Answers - Mike Sessine - Candidate for Board of Selectmen

Q1: Do you support the construction of a new high school as approved by the Board of Education in 2008? If yes, please describe what you would do in your role on the [B.O.E., B.O.S., B.O.F.] to support the passage of the referendum. If no, please describe what modifications need to be made to the current proposal in order for you to support it.

A1: Yes, as a long standing PACT member, I am very familiar with the Task Force’s work and the Board of Education’s decision making process concerning this issue. I fully support the Board of Education’s nearly unanimous (8-1) decision to proceed toward a referendum on a newly constructed high school. A new high school represents a wise investment for the Town, especially given the extremely low interest rates and construction costs that are presently available. It is also important to note that the Town would not start paying for any bonding until several years after the passage of the referendum. My concern is that if we don’t keep moving rapidly toward a referendum, we will miss our opportunity to save significant costs. The High School facility is in very poor condition and requires a significant amount of capital maintenance, and I don’t want to continue to waste valuable resources on a facility that has exceeded its useful life.

As a member of the Board of Selectmen, I pledge to not only support the process that the Board of Education has embarked upon, but also to actively participate in that process in order to ensure that the Boards of Selectmen and Finance maintain open lines of communication with the Board of Education. Ultimately, I believe it is the job of the Board of Selectmen to advocate for a referendum proposal that represents the best possible long-term solution to the serious facilities issues facing Guilford High School. As a member of the Board of Selectmen, I want to work collectively with the other Selectmen in an effort to communicate the merits of the ultimate referendum proposal and invite the community to express its concerns and/or support well in advance of the referendum date. This referendum represents a major investment by the Town and I think that we, as a community, need to do what we can to increase community involvement and voter turnout.

Q2: What will you do in your role on the [B.O.E., B.O.S., B.O.F.] to ensure drafting of a town & education budget which meets the needs of the town and schools of Guilford AND is likely to be approved by the voters in a referendum?

A2: We are living in a very difficult economic environment. As a member of the Board of Selectmen, I will strive to ensure that all town departments understand that they need to look at every line item in their budget and justify every dollar expended. I will also work with the other Selectmen, appointed and elected boards and commissions and department heads to develop creative cost cutting measures through increasing available efficiencies, determining and eliminating redundancies, exploring regional opportunities and applying proven and effective business practices, where appropriate. It is vitally important that we are able to present an affordable town and education budget that meets the needs of our citizens and maintain our quality of life. With respect to the education budget, we cannot afford to be short sighted in our attempts to trim costs. Historically, when educational staff and programs have been cut, it has taken many years to return these staff and programs to our schools. We need to do everything in our power to maintain and enhance our school programs. Our schools are vital to our community and our budgetary decisions should reflect that.

Q3: As things currently stand, the town and education budgets are growing at a rate which exceeds the growth of the grand list. In your role on the [B.O.E., B.O.S., B.O.F.], what steps will you take to address this growing gap between budget expenditures and tax revenues?

A3: In addition to the foregoing cost cutting measures, we need to focus on targeted economic development. We need to work closely with our existing businesses to ensure that their needs are addressed, as well as increase our marketing efforts toward attracting new and appropriate businesses that will increase our tax base without jeopardizing Guilford’s unique character and quality of life. As a member of the Board of Selectmen, I will work closely with our Economic Development Commission and economic development specialist to ensure that we are actively marketing Guilford’s numerous strengths to the business and tourism communities.