The brilliant decision

The installation of the new solar array at the DPW yard is moving along and soon will be providing power, and saving us a bundle.

I checked and the credit for  this project, a very full measure perhaps 90%, should be awarded to Julie Gilman.

American Recovery /Reinvestment Act  funded. $50k grant upgraded to $100k after the Selectmen refused to go forward. So the State threw another 50 k on the pile. Basically the State wanted it to happen. It still required heavy lifting to get it done, provided by Julie Gilman. It should provide 5% of power for the Waste Water Treatment Plant on the same campus.

The  grant was for a Power Purchase Agreement. Basically, we generate power, feed it to the grid and get credits on our bill from Unitil. With a PPA the contractor is the owner, operator and maintainer of the system. We don’t need to do anything with it. We have a 10 year contract to pay some of our savings to the contractor. After that we just generate and all the savings are ours. Our contractor is Revolution Energy LLC they also did the High school array. With this and various other initiatives Julie has saved the Town 15-20% in utility costs compared to 2009 numbers. She  can bring energy savings and grant writing skills to the clerk’s office to secure money to improve climate control in the records vault.

Altogether she and a few team members have earned the town $400k in grant money in 3 years.

The recent voters forum should have been an eye opener for anyone concerned about making sure we elect the strongest candidate for Town Clerk.

Some people are very good at taking direction, the special ones lead the way forward. I choose to  align myself with the latter.

For the good of the Community.

Julie Gilman  suggested different hours for the Town Clerks window to accommodate busy people,and did not suggest that other departments remain open as well.

Mrs Kohler had a different opinion that seemed to speak more to the concerns of an hourly worker. Not someone vying for a leadership position.

Her position is that her customers also have other needs so all departments should be open .

Mrs Kohler also took the time also to detail how many hours she worked at the first election, those long hours  still resonate it seems. This story really is stark in its import for us all. Management material typically does not engage in such descriptions to curry favor. A manager or director level is measured by  programs and success, how long it took hardly is relevant.

I have held a sign at the polls all day.

Mrs Kohler simply  will not be an instrument of change if elected, and change  and proficiency is required moving forward. Mrs Gilman will insure any software training is conducted properly by an authorized program vendor with certification. This  will be of tremendous benefit to  the senior employees.

Certification is a portable benefit. We would benefit as a Town with the consistent use  of such software in our record keeping and daily reporting functions. We are still not there in the Town Clerks department.

Julie Gilman will get that  done and we will all benefit.

602.00 bucks.

That’s approximately the amount disbursed for training of the deputy Town Clerk. I simply have to disabuse you fence sitters of the notion that  Mrs Gilman’s  training will be a burden,  given her solid academic  credentials we are assured a newly minted town clerk quickly. It’s really a red herring , the whole subject  of certification.

The decision to support Julie Gilman in her desire to be Town Clerk was very easy for me. I have the Town’s best interests at heart in making sure she is elected to the post, her expressed desire. Please look around my blog and you will see nothing but strong Community messages coupled with a desire to move forward,  as fast as we can. There is simply no time for standing still anymore. Julie’s unique talents applied in the Town Clerks Office  will further that goal. I would never  think that she is better suited elsewhere or try and blunt her stated intention.  I have too much respect for her to try that  gambit and then wriggle away with  a split decision.

I am grateful to Julie Gilman for offering to shoulder this responsibility.

“I’ll go  with Dan , but Julie stays put”

Please explain that one to me. Is it a case of  “that’s enough change for me?”

It’s Gilman and Chartrand, take a double dose of the future, don’t be  timid.

Hartsons choice, succession?. You are  not making a choice. It was made for you by the exiting Town Clerk. Mrs Hartson our former Town Clerk  is still helping out, consulting, till the end of March. That’s nice. I know when Mrs Gilman is elected the Town Clerks staff will not have to contend with daily guests unless  they are on official business. The message as to what is appropriate dwell time in the office by non essential functionaries should have been delivered some time ago.

You should  give Julie a a call to answer any questions you might have and get with  it, get with the Community, help us all to move this enterprise forward.

Your vote is critical, this is an opportunity that took 20+ years to present itself.

Don’t make a big mistake, be thoughtful. There is a clear difference in these candidates.

I checked around the region on Town Clerks races in several states. In every race the same song is being sung.Technology is here, has been here, and all races do concern the lack of up to date services and technology use in the Office of Town Clerk. We can claim  no uniqueness in this matter. You can look for yourself online. The use  of available technology is going to save us money and provide a higher level of service.Moving more functions online will mean less window activity.

Julie Gilman is the one, she stepped forward, on her own, please vote our best interest on Tuesday.

Vote Julie Gilman.

Vote Community.

Please make sure you  call a neighbor to remind them of the significance of their participating  in this Community effort.  Exeter Town Government on a firm footing, with the right people in the key spots.

Tuesday- Talbot Gym

Mike Lambert