Dana Watson, 60, who lives on Middle Road, has served for 18 years on the Naples Board of Selectmen of which he is the chairman. He comes from a long line of selectmen, his father and grandfather both having served on the board.
Watson is married with one son. He studied two years at Southern Maine Vocational Technical College (now known as Southern Maine Community College) and owns his own building mover company called Dana Watson & Son.
What background/experience would you bring to the position?
Dana Watson: I’ve been elected to something ever since 1976, not always selectman. When we first started in the 70s, we’d come to the town office and there’d be a warrant to pay the bills, stayed maybe fifteen minutes, nobody ever came and then we went. Now we have an agenda. Every time we have a meeting, we have a lot of topics that we discuss, there are minutes kept. It’s like night and day. We went from the 19th century right into the 21st.
Why are your running for re-election?
Watson: Because I don’t know any better. I’d like to get the property taxes resolved and get back on an even keel. Right now, I’m kind of like the historian. I’m the one who grounds the board in where we came from. You gotta know where you come from before you know where you’re going.
What are your top concerns in regard to the future of Naples?
Watson: The growth is kind of out of control. I want to make sure everybody reads the comprehensive plan. I’m not telling people to vote for it or not. But if they’re going to vote for it, they ought to read it. I’m also concerned about the school budget that has skyrocketed. Another thing I’m concerned about is the Causeway. The state’s going to do some work there, but they are not going to coordinate anything. They’re not going to coordinate the new bridge with the fixing of the rest of the causeway. We’d like to do some revitalization down there, but we can’t plan because they won’t tell us what they’re doing. We’ve been to four meetings scheduled to talk about the bridge and nobody from the bridge department’s ever shown up. There’s a lot we could do if we just knew what was going on.
What qualities do you possess that make you the best candidate for the position?
Watson: I guess I’m stubborn. A lot of people say stuff in the heat of the moment, but I just let it roll off. Over 18 years, there are some things that you don’t forget, but I don’t hold a grudge. I was born here and I care. I went to seek my fortune in my twenties, but I came back.
If elected, what would be your first priority?
The growth scares me. So, whether the comprehensive plan passes or not, we’ve got to do something to make the developers chip in to help pay the cost for all the building that’s going on, the roads and the infrastructure. It affects everything.
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