BIDDEFORD — Several residents took offense to comments made by Mayor Alan Casavant in the Saturday edition of the Journal Tribune, in reference to the November vote on the city’s superintendent residency requirement.
Casavant, who is also a state representative for House District 137, is sponsoring legislation to eliminate the residency requirement for school superintendents statewide.
In November, Biddeford voters defeated a charter change question that would have done the same thing on a local level. The vote was 5,269 to 4,102 against removing the requirement.
In reference to his bill, Casavant told the Journal Tribune, “I don’t think Biddeford residents fully understood the implications of their vote. There wasn’t ample opportunity to discuss it.”
On Tuesday at City Hall, three residents said they opposed Casavant’s bill and were insulted by his comments in the newspaper.
Pat Rhames, wife of City Councilor Richard Rhames, said she took exception to the mayor’s comments. She said she knew what she voted for when opposing the question to remove the residency requirement for the superintendent.
The city manager and the superintendent of schools should live in Biddeford, pay taxes in Biddeford and send their children to Biddeford schools, said Rhames.
“I find your actions to be somewhat arrogant,” she said to Casavant, regarding his attempt to pass a state bill that went against local voters’ wishes.
The superintendent is paid a significant salary, of $118,000, noted resident Terry Belanger, and he should live, vote and pay taxes in the city. Belanger also said he didn’t approve of Casavant trying to pass something at the state level that was defeated locally.
“You need to remember what a democracy is,” he said.
“I knew exactly what I was voting for,” added resident and former Mayor Joanne Twomey. “Don’t say we don’t know what we (were) voting for. That insults me.”
“I think the superintendent is awesome,” said Twomey, “but he knew what he was getting into.”
In response, Casavant said he was proposing legislation at the state level, because “Biddeford is not the only community with that problem,” of finding a superintendent willing to move for a job.
It’s a statewide issue, he said, and noted that Augusta was having trouble finding a suitable superintendent for that city’s school district.
“People don’t want to move because they can’t sell their house,” said Casavant.
In addition, he said, fewer people are interested in becoming school superintendents, so there is a limited pool of qualified candidates. Casavant said he didn’t mean any disrespect to Biddeford voters, but “the issue of a limited pool and finding candidates was never clearly discussed.”
— Staff Writer Dina Mendros can be contacted at 282-1535, Ext. 324 or dmendros@journaltribune.com.
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