From left, Charles Hawkins Jr., David Douglass, Jarrod Maxfield and Nick Kalogerakis attended Monday night’s event. Jane Vaughan / Lakes Region Weekly
WINDHAM — Four candidates for Town Council at a Meet the Candidates event Monday concurred on a number of issues, including the need for better collaboration on the council.
The event was hosted by the new, nonpartisan Move Windham Forward. All seven council candidates were invited by certified mail to attend. Candidates Charles Hawkins Jr., David Douglass, incumbent Jarrod Maxfield and Nick Kalogerakis accepted, while incumbent Bob Muir, incumbent Donna Chapman and Gartay Yekeh did not attend. They are all running for three seats on the Town Council in the Nov. 5 election.
“We want people to be informed and make good decisions,” said Jonathan Priest, who moderated the discussion and is a Move Windham Forward co-founder.
The four candidates agreed that the Town Council needs to work together in order to move the community forward.
“There’s too much divisiveness in town right now. We need common goals,” Douglass said.
“Disagreements need to be done respectfully,” Maxfield said. “We can all start there.”
Regarding growth, the candidates spoke about the need to be proactive, not reactive, and to prepare for the future, whether that be through impact fees or caps on the number of housing permits that are issued.
“We need to lay out a plan to curb the growth,” Kalogerakis said. “We have to address this quickly.”
They discussed infrastructure, including high-speed internet and a town sewer, which they all support building.
“The infrastructure has to support the growth,” Hawkins said.
The candidates concurred on the need for a community center in town and all said Windham should allow marijuana both for medical use and adult recreational use.
The candidates also spoke about their desire to run for the council.
The council doesn’t “really seem to get anywhere on too many issues,” Hawkins said, adding that he wants “to listen to what the town says and what the people say.”
“Windham can do better than the way the council is running,” Douglass said. “We have a lot of challenges that haven’t been addressed. I’m tired of good ideas finding their way to the back burner.”
The candidates seemed to agree that the Town Council is in need of a change, whether that be new members, new ideas or a new method of operating.
“It’s great to infuse new thought processes and ideas. Our council certainly needs that at this time,” Kalogerakis said.
Maxfield agreed. “To be honest,” he said, “I’m asking the people of Windham to come out and vote for someone new. I think our council needs new blood. We need positive, proactive change. Please do your research. Choose somebody and come out and vote.”
Move Windham Forward will host a second Meet the Candidates event on Oct. 10 at 7 p.m. at the Microtel, 965 Roosevelt Trail.
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