Selectmen Candidates Hogan and Hartling Answer Questions from Voters

In the only scheduled candidate debate of the election season two of the three candidates for the Board of Selectmen answered questions from voters last week.

The forum was the Burlington Senior Center's candidate's afternoon last Wednesday. Current member of the board Robert Hogan and candidate Christopher Hartling were in attendance to answer questions and demonstrate why voters should support them. There are two seats up this year, Hogan's seat and Walter Zenkin's seat. Zenkin said he decided not to run for reelection.

The third candidate on the ballot, Virginia Mooney, was not in attendance last week.

The forum was more of a discussion than a debate, with the two men mostly agreeing with each other on the issues raised by voters.

The first question was on the candidates' thoughts on the town acquiring more liquor licenses and whether or not the town needs them to attract new restaurants.

Hartlin said that liquor licenses are "commodities that come with a lot of responsibility" and that in his view its less important how many there are but who has them.

"I don't think we want bars and taverns and package stores on every corner," he said. "But we do need to recognize the applicants that feel they are worthy to come forward. Then it's up to the people who serve, like the members of the board of selectmen, to decided if they are good candidates and whether they can handle the responsibilities."

Hogan said he had supported the idea of requesting additional liquor license when the board discussed it recently. He said that was because the town has a number of restaurants planning to come into town. Like Hartling, he said his view is that the licenses should go to the right types of establishments.

"We have high-end restaurants coming to town who's primary function is to serve food," he said. "We don't want bar rooms, we want restaurants."

Hogan also said the restaurants in town have a good track record of alcohol service compliance.

"We have had good numbers on the police reports," he said. "The people who run these high-end restaurants are vigilant."

The candidates were also asked what they thought the current board of selectmen was doing well.  

Hartling said he thought the board members performed well when it came to addressing the issues brought before them.

"I feel what they do well is something I hope they continue to do well," he said. "That is they pay attention to the issues brought before them, not just go through the motions. They really care about what is before them."

"Probably the best thing you can do as a board is to take things seriously and pay attention to the issues," he added. "I would be committed to doing that."

Hogan said he thought the members' ability to work through issues was a strength for the board.

"We’ve been able to talk to each other," he said. "We don’t always agree but we work though disagreements in a mature way. When it comes to bonding issues, employee benefits - these are all important issues we've worked together on. I think we can work together and will continue to do so with Chris joining us."

Another member of the audience asked about the the problems with federal finances and if that affects state aid, how would they deal with possible budget shortfalls? The follow-up is whether or not a plan could include layoffs.

Hartling said he was not in favor of layoffs for town employees.

"Layoffs is a very unattractive word," he said. "They should really be the last thing ever considered and to me it's not an acceptable options. There are other areas where you can tighten things. You can restrict spending in areas that hopefully don’t affect the services we enjoy. I'd look to make cuts in areas other than personnel."

Hogan said Burlington is in good condition with its finances.

"The state aid that comes to Burlington is smaller than most other communities," he said. "Less than 10 percent of our budget is from state aid. It is a number we can take care of."

Hogan added that the loss of state aid would be something the town would have to deal with but also said layoffs would not be the way to do it.

"As Chris noted we have a lot of people who do good work," he said.

Finally, the candidates were asked what they thought the biggest challenge would be for Burlington in the next three years.

Hogan said capital spending would be something the town must focus on in the next few years. He said Fire Station 2 needs to be moved to a new location on Middlesex Turnpike and the Department of Public Works needs better facilities.

Hogan also said the Human Services Building would need to be renovated within the next four years or so.

"That is what we have to identify and that will be the hardest thing – the capital projects we have to deal with," he said.

Hartling also said the DPW building and second fire station would need to be addressed. 

"There are people trying to do their best in buildings that aren’t commiserate with the town and don't offer sufficient support," he said.

Hartling also said the town needs to invest more in education. Not just the buildings but in education as a whole.

The Burlington Town Election will be held on Saturday, April 6. The polls will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Burlington High School.

Burlington Patch will be interviewing the candidates for the board of selectmen this week. What questions would you like to ask? Let us know in the comments below.