Bangor council candidates discuss issues

BANGOR – Four City Council hopefuls Thursday made campaign speeches and fielded questions about issues ranging from the city’s waterfront redevelopment plans and regionalization to the sorry shape of city sidewalks during a candidates’ forum at the Bangor Public Library.

School funding also generated some questions during the event.

All four of the candidates for the three council seats up for grabs in the Nov. 8 city elections have had some council experience. This year’s slate comprises:

. Frank Farrington, 74, who is seeking his second three-year term and now is council chairman, holds a bachelor’s degree from Bates College and a master’s from American College and is owner of Farrington Financial Group.

. Richard Greene, 49, also is seeking his second term. He grew up in Bangor and is a professional photographer and owner of Klyne Studio. He attended the University of Maine.

. Gerry Palmer, 57, served two full terms and part of an unexpired term before taking the last year off because of the city’s term limits rule. A UM graduate, he is a career counselor and is executive director of Northeast COMBAT, a consumer advocacy agency.

. David Nealley, 44, served most of a three-year council term but left it last May because of a temporary move to southern Maine. He is back and is waging a write-in campaign. A graduate of the University of Southern Maine, he sells real estate for ERA Dawson-Bradford.

Each candidate was allotted three minutes for an opening statement and three minutes for a closing statement, delivered in the order determined by drawing lots. In between was a question-and-answer session posed by the approximately 30 audience members.

While candidates agreed on many of the issues, they did part ways somewhat when asked about school funding and about whether it was appropriate for the council to take positions on state ballot issues, as they did earlier this week.

The council’s 6-3 vote to override the state’s new spending limits to add $416,727 to the school budget for extra- and co-curricular activities was the basis of questions from at least two attendees.

Farrington, who voted for the extra money, said the council did debate it, but “a majority felt we needed these things. … I felt that we have delegated that authority [over how much local funding is needed] to the school committee.”

Palmer agreed. “It’s important to me that we have the best education we can offer,” citing increasing competition in today’s global economy from such emerging economic forces as China and India.

Greene, who opposed the override, said, “It’s not my intent to tell the school department how to spend their money, [but] it’s our bottom line.” He opposed the override because “I felt that in a $34 million budget, they should be able to do it.”

Nealley said the council needs to look not only at where the budget is growing but why. He thought the root of the problem was shrinking state and federal aid, but added, “ultimately we have to fund the school system to be the best school system it can be.”

With regard to the council having urged residents to vote against a question seeking to repeal the state’s new gay rights bill and to support bond issues for transportation, higher education, economic development and environmental improvements, Farrington admitted the council was “uncomfortable” with doing so but decided at committee level to adopt resolves.

“We wanted to explain what the impact was on Bangor,” he said. “There was a discussion [about whether the council should do so] but we thought it was part of our job.”

Nealley said, “I have a little bit of an issue with that.” He said the public had asked for the council’s position on issues that have come up, but that councilors’ opinions were their opinions and “no more important than those of Charlton Heston or Barbara Streisand.”

Palmer, however, said, “I think it’s important that the councilors [express] their opinions, but maybe not as a block. … I do think people want to know [where councilors stand on issues].”

Said Greene, “I don’t believe the city of Bangor is trying to tell people how to vote.”

Rather, councilors thought it was important that residents know that some of the ballot questions, such as funding for higher education facilities, had a direct bearing on some of the colleges located here.