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Date: 9/10/2015
EAST LONGMEADOW – Deborah Bushnell was chosen to serve a seven-month term on the Planning Board and will fill a seat vacated by former Planning Board Chair Alessandro Meccia, who resigned Sept. 1.
Bushnell was one of four candidates interviewed by the Planning Board for the position. The other three were former Selectman Peter Punderson, Joseph Townsend and John Dickson.
Bushnell was chosen by a vote of 6 to 1 during a joint meeting of the Board of Selectmen and the Planning Board of Sept. 8.
The only elected official to vote against appointing Bushnell was Selectman William Gorman.
Gorman criticized the interviewing process conducted by the Planning Board, stating that candidates should not have been allowed to watch other candidates being interviewed while waiting for their turn to come before the board.
“I think it’s wrong because you’re giving the last three people the advantage,” he added.
Other members of the two boards spoke out in favor of appointing Bushnell, who works at Kelly-Fradet Lumber at 587 Main St. and has several children enrolled in East Longmeadow Public Schools.
Planning Board member Michael Carabetta said he decided to vote in favor of appointing Bushnell because she would bring “a whole new set of eyes [and] a whole new set of values.”
Planning Board member Tyde Richards said prior to the vote that although Punderson and Townsend have experience as elected officials, he believes either individual might have attempted to run for the Board of Selectmen at a later date.
“If that were case, that would leave us with another vacancy,” he added.
Acting Planning Board Chair Ralph Page said Bushnell brought a lot of energy to her interview and he was impressed by her knowledge of blueprints and experience in the building industry.
Meccia, after the meeting, told Reminder Publications he believed Bushnell was a good choice as his successor.
“I think she’s going to be a great fit with the group,” he added. “Everybody else was a great fit, this is just something different for the board. That would have been my vote.”
Prior to the joint meeting, the Planning Board interviewed Townsend, who was the final candidate. The board interviewed the other three candidates on Aug. 25.
Townsend said he’s worked with the Planning Board in the past, but he’s not “up-to-speed with zoning regulations that apply in town.”
Planning Board member George Kingston asked Townsend how the board could help foster economic development in town, to which he replied that the board would have to become proactive with businesses.
“What I mean by that is not making things so difficult on businesses,” he added.
In other business, the Planning Board reorganized its leadership positions after the joint meeting.
Page was chosen to serve as the board’s chair, Carabetta was voted in as vice-chair, and Richards will once again serve as clerk.