THE BIO:
I came to Bar Harbor in the summer of 1990 to work as a dishwasher at the Pier Restaurant. At that time everything I owned fit in the back of my VW hatchback (except the mountain bike on the roof)! Life was simple! Ten years later, with a little help from the previous owners, I bought the West Street Café. Although I knew very little about owning a business back then I was excited. Throwing risk aversion out the window I jumped both feet in. Today, 23 years later, I still love being in the hospitality business and being a respected member of the community. Having spent the past two years on the Warrant Committee, I look forward to the opportunity to serve another term. I am also currently serving on the Bar Harbor Comprehensive Planning Committee. Life today is a little more complicated!
THE QUESTIONS:
Why are you running? How does your why for running delve into your bigger life purpose?
Running for warrant committee for me is simply a desire to contribute to the community and make a positive impact. As a year-round resident and small business owner, I believe I also have the expertise and skills to be an advocate for both.
The last year or so the news has been full of cruise ships, short-term rentals, and affordable housing. This isn’t saying that those aren’t all tremendously important, but what are some of the things that we might not be focusing on as a town that needs to be focused on instead?
No doubt about it, cruise ships, short term rentals, and affordable housing are definitely hot topics in this town.
In my opinion, for many years the town deferred many necessary major infrastructure projects such as a new school and sewer upgrades to keep taxes low. While it seemed like a noble thing to do at the time, it’s unfortunately creating an extra tax burden on residences today. We simply can’t kick these cans down the road any longer. Happily, over the past couple years, we’ve seen the town take a proactive approach to maintaining infrastructure. I’d like to see that continue for years to come.
There’s a school bond on the ballot and a school that’s in dire need of repair. How have you educated yourself on the potential reconstruction of the school and what are your thoughts on how the council, the Warrant Committee, the town, and Conners Emerson School Board can work together to lessen the tax implication for the residents?
I leaned heavily on the school board’s thorough work on the subject. Every time I thought there was a less expensive option the school board had already been down that road and eliminated it. I believe if the townspeople get behind this project ,we’ll see a fair amount of philanthropic people step up and off set the costs and burden on tax payers.
What have you done for yourself that you’re the most proud of?
I take great pride knowing my parents are proud of my accomplishments.
What have you done for the community that you’re the most proud of?
Running a business for over 20 years and consistently giving back year after year to the community’s nonprofits.
I am also very proud of our environmental sustainability efforts at the restaurant. We eliminated all single-use plastics, We’re using all biodegradable to-go packaging, Aggressively recycling, even at employee housing. Best of all, over the past five years (in a partnership with Agri-Cycle) we have pulled over 56 tons of pre and post organic waste out of the trash system and repurposed it.
The Warrant Committee considers, investigates and reports on all of the election warrant articles except for the candidates for Town Meeting. What particular skills do you have that you think will help you perform that role?
Being equipped with the aptitude and competence to come to the table, communicate, collaborate, and compromise.