WILMINGTON, MA — Selectman Candidate Greg Bendel was recently asked the following questions by Wilmington Apple — What do you feel are three of the most significant challenges facing the Town of Wilmington and how will you help address them as a member of the Board of Selectmen?
Below is Bendel’s response, in his own words:
One of the most significant challenges facing the Town of Wilmington is the initiative to acquire a Ristuccia Rink especially for the young athletes of our town. As a teacher and coach, I have a deep appreciation for the benefits of playing youth sports, the development of team spirit, leadership and sportsmanship, just to name a few. Wilmington has always supported the community effort to provide adequate facilities for all of our young athletes, but unfortunately, a self-interested few have undermined that effort when it comes to our young skaters. I understand that pending litigation prevents the public from knowing all the details, but in short, we need to do whatever it takes to provide that resource, as the residents at the December 2014 Special Town Meeting overwhelmingly have voted to do. I was proud to be one of the residents who supported the article that allowed the Board of Selectman to acquire the Rink, which passed 391-7.
The proposal of the Kinder Morgan Tennessee Gas Pipeline and the proposal of the New England Tran rail moving to Wilmington are significant and important challenges in a community that has clearly voiced its collective opposition to both. The Kinder Morgan’s Tennessee Gas Pipeline is an approximately 11,900-mile pipeline system that runs from the Gulf of Mexico and south Texas to the northeast section of the United States, including parts of Wilmington. New England Tran rail plans to purchase the Olin Chemical Corporation site on Eames Street to construct a rail-to-truck transloading operation. The plan is for twenty to twenty-five rail cars carrying items such as plastic pellets and magnesium chloride to come into the site daily, six days per week. I would stay the course that the current Board of Selectman and Town Administration has charted, which is to oppose the initiatives in every way possible, legal and political and keep these projects from coming to Wilmington. To date, I have not talked with any residents that are in favor of these two proposals.
Wilmington has a rich tradition of improving the long term value, stability and quality of services for its next generation of families. We need to continue that tradition. At certain points in history, there is no getting around the need for leveraging a temporary debt exclusion to fund extraordinary expenses, as the residents did with respect to funding the new high school. I was privileged to work closely with many like-minded people on the 4.0 Committee, advocating and mobilizing community support for that uniquely important and costly project. With common sense and fiscal discipline, I think we can continue our tradition of improving the efficiency and resources of local government without necessarily passing along long-term debt. I look forward to supporting a sensible combination of cash reserves and short term borrowing within the tax levy limit, to address the needs of our town, and specifically to move forward with recommendations coming from the pending Capital Improvement Study that is underway. I am looking forward to seeing the results of the Capital Improvement Study and making informed and fiscally responsible decisions that are the best for the taxpayers of this community.
I look forward to doing my best to earn the vote of residents on Saturday, April 23rd. For more information please Like Greg Bendel for Selectman on Facebook.
Thank you,
Greg Bendel
About The Questions
During this local election season, Wilmington Apple will ask a question of all the Selectmen candidates each week. Wilmington Apple will run one response per day, Monday through Thursday, with a recap on Friday. Responses are in the candidates’ own words, unedited. Each candidate is given the same question and the same amount of time (approximately one week) to answer. Order of answers will alternate each week.
About The Election
Four candidates — Greg Bendel, Kevin Caira, Joseph Lavino, and Thomas Miller — will be competing for two open 3-year seats on the Wilmington Board of Selectmen. Longtime incumbents Lou Cimaglia and Mike Newhouse are not seeking re-election. The Town Election will be held on Saturday, April 23. Polls will be open from 8am to 8pm.
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