Randy Seaver — journalist and former PR pro — blogs about politics, media and his struggles with mental illness.
Author: Randy Seaver
Randy Seaver is a veteran journalist who has been covering news and politics in the city of Biddeford, Maine for nearly three decades. He may be contacted at randy@randyseaver.com
If you or someone you know was hoping to make Gov. Paul LePage’s visit to Biddeford a big part of your Valentine’s Day plans, I hope you have a Plan B.
According to Mayor Alan Casavant, the governor had a scheduling conflict and rescheduled his visit to March 5.
Casavant said he is still looking forward to the governor’s visit, but our sources tell us that former Mayor Joanne Twomey will likely be very disappointed by the rescheduling.
“Randy you and Allen (sic) are very wrong, I am looking forward to seeing Governor LePage, you forget I met him when I was Mayor and asking him to bring jobs to Biddeford. Not only will I shake his hand, I will give him a big hug and tell him he should have a heart on Valentine’s Day…”
It looks like Twomey’s big hug will have to wait at least a couple more weeks.
That extra time may give Twomey the time she needs to complete her filing papers and gather signatures for her bid to oust fellow Democrat Paulette Beaudoin for the House District 135 seat.
Some of Twomey’s strongest supporters tell us they have been receiving conflicting information from Twomey about whether she will actually file and run a primary campaign.
I’ve got even money that says Twomey may swing for the bleachers and instead set her eye on the increasingly crowded field in State Senate District 4.
Democrats Stephen Beaudette (a former state rep. and city councilor); David Dutremble, a Biddeford firefighter; and Jim Emerson, a school committee member and former city councilor, have all indicated they want their party’s nomination in the June 12 primary.
As of today, no Republican candidate has surfaced, but James Booth of Arundel has filed as a un-enrolled candidate, virtually guaranteeing a spot for his name on the November ballot since he does not need the blessing of a political party during the primary election.
All candidates for the Legislature must file their paperwork and signatures with the Maine Secretary of State’s office no later than March 15.
Thus, there’s a reason for the centuries-old adage, Beware the ides of March. Translated for my friend Brian Keely: the “ides of March” is March 15, the date when Caesar was allegedly murdered by several members of the Roman Senate, including his ally, Brutus.
If Elmer Fudd had attended Tuesday’s Biddeford City Council meeting, he may have made the following observation about our city councilors:
“Those wascly wabbits seemed especially wambunctious last night.”
Fudd’s assessment matches my own observations.
Watching the councilors in action, I actually began to wonder whether a couple of our council critters had skipped their required rabies vaccinations, especially when they began talking about a favorite City Hall subject: solid waste disposal.
If you missed the meeting, then you also missed a rare opportunity to hear one of the city’s most eloquent and handsome residents address the council about the contentious issues surrounding trash and recycling.
No, Jim Grattelo did not show up last night.
It was me — yours truly — the voice of logic, reason and nicotine addiction from Ward Seven.
At issue is the perennial topic of how to both increase the city’s recycling rate and reduce the amount of trash we send to the Maine Energy Recovery Company, where household waste is recycled into electricity.
Council President Rick Laverierre seemed ready to explode or at least pop a button on his new suit, when he railed against the concept of a pay-per-bag trash collection system.
“This is not a Maine Energy thing,” he said, ignoring the obvious and hoping to avoid taking a public stance on a very controversial issue.
Laverierre strongly supports sending no less than two referendums to the city’s voters.
The first referendum would ask voter permission to even allow the council to discuss or say the words “pay-per-bag,” and the second referendum (a few months later) would ask the voters whether they approve a plan. Seriously.
For the first time in 192 years, I found myself in agreement with Councilors David Flood and Richard Rhames.
The last time the three of us agreed on a topic was in 1820, when we published a joint op-ed in the Boston Globe, making the case for Maine’s secession from the state of Massachusetts.
The opening line of that editorial proves the piece was a collaborative effort:
“For whatever. Massachusetts blows. We need another state where Democrats can control the Legislature.”
Back to last night’s meeting. Rhames, for a brief moment in time, seemed lucid with a firm grasp of the obvious.
Rhames reminded his fellow councilors that they will soon be forced to review the city’s waste disposal contract.
“This council needs to be grappling with this issue,” he said. “This matter is roaring up on us. It is not a simple issue and, unfortunately, we have not yet begun to consider our position.”
But Councilor Michael Swanton expressed doubts about how much the city would save its taxpayers by forcing the Solid Waste Commission to devise a plan that could increase the city’s recycling rate. “I ran the numbers at home,” he said. “And I figured out that I would save about 37 cents per week by recycling more.”
The council, however, did seem to agree on one thing: trash disposal involves a lot of fluctuating numbers, a good pair of rubber gloves and the willingness not to hoard No.2 plastic bottles.
Ultimately, the council voted 8-1 (Laverierre opposed) to kick the can down the road for another few weeks by sending a resolution to the Solid Waste Commission that seeks to increase the city’s recycling rate.
Take the money and run
Earlier in the evening, the council took up the issue of ethics, pondering whether to amend the city’s ordinances to require members of the Planning Board to sign a code of ethics.
It should be noted that members of the city council are not required to sign a code of ethics.
As I have explained to my children, whether you should take a 10-dollar bill from your mother’s purse is NOT an ethical dilemma.
It is a crime.
An ethical dilemma is a situation in which both choices have merit and must be carefully weighed against one’s own values and belief system.
At first blush, it seems more than reasonable to ask city officials to sign a code of ethics. But a closer examination of the proposed language reveals some glaring problems that leap off the pages and then steal money from your mother’s purse.
For example, Councilor David Flood (my neighbor, former employer and BFF) pointed out that by signing the code, planning board members would be required to only do reasonable things that also “appear to be reasonable.” Again, I’m not kidding.
If this same standard were applied to the city council, we would not have a city council.
Upon realization of this quandary, the council pondered their own ethical dilemma and rejected adopting a code of ethics for other people to follow.
Smart move.
In other business, the council put the brakes on a proposed policy that would allow the city to accept private contributions for public infrastructure.
After hearing further words of wisdom from yours truly about the slippery slope of unintended consequences, the council decided to send the proposed policy to the “Policy” Committee for further review and clarification.
If you would like to have Randy Seaver speak to your civic club, organization or rehab group, please send an e-mail to randy@randyseaver.com
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If you thought watching the New England Patriots lose the Superbowl was painful, you should stay away from the Biddeford City Council’s next meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 7.
For the past few weeks, the council has been working around the clock to nail down some serious matters that could have grave consequences for those of us who live, work and play in Biddeford.
Councilor Roch Angers (left) consults the Council Rules for Color Selection while Councilor Richard Rhames urges Councilor Flood against choosing an official city color.
It’s been a hectic few weeks, so let’s take a quick recap and review some of the bigger accomplishments of this industrious group.
By a 6-3 vote, the council finally settled on a seating arrangement in the council chamber. Councilors Melissa Bednarowski, Brad Cote and Mike Swanton voted against the measure, mistakenly thinking they would have to swap seats each week so that one of them would always have to sit next to Councilor Richard Rhames.
Things settled down and the council then moved quickly to unanimously approve the color beige as the “official color” of the 2012-13 City Council, but not without some heated and long-winded discussion.
“I like beige,” remarked Councilor David Flood. “I can get along with beige. For whatever.”
Councilor Roch Angers, however, seemed less than pleased.
“I really wanted red,” Angers explained. “Not some half-assed, pansy shade of pink, mind you. I wanted crimson red. It’s an angry color, and I’m feelin’ some anger.”
Councilor Bobby Mills seemed hesitant about casting his vote. Only hours before the meeting, Mills told supporters of the color Yellow that he was definitely on their side, somehow forgetting that he had also told representatives from the Blue caucus he thought their color made the most sense because of its soothing nature.
Mills tried to split it down the middle so as not to offend anyone by nominating the color Green as an amendment, but Council President Rick Laverierre ruled Mills out of order to prevent Angers from having an aneurysm.
Of course, Councilor Rhames held up the vote with a 98-minute monologue about why the Council should remain “color neutral” and lambasted the influence of color in the black and white world of city politics.
Of course, Councilor Rhames held up the vote with a 98-minute monologue about why the Council should remain “color neutral” and lambasted the influence of color in the black and white world of city politics.
“These sorts of things have a way of leading us all down a very slippery slope,” Rhames cautioned his fellow councilors. “If we take sides with corporate America now, where will we stop? Next thing you know, we’ll be endorsing a particular brand of shaving cream, a product I have not purchased since 1988.”
Mills, who just last week narrowly avoided being in violation of a longstanding Mills family tradition of running for elected office at least every 60 days, moved quickly to end the discussion. “Let’s just do beige,” he said.
Councilor Brad Cote shrugged. Councilor Mike Swanton rolled his eyes, silently praying that someone would shoot him; and Councilor Bednarowski called for a roll-call vote.
You can expect more of the same on Tuesday, when Biddeford’s team of nine takes up the contentious issue of whether to adopt a “code of ethics” for the Planning Board.
Other items to watch: The council will vote on Mayor Alan Casavant’s most recent political nominations, which include a suggestion that two of the city’s most well-known and respected downtown property developers be allowed to join the Downtown Development Commission.
Doug Sanford, who owns the North Dam Mill Complex, the former West Point Mill building complex, the St. Jean Baptiste Hall, the Puritan Building and just about every other building in downtown Biddeford, apparently thinks he has something to offer to the DDC, one of Biddeford’s most notorious “good ol’ boy clubs.”
Casavant’s other nominee for the DDC is Chris Betjemann, who got smoked in November when he attempted to run for an at-large seat on the City Council. Betjemann and his business partner own just about every other building in downtown Biddeford that is not already owned by Doug Sanford.
When asked whether Sanford and Betjemann would be good fits for the commission, DDC Chairman Brian Keely chose his words carefully.
“I don’t know,” Keely said. “It really depends if they know how to plant flowers and smoke cigars. We have a certain way of doing things downtown. I think it’s great that they want to join us, but I hope they’re not expecting to waltz in here and start demanding that we do stuff, you know?”
Randy Seaver was secretly pulling for the New York Giants. Send him your death threats, hate mail or credit-card numbers by e-mail to randy@randyseaver.com
If you don’t know anything else about Biddeford politics, you ought to know about the Dutremble family, one of the city’s most prolific, political families.
For more than 50 years, the Dutremble family has been — in one way or another — deeply entrenched in local political circles.
State Sen. David Dutremble
Lucien “Babe” Dutremble, one of 13 children, never lost an election during a political career that included several terms on the city council, six terms in the Maine House of Representatives, the mayor’s office and serving as a York County Commissioner. Babe’s brother, Richard, was a York County Sheriff. Babe’s son, Richard, today serves as a York County commissioner.
Just as Babe’s political career was winding down, his second eldest son was making a name for himself. Dennis “Duke” Dutremble served several terms in the Maine Senate before being tapped as the senate president. But he retreated from the public spotlight after losing his bid to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Flash forward nearly two decades, and yet another Dutremble is making a foray into the city’s political establishment, banking on his family’s legacy and his “outsider” perspective.
David Dutremble is a lieutenant in the Biddeford Fire Department, the youngest of Babe Dutremble’s nephews, and is now a candidate for the District 4 State Senate seat.
Despite his legacy name and strong local connections, David is facing some challenges on the road to Augusta.
1.) A crowded primary field could split the city’s Democratic base and allow someone like businessman James Booth of Arundel to take the seat as a unenrolled candidate. Booth, a native of the neighboring city of Saco, is the son of former Saco Mayor Haley Booth and served on the Saco City Council.
2.) Expect his primary opponents (which could include former State Rep. Stephen Beaudette and former city councilor James Emerson) to question whether Dutremble can effectively balance his city job as a firefighter while serving in the State Senate.
Furthermore, we were stunned that David has yet to seek the counsel of his cousins, Duke Dutremble and County Commissioner Richard Dutremble.
CAN’T WE JUST GET ALONG?
David Dutremble graduated from Biddeford High School in 1985. Since 1988, he has been a Biddeford firefighter. He and his wife, Charlene, have five children.
Why jump into the fray for a state senate seat without any prior political experience?
“Honestly, I would have gone into local politics a long time ago, but the city’s charter prevents city employees from holding municipal offices. Initially, I was thinking about running for the House until I talked to Alan [Casavant] and found out he is hoping to keep his seat.”
You have all the political muscle you need, given your last name.
(Laughs) “It’s an intimidating last name, you know in local politics…absolutely, but it also carries a lot of expectations.”
Aren’t you busy enough. Why run for public office?
“I think we need more people in Augusta who can reach across the political divides. I think government has a responsibility to do good things for the people. Government should be creating an atmosphere that promotes economic development.”
You sound a little like a Republican.
(Laughs) “I’m a life-long Democrat, but I think both parties want to see Maine succeed. It’s time to stop all the political bickering and blame. It’s time to think about the people we serve. I don’t care who gets credit, as long as we do good things for the people.
“When my kids grow up, I want them to have the same opportunities I had. My step son had to move out west to find a good job. I think that’s really sad. It bothers me to see local kids miss out on the same opportunities we had growing up here.”
How can you be a firefighter and a state senator at the same time?
“I’ll use vacation time, and swap time. I’ve already run it past the guys in the department. I know I have support and we can swap shifts to accommodate my schedule.”
You haven’t talked to Duke about your decision to seek his old senate seat?
(Laughs) “He’s in Florida for the winter. I sent him an e-mail on Facebook, but I haven’t heard back. Maybe he doesn’t check his Facebook.
On a scale of 1-10, how would you rank Governor LePage’s performance?
(Pauses) “I’d probably give him a four. I just think his priorities are out of whack…like going after the labor mural.”
Same scale for President Obama?
“I’d say a 7. No matter who won in 2008, it was a no-win situation for our economy, whether we elected a Republican or Democrat. I don’t think we would be any better off if John McCain had won. I think President Obama has done a decent job.”
Do you really think you can change the political dynamic of partisan bickering?
“Yes, but you have to start small. People used to say that women would never be able to vote. We used to say that a black man would never drive the bus. I believe things can change for the better. I think elected leaders just need to focus on working in collaboration to solve problems.
Apparently, this blog is gaining traction, catching the attention of local elected officials and political candidates, not to mention the reporters and editors who are paid to track them.
To even the most casual of observers, there is little doubt remaining about the enormous impact of social media upon the political landscape.
Whether it’s globally, nationally or right here in our own back yard, the power of social media has transformed the dynamics of political reporting.
Thanks to the mind-boggling innovation offered by the internet, and social media tools such as Facebook and Twitter, the political power that was once dominated by traditional media is now much more balanced and certainly more diverse.
Don’t believe me? Still think Facebook is for college kids looking to get laid; or that Twitter is an absolute waste of time?
Well, check this: Facebook played a pivotal role in ousting Hosni Mubarak from office. The former Egyptian President, who controlled state-run media and held office for more than four decades with an iron grip, never saw it coming.
Last summer, we saw what some disgruntled folks equipped with I-Phones could accomplish when they decided to stand up to corporate America. Traditional, mostly corporate-owned, media outlets were forced to finally start covering issues surrounding the massive divide between the haves and have-nots.
Social media also has its downsides: a New York Congressman was forced from office after he got a bit carried away with his Twitter account; but every presidential campaign today leverages the power of social media to woo potential voters and donors.
On a more local level, former Biddeford Mayor Joanne Twomey admitted she was not very computer-savvy. Her opponent, however, embraced social media tools as part of a coordinated, strategic and — ultimately quite succesful — campaign to oust her from office.
So what now? How will mainstream media respond to the influx of new information and the competition unleashed by anyone with a modem and some motivation?
Will they innovate, duplicate or terminate?
We got some of the answers this week, and it’s important to remember that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
Take, for example, this week’s cover story in the Sun Chronicle: Primary battles signal State House shakeupby Kate Collins. In the lead graph of her Feb. 2 story, Collins writes: “Nancy Sullivan has done something rather unusual, and it appears that it’s not only set off a chain reaction, but also set the tongues of local political junkies wagging.”
Just two days later, Mills posted a questionnaire that was e-mailed to him by reporter Kate Collins, asking why he was challenging Rochelo.
To be honest, Collins provided her readers with a much more in-depth story than anything you will ever find here. She took the time to talk to state Democratic party officials, a political science professor and local political observers. If — and I mean if — this blog inspired that story, then all the better for her readers who got the benefit of her excellent reporting. Then again, unlike me, she gets paid to write her stories.
But Collins is not the only local reporter watching this blog closely.
Molly Lovell Keely is the niece of a Saco City Councilor, spouse of my former co-host on the televised version of All Along the Watchtower; and the person who now sits at the editor’s desk I once occupied at the Biddeford-Saco Courier. In her Feb. 2 column (View From the Nest), Keely muses about the potential return of Joanne Twomey to Biddeford’s political arena, a subject we posted three days prior on January 30.
Keely then switches gears, mentioning two new blogs about Biddeford politics that she likes to follow, but she apparently “forgot” about this blog, even though she is a subscriber, “likes us” on our Facebook page and checks in almost daily to see what we’re writing about.
By the way, you can find links to both of the new blogs on our “Biddeford on the Web” section, located in the right hand column of our blog.
You see, there is no such thing as “too much information.”
We encourage more people to blog about politics. Send us your link, and we’ll give it a shout-out here.
The people of Biddeford are indeed fortunate to have two weekly newspapers and two daily newspapers covering local news. More competition is always good for consumers, and the addition of new bloggers represents a significant bonus for those of you who live, work and play in Biddeford.
If community leaders are also actively engaged in keeping you informed about your community, then we should expect nothing less from the pros who get paid to keep watch over the city and the people who have been given the public’s trust.
P.S. The day after I ribbed City Councilor Brad “Cub Scout” Cote about his boring job and dull Facebook page, he changed his profile picture to a mugshot of the A-Team’s Mr. T.
Just goes to prove what Margaret Mead once famously said: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”
Biddeford Democrats are off to the races, joining an increasingly crowded smackdown for their party’s nomination to replace term-limited Nancy Sullivan in State Senate District 4, which includes Biddeford, Kennebunk, Kennebunkport and Arundel.
While area Republicans seem to be snoozing, at least three familiar names will likely appear on ballots during the June 12 primary:
Former State Rep. Stephen Beaudette, the establishment’s favorite, will run as a privately financed candidate, taking on:
Former City Councilor and current School Committee member Jim Emerson, running as a Clean Election candidate; and
A political newcomer with an iconic family name is also in the race and will run as a Clean Election candidate. Biddeford firefighter David Dutremble is the nephew of the late Lucien “Babe” Dutremble, a beloved politician who never lost an election and served several terms as both the city’s mayor and as a state representative. Babe was also a former county commissioner and city councilor.
For your convenience, we have posted a chart of the Dutremble family tree, something David’s opponents will want to study very closely during the weeks ahead.
Some guys will do just about anything for attention. Such is the case with Biddeford City Councilor David Flood, the representative from Ward Seven who has returned to the council after a two-year sabbatical studying gymnastics.
City Councilor David Flood will go to any lengths to get people’s attention; best evidenced by his recent pledge to stand on his head until his fellow councilors agree to some sort of new solid waste collection program. (Photo by Dana Johnson)
Those who follow local politics closely may remember that Flood made a run against Joanne Twomey for the mayor’s seat two years ago.
Flood’s mayoral race did not go so well, so he went back to the drawing board and began drafting the core elements of his “Plan B” to rule Biddeford: A stealth plan to quietly buy every single building on Main Street not already owned by Doug Sanford.
I probably know Flood better than I know most of the other councilors, and I don’t know him that well.
David and his wife, Carolyn, owned and operated Mainely Newspapers, Inc., the former parent company of the Biddeford-Saco-OOB Courier and several other weekly newspapers.
In all likelihood, you would not be reading this if not for David Flood, who made the tragic mistake of hiring me in 1998 and then naming me as the Courier’s editor in 1999.
So if you hate me or the stuff I write, go ahead and kick David. It’s not my fault.
If not for David Flood, I would not have the job I have today. I would not be married to Laura, and I would not live in the house where I am writing this. All of those things came about through the connections I made while working at the Courier.
David is not just my city councilor, he’s also my neighbor. You’ve probably seen postcards of his May Street home, which is often mistaken for the U.S. Embassy building in the Dominican Republic.
During my seven-year tenure at the Courier, Flood missed several key opportunities to fire me. Let’s put it this way, I often pushed the envelope of employee-employer relationship protocols as far as they could be pushed.
I think there are only two reasons that David didn’t fire me as frequently requested by folks such as then State Rep. Joanne Twomey, former Mayor Jim Grattelo and a slew of others who all shared a common hatred of yours truly:
1.) I worked almost as hard as David Flood, the hardest-working man I have ever met; and
2.) We both loved the Courier and its mission to be the best local newspaper possible.
David has been involved in re-energizing downtown Biddeford for a long time, way before it was fashionable, hip or cool to promote the city’s downtown.
But here’s some trivia you may not know about David Flood:
He was a standout wrestler in high school and once challenged me to a wrestling match, boasting that he could pin me in less than a minute. (True story, and I declined the challenge because he had a weird look in his eyes when he said it.
He really likes turtles (also true)
He actually thought Joe Biden would be a good president (Delaware boys stick together)
He loves baseball almost as much as he loves newspapers.
David is also on Facebook. So let’s see what we can find there, eh?
He has 229 Facebook friends, roughly .01% as many “friends” as Mayor Alan Casavant .(Who says social media doesn’t work?)
One of his favorite TV shows? Family Guy
His only interest/pastime? Guinness…okay, he’s Irish.
Of the other eight city councilors, only Brad “Cub Scout” Cote is listed as a “friend” on Flood’s Facebook page (as of today)
So, here’s the tricky part: What should his Delta Chi name be?
After much thought and consideration, not to mention input from the All Along the Watchtower staff…..
A new mayor took the city’s helm a little more than 60 days ago, but he’s not the only one getting accustomed to the slow and tedious grind of public policy making in Biddeford, where even routine matters, such as liquor license applications or a purchase of road salt, can quickly morph into a an all-out, fist-to-cuffs brawl that requires 32 legal opinions, 14 SWAT officers, two paramedics and one obligatory 35-minute monologue by City Councilor Richard Rhames.
Welcome to Biddeford, boys and girls!
Mike Swanton
Sure, Mayor Casavant should know better. After all, he spent several years as a Biddeford City Councilor during the Eisenhower Administration.
But what about the council’s political newcomers?
Brad Cote
Of the nine city councilors, three of them are just now waking up to the grave realization that they actually got elected to the Biddeford City Council.
So while Melissa Bednarowski, Brad Cote and Michael Swanton are learning the ropes at City Hall, we thought you should know a little bit more about them and about what makes them tick.
If I were a reporter, I would have to pick up the phone or actually go meet these people to get a better understanding of what butters their bread or frosts their socks.
Luckily, I’m not a reporter. Thus, I can do what every other basement-dwelling blogger does during those long stints between dates, experiencing daylight or bathing:
I looked at their Facebook pages.
We’ll start with the council’s most inconspicuous member, who represents the good people of Ward Three.
BRAD COTE:
It’s not hard to win an election in Biddeford when your last name is Cote. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there are more than 387,000 people with the last name of Cote living in Biddeford.
Brad is an affable man who was born in 1981, five years after I was first arrested and three weeks before I flunked my driver’s exam for the second time.
He is the living, talking definition of easy-going, non-confrontational politeness. He graduated from Biddeford High School in 1999, and today works as an “internal audit consultant,” which makes him somewhat dangerous. Imagine a city official who can add and subtract without a calculator. The mind reels.
Apparently, Brad and his lovely wife, Lori, recently had a baby. Or his profile picture could be his own; taken by one of his 205 friends who were not at all surprised that this mild-mannered auditor would actually want to sit through long-winded, unproductive meetings about the perils of re-opening Bradbury Street Extension.
Brad went to St. Mary’s College, a school well-known for producing some of the nation’s most notable internal audit consultants.
His interests are almost as boring as his occupation. He “likes” Redbox, the Saco Drive-In and It’s ah Hair Thing Salon.
I wanna party with this dude.
In all seriousness, expect Cote to be on the same side as Mayor Casavant and fellow Councilors Mike Swanton and David Flood 99.9 percent of the time. But he will also deliver hand-written apology notes to councilors he disagrees with.
Brad, your Delta Chi name is “Cub Scout.” Let’s move along.
MICHAEL SWANTON:
You have to respect a man with such a serious moustache. Swanton, a plumber who originally hails from Garden City New York, looks like a contract assassin from a Quentin Tarantino movie.
He attended Biddeford High School and rides a motorcycle in some of the city’s prettier neighborhoods.
Apparently, he’s not big into the whole “social media” thing. He has 18 Facebook friends, including yours truly, Mayor Alan Casavant and several of the other city councilors. He says on his Facebook wall that he “caved” to the pressure of his friends for not being on Facebook. Don’t expect this guy to have a backbone when a controversial liquor license application comes before the council.
But Swanton is his own man. He is quiet, studious and unassuming. The new councilor from Ward One also exceeds the council’s average height metric by a whopping two feet.
This next part is true: as of today, and according to Facebook, Swanton only has two things that “interest” him, one of which is this blog. Psst, Mike…time to get a hobby, dude.
Mike, your Delta Chi name is “Chipmunk”
MELISSA BEDNAROWSKI
Melissa Bednarowski’s Facebook profile pic
Finally, it’s time to meet the only female member of the Biddeford City Council.
A former planning board member, Bednarowski was unopposed for her Ward 4 seat. It’s a good thing because the city clerk’s office could not fit any other names on the ballot under Ward Four.
Originally from Manchester, New Hampshire, Bednarowski seems to take her new position seriously, listing it as her occupation on Facebook.
Melissa is a bit of an enigma in the social media realm. She keeps her list of friends hidden from public view, but apparently fellow Councilor Roch Angers and I belong to a very elite and discreet club known as Melissa Bednarowski’s Facebook friends.
Melissa spends most of her time on Facebook posting photos of herself, her dog and some of her friends. She also likes to share thought-provoking quotes that seem to match her matter-of-fact style.
It’s hard to know how Melissa will fare over the next two years of her term. Expect her to be independent, stubborn and well-prepared for whatever debates may come down the line. She is a stickler for details and a true-believer of “government service.”
Come on, don’t tell me you didn’t see this one coming.
That’s right, word on the street, yet unconfirmed, is that former mayor Joanne Twomey is at least contemplating a bid to recapture her former District 135 House seat, and may challenge the incumbent, fellow Democrat Paulette Beaudoin for a chance to take on Republican Perry Aberle in November. So far, Twomey has not registered as a candidate with the Maine Secretary of State’s office.
Joanne Twomey: Portland Press Herald Photo
If this plays out like I predict, it will be the trifecta of disgruntled Democrats in Biddeford.
For those of you playing at home, here’s the run down of Democrat on Democrat for the city’s three State House Seats.
District 135: Joanne Twomey may face incumbent Paulette Beaudoin, a sweet, little old lady who just wants a fourth and final term.
Twomey got trounced just a few weeks ago, when Biddeford voters overwhelmingly rejected her bid for a third consecutive term in the mayor’s office, but she is a fierce campaigner and that, combined with her name recognition, could spell serious trouble for Beaudoin. If Joanne is able to re-assemble her kitchen cabinet, look out!
I have been watching Biddeford politics for more than a decade, and this seems like a first. The GOP must be loving it, and the Dems in Augusta better break out the riot gear. This is one primary you won’t want to miss.
George “Pete” Lamontagne is an uncomplicated man who has seen his fair share of complicated situations.
Political observers say the former city councilor’s laid-back personality and his friendly demeanor often calmed severe storms during especially contentious Biddeford City Council meetings.
Pete Lamontagne
He is a self-described man of the street, and he is widely perceived as a champion of those without friends or power. He is soft-spoken, but commands attention and respect when he speaks. He is a lover of history, politics and art.
He is a simple, courageous man with an extraordinary reputation, and he loves his hometown of Biddeford.
We caught up with Pete in the lobby of the North Dam Mill building, formerly the home of the Biddeford Textile Company, where both Lamontagne and his father worked. As always, he was gracious, understated and relaxed.
With the exception of a two-year hiatus, Lamontagne served as a member of the Biddeford City Council for more than a decade, first elected as a Ward 5 Councilor in 1997. He returned to the council in 2001 and remained there, serving as both an at-large representative and council president, until stepping down last year.
You and several other members of the last city council were roundly criticized because of the infamous executive session meeting held with the owners of Scarborough Downs before the city announced its intention to put out a racino referendum. Do you regret that decision?
“In hindsight, sure. We found out after the meeting that it wasn’t right. (Sighs) It doesn’t matter much now, it’s water under the bridge. I can’t speak for anyone else, we just wanted to do something for our community to help bring back jobs…it didn’t work out, and now the city will have to look at other things, but I don’t think we’ll ever see anything that big, anything that could have brought so many jobs here.”
You were a big supporter of the proposed Biddeford Downs project.
“Oh absolutely. I’ve spent a lot of time in both Bangor (Hollywood Slots) and Foxwoods, which are both about 180 miles either way of here. When West Point closed its doors, it was a like a stake in the heart of hope for those of us who worked there.
“I see these unemployed people every day. These are good people, hard-working people; they looked at this proposal and said, you know…maybe I can get a job there. It was something to hope for, and I was relentless. Today, those people are still unemployed.”
You were the president of the UNITE union and you worked in that mill for more than three decades. The closure hit you hard.
“Oh yes…. (Pauses) You know, I never thought it [West Point] was going to close. I never planned to retire. It was tough. It was devastating for a lot of families, my friends… A lot of us started taking retraining classes at the Community Center, but jobs are tough to find right now.”
You know a lot about hard times.
(Laughs) “I sure do, but I also know something about good times, and strangely enough, they often overlap.
“I grew up on Water Street, and back then it was a very poor neighborhood, mostly bars. But it was a also a close-knit neighborhood. It was where Raymond Gaudette and [former mayor] Gilbert Boucher grew up. I had lots of friends.
“Two of my aunts and one of my uncles lived with us; back then it was how families did things. Every store had a back room with warm beer, because that’s what people liked. Warm Schmidts …it was their beer of choice (Laughs).”
You were named after your dad.
(Laughs) “Well, sort of, . . . his name was Pete. He was a big guy. He worked at the mill as a mason in the late ’50s and early ’60s. People called me Little Pete or Pete junior. Actually, my middle name is Alphonse, but don’t print that.” (Laughs)
Did you get the political bug from your father?
“Well, you know, he ran for the council as a Republican, and he got trounced. I mean, he was a French Republican.”
Did he live long enough to see his son get elected?
“Yes, he passed away just after I won my first election. I think he was very proud.”
You served under three mayors: Dion, Nutting and Twomey. Is Biddeford’s political landscape as tough as its reputation?
“Oh yes, Biddeford politics can be very tough. You have to have a thick skin. I got to serve with [Jim] Grattelo and [Marc] Lessard. Those were my best days. (Smiles)
“There were times when I had to break up physical fights; and there were many times when Mayor Twomey and I found ourselves in very heated disagreements, and we didn’t always see eye-to-eye.”
So how did you broker the peace?
“I don’t look at the oyster shell, I’m always looking for the pearl inside the shell.”
You and Joanne Twomey go way back.
“She was a pretty, little blonde girl. When I was a young boy, my family spent a lot of time out at Hills Beach. She used to visit, and we would sit on the beach together and talk. I guess you could say she was my first girlfriend.” (Smiles).
You also befriended Rory Holland, a former mayoral candidate who is now in jail for murdering two young men.
“A lot of people didn’t like him. He was not well, but I think he understood where I was coming from. I would let him visit my house, but I was always firm with him, and told him I would not hesitate to throw him out. I think he respected me, but I also think he needed a friend.
“I woke up to the news about the shootings, and I was in shock. It took me more than three days to get my head around it, what a terrible tragedy. It still hurts to think about it.”
Your service in the Army didn’t get much respect from former mayor Wallace Nutting.
“His four stars had a big impact on me. I wasn’t intimidated by them, but I had a high degree of respect for his military service and accomplishments.
“I was a mail clerk in the Army, a desk jockey, serving with the Adjutant General’s staff. But still, here was this 19-year-old Biddeford boy in France.
“Mayor Nutting had a different way of doing things. He would always ask for your input or opinions, but you always knew what the answer was supposed to be.” (Laughs)
Who did you vote for during the last election, Casavant or Twomey?
“No answer.” (Laughs)
You wanted to serve as a citizen member on the council’s Policy Committee, but you were never appointed. What happened?
I don’t know. Alan [Casavant] and I met shortly after the election, and I told him I wanted to be on the policy committee. We were in his office at City Hall, and I saw him write it down. Then, the council agenda didn’t include my name as an appointment.
“At first, I was mad….Bastard!, I thought, until I saw the two names of people who got appointed to that committee, Laura (Seaver) and Renee (O’Neil). Those were perfect choices, so I decided not to say anything. It could not have worked out better. I think those two will do a wonderful job. I was very pleased with the mayor’s picks.”
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