Candidates make their pitches to the voters

By Mary Macedo, Neighb News Correspondent

On Thursday, 3/7 Fairhaven candi­dates pitched their messages to the public at the annual Government Access Channel’s candi­dates’ night held at Fairhaven High School. The event is running on Channel 18 for Comcast customers, and is avail­able online at https://www.fairhaventv.com. The election is on Monday, 4/1.

Town Moderator Mark Sylvia emceed the event. Each candidate made a statement and then answered questions by three panelists: Editor Beth David from the Fairhaven Neighborhood News; Montana Samuels from Southcoast Today; and Mira Yin, a Fairhaven High School senior, National Honor Society member and school representative to the Fairhaven School Committee. 

Selectboard

The first to speak were the Select­board candidates. Voters will vote for one candidate for a three-year term. 

Incumbent Dan Freitas told voters that he is a lifelong resident of Fairhaven and has raised his two daughters in Fairhaven’s great school system; he has been a town meeting member for 25 years, served on the Board of Public Works for five years, and is finishing his first term on the Selectboard. 

In his first term Mr. Freitas said he was able to assist in getting a better town website that allows residents to apply for permits and make payments. He said in his first term they were able to start the sale of the Rogers School and guarantee no changes to the outside of the building.

Mr. Freitas said that he has also been working to get more businesses in Fairhaven to fill vacant storefronts. The Selectboard has also helped increase Fairhaven’s bond rating from a AA to AAA. 

If elected to a second term Mr. Freitas said he would like to assist in getting a public safety complex built, and get moving on the renova­tion and expansion of the sewage treatment plant. He also said he wants to keep the cost of that project down as much as possible.

He said he wants to be available to hear from the residents and work for them to make the town the best it can be. 

“Dan, I’m glad to see you’re looking me in the eye because it has to do with my first question,” Ms. David said, starting the rounds of questions.

She explained that she and Mr. Freitas have had a few conflicts in the past. Ms. David said that conflicts among journalists and elected officials are common and that she has clashed with almost everyone, but her conflict with Mr. Freitas has been different from the others, because Mr. Freitas has chosen not to speak to her, acknowledge her, or return any of her calls or emails. She said Mr. Freitas has also called her newspaper “fake news” on social media as well as less directly in open public meetings.

Ms. David asked Mr. Freitas why he thinks it is okay to treat the press that way and why should residents believe that he will not treat them the same way if a resident disagrees with him?

“I think this is more about you than me,” Mr. Freitas responded. 

He said that anyone who has come in front of him he has treated fairly. Mr. Freitas told Ms. David that it is true that he will not speak to her because he does not want to engage in a back and forth argument with her. 

Mr. Freitas noted to Ms. David that at the end of Selectboard meet­ings she goes right to [Town Adminis­trator] Mark [Rees] to ask questions and never asks Mr. Freitas, which, he stated, was fine with him. He also said that Ms. David takes his words out of context, but he does not read her newspaper, he only hears about it from others. 

Mr. Freitas said he said he does not say bad things about Ms. David, and added that he would rather have a question about anything else, not their conflict.

“I treat all fairly, as far as I’m concerned,” Mr. Freitas said.

Mr. Samuels asked Mr. Freitas if he could go into detail on how the Select­board will manage funds differently.

Mr. Freitas said that the Select­board has met with the Town Administrator on a few Saturdays for workshops to set goals and to discuss how to manage, maintain, and improve the town.

Ms. Yin asked Mr. Freitas what he will do to help improve education.

Mr. Freitas explained that the school committee is looking to hire teachers to help teach workforce related skills. He said he would like help get the money to hire teachers for workforce learning. 

Ms. David had a second question for Mr. Freitas. She explained that she had some concern with changes happening on the waterfront and what it could mean for the fishing industry in Fairhaven, and the danger of losing a working waterfront.

Mr. Freitas said that he is 100% behind the fishermen. He explained that the fishermen are on his mind as much as every other industry in Fairhaven. He said that he does not answer to the Town Administrator, and he works for the town and the residents. 

Ms. David followed up by asking what he would like to see at Union Wharf and especially where the permit had been approved for an over-the-water platform.

Mr. Freitas said that he would love to see a fish market there.

Lisa Plante, who is challenging Mr, Freitas for his seat, told voters that she has also been a long time resident of Fairhaven and actually went to school with Mr. Freitas.

She said she has been a town meeting member for over 20 years, has served on the Commission on Disabilities, and has been on the Finance Committee for eight years, two as the Vice Chairperson. Ms. Plante said she believes the town needs to be fiscally con­servative and that town government has become too big too fast. 

“We need to keep up with what we have created,” Ms. Plante said.

She said she believes her experience on the finance committee will be helpful if she is elected to the Selectboard. She said she would make sure residents’ voices are heard, and that she would be open and honest with the public. She also said that she admired the Selectboard for having office hours to speak to residents, and she would do the same. 

Ms. Plante said that sitting in the Selectboard seat is important and that she does not take it lightly. She said she wants to do the best for the town, not for herself.

Ms. David noted that Ms Plante has been very outspoken in public and has stated strong opinions on subjects. Ms. David asked Ms. Plante if she will have an open mind with residents or if she will “stick to her guns” no matter what.

Ms. Plante admitted that she has been outspoken and says what she feels, sometimes with no filter. She said she has learned from being on FinCom that she needs to reflect and think before speaking. 

Ms. Plante also said she will always be fair, transparent, and honest whether it makes her look good or bad, and she will represent the people of the town. She said it is not about herself or her opinion; what is best for the town comes first.

Mr. Samuels asked what Ms. Plante what she meant by the town govern­ment getting too big too fast.

Ms. Plante answered that Fair­haven recently added new positions in depart­ments quickly. The town needs to be careful and fiscally responsible with taxpayer money.

Ms. Plante said the town needs to make sure police and fire have enough workers, and that schools have adequate funding to keep them at the high level they have reached. She said there has been more growth on the government side of things and the town needs to be careful.

Ms. Yin asked Ms. Plante what she thinks the most important charac­teristic is a Selectboard member.

Ms. Plante said a person needs to be fair, impartial, honest, and available at all times for residents.

Ms. David explained that Fairhaven has fees for parking, beaches, etc. She said it would be nice to have free places to go, and she asked Ms. Plante how she felt about fees considering Ms. Plante said she thinks the town needs to be conservative with money.

Ms. Plante agreed that there need to be more free places to go. She explained that when she says conservative she does not mean taking every penny from people, but that the town needs to watch where the money is being spent. 

School Committee

The next race was the School Commit­tee, with two seats up for election, although there is not a contested race. Incumbent Stasia Powers is running for re-election, but there will be no candidate name on the second line. Kyle Bueno is running a write-in campaign, and did attend the candidates night. 

Ms. Powers told voters she has lived in Fairhaven for 20 years and has three children who have gone through the public schools. She said she started the junior tennis program, coaches her daughter’s basketball team, and helped facilitate building the trails behind the schools. Ms. Powers said she does it all for the kids and wants them to have the best education possible.

She told voters that she has been on the SC for 12 years, and when she first got elected, the district was reeling from scandal, the buildings had maintenance issues, the district had a bad quality audit from the state, and there was a lot of tension within the town.

Ms. Powers said that now the schools are doing amazing and enrollment has grown. She said they have forward thinking administration and amazing teachers. 

Ms. Powers said in the future they want to spend funds wisely, focus on improvement and the hiring of innovation pathway teachers. 

Ms. David asked Ms. Powers what specific policies she advocates for keeping students safe in the schools,

Ms. Powers explained that they are focused on prevention and on the social emotional wellness of the students and making sure that no student is ignored. She said every student has an adult that pays attention. They also have a civil rights policy and that bullying is being prevented or stopped before it gets out of control. Ms. Powers also cautioned, though, that some of the measures taken in regards to school safety cannot be made public.

Mr. Samuels asked what discus­sions will be had regarding recrea­tional marijuana being legalized and how it will affect students. 

Ms. Powers said that she would like to educate students on the effects of drugs, as well as parents on the signs of drug use. She said that students do get educa­tion on drugs in their health classes. 

Ms. Yin asked Ms. Powers what she would like to see accomplished in the future.

Ms. Powers said she hopes to see school budgets brought up to a fair level across the districts throughout the state. She said she would also like to expand on technology, bring back full-year science and social studies for the sixth grade, and bring back math and literacy coaches.

Ms. David also asked if the SC will be sure to keep up with the maintenance of the existing school buildings, including two new ones, and not let them fall into disrepair like the Oxford and Rogers schools did.

Ms. Powers said those schools wee neglected for a long time and it was not economically feasible to renovate them, so they had to build two new schools. She said things have already needed to be fixed in the new elementary schools and the district has been staying on top of it.

She added that the middle school needed a new roof, new windows, and new doors, and those renovations were done. 

She added that they have submit­ted plans to the town to renovate the old part of the High School building.

“We are staying on top of it,” Ms. Powers said.

Write-in candidate Kyle Bueno stated that he was the student rep for the School Committee when he went to Fairhaven High. He said he is a first generation American and attended Fairhaven schools his whole life. He noted that he played violin, soccer, and was class of 2014 president for four years.

Mr. Bueno said he went to Bridgewater State for economics, Portuguese, and political science. He was also a student trustee in college and helped do budgets, manage housing, and public safety. 

If elected he wants to explore the options of having the world language require­ment in elementary school, continue to promote social-emo­tional, and mental health services, and continue collaboration efforts for public safety and technology.

Ms. David asked if he would have trouble speaking or going against the administration and teachers who once had authority over him as a student just a few years ago.

Mr. Bueno said he had thought about that, but he believes it is very important to disconnect himself from the personal aspects of his life when serving on the committee. He said he would do what he believed was right and fair, and that he is very open-minded and will look at all sides.

Mr. Samuels asked Mr. Bueno the same question about marijuana.

Mr. Bueno said it is about being proactive and getting students ex­cited about extracurricular activities. He said those activities helped him grow into who he is today and helped him make the right choices. 

Ms. Yin asked how Mr. Bueno would help bring the community together.

Mr. Bueno said he would like to first get to know the community better and find out what type of things students are going through now. 

Board of Public Works

The next race was a contested race on the Board of Public Works, with two people running for one open seat. 

The first candidate, Frank Coelho, stated that he has lived in Fairhaven since 1964, has been a town meeting member for 20 years and is currently the chairper­son for the Marine Resources Committee.

Ms. David asked if Mr. Coelho planned on staying on both the BPW and Marine Resources Committee if elected and if he did how he would handle the conflicts that could arise from it.

Mr. Coelho explained he would like to stay on the MRC if he could but with Robert “Hoppy” Hobson already on both committees, there could be an issue of having two people on both boards. Mr. Coelho said if need be he would leave his position on the MRC and just attend meetings and speak up as a resident.

Ms. David also asked if Mr. Coelho’s friendship with Mr. Hobson would affect his opinions on issues or affect the way he would vote.

“I’m my own person,” Mr. Coelho said, adding that he and Mr. Hobson fight and disagree all the time on issues.

Ms. Samuels asked Mr. Coelho why he would want to “make the shift” from the MRC to the BPW. 

He said that he had been involved for a few years, since a couple of large increases went through for water and sewer, and he believed that it was not clear to the public and Town Meeting that it was a 24% increase. He said the BPW almost got abolished when the town switched forms of government a few years ago, but the voters decided to keep the BPW independent. Now, however, there are efforts to take back some power from the BPW and put it in the hands of the Selectboard and Town Administrator.

He noted that four positions received raises totaling more than $60,000 in the public works department. He said he wants to get the BPW “back where it needs to be.”

By that, he explained, that TM can clear up language in the bylaws. 

Ms. Yin asked Mr. Coelho how he would promote the well being of the citizens.

Mr. Coelho said he would get citizens involved, listen and work with them to resolve issues.

Mr. Coelho then addressed Ms. Yin, thanking her for being involved and stating, “It is so good to see the youth getting involved in the town.” 

“You are the future of the town,” Mr. Coelho said. “Us old-timers are going to be gone soon and it’s up to you guys to fill the gap.”

Also running for the BPW is Albert Martin, who reminded voters that he ran for BPW last year and tied with Mr. Hobson. Mr. Martin said he conceded for personal reasons, but wanted to try again. He said he has lived in the town since 1979 and worked for the highway depart­ment for 23 years.

Ms. David asked Mr. Martin a question regarding his election statement last year, when he said the “catastrophic” failure of the wastewater treatment plant was the number one problem facing the town and that it would take all depart­ments to fix it. She asked him why he believed he would be able to help in that collaboration.

Mr. Martin said he still believed the treatment plant is the biggest issue facing the town. He said it is going to cost a lot of money to upgrade it, and residents are already paying a lot for water and sewer. He said the town will need to borrow a couple million for the project and they have a plan and timeline in place.

Ms. David also asked Mr. Martin if he feels the bike path and parks are an important part of the BPW’s responsi­bility, citing some “rather dismissive remarks” he made in his statement last year regarding them.

Mr. Martin said that they need to try to get additional seasonal help to maintain the parks because right now they only have one park employee and the rest of the employees are pulled from the Highway Department. 

“We cannot let the parks go,” Mr. Martin said.

Mr. Samuels asked Mr. Martin why he wanted to run again, saying no one would “knock him” for not running after the situation with the tied vote last year, and asked why he wanted to “invest so much time” into the BPW.

Mr. Martin said he invested 23 years of his life working in the highway depart­ment. He has also been a TM member and has been “quietly involved” in the past. 

“I feel I still want to give something back,” said Mr. Martin.

Ms. Yin asked what are some goals Mr. Martin has for the BPW.

Mr. Martin said he would like to find a new location for the recycling center because the expansion of the sewage treatment plant will take over that area. He would also like to keep the parks and roads maintained. 

Fairhaven Housing Authority

The Fairhaven Housing Authority has a contested race, with incumbent Anne Silveira facing a challenge from Nick Sylvia. Ms. Silveira did not attend the candidates night, but Mr. Sylvia did face the panel.

In his statement Mr. Sylvia said that he is a business owner and attorney and wants to help administer affordable housing for the elderly, disabled, longtime Fairhaven residents and veterans. Mr. Sylvia said he wants FHA residents to be proud of their homes.

Ms. David asked about who gets into the housing authority apart­ments and what the preference is, specifically noting that in recent years, veterans have been getting top priority even if they are not Fairhaven residents. 

Mr. Sylvia said he did not believe it should be automatic that a veteran is selected over everyone. He said it should be about the resident’s whole story, as well as whether they are a good tenant. He said he did not know specifics of the current policy. 

Ms. David also asked about some of the rules residents have com­plained about, such as no candles and bird feeders. Ms. David asked what he would do about these kind of complaints.

Mr. Sylvia said he would listen to what residents have to say and sit down and come up with alternative solutions.

Candidates in uncontested races who did not attend, include: Carolyn Hurley for Town Clerk; incumbent Peter DeTerra for Board of Health; incumbent Barbara Acksen for Commissioner of Trusts; incumbent Wayne Hayward for Planning Board; incumbent Jay Malaspino, who is running a write-in campaign for his seat on the Planning Board because he failed to return his nomination papers on time.

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