Tag: Biddeford

Don’t Do Me Like That

~ Randy Seaver ~ Leave a comment

For better or worse, I have a reputation in my hometown. I am the guy who holds local and state politicians’ feet to the fire. I rarely hesitate to publicly criticize elected officials when I think they have screwed up or acted inappropriately.

Biddeford Mayor Marty Grohman

My column, All Along The Watchtower, debuted on the pages of the Biddeford-Saco-OOB Courier in 1999. Since then, it has appeared in other publications, most recently on the pages of Saco Bay News. I always tell people that I do not play favorites. I call ’em like I see ’em.

My column was based on the prolific work of syndicated columnist Art Buchwald and also well-known Maine columnist, Al Diamon, author of Politics and Other Mistakes

Well, folks — in the interest of fairness and full disclosure — I think that pendulum of criticism should swing both ways.

In this installment, we will focus on some of my bad (and rather outrageous) behavior over the last few days.

In short, I owe an apology to Biddeford Mayor Marty Grohman and his family; and to City Council President Liam LaFountain.

I have tremendous respect for both Grohman and LaFountain, both of whom I just two weeks ago ranked among the top-five most influential public policy figures in the Biddeford-Saco area.

If you’ve been paying attention lately to Biddeford politics, you already know that things have more or less blown-up over the last couple of weeks.

Our municipal elections were held only six months ago. Longtime Biddeford mayor Alan Casavant opted not to seek a seventh consecutive term. Voters chose former city councilor and state representative Marty Grohman to take over the helm at City Hall. Grohman won that seat with a comfortable margin of 54 percent over former state senator Susan Deschambault.

In that same election, LaFountain was unopposed for a second term on the council, representing Ward 7 (my ward). A few weeks later, the city council voted 6-3 to name LaFountain as the new council president.

Biddeford was getting a fresh start; a new perspective. Sure, the city was — and is — facing several challenges, but there is also ample room for optimism. Biddeford’s storied reputation of political bickering and City Hall drama seemed to be fading fast. We were beginning a second decade of being a more positive and attractive community.

Biddeford, the sixth largest city in Maine, suddenly found itself in an enviable place as a destination for fine dining, a boutique hotel, pristine beaches, thriving business parks and easy access to state highways.

Things were looking up. Yes, we are struggling — as are many Maine communities — with affordable housing and a growing unhoused population, but overall, the future seemed bright,

And then bam! Two members of the city council each resigned within nine days of each other. Both men, reportedly, had brushes with local police. They both decided to step away. Then one of them said that he would be seeking a return in a special election that was triggered by his own resignation.

Wait! What?

I have been covering the city of Biddeford for the better part of the last 30 years. We were in some unchartered waters.

Biddeford City Council President Liam LaFountain

Sure, we’ve had councilors resign before, but never two at basically the same time. The timing of the resignations became an issue. One would require a special election, the other — coming just a few days later — would require an appointment by the mayor without the need for public input.

Grohman was caught off-guard. LaFountain was caught off-guard. I was caught off-guard. Strange stuff. Lots of moving parts. Lots of questions. What’s the intent of the city charter in these situations? The city clerk was scheduled to go on vacation. A brand-new deputy clerk just started her job last week.

Yes, many people reached out to me. Some passed on rumors that I ignored. Others provided valuable information. Others were simply flabbergasted and raising questions about how the resignations should be handled.

In Ward Five — the seat that will be appointed by the mayor — one of those seeking Grohman’s nomination is the son of his former political opponent.

Now, it’s not just Saco Bay News watching City Hall. Other media outlets are now reporting and paying attention to what is happening at Biddeford City Hall.

So how did I screw up in all of this?

Straight, No Chaser

For many years, I have publicly shared my personal struggles with mental health issues. I do this in order to reduce stigma and to be an advocate for others struggling with similar issues.

Let me be perfectly clear. My mental health issues are NOT and never have been an excuse for my stupid decisions. They do, however, provide a bit of context for what I am about to share.

I have a Bipolar-1 (manic-depressive) diagnosis, as well as severe anxiety and frequent bouts of schizoaffective disorder behaviors. Trust me. It can be challenging, especially for my wife and other family members. But it is NOT an excuse for my bad behavior last week.

Before the announcement of the city council resignations earlier this month, I was hard at work on three significant news stories. Sometimes, it takes weeks, even months, to put together significant news stories.

All three of these stories are connected to Biddeford City Hall. You’ll be reading about them in the near future. But the sudden and unexpected resignations threw a proverbial wrench into my workload.

Again, not an excuse for my boorish behavior, but mentioned here for context.

The journalism game can by hyper competitive. I have always been a competitive guy. The media industry is not a 9-5, Monday thru Friday gig.

Today, more than ever before, the media is a non-stop, 24-7 enterprise. We all want the story first. We all want your attention. Sure, we’re also doing a public service because we all basically believe in your right to timely, accurate and unfiltered information about your community but basically, we’re always competing.

In a recent blog post, I wrote “there is right way and a wrong way to resign from public office.”

Well, there is also a right way and wrong way to go about writing a news story. Last weekend, I chose the wrong way.

I almost literally had a meltdown while trying to obtain information about how the council vacancies would be handled. I was rude and belligerent. Sort of a “Do you know who I am?” moment of delusional grandeur.

I mean, really. I wasn’t working on the Pentagon Papers, the Watergate Scandal or the criminal trial of a former U.S. president.

Dude, it’s the weekend. Calm down, It’s a story about Biddeford City Hall intrigue, not the apocalypse. Get a grip.

On Friday, I called LaFountain, pressing for information. He was out of the country, but as always returned my call almost immediately with dignity and grace. He was also feeling pressure and doing his best to figure out the next right step. He was calm, respectful and doing his best to answer my questions.

I was acting in a complete opposite fashion. I wasn’t angry with him, but I found myself screaming into the phone, full of indignation, almost frothing at the mouth, my words laced with profanity. I was screaming and ranting about other people.

Liam was patient, thoughtful and respectful. He didn’t even try to interrupt my rant. I mumbled a half-assed apology for interrupting his vacation with my call. He actually thanked me for calling, said he understood my frustration and said I should call him back if I had more questions.

A few hours later, on Saturday morning I awoke with a proverbial hair across my ass. It’s 6:30 a.m. I am drinking coffee at my desk, muttering to myself. I’ll be damned if I am going to allow them to block the flow of public information, I tell myself. My blood pressure was soaring. They made a mistake of messing with a guy who buys ink by the barrel, I muttered.

My chest is puffed out now. My dog is begging for my attention, but I ignore her and instead begin crafting a story that I wanted to publish later that day. I wanted to have the news first. That was all that mattered to me.

It is now 7:45 a.m. Saturday. I send Mayor Grohman a terse text message. In essence, I tell him that it’s in his own best interest to call me back pronto. I am writing a story, with or without his input. At 8:17 a.m., I receive a text from the mayor. “I’ll email. Deadline?”

I hate text messages. It’s just so much easier to have a quick two-minute phone call, that way I can easily ask a follow-up question or for clarification. But whatever. You can’t really blame Grohman for being cautious with me. I have been acting like an arrogant prick for more than 72 hours. Grohman is smart. He’s probably pissed, most likely annoyed but he is responding on a Saturday morning.

I get the email from him with his official statement a few hours later. I then add fuel to the fire by sending him a series of pissy text messages. I ignored the fact that he was at a family function.

They say that all’s well that ends well. In this case, Marty and I had the opportunity to clear the air this week. He wasn’t his typical genial self. He was pissed and he (in a nice way) let me know that. I had to take it.

He was right. I was wrong. My judgement was clouded by my both my ego and my hyper-competitive nature. We got things squared away. We found a lot of common ground. Ultimately, we both want what is best for the city. We are both trying to stay ahead of a rather crazy curve of events.

I owe both Marty Grohman and Liam LaFountain a sincere apology for my belligerent behavior. They both acted much better than me, and I could stand to learn a valuable lesson from each of them.

Me Culpa.

Like, I said at the beginning: I call ’em, like I see ’em.

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No More Mister Nice Guy

~ Randy Seaver ~ 3 Comments

There is a right way and a wrong way to resign from public office.

Over just the past few days, folks in Biddeford and surrounding communities got to see examples of how to; and how not to act when you get caught with your fingers in the pudding.

In many ways, being a reporter in a relatively small community is a lot tougher than reporting on issues at the state house or the White House.

Former Biddeford Councilor Bobby Mills/Facebook

Why?

Because in a small town you often know the people you are writing about. They are sometimes your friends and neighbors. Furthermore, if you’re a reporter in a small town, many people also know you.

They know where you live; what kind of truck you drive. They know your wife, your parents and your kids.

Sure, you can tell yourself that none of it is personal, it’s just business, but that’s just not always true. And sometimes, it’s difficult for a reporter, editor or publisher to know exactly where to draw the line.

Journalists are expected to follow a strict set of self-imposed ethical guidelines. Sometimes, we make mistakes. More often, however, we find ourselves struggling to decide what is news and what is not news.

It’s not as easy as it may look, folks.

Yesterday (April 18) I got called onto the carpet by many people for what appeared to be some bias in my reporting regarding the separate resignations of former Biddeford City Councilors Bobby Mills and Julian Schlaver.

In some ways, my critics were right. But there are some circumstances you should know before claiming that I was nicer to Schlaver than I was to Mills.

So, let’s back up a bit and consider the bigger picture.

Mystery Achievement

In the interest of clarity, let’s follow a chronological order of the events that detail the reasons behind the resignations of both Bobby Mills and Julian Schlaver and why those resignations may look the same, but are so much different.

Former Biddeford City Councilor Julian Schlaver/City of Biddeford

Although it’s hard to believe, it’s important to remember that these are two completely separate matters.

Despite astronomical odds, these two middle-aged, white guys; who live within three miles of each other; and who were both elected in November; both resigned their seats on the Biddeford city council after receiving criminal summonses from the Biddeford Police Department within a period of nine days.

You can’t make this shit up.

So, let’s start at the beginning. On the evening of April 7, when then City Councilor Bobby Mills was involved in a non-reportable motor vehicle accident downtown. Mills was given a criminal summons for operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol.

Roughly two days later, Mills decided to resign his position on the city council and his position as the York County treasurer.

So far, so good right? I mean we all make mistakes.

I begin receiving text messages from a slew of people who apparently closely follow every incident listed in the public police log.

I called Bobby Mills to ask for his side of the story and his explanation about why he resigned. Mills never called me. He did however, begin sending me several text messages, a virtual paper trail.

Mills knows me. He knows I am a reporter. We are not friends. We never communicate about anything other than city business. His first text to me outlines some very personal, family issues. There is no need for me to publish anything about Mills’ family or friends.

I then called my publisher Liz Gotthelf at Saco Bay News. I explain the story, and told her that I don’t think there’s any need to include mention of the summons that Mills was given by police.

Why?

I’ve known Bobby Mills for nearly 20 years. I have often roundly criticized his performance as an elected official. But I feel bad for the guy. Based on his first few text messages, I determine he already has enough on his plate. He doesn’t need more public shaming.

Saco Bay News does not regularly publish a police blotter or other OUI charges. 

But my biggest reason for not including Mills’ OUI charge in my first story is the fact that Bobby has resigned. He no longer has any influence or potential influence in public matters. Also, he has been charged, not convicted.

Within an hour of filing my first news story (click here), I wrote a complimentary blog post about Mr. Mills, his public service and my sometimes-harsh criticisms of his political antics. (Click here to read that blog post).

Mills then sends me a text message, thanking me for what I wrote. He tells me he thought “it was nice.”

So, that’s where the story ends, right? Mills resigned for personal reasons. The city will need to hold a special election to fill his seat. Time to go to bed, relax and get a good night’s sleep.

Not so fast. We’re just getting started.

The Tragically Hip

It’s Wednesday, April 17. Eight days after Bobby Mills announced his resignation. It is about 2:30 p.m. I am with Laura, enjoying a late lunch at Mulligan’s.

My phone begins to vibrate on the bar. It is an incoming text message from one of my confidential sources. The message has only two words: “Schlaver resigned.”

I was stunned. I trust this source. How could this be true? A late April Fools joke because I included Schlaver’s wife on my list of the 20 most influential political figures in Biddeford-Saco?

What the hell?

I immediately call Schlaver. Laura picks up her phone and logs onto the Biddeford Police Department’s dispatch log.

Julian Schlaver does not answer immediately. I look at Laura. She is shaking her head. “Look at this,” she says, pointing to her phone.

According to police records, Councilor Julian Schlaver was given a summons by the Biddeford Police Department on a charge of an alleged assault at approximately 11 p.m. on Saturday, April 13.

Julian returns my call moments later. He explains his side of the story. He says he thought resigning his position on the council was the right decision. He expresses “sincere regret.”

Laura and I return home. I go into my office and lock the door. I begin making telephone calls; first to my publisher, and then Mayor Marty Grohman. My original plans for that afternoon were shot.

I begin working on the next story. As I did the previous week with Mills, I once again decided not to include the criminal charge because Julian resigned and no longer had power or influence over the citizens of Biddeford.

That may have been a bad call, but I was shooting for fairness and consistency. Was I wrong? Maybe.

But, wait. It gets weirder. Much weirder.

Cold Wind Blowing Over Your Private Parts

Just before filing my news story about Schlaver’s resignation, my phone chirps again.

Another confidential informant tells me that Bobby Mills, the man who resigned his seat on the Biddeford City Council eight days ago, is now planning to be a candidate for that seat in a special election scheduled in June.

What? Are you kidding me?

Now the kid gloves come off. The voters need to know what is happening. All of it. Bobby Mills could likely be back on the city council in June.

It is now almost 4 p.m. on Wednesday (still April 17).

I call Mills to confirm the news that he is planning to run in the special election. He sends me a text message in reply.

This is what he wrote: “Sorry I missed your call (sic) bud. I’m swamped at work. In case you were wondering, I am running, eager to head back to the council.”

I reply with my own text message: “We need to talk!”

A few minutes later, Mills sent me yet another text message: “I decided last night (April 16) that I would run in the special election and seek to return. I believe in our community and want to be there to continue the fight for the people that don’t speak out. I’ve been that way for a very long time.”

I have my story. It is unbelievable, but it is documented. I quickly back up my phone’s data and copy the files to two external drives. Why? Because I know Bobby Mills.

I call Liz Gotthelf, the publisher of Saco Bay News. I explain the latest developments. She is flabbergasted. We agree that we have no choice now but to include the police report regarding Bobby Mills and a criminal OUI charge.

Why now and not before? Because Bobby Mills has announced his candidacy and his intention to run. It’s a new ball game.

But what about Julian? Should we go ahead and include reference to his entanglement with police? Liz and I talk about it. I make the case that Julian is not seeking a return to public life. Liz agrees.

We file the story online. Almost immediately, I began to receive a slew of angry text messages from Mills. Not a peep from Schlaver, however.

I also start to get some angry messages from a few people who don’t exactly like Julian Schalver. They say, I am being biased by printing the police info about Mills, but not Schlaver.

What’s good for the goose is good for the gander, they argued.

In retrospect, I think I made a mistake, a judgment error, in both cases. I should have included the police records in the first story about Mills’ resignation, and I should have included the police records in the story about Schlaver’s resignation.

I own those errors.

But wait. There’s more:

Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap

Beginning early Thursday morning (April 18) Mills continues to send me text messages. He talks about contacting his lawyer. He lashes out at me. He says he is tired of being “attacked” by me.

He thinks it is outrageous that I finally included information about his April 7 police incident.

His words: ““I have a job, career and family. I don’t need your consistent (sic) badgering. Just like you were before. I thought you changed. But your complete goal is to (sic) obviously to harass and ruin people’s lives.”

I send a reply text to explain that I changed gears simply because he is once again seeking the public spotlight. My exact words to Mills:

“You are now a candidate for public office,” I wrote. “People in the community have a right to know about elected officials. I am bending over backward to give you an opportunity to publicly present your side of the story.”

Mills responds: “I am not a candidate! Nothing has been filed! So (sic) your attacking me is unwarranted. You need to get your information correct!!!!!! No one is a candidate unless something is filed. Apparently, you don’t know that I am a private citizen and you keep attacking me.”

Huh? What?

Mills apparently forgot that 18 hours prior, he wrote to me (a well-known reporter in Biddeford), saying, “I decided last night (April 16) that I would run in the special election and seek to return.

Now he’s not a candidate?

For more than 15 years, Bobby Mills has been injecting himself into the public spotlight. He rarely misses an opportunity to run for office. (Check this prior blog post). He ran for the Legislature, switched parties, switched back and still lost. He has been on the city council for the better part of the last decade.

Up until 10 days ago, he was the county treasurer.

And now, he wants the luxury of being a “private citizen?” He is now outraged that the media is actually paying attention to him?

The media is ruining his life? Really? Maybe it had something to do with his poor decisions? Maybe?

Here is the ultimate irony.

Beginning yesterday, more than two weeks after Mills was arrested and given his OUI summons, the story about the resignations of Mills and Schlaver have now appeared in most every major media outlet in southern Maine.

I was the only reporter who tried to give Mills a break.

Like I said. I made a mistake.

Don’t Steal My Sunshine

~ Randy Seaver ~ Leave a comment

Note: This is the unedited version of my March 8, 2024 installment of All Along the Watchtower that originally appeared on the Saco Bay News website.

It probably would not come as much of a surprise if I were to tell you that a lot of people don’t like me very much.

Chief among those who will never join the official Randy Seaver Fan Club is none other than Biddeford City Manager James Bennett.

City Manager James Bennett. Photo credit: City of Biddeford website.

According to several sources, Bennett really, really does not like me.

He hates me more than Richard Nixon hated Carl Bernstein; more than Paul LePage hates Bill Nemitz.

Of course, Jim has never said that to my face, but that’s pretty much par for the course when it comes to Biddeford’s city manager.

Some people don’t like me because I have strong opinions and rarely turn down an opportunity to share those opinions with as many people as possible.

Others are jealous of my rugged good looks, my brilliant mind and my ability to string together sentences on an empty stomach.

But mostly, people are jealous of me because of my smoking hot wife. They shake their heads, wondering how Laura could possibly want to share her bed with a significantly overweight, bald guy who wears partial dentures and takes five different medications to combat persistent mental health issues.

Sadly, every single thing in the above paragraph is absolutely true. Not a lick of sarcasm. (Smoking two packs of non-filtered cigarettes every day for nearly 40 years takes a toll. Just trust me on this.)

Back to Bennett.

While there are several people in Biddeford who would probably love to see me jump to my death from atop the MERC smokestack, few of them have as much reason to hate me as does Jim Bennett.

Over the last couple of years, I have been a thorn in Bennett’s heel. A proverbial fly in the ointment —- in short, I have been a real pain in his ass.

I have publicly critiqued his management style. I have talked and written about things that he would probably prefer to keep under the radar. I pester him, calling his office and sending him emails in an effort to dig up and report public information.

I have written and published stories that don’t always paint the most flattering picture of my community.

Why do I do this? Why am I such a jerk? Who needs pesky reporters roaming the hallways of City Hall unsupervised?

I mean, really. The city has its own Facebook page. In fact, our tax dollars are used so that the city can write its own news about what the city is doing. What could possibly go wrong?

Why do we need independent, third-party journalists?

I’m a believer

This coming week (March 10-16) we will once again celebrate National Sunshine Week, and it has nothing to do with turning our clocks forward one hour.

Sunshine Week is a national initiative spearheaded by the American Society of News Editors. It was founded in 2005, and its purpose is to highlight the tools and resources that the media (and the general public) has to ensure open and transparent government.

Why should Sunshine Week matter to you?

Jim Zachary, national deputy editor for CNHI, penned a column for the American Society of News Editors. The following is an excerpt:

“The media is most definitely not your enemy,” Zachary wrote. “Far from being the enemy of the people, day in and day out we take our role as the Fourth Estate (government oversight) seriously and work hard to protect your right to know, making public records requests and attending public meetings to keep you informed.

“Why?

“Because we believe all the business government does, whether in open public meetings or behind closed doors, is your business.

“We believe every last penny government spends is your money.

“We believe it is your right to know every transaction, every decision, every expenditure and every deliberation of your government.

“Whether talking about the White House, the statehouse or the county courthouse, all the documents held in government halls belong to the people, and all the business conducted by our governors is public business.”

Sunshine Week coincides with the anniversary of the Freedom of Information Act, federal legislation that was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson in 1966 just as the Vietnam War was heating up.

The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) provides the media with the legal muscle that we need in order to keep the public informed about government affairs.

One of the earliest and most notable uses of the FOIA was its role in the Watergate scandal. Washington Post reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein had to use extraordinary tactics, which included FOIA, in order to get to the truth that eventually crumbled Richard Nixon’s presidency.

Last week, Biddeford City Manager James Bennett presented his proposed annual budget to the city council. I sat there, in the back row, taking notes. I was the only reporter there. Honestly, it made me very sad.

Thirty years ago, there would be at least three reporters at every city meeting. But it’s different now. The Portland Press Herald closed its local Main Street bureau. The locally owned Biddeford-Saco Courier was sold and the Journal Tribune, formerly the Biddeford Daily Journal, this area’s iconic news source, fell victim to the ongoing corporate butchering of local media coverage, closing its doors forever.

Today, the Portland Press Herald rarely covers local news in the Biddeford-Saco area. Reporter Gillian Graham is smart, talented and hardworking, but she is spread thin, and her employer has opted to save money by using the weekly Biddeford-Saco Courier to cover news in this neck of the woods.

Eloise Goldsmith, the Courier’s newest reporter, is also smart, talented and hard-working. That said, Goldsmith’s editors expect her to cover the communities of Biddeford, Saco, Old Orchard Beach, Kennebunk, Kennebunkport and Arundel.

How we can we possibly expect one person to cover such a large geographic area?

 Many years ago, when I was the Courier’s editor, we had one reporter covering Biddeford, another reporter covering Saco and Old Orchard Beach; and yet another reporter covering the towns of Kennebunk, Kennebunkport and Arundel for our sister publication, The Post.

Today, we are expecting one reporter to do the same job as three reporters did 25 years ago.

According to a Brookings Institution report, more than 2,000 newspapers across the country ceased publication in the last 15 years or so. The shuttering of newspapers presents a very real and present danger to our most basic freedoms.

Who cares? Who does this hurt?

It hurts you, your wallet and your neighbors.

Thankfully, one young woman from Old Orchard Beach decided that this area deserves a media source to help fill the coverage gap left behind by the changing local journalism landscape.

When the Journal Tribune closed its doors a few years ago, reporter Liz Gotthelf packed up her belongings and decided to launch Saco Bay News, a free online, professional news source.

Running an independent media source is no easy task. There is no such thing as a 40-hour work-week. The income sucks, the hours are long and the work is often so tedious that is causes migraines.

It is a mostly a thankless task and easily criticized by people who know very little about journalism. But Liz is fully committed. She is an idealist, and she firmly believes that you should have consistent, reliable information regarding everything from the opening of a new eatery to coverage of bank robbery, a structure fire and yes even your local budget.

I Can’t Get No (Satisfaction)

Jim Bennett will routinely ignore my telephone calls and emails. It doesn’t hurt my feelings, but it’s a disservice to the people I work for: you.

I treat Jim Bennett differently than any other city employee, including department heads. I have never written (and will never write) a disparaging column about any city employee. I will not make snarky remarks or sarcastic criticisms about our hard-working talented city employees.

I treat Jim differently, however. I hold him to a higher standard. Why?

Because Jim Bennett sits at the top of the proverbial food chain. Because he wants to wear the big-boy pants. Because he has more than 40 years of experience in city government.

But mostly because he often acts like an egotistical, condescending and arrogant son-of-a-bitch. What a pair we make.

A few months ago, former Mayor Alan Casavant, a friend of mine, called me and said that Jim Bennett thinks I treat him unfairly (I hear that from lots of people). I like Alan. I was his campaign manager when he first ran for the mayor’s seat in 2011 (I was not working as a journalist then). So, as a favor to the former mayor, I offered to sit down with Jim and a tape recorder and conduct a one-on-one interview on any topic of his choosing.

Reportedly, Jim did not like that idea. I’m guessing he was more worried about my tape recorder than he was about me.

Councilor Marc Lessard has often found himself on the wrong side of my pen. He and I have sparred publicly for more than three decades. But you know what? Marc always returns my calls promptly.

It’s not personal, it’s business.

Few people have suffered more because of my writing than Councilor Bobby Mills. Just ask him. But you know what? Bobby Mills always returns my calls.

Why? Because Lessard and Mills have thick skin and realize that I am a direct conduit to their constituents. To them, the people’s business is more important than petty, vindicative personality battles.

In all fairness, Jim Bennett can be a nice guy when he wants to be.

Jim is intelligent, and he does have a lot of municipal experience. He is also very involved in charitable work with the non-profit Kora Shrine Temple and commits hundreds of hours annually to the Shriners and their mission to provide free medical treatment for children.

All Jim needs is a thicker skin and a better attitude. But I don’t think he needs more highly paid assistants working in the city manager’s office.

I think Larry Vaughan, the mayor of Amity Island, said it best in the movie Jaws:

“Look, Martin, if you yell barracuda, people will say “Huh? What? But if you yell FOIA, we’ll have a panic on our hands on the Fourth of July.”

As always, thank you for reading, and I welcome your thoughts, especially if you disagree with me.

________

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A Hard Day’s Night

~ Randy Seaver ~ Leave a comment

No one can deny that the city of Biddeford – once derided as “Trash-town U.S.A.”  — has today become an unlikely hip destination for young adults and others who enjoy an eclectic array of craft breweries, a diverse culinary scene and dozens of boutique shops and businesses that offer everything from gourmet cheeses to hand-crafted outdoor gear.

In fact, several national publications that cater to the promotion of unique culinary delights and a creative economy all point to the city of Biddeford as a place to be for young, urban professionals.

A photo from the Heart of Biddeford website

Not surprisingly, the city of Biddeford is today Maine’s youngest city, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

What a change 23 years make, but that change wasn’t easy — and it does come with some equally undeniable consequences.

More about that in a moment. First, a bit of disclosure.

Over the past few weeks, I have been sorting through hundreds of stories I have written about Biddeford since the mid-1990s as part of the redesign and launch of this website, Lessons in Mediocrity.

From 1998 until 2002, before I met my wife, I lived in downtown Biddeford; on the third-floor above the Happy Dragon Restaurant on Main Street.

I also grew up in the Biddeford-Saco area. My family goes back four generations in this community. My wife, a former Biddeford city councilor, and I have been living at our home on Lamothe Avenue for just over 20 years.

After my time at the Courier, I continued to write/blog about the city, its politics and people. As a policy consultant, I worked on several local campaigns and issues. My kids went to Biddeford schools.

I also served on the Biddeford Airport Commission, the Downtown Development Commission and the Biddeford Zoning Board of Appeals.

Today, I keep my toes in the water by working as a free-lance writer, still writing about Biddeford for Saco Bay News.

You get the point. I have a close connection to Biddeford, a community I love and care about deeply.

Why am I sharing this now?

When we look at the city of Biddeford today, I think many of us tend to forget the challenges the city was facing then, when we literally burned our trash in the middle of downtown.

When I joined the Courier in 1998, my boss and publisher David Flood was already an ardent and outspoken booster for downtown Biddeford.

David – unlike me and several other people – saw big potential in Biddeford’s downtown, despite some overwhelming challenges that included the presence of a downtown trash incinerator and significant socio-economic hurdles.

In fact, David  – who was recently inducted into the Biddeford Hall of Fame — was one of the original founders of the Heart of Biddeford, a non-profit organization established in 2004 with a mission to promote economic development and improve quality of life in the city’s downtown area.

While former mayor Alan Casavant receives a lot of credit for the revitalization and renaissance of downtown Biddeford. It was actually former mayor Wallace Nutting who got the ball rolling, some seven years before Casavant was elected as mayor.

Nutting a retired four-star general and native of Saco, also had a strong vision of what downtown Biddeford could become.

Although Nutting, a former Pentagon official who served as a senior advisor to President Ronald Reagan, was one of the smartest, most distinguished and accomplished people I ever met, I thought he was off his proverbial rocker when he started talking about the city’s beleaguered downtown as a “destination for arts, culture and local shopping.”

But Nutting and Flood were not alone. The former mayor also tapped several other like-minded citizens to join him on his newest crusade. Ed Caron, a Biddeford attorney; Renee (Potvin) O’Neil, the woman who basically spearheaded the renovation of City Theater, and Donna Tippett all volunteered to help.

Nutting, the man who previously led the U.S. effort to extricate Manuel Noreiga out of Panama, had a new mission.

Failure was not an option.

What this core group – and later several other volunteers, business owners and residents – accomplished was nothing short of amazing.

But hindsight is always 20/20. It took years, taxpayer funding and political willpower to transform downtown from a neglected hodgepodge of businesses to one of the most vibrant cities in Maine.

Now back to those unintended consequences.

Biddeford After Dark

In the autumn of 2001, while working for David and Carolyn Flood, I decided to write a five part-series about downtown Biddeford, but with a twist.

My Biddeford After Dark series would explore the city’s then gritty downtown area during the overnight hours.

I would write about the punks who congregated at the 7-11 store near the intersection of Jefferson and Alfred Streets; I would ride along with third-shift Biddeford police officers and I would interview the late-night workers, including the supervisors at the MERC incinerator.

I don’t think David was crazy about my idea. I think he was concerned that my series would only perpetuate negative stereotypes about the city of Biddeford.

But – as was so often the case – David game me a wide berth and lots of latitude in running the newsroom.

At that time, I was living and working in downtown Biddeford. I didn’t write the series for overtime pay or to avoid my daytime responsibilities as the Courier’s editor. I was single. I lived alone. I did it for fun.

An excerpt from that series: “As I walk along Lincoln Street — past a tired wrought-iron fence that is leaning and lurching in places — I can almost hear the ghosts of the past. They call to each other, unloading bales of cotton, smoking cigarettes and wiping the sweat from their brows.”

Back then, the former Lincoln Mill clocktower was perched and rotting on the ground in front of the vacant and deteriorating mill building that is today – 23 years later– a luxury hotel with a roof-top swimming pool, a craft distillery and an expansive lobby that has become a favorite gathering place for locals and visitors alike.

Who would have imagined?

But here’s the other thing, the downside of the good news.

A photo I took of the former Lincoln Mill clocktower nearly 25 years ago.

In 2001, it wasn’t hard to find a parking spot in downtown Biddeford. In 2001, you didn’t see any homeless folks sleeping in doorways on Main Street. In 2001, rents – both commercial and residential – were among the lowest in southern Maine.

Why? Well, it’s pretty simple: very few people really wanted to live or shop in downtown Biddeford back then. The stench of burning garbage; shuttered and vacant mill buildings and crumbling infrastructure hardly gave off a welcoming vibe.

Sure, there were some notable exceptions. Legacy businesses such as Reilly’s Bakery and Biddeford Savings Bank were able to weather the storm created by an economic recession and the terrible decision to burn garbage downtown.

But many people had given up on the downtown. Politicians set their sights on easy targets: the development of Wal-Mart and other big-box stores on the outer end of Alfred Road, a proposed racino and continued suburban sprawl on the western side of the city.

As I go through the stories and columns I wrote back then, I am reminded of the tremendous debt we all owe to David Flood, Wallace Nutting, Renee O’Neil and so many others.

We should also never forget the business leaders, civic activists and policy makers who formed Twin Cities Renaissance, the coalition of visionaries from both sides of the Saco River who committed themselves to seeing MERC finally closed.

Sure, Alan Casavant deserves lots of credit for helping us believe in our city again, but he got a lot of help from people who believed in Biddeford even when many of us had given up on the city.

Thank you for your blood, sweat and tears.

In the movie Jaws, Mayor Larry Vaughan says he was just “acting in the town’s best interests” by keeping the beaches open.

In Biddeford, Mayor Wallace Nutting was acting in the town’s best interest by believing in his city and its people.

Make no mistake. Our city still has challenges and hurdles to clear. But if you look at what has been accomplished over the last two decades, Biddeford’s future seems bright.

Originally published in Saco Bay News

I Am The Walrus

~ Randy Seaver ~ Leave a comment

I have been covering Biddeford City Hall for nearly a quarter century, and I don’t recall seeing anything so silly and inane as what I witnessed during Tuesday’s city council meeting.

If you are a resident of Biddeford, you can let out a deep sigh of relief because City Manager James Bennett and his crack staff uncovered a little-known flaw in the city’s municipal ordinances.

Apparently, up until Tuesday, there was nothing in the city’s code of ordinances regarding improper or unauthorized usage of the city’s official seal.

Members of the city council, almost without question, dutifully voted unanimously to approve this important and vital change to our code of ordinances.

Phew! We narrowly dodged a bullet there.

But here’s the deal. It was already illegal. State law already prohibits any persons or entity from using a municipal seal in any inappropriate manner.

In fact, Bennett and his staff knew – before bringing this gem before the council— that it was already a violation of state law to use the city’s official seal in an unauthorized manner. But that didn’t stop them from drafting both a memo and new ordinance language in order to ensure that bad people clearly know that our city will not tolerate violations of state law within the city limits.

Wait. What?

In the classic 1978 comedy Animal House, Dean Wormer is vexed about a notorious fraternity on the campus of Faber College. In one memorable scene, the dean tells some close allies that he will place the Delta fraternity on probation.

“But the Deltas are already on probation,” says the chair of the student council.

“Well then,” the dean says with a smirk. “Now they are on double-secret probation.”

Our city manager earns a handsome six-figure salary plus a suite of lucrative employment benefits. Under his watch over the last few years, City Hall staff has ballooned. The argument always being “we are very busy and need more people.” At the same time, we seem to be doing a piss-poor job of retaining department heads and other senior staff.

In fact, I was surprised that Bennett didn’t recommend hiring a consultant to study the issue of inappropriate use of the city seal. Then we could send those recommendations from the consultant to the Policy Committee, where it would be dutifully reviewed and sent back to the council.

At this point, based on actual recent events, the council could then ask for “more information” and suggest that the Policy Committee should host a joint meeting with the city’s Conservation Committee in order to develop a joint resolution and appropriate guidance for the city council.

Meanwhile, residents are opening eye-popping property tax bills. Meanwhile, more and more of our neighbors are sleeping in doorways. Meanwhile, we can’t figure out how to paint the city’s clock tower. Meanwhile, we have a downtown parking debacle that borders on the absurd.

What’s next?

Is Bennett going to recommend to the council that we should amend our ordinances “to affirm” that murder is not allowed in the city of Biddeford?

I mean, right now all we have is the Ten Commandments and some rather explicit language at both the state and federal level that spells out murder is against the law. Sure, let’s update our municipal ordinances.

I don’t care if Bennett and his staff spent less than two hours on this issue. It was an epic waste of time and resources. Is the city manager just trying to justify his salary? Or does he and his staff have lots of free time to generate this sort of stuff?

Make no mistake. As usual, no one from the public spoke. No one from the public attended the meeting. Left to their own devices, this is the kind of stuff that happens in government when no one is watching.

This is your tax dollars at work. Happy?

Just remember: “Hooper drives the boat, Chief”

Originally posted in Saco Bay News

Werewolves of London

~ Randy Seaver ~ Leave a comment

It is a well-known fact that participation in the world of politics – whether it is national, statewide or local — is often a rough and tumble affair.

But here in my hometown of Biddeford, politics is a blood sport and its machinations are not for the faint of heart, those with thin skin or fragile egos. You better put on your big-boy pants if you want to play in this arena.

Me and the mayor in 2011

This was a strange election year in our city. Several city council seats were uncontested and the mayoral campaign between incumbent Alan Casavant and his challenger Victoria Foley was relatively quiet — right up until the last few days of the campaign.

So, what happened? Why did just a small handful of Foley’s supporters all of a sudden go rogue on social media and get their knickers in a knot?

Well, it was a couple of things, including a direct mail piece that the Casavant team sent out just a few days before Election Day. The reaction to that mailer from a few renegade Foley supporters was swift and scorching. Heads exploded, small children went missing and locusts began to ravage the city.

Relax. I’m joking.

(Disclosure, I was a member of Casavant’s campaign team.)

Foley, and an overwhelming majority of her supporters, ran a clean, positive and civil campaign. But some new terminology was introduced into the broader spectrum of campaign rhetoric this year: ageism and nativism.

What? Do I now have to feel guilty about being an old native of Biddeford?

The unhinged objection from a small group of Foley’s supporters on Facebook was likely sparked by Casavant’s use of a direct quote that Foley gave to a newspaper reporter several weeks ago. “My opponent says Biddeford is on a great trajectory,” Casavant wrote. “I appreciate her kind words.”

Another objection was the mention of Foley’s age on the Casavant mail piece. Again, that was from a newspaper profile of the candidates. I very much doubt that any member of Foley’s team wanted to storm the Biddeford-Saco Courier’s office because they had the temerity to list her age (38).  For the record, Casavant is 69.

Throughout the campaign, there were many subtle comments made about the need for a more “energetic” candidate in the mayor’s office. I will not reveal the names of those thin-skinned Foley supporters, but I will quote some of their social media comments, which, by the way, were taken down very quickly once the Casavant team replied.

No worries. I have the various screen shots.

PR 101: Nothing is ever truly “erased” once it has been published on a public site.

A Foley supporter, who I will dub as Jane Doe, wrote a screed on Facebook attacking the mayor for invoking his experience and for the fact that he is a lifelong Biddeford native who bleeds black and orange.

“When I saw the first post on the socials for Alan’s re-election campaign weeks ago, I was repulsed by the nativism dog-whistle language, that only someone “from” Biddeford, who has deep roots here, is capable of being Mayor of Biddeford,” Jane Doe wrote. “. . . (and) mentioning Victoria’s age is a clear attempt to label her as “too young” to do the job.”

And John Doe wrote this:  “There is a young, progressive female Democratic (sic) running for mayor of Biddeford, Maine. The current mayor is an old, entrenched, multi-term good ol’ boy Democrat.”

John Doe continues: “As with everything the current mayor does, there’s plenty of wolf-whistle nativism on the (Casavant direct mail piece.). The whole production looks and reads like an Onion joke about old, straight white guys desperately clinging to their fiefdoms…but unable to do more than make fun of the competent women around them.”

What John Doe conveniently forgets is that Alan Casavant appointed Victoria Foley to the city council. Casavant also appointed Councilor Amy Clearwater to the council. I could keep going, but you get the point:  Casavant obviously recognizes the competency of female candidates.

The Casavant team created a campaign website, which included video endorsements from several “natives” but it also included profiles of newer residents who like the way our mayor is leading the city. Maybe that stung. Who knows? But I also know several lifelong residents of Biddeford who supported Foley’s attempt to capture the mayor’s seat.

Biddeford has a long and storied history of welcoming and embracing “immigrants” who flocked here to work in the textile and shoe mills more than 100 years ago. These people, and all the others who followed in their footsteps (Including Victoria Foley) contribute so much to the fabric of a truly diverse community.

In summary, we should all thank Ms. Foley for offering an alternative checkbox on the ballot. She has a lot to offer this community and she has a bright future ahead if she chooses to continue in the city’s political landscape.

Now it’s time for this old white guy to take a nap.

She’s a maniac

~ Randy Seaver ~ 2 Comments

417378_312880335428347_172657476117301_793753_1590329846_nEarlier this week, I sensed a disturbance in the force, and sure enough there was significant shift taking place in the city of Biddeford’s political landscape.

On Thursday afternoon, State Senator David Dutremble, a Democrat from Biddeford, announced that he will not seek a third consecutive term in the Maine Legislature.  Within 30 minutes of Dutremble’s announcement, Joanne Twomey, a former state legislator and mayor, announced that she would seek Dutremble’s seat.

Oh, happy day.

And to think I was wondering about the subject of my next blog post.

My phone began ringing off the hook. “What are we going to do?” people asked. “We can’t let this happen.”

Republicans began salivating about the potential of capturing the District 32 seat for the first time in 30 years.

After all, Twomey has lost her last four bids for elected office. She embarrassed herself on the state and national stage by lobbing a jar of Vaseline at Governor Paul LePage during an event in Saco. She was carried out of the room, kicking and screaming.

The woolly mammoth was weakened, and the cavemen fetched their spears.

Over the years, I have watched Twomey closely. She considers me a mortal enemy. She has publicly referred to me as “the Darth Vader of Biddeford.”

Even I toyed with the idea of running for the seat, which brought an almost immediate response from Twomey on Facebook: Look forward to running against a Republican Randy Seaver, nothing would make me happier.

Crazy like a fox

I’m a pretty cynical guy, but even I fell for Joanne Twomey’s self-described narrative of being a champion for the downtrodden.

During her first term as a state representative in 1998, I was working as the editor of the Biddeford-Saco-OOB Courier, and I penned a glowing column about Twomey, describing her “a champion of the people, a fearless advocate for those with no voice within the political power structure.”

She liked me then, and she invited me to her home for a second interview in her back yard, serving fresh fruit, sandwiches and cookies. I threw journalistic ethics out the window and devoured those cookies. (They were awesome)

But as the weeks and months wore on, and as I heard other stories about Twomey and her stint as a city councilor in the early 1990s, my perception changed. I learned that she kept a political enemies list. Once I criticized her for something, my name found its way to that list.

In reality, there is only one thing Twomey cares about: her own political ambition. She refuses to be pragmatic in order to achieve goals. Instead, she conducts herself like a petulant child, stubbornly digging in her heels and shrieking that she is “principled above all else.”

While Twomey tells you that she is principled and fighting the good fight on the side of the angels, take a look at her actual track record.

1.) In 2003, she testified against a proposed casino. In her testimony before the Biddeford City Council, she said: “In my Christmas village, there is no casino.” Seven years later, when she was the mayor and facing a budget pinch because of a new school, she  suddenly flipped and quickly became a cheerleader for a another proposed casino in Biddeford.

Principled? Really?

2.) Twomey built her political career on the backs of criticizing the owners of the MERC waste-to-energy facility. In 2009, while seeking a second term as mayor, she held a press conference and was hugging the company’s owners in front of news cameras just two weeks before the election. She said they had come to terms on a solution.

Two weeks later, after securing her re-election bid, she once again reversed her position. Principled? Really?

3.) During Biddeford’s Democratic caucus in 2012, Twomey said the city needed a “real Democrat” in Augusta, failing to mention that she encouraged Democrat State Rep. Paulette Beaudoin to run for her former legislative seat.

But is she a viable candidate?

In the early 1990s, Twomey was removed by police from City Hall, following another hissy fit, when once again her rage trumped manners and decorum.  As a state representative, she cried on the House floor when she did not get her way. She is a professional victim and the consummate hypocrite.

But remember this: she has a political base of support in Biddeford. She was elected to four consecutive terms in the Maine House of Representatives. During her last two terms, she beat her Republican challenger by a 2-1 margin. Okay, so…Biddeford rarely elects Republicans and the other candidate was not much of a candidate to begin with.

She made her political comeback in 2007 by winning the mayor’s seat, but it was hardly a mandate. It was a three-way race that included two city councilors: John McCurry and Ken Farley. A mere 38 percent of the city’s voters cast ballots. Twomey won with 1,742 votes. Farley was close behind with 1,573 votes and McCurry finished with 1,052 votes.

Essentially, McCurry and Farley split the moderate vote and let Twomey slide in to office with fewer than 2,000 votes.

Her biggest political victory came two years later, when she sought a second term as mayor. In a four way race, Twomey walked away with 4,100 votes, easily outpacing second-place candidate David Flood (2,640).

Twomey seemed unstoppable. She was a political force to be reckoned with.

The Fall From Grace

In the summer of 2011, I and some other Biddeford residents decided that our city needed a change, and we rallied around another former legislator, Alan Casavant, when he decided to seek the mayor’s seat.

Casavant had also served many years on the city council and was also elected to four consecutive terms in the Maine House of Representatives. But unlike Twomey, he never cried on the State House floor. He never screamed or shrieked when he did not get his way. He is professional, mild-mannered and responsive. He was just what Biddeford needed to clean up its tarnished image.

A lot of people told us we were nuts. They said Twomey could not be defeated. Ethan Strimling chided me for mounting a campaign against a seemingly invincible candidate. Many people in Biddeford, led by Twomey, were advocating for a casino during tough economic times. They saw no other way forward for the city. Casavant had his doubts.

By any measure, Casavant’s campaign was the proverbial long shot. But guess what happened?

Casavant won that election with more than 63 percent of the vote, beating Twomey, 4,165-2,504 with a turnout of 53 percent of voters. Casavant not only beat her, he surpassed even Twomey’s best election result in 2009.

Twomey was stunned and cried before television news cameras.

In 2012, she tried to claim back her state house seat from incumbent Paulette Beaudoin. She lost that primary challenge.

In 2013, she tried to make a comeback as the city’s mayor. Again, Casavant beat her: 2,377-1043.

And last year, she gave up on the mayor’s seat and instead sought one of two at-large seats on the city council. In that five way race, Twomey came in third (1,080), well behind second-place finisher Laura Seaver (1,790)

What does the future hold?

Over the last 18 years, Twomey holds a 6-4 election record. Not that shabby, really.

By contrast, (during the same time period) Casavant holds a 7-1 record.

It remains to be seen who else will run for Dutremble’s seat. It’s a tough job that demands incredible flexibility and a tremendous amount of time with virtually no way to rival a regular income. Twomey, retired, is in a perfect position for that job.

Speaking just for me, Twomey will be a tough candidate to beat. That said, someone sent me a design of her campaign sign this morning, This sign was allegedly designed by Perry Aberle. As a professional campaign consultant, I can tell you that this one of the most horrid and ineffective campaign signs I have ever seen.

But what do I know? I’m just the Darth Vader of Biddeford.

Come to the dark side.

JT sign

So proud of my wife

~ Randy Seaver ~ Leave a comment

Running for elected office is not easy; not by a long shot.

But I am so proud of my wife; proud of her courage, her determination and her fiercely independent spirit.

It’s the two-week stretch, and no matter the outcome, I have enjoyed watching Laura grow and face her challenges head-on. She’ll make one hell of a city councilor.

When love comes to town

~ Randy Seaver ~ 5 Comments

Daniel Parenteau
Daniel Parenteau

And, they’re off!

The 2015 municipal election season in Biddeford has started with a bang, according to this story from the Portland Press Herald.

As someone who has worked professionally on local, statewide and federal campaigns over the last several years, I find all of this somewhat fascinating.

I have been covering Biddeford’s political landscape for nearly two decades, both as former newspaper editor and now as a blogger. I have witnessed more political maneuvering on this side of the Saco River than you can imagine.

But this year’s races are a bit different. There is a groundswell of opinion that says Biddeford needs a clean sweep, from the mayor’s seat all the way down to ward clerks and wardens.

So, because I am a political junkie and a Biddeford native, you can expect me to be keeping a close eye on the developments of these races between now and Election Day.

Today, we start with the race for the mayor’s seat, where two-term incumbent Alan Casavant is facing potential challenges from at least three candidates, including Daniel Parenteau, a self-employed consultant.

As I pointed out previously, this is not Parenteau’s first bid for political office.

Two years ago, Parenteau was one of six candidates for the city’s two at-large city council seats.

He finished in last place with 805 votes, despite support he received from Casavant.

To kick off his campaign, Parenteau has followed Casavant’s lead by creating a Facebook page.

But Parenteau has also gone a step further, deploying a campaign tactic that we generally see reserved for larger-scale campaigns, such as Congressional races.

According to his Facebook page, Parenteau will be conducting a “working tour” of the city. He will spend a few hours every week, working for free at a locally-owned business as a way to connect with voters.

On Friday, Parenteau was stocking shelves at Ray’s Market on the western side of the city.

This, to my knowledge, is a first in Biddeford campaigns.

Parenteau, who talks a lot about being innovative and connected to every day citizens, is putting those ideas into action. His campaign is being innovative, and he is connecting to people at the grassroots level.

It’s a brilliant strategy that positions him as a “man of the people.”

In his last two campaigns, Mayor Casavant used campaign events to collect food for local food pantries. At the time, it was a well-received move that showed Casavant understood the needs of the people.

Today, Casavant’s detractors paint him as a man who is “out of touch with the community.

Speaking of Casavant, the mayor has yet to take out nomination papers, leading some to question whether he will actually seek a third term.

It’s still very early in the process, and most voters — other than the political junkies and those with an axe to grind — will not begin paying too much attention to any of the campaigns until after Labor Day….summer in Maine is just too short.

But one thing is for sure, it’s going to be an interesting political season Biddeford.

 

 

 

Boys Don’t Cry

~ Randy Seaver ~ Leave a comment

Union members protest outside City Hall before the July 7 meeting. (Biddeford Teamsters photo)
Union members protest outside City Hall before the July 7 meeting. (Biddeford Teamsters photo)

Maybe it was the heat.

Maybe it was that more than 150 people had packed themselves into the tiny and cramped Biddeford City Council Chambers.

More than likely, it was because tensions remain high between the city council and the Teamsters union that represents the city’s police, fire and public works department in ongoing contract negotiations.

But for whatever reason, only a few minutes into the July 7 council meeting, chaos erupted and the meeting was quickly adjourned before it ever really started.

It was a spectacle to watch; embarrassing on many levels and completely avoidable.

Although it was a powder keg in search of a match, the first moments of the meeting seemed routine. There was the Pledge of Allegiance and everyone stood, removed their hats and paid homage to our nation’s flag.

And then, Mayor Alan Casavant asked for a moment of silence to recognize the passing of two distinguished citizens.

Again, everyone in the room was completely respectful, bowing their heads in a moment of silence. But then, gazing at the crowd that literally surrounded the council, Casavant simply asked some attendees to stand in the hallway in order to comply with building safety codes.

The crowd of mostly Teamsters and their supporters refused to budge. “We’re not going anywhere,” they shouted, quickly followed by thunderous applause.

One of the councilors (from the videotape of the meeting it remains unclear who it was) responded, “Do you want us to shut it down?”

In unison, the angry Teamsters began chanting: “Shut it down! Shut it down!”

One councilor quickly made a motion to adjourn the meeting, it was just as quickly seconded. And a majority of councilors voted to adjourn the meeting before it ever really started.

The Teamsters were visibly upset. They stood in place, screaming at the councilors and chanting: “Shame on you! Shame on you!”

The people’s business went unfinished. No member of the public was able to address the council. It was a poor reflection of a great city.

The Blame Game

So who’s to blame for the complete breakdown in civility, decorum and common courtesy?

Well, there’s plenty of blame to go around for this circus show, so let’s start at the top.

With nearly two terms under his belt as the city’s mayor, four terms as a state legislator and prior experience as a city councilor (not to mention teaching psychology at Biddeford High School), Mayor Alan Casavant should have seen this coming well in advance.

Casavant should have changed the venue for the meeting to accommodate what everyone knew was going to be a capacity crowd.

Casavant failed to lead because of his embedded belief in the decency of his fellow citizens. He thought he could simply ask for order, and his request would be honored. That’s not how the real world works. It may have worked in his classroom, but the mayor simply cannot be so naïve as to think the meeting was not going to be raucous and overcrowded.

Casavant was elected to be a leader, not to be a nice guy.

In the final moments of the meeting, Council President John McCurry leaned over to Casavant and said, “You need to get a handle on this situation.”

McCurry was right.

But the blame does not rest solely with Casavant.

Assets, not liabilities

Although a majority of the council was angry, there was no need to threaten to “shut down” the meeting. The council could have sat idly until the crowd complied, ordering public access television to be paused and waiting for things to settle down.

Instead, at least one of the councilors issued an ultimatum: “Do you want us to shut it down?”

That did not fly with the Teamsters.

Whether they like it or not, the council has a responsibility to hear its citizens’ concerns and grievances. It also has a responsibility to hear those same concerns from city employees, many of whom are also residents.

I have been covering Biddeford politics for the better part of two decades, and there seems to be a constant, pervasive theme that transcends each administration: City employees are liabilities, not assets. In reality, it is the other way around.

The council has its position in the negotiations, but it is unrealistic to expect that those on the other side of the table are going to simply accept what is offered, especially when the offer (according to sources from within the union) is such a low-ball offer.

Furthermore, the council cannot lay all the blame at the mayor’s feet. They should have made a motion to move the meeting to a different venue at a different time in order to accommodate the crowd.

Instead, they stubbornly insist that all future meetings will be held in the cramped city council chamber.

Men To Boys

Biddeford’s police, fire and public works employees are some of the hardest working, most decent people you will ever come across.

It appears that the union has a legitimate beef with the negotiations. They are being asked to sacrifice a lot. Perhaps, this is the city’s negotiating tool: a ridiculous low-ball offer that can be incrementally worked up.

But we are not talking about buying a Ford F-150 or a Toyota Prius.  We are talking about men and women who will literally put their lives on the line for you and me.

I do not know how much police officers or firefighters are paid, but I guarantee you it is not enough.

On the other hand, the city has limited resources, and public employees need to accept the same realities that private-sector employees are facing.

As I watched the July 7 meeting, I couldn’t help but imagine what would have happened to me if I marched into my employers’ office and started shouting “shame on you” because I was upset about a lack of a raise or losing some benefits. If my employer asked me to wait in the hallway for a few moments while things settled down, and I refused to budge, what do you think would happen?

I would be looking for another job.

That’s how it works in the real world.

Furthermore, it is beyond ironic that public safety employees would refuse to comply with public safety regulations.

Earth to Teamsters: The mayor was not asking you to leave or trying to silence your voices. He simply asked a few of you to step into the adjacent hallway and wait your turn to speak. Was that such an unreasonable request?

Stomping your feet and shouting is for two-year-olds, not for adults.

And let’s be clear, this is not the first time when have witnessed junior high school theatrics from the Teamsters.

During my tenure as a newspaper editor, I recall previous contract negotiations that were just as heated and just as contentious. In fact, during one council meeting, several union members circled City Hall in their vehicles, honking their horns repeatedly in order to disrupt the meeting.

In summary, there’s plenty of blame to go around in this situation. I strongly suggest that the mayor, every member of the city council and the Teamsters all put on their big-boy pants and negotiate in good faith.

Our public employees should be treated with respect.

That respect should also be reciprocated.