previous unsuccesful runs for the council.

The questions below were presented to all candidates at a debate held Oct. 13. The event was sponsored by the Scarborough Community Chamber and moderated by member Kevin Freeman. Sullivan and Andriulli provided their answers at that time. Benedict, who claims not to have known of the event, and D’Andrea, who could not attend, both gave their responses in telephone interviews conducted Oct. 21.

COUNCIL GOALS

Asked to cite goals for the next three years if elected, two candidates declined to answer the question.

Both Andriulli and Sullivan said they would not start their terms with any specific objectives, other than to weigh issues that come before them carefully.

“I’m here to serve the town of Scarborough,” said Sullivan. “I really don’t have an agenda, or any goals that I’d like to accomplish, because a lot of times that kind of thing involves money.”

“For myself, I think you just need to be open and use common sense,” said Andriulli.

Benedict and D’Andrea, however, took opposite tacks. 

“First and foremost, I would like to see Scarborough become more small-business friendly,” said Benedict. “I think we need to review some of the rules and the regulations that are applied, so that businesses are not on such a short leash and scared to come here.”

D’Andrea said she wants to “increase the school budget” on the belief that “quality schools attract quality businesses.” She also hopes to diversify the local economy by helping to steer the town away from retail and biotech and toward “green industry,” such as firms that conduct research and development in alternative energy, “or maybe a small business that makes parts for solar cells.”

POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY

Candidates were asked what the term “good government” means to them, in terms of what services they thought municipalities should, and should not, provide.

All candidates said the town needs to maintain the services it already provides.

“Beyond that, we need to take care of our citizens first and corporations last,” said D’Andrea, taking a talking point from the recent “Occupy Wall Street” movement.

“I’m the 99 percent, just as the vast majority of the businesses in this town are, and those are the people that we need to protect,” she said.

Benedict said good government means being “fair and reasonable” to all segments of society. “I don’t believe that we should be on a tangent to satisfy everybody’s little whim, because one of the things that has got the government in such problems in the last 20 years is immediate gratification. I think its high time the town lives within its means and not keep saying so-and-so has such-and-such, so we should have it too.”

Andriulli did not specify where the line is for local government, but said good government is built on trust. “That’s what our entire framework is based on,“ he said. “You need to trust the informatin that you‘re getting and be truthful with your information back.“

Sullivan, however, was specific in saying where he draws the line. “I am defintely against the taking of land for eminant domain,“ he said. “I would fight that tooth and nail.“ Sullivan also said the town should resist accepting so-called “open space“ parcels, because it takes them off the tax rolls.

HIGGINS BEACH

The candidates were not asked to weigh in on how parking regulations should change at the beachside community. A special council meeting on the subject was held Oct. 26. Instead, they were asked to say how much weight they give to resident concerns when making decisions that affect a particular neighborhood.

Only D’Andrea refused to say in advance that she would not come down on the side of locals in any neighborhood dispute. “No one’s opinion matters most,” she said. “I give equal weight to everyone’s opinion because I end up having to base my decision on all opinions and the facts that are presented.”

“It’s not that people in that community need special attention, but they do need people on the council to listen with both ears and 100 percent attention,” said Benedict, admitting he’d be “absolutely ripped” if his family was subject to some of what he’s heard about surfers changing in and out of wetsuits on the roadside at Higgins Beach.

“If elected, I would listen to each person’s complaint,” said Andriulli. “But Scarborough is built with five or six communities, so, when anything is going to affect you personally, I think what you say should have a little more weight.

“Yes, I would give weight to the people in the neighborhood,” agreed Sullivan, “especially when you’re talking about the Higgins Beach subject. That’s its own community and I would give them the respect they deserve.”

NEW WENTWORTH

All of the candidates said how they will vote on the $39.1 million bond to build a new Wentworth Intermediate School.

Here there was a clear line between incumbents and challengers. Both Sullivan and D’Andrea said they will vote for the bond, saying the school is “way past due” for replacement. Benedict and Andriulli said they will vote no.

Although Benedict had earlier told The Current he did not feel the project was necessary, saying no one he knew with school-aged children had complained about Wentworth’s condition, he has since modified his position, based on what he’s learned in recent weeks.

“My vote is not that we don’t need a school, but is only because of the way it’s being presented,” he said. “It’s far too much money.”  In particular, Benedict faulted the school for choosing Harriman and Associates as its architect and design consultant without opening up the project to a public bid.

Andriulli did not offer a rational for his no vote.

SCARBOROUGH DOWNS

The candidates were split on how they’ll vote on Question 2, which would allow Scarborough Downs to move to Biddeford, opening for development a piece of prime land in Scarborough. Sullivan was a yes, D’Andrea a no and Benedict an undecided, while Andriulli did not say either way.

However, all of the candidates agreed that the area would be best redeveloped as a mixed-use neighborhood of homes and businesses, with most promoting the site as the downtown Scarborough has never had.

“Right now, there is no place that’s called the center of town,” said Andriulli, adding of the Downs,  “I don’t think Scarborough’s going to miss it.”

Sullivan said the town needs business development in the area of the Downs, along with residential units, “to subsidize our tax base and help pay off our debt.”

“In order to kick that off, we need something to attract the business and I think a convention center would be the perfect thing,” he said.

D’Andrea, on the other hand, leaned more toward the residential side of the mix, stumping for “affordable housing” with a “center-of-town feeling,” featuring a design that is “friendly to pedestrians” with only “some small businesses.”

Although he too foresaw a mixed-use neighborhood, Benedict was less committed to a particular mix of design than the need to get out of the way of developers, in order to let some project happen.

“We’ve got to relax some of the rules,” he said. “I don’t believe that in this day and age we need to be telling people how many bushes they should have, what color the roof should be.”

BUDGET PRIORITIES

Given declining subsidies and revenue sharing from the state, candidates were asked how they would prioritize local budget needs.

The two challengers both avoided prioritizing any one department or need over another.

“Everyone has to take a hit across the board,” said Andriulli. “It’s always easy to go out and ask for more money, but that should be the last alternative.”

“I don’t think I would prioritize anything,” said Benedict. “I would take everything on an as-needed basis, meaning as-needed with proof.”

Meanwhile, D’Andrea put capital expenditures low on the totem pole, while Sullivan suggested that if the public is unwilling to chop down any part of the pole, it will have to pony up.

“The fire department does a great job, but we are to the point where our budget is almost bare bones,” said D’Andrea. “So the truck replacement schedule, I think, is something we need to look really hard at.”

“In the past we’ve really done the best we can,” said Sullivan. “I don’t always feel the school has done their part. Hopefully, in the future they will, and become partners with us to bring their budget under control. If not, there’s probably no other choice other than to increase property taxes. That’s just the way it is.”

TOURISM

Candidates were asked if they support the Sprague Corp. plan to build what it calls an “auxiliary site” to Scarborough Beach State Park, which it manages for the state, as well as whether or not tourism should factor into the town’s marketing efforts.

Benedict said ”the idea is fine,” particularly because he felt opening of a new beachfront might relieve congestion at Higgins Beach. However, he declined to weigh in without first seeing a management plan. He called it “imperative” for the town to have and promote resort areas.

Andriulli rolled both his answers into one, saying, “Anything anyone can do to bring development to town is a plus. We have a beach community and we should take advantage of it.” The Sprague plan, he surmised, will help drive traffic to town that could spur other development, such as restaurants.

However, Benedict disagreed, saying that visitors to the new Sprague beach would likely eat there. “I can’t see anything benefiting in Scarborough from this, other than access to the beach, and we already have plenty of that,” he said.

Although D’Andrea pointed out that the Town Council gets no vote on the Sprague project, she thought it “can maybe work if it can be scaled back a bit.” That said, she declared herself a “huge supporter” of beach access and promoting Scarborough to tourists. “Lets face it,” she said, “we are on the ocean. We are a tourist destination. We might as well make that work.”

TOWN DEBT

With Scarborough already owing $68 million in general obligation bonds before the Wentworth vote, candidates were asked how much debt is too much, and if there is any project for which they’d refuse to authorize new bond sales.

Although all candidates cited concerns about the debt, only Andriulli failed to name a specific bond request he’d deny.

“It’s a classic Catch-22,” he said. “You don’t want to incur any more debt, but, for growth, you should. You have to do it year-by-year and hope the economy starts turning around and we start bringing revenue back.”

Benedict said he’d like to curtail the town’s vehicle replacement program. “Town vehicles do not need to be replenished as quickly as I’ve seen,” he said. “I think there’s too much money spent on them. It’s not a cheap investment. It’s very, very expensive.”

Sullivan, perhaps surprisingly given his occupation, said the fire department may not get its annual allotment of new equipment. “When budget time comes and the money’s not here, they’re going to have to wait,” he said. “There’s a lot of things that are going to be have taken off the burner until times get better.”

Sullivan also urged caution with grand designs, noting that the town is still paying the bill to build the Haigis Parkway, and not realizing any of the hoped-for development in that area. “We were this close to mailing it and then the bottom fell out,” he said, referring to one planned project in the area that never went forward.

D’Andrea, on the other hand, displayed her bona fides by pointing out that she was the only no vote on the council when it came to rebuilding the Haigis Parkway intersection with Route 1, completed this summer. “I did not feel that was needed. That was a want, not a need,” she said. “We need to take a hard look at needs.”

A Closer Look

Paul Andriulli

Age: 55

Occupation: General contractor (owner, P.A. Renovations Inc.)  

Education:

Residency: 26 years.

Local experience: None

Other service: Scarborough Fire Dept. (20-plus years, retired)   

James Benedict

Age: 63

Occupation: Retired contractor (former owner, Wood Construction)

Education: Boston College, bachelor’s degree in business

Residency: 11 years

Local experience: None (Ran for Town Council 2009, 2010)

Other service: Scarborugh VIP (volunteers in policing), 7 years; CER relief, 5 years

Karen D‘Andrea

Age: 52

Occupation: Nonprofit manager (executive director, Maine Citizens Against Handgun Violence and Physicians for Social Responsibility)

Education: A.A. grad work, addiction counseling, University of Southern Maine; State University of New York at Binghamton, bachelor’s degree in sociology; Coast Carolina community college, journalism

Residency: 10 years

Local experience: Town Council (Three years)

Other service: Buy Local Scarborough (founder)

Richard Sullivan Jr

Age: 47

Occupation: Firefighter (city of Portland); Landscaper (owner, R. J. Sullivan Landscaping)

Education: attended Southern Maine Vocational Technical Institute (now Southern Maine Community College)

Residency: 25 years

Local experience: Town Council (four years); Planning Board (one year)

Other service: Scarborough Fire Dept., volunteer, 15 years; Asst. Scout master, two years