Ellsworth candidates air issues at forum Eight vie for four seats on City Council

ELLSWORTH – Self-deprecating comments, a few jokes and mild disagreement marked Tuesday night’s forum for City Council candidates.

All eight candidates in the Nov. 2 election attended the 90-minute event, which was held at Ellsworth Middle School. Each candidate was given time for opening and closing statements and was asked to answer three questions:

. How should local traffic congestion be eased?

. What should be done to generate development in the city-owned business park?

. How should the city set priorities or spur redevelopment along the waterfront?

The eight candidates are vying for four available terms on the council. Incumbent Councilors Lee Beal and Barbara Reeve, former City Manager Tim King, former Councilors Gary Fortier and John Phillips, and Matthew Strong are running for three available three-year terms. Incumbent John Moore and Michael Beardsley are competing for a one-year term.

The candidates appeared to agree on most points raised at the forum, but there were differences of opinion on a few issues.

Beal suggested that the city should buy a lot next to the Union River occupied by Morrison Chevrolet. If the city buys the lot from the dealership, which is moving to Route 1, the city would be able to determine how the lot is redeveloped, he reasoned.

No other candidate voiced support for buying any waterfront property. The city should facilitate redevelopment instead of controlling it by buying land, they said.

The candidates generally agreed that the two most important waterfront projects are completing the dredge of the city’s harbor and upgrading or replacing the city’s faulty wastewater treatment plant.

Not every candidate had the same opinion about the city’s business park.

Beardsley, Reeve and Strong each said Ellsworth should not have built the park while Fortier, King and Phillips said it was a good idea, especially in light of the robust economy of the late 1990s.

Beal, Fortier, King and Phillips each forecast that the city’s recent economic development agreement with the local Chamber of Commerce soon will produce results in developing the park.

All the candidates agreed existing roads should be improved to help alleviate the city’s traffic congestion, which is at its worst during the summer.

Fortier, Phillips, Reeve and Strong each said building a bypass would be a good long-term solution. King, who said he supports building a connector to Interstate 395, was the only candidate to criticize the bypass concept.

The forum was sponsored by the Ellsworth American.