Bill Weese, 35, a Republican who lives on Wiley Road, is running for the Naples Board of Selectmen.
Weese is married with three kids. He is a graduate of Peabody Veterans Memorial High School in Massachusetts and holds a three-year technical certificate in electronics. He owns Lakes Region Security which installs and fixes burglar alarms and other security systems for residents and businesses.
What background/experience would you bring to the position?
Bill Weese: I’ve attended meetings before and my wife works for the School Board so I know how the system works. I’m self-employed. I know what it takes to run a business. Towns are businesses themselves. They have services that they offer, that are either free or need to be paid for. I’ve run my own business and know how to cut costs, shop around for things, make proposals and save money.
Why are you running for election to the board?
Weese: I want to be part of the process. I want to know where my money’s going without looking at the town warrant, or town budget. I want to talk to as many people as possible and get their opinions and form my opinion from theirs. I want to be a voice of the people, a voice of the taxpayers. I have no agenda whatsoever. I’m not for or against anything at this point, just
whatever’s in the best interest of the taxpayers.
What are your top concerns in regard to the future of Naples?
Weese: Property tax relief, if there’s some way we can do it. A lot of people feel the School Board spends a lot of money and the state’s decided to come up with a couple programs, LD1, EPS formulas in order to get everyone on the same page. And this is a tough year for it. We also have to educate our kids to the best of our ability and we elect officials for that. They both go hand in hand. We spend a lot of money on education here, and we need to spend a lot of money on education, but they need to produce results so the taxpayers won’t be so down on the spending of more money.
What qualities do you possess that make you the best candidate for the position?
Weese: No self agenda. I don’t have a topic that I want to go in and push. Just whatever the townspeople feel we need to work on. I have nothing that I want to accomplish besides doing what’s right for the taxpayers of the town of Naples.
If elected, what would be your first priority?
Weese: They (the current selectmen) already have some agenda set with certain things. I’d like to focus on those issues as hard as I can and be involved with them as much as I can. I’d like to talk to more people. I would like to get more people at the selectmen’s meetings. You don’t get anything accomplished by not getting involved. You can coffeeshop talk all you want, but it doesn’t get anything done.
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