All but three candidates for various city offices showed up at Westbrook High School Tuesday night for a sparsely attended Candidates Night, put together by the Westbrook Democratic Committee and hosted by radio talk-show host Kevin Crocker of WLOB.

Bruce Chuluda, the incumbent Republican mayor, said the city has made great strides in consolidating services and eliminating redundancies.

“I’m extremely pleased with the development of Westbrook over the past four years,” he said.

He reiterated he wanted to take slow and thoughtful steps in moving the city forward.

Democratic mayoral candidate Jim Violette said he has “listened to his neighbor’s frustrations,” and critiziced Chuluda for not bringing enough development and for vetoing a recylcing program that did not have a pay-per-bag element. Violette said the city needs a leader “who will take risks and try new things.”

Republican Councilor-at-Large John O’Hara, the longest-serving councilor, is running for his sixth term. He spoke mainly of his love for Westbrook and how proud he was to be able to say he is from Westbrook.

“We are no longer looked upon as the wayward child of Portland,” he said.

At-large Democratic incumbent Michael Foley said much has changed during his first term in council, including the fact that he is no longer in high school. He pointed out that he has made strong efforts to get to know the inner workings of the city by getting involved in day-to-day department work, and is ready to tackle budgets using that knowledge.

The at-large newcomer, Democrat Phil Gagnon, spoke of his long family history in Westbrook, his significant education in business administration and his desire to work on tax relief for the young, the elderly and working class families.

Ward 1’s Republican candidate, Dennis Welch, was not able to make the event. Democratic incumbent Brendan Rielly told a short story of his first time campaigning, when a man said he would vote not for Rielly because he was a Democrat and would tax and spend.

“I never wasted one of my dollars, and I won’t waste one of yours,” he said he told the man. The man votes for Rielly every year, but outside the polls reminds Rielly of the promise he made in his driveway.

Ward 2’s incumbent, the Democrat Drew Gattine, focused on making government more accountible, stopping development that could change the character of the city’s neighborhoods the need to curb speeding, which he said is the biggest concern of citizens in his ward.

The Ward 2 challenger, Republican Bill Holmes, said his work experience in the military and Cumberland County Sheriff’s Department is evidence of his leadership skills and concerns for public safety. He also spoke of the need to give tax relief to senior citizens on fixed incomes, and of his oppposition to a needle exchange program coming to Westbrook.

Ward 3’s sole candidate, Republican incumbent Ed Symbol, underscored two of his failings – an attempt to hire instead of elect the city clerk, and to rid elections of political affiliations – as proof he is ready to bring things to the table to be considered even if they may be unpopular.

Ward 4’s unchallenged Democratic incumbent, Dotty Aube, said she’s ready to keep moving forward in addressing growth and traffic concerns, as she now has lost the “deer in the headlights” look of the first portion of her first term and knows how to put her vote to the issues.

Democrat Suzanne Joyce, Ward 5’s unchallenged incumbent, was unable to attend.

Three are running for city clerk. Indpendent Ronald Trufant was unable to attend. Both Lynda Adams, the Democratic candidate, and Deb Frank, the Republican candidate, spoke of their years in various administrative and mangerial positions. Adams has worked in the clerk’s office before, while Frank has been on the school committee and the city council. Adams said she wants to cross-train employees and to be available outside normal business hours. Frank said she wants to implement standard operating procedures and reach out to other clerk offices to improve Westbrook’s operations and to assist other communities as well.

WHERE TO VOTE

Westbrook polls are open Tuesday from 7 a.m.-8 p.m. Locations are:

Ward 1: Wescott Junior High School, 426 Bridge St.

Wards 2, 3 and 4: Armory, 120 Stroudwater St.

Ward 5: Four Seasons Bingo Hall, Elmwood Avenue.

Candidates for municipal offices hobnob at the sparsely attended candidates night on Tuesday, put together by the Westbrook Democratic Committee and hosted by WLOB’s Kevin Crocker. All but two candidates attended the event, which allowed candidates three minutes to say their spiel on Channel 3.Secret local pundits believe the race in Ward 2 between incumbent Democrat Drew Gattine and Republica Bill Holmes, a former candidate for Sheriff, could be a close call.Democrat Jim Violette, left, and incumbent Republican Bruce Chuluda go head to head at Tuesday’s Candidates Night. Violette wants to get more aggressive on development while Chuluda wants it staid and steady.