David Watson, running for reelection to his District 1 seat on the Brunswick Town Council, faces political newcomer Robert Moulton on Nov. 8.
District 1 represents the eastern section of Brunswick closest to Bath.
Watson and Moulton spoke with the Forecaster about three issues in town: sustainability, affordable housing and the relocation next year of the polling station.
Both candidates said they lean conservative but differ in their proposed approaches to environmental issues.
Moulton
Moulton, 63, is running for office for the first time, inspired in part by what he says is the council’s lack of action “to deal with sustainable community.”
“I feel I have more to offer in terms of providing efforts,” he said. “There are programs out there to sign up and reduce your Central Maine Power bill for the next 13 years. Brunswick could reach out and let their constituents know these programs are available. Less than 5% or 7% of constituents have signed up. We could do the right thing and burn less fossil fuels, and many programs allow you to do the right thing and still save money.”
A 40-year resident, Moulton has worked in historical renovations and building for 32 years.
Watson, 74, a retired police officer born in Brunswick, has served on the Town Council for 20 years.
“I think it is difficult for Brunswick to respond to climate change,” Watson said. “That’s a global issue because the planet has been warming for hundreds of years. It may be accelerated because of the progression of man, but there’s a natural warming up and cooling down.”
Watson
He agrees with trying to be part of a “global effort” by reducing the use of petroleum products and using “green products,” he said, but he’s skeptical about the merits of solar panels and windmills because of what he sees as a lack of research on their potential environmental drawbacks.
To address the need for affordable housing, Moulton proposes a combined solution of public funding, private funding, tax incentives and “changing problem locations that can be improved, and determining which areas need stimulus.”
“How we take care of people who can’t fend for themselves will be the measure of our community and hopefully we can provide that, but there will be a cost,” he said. “We should make sure those burdens don’t fall on additional people.”
Watson said there are “a lot of unknown answers about affordable housing.”
“Right now, we have a developer building a house on Brunswick Landing that will have 13 affordable housing units in the project. We have to find developers willing to work on that premise,” he said, referring to the proposed 63-unit Beacon Workforce Housing project.
“We need to work with developers in trying to make it reasonable to provide affordable housing in their projects and that’s not an easy task, Watson said. “We have some excellent staff members who work for the town manager and have done an excellent job providing resources.”
Watson voted for the relocation of the town’s polling location in 2023 from Brunswick Junior High School to the Community Center, a council decision that led to much debate and disagreement among members.
“We used to have five polling locations and because of economics and a lack of volunteerism, we dropped down to one. At that time I was lobbying for two polls and, I’ve seen no reason to change my position. However, I think the move to the rec center is a very smart move and I say that (mainly) because of safety issues as well as school issues,” he said.
“If we stayed at the junior high school, because of parking and lighting, it’s a safety issue,” he said. “Brunswick Rec has very good handicapped accessibility. At the junior high, you have to use two school buildings and shut the school down for a day, so I had to look at what’s best for the town and people of Brunswick.”
Moulton said having a central location for the polls is his primary concern.
“I hope there will be people at the old location that can offer assistance to redirect people (to the new location) on a one-on-one basis,” he said.
Councilor Stephen Walker is unopposed in his bid for re-election in Council District 2 and the available District 6 seat has no candidates.
Brunswick residents will vote Nov. 8 at Brunswick Junior High School, 65 Columbia Ave. For more information, contact the town clerk at 207-725-6658.
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