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Date: 9/21/2022
BELCHERTOWN – The Belchertown Select Board gets closer to adding a fifth member again. The new occupant of a seat on the board that has been vacant since May 3 will be decided on Oct. 3 in a special election.
On Sept. 16, a Candidate’s Night took place at Town Hall, allowing members of the public to meet and hear from the three candidates vying that spot. Curtis Carroll, Margaret “Peg” Louraine, and Lesa Lessard Pearson are the three names voters will see on the ballot come election night but only two of the candidates were able to attend the event.
The moderator of the event and Select Board member Ron Aponte let the audience know at the beginning that, “Unfortunately, Curtis Carroll, the third candidate, is not able to make it to this evening’s event. A prior arrangement that he evidently was not able to reschedule. In light of that, BCTV has offered to have an interview with Mr. Carroll that may or may not occur at a later date.”
Both participating candidates were able to let the the standing room only crowd know who they are and what they look forward to bringing to the Select Board if elected.
Each candidate had three minutes for an opening statement followed by five questions and a two-minute closing statement after that.
Louraine has lived with her husband in Belchertown for 35 years. She has worked on numerous board and committees over the years.
“Those experiences are how I learned that listening to the people in town are how we keep Belchertown the wonderful town that it is. I believe that if you are a member in town that you are a stakeholder in every decision that is made,” Louraine said.
Pearson noted how she has not lived in this town as long and is considered new but wants to show her love for the town and wants to see some needed changes and more people involved.
“I would encourage residents to support the efforts and get involved in the town. It is not up to five people what is going to happen to the state property. This is our town, and we all need to have a voice on how to develop it” Pearson said.
The two candidates both stated that a big reason they ran is because they were looking forward to changes in town and looking to break the logjam of 2-2 votes without a tiebreaker. They also both stated how they would continue to help, regardless of if they are elected or not.
“Two-to-two votes are not helpful for the town.” Louraine said “Issues need to be decided on. It does not matter which way you go but we need a conclusion.”
Pearson quickly answered the same question.
“I agree with my opponent. Nothing is getting done because we are going 2-2,” she said.
Aponte read a question from the hat that asked both candidates if they planned on running for reelection based on the short turnaround if they were voted onto the board.
“Yes. I would plan on running for reelection. I am in it for the long haul. I do not think much can be accomplished in a year and seven months … I want to be able to dig into the problems we have here and get started on fixing them” Pearson explained.
Louraine responded with a joking, “My first thought was ‘God I hope not,’” which got the audience laughing but she explained her reasoning.
“I made a hard decision to run for this office position by having to resign at my position as a longtime volunteer at BCTV … one of my reasons for running has been to break the logjam and if we are only going to go back to that and there is controversy, and if I think I can still be useful, I will consider running again.”
Pearson concluded, “I have been looking forward to this for weeks. This is really an opportunity for me to meet the people of Belchertown and show them that yes, I am a new person, but I am every bit as invested in this town as someone who has been here for generations. I think that I bring the skills necessary to look at the problems with a fresh eye. We have representation on the board with people who have been here for a long time, what we are missing is the new voice.”
Although the five questions only brought up the topics of revamping and providing tax dollars into construction of new businesses, what ideas they had for increasing the tax base of Belchertown without overdeveloping, why each candidate was running, and possibly running for reelection, Pearson made it clear that she was open to continue talking to individuals or groups after the forum to answer more questions and Louraine did the same.
Louraine ended the forum by saying she hopes people go out and vote.
“Now that you live here, show up, join up … I do not care how you vote, show up, vote. It is your responsibility. It is not your right; it is your job,” Louraine said.
The special election will be hosted at Belchertown Recreation Department, 66 State St. on Oct. 3. The voter registration deadline is Sept. 23. The deadline to request a ballot by mail is the 26th, and early in-person voting will take place on Sept. 26 to 28 at 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sept. 29 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Sept. 30 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
To find more information about the special election, visit www.belchertown.org.