Seymour insists he's not part of any school board conspiracy

Even before Councilor Brenda Baer (Ward 4) sounded the alarm that the School Board aimed to conquer the City Council at the November elections, Mike Seymour, the former chairman of the board who declared his candidacy for mayor, began countering the same charges.

In a recent interview, Seymour said as soon as he announced his candidacy similar suspicions were voiced to him directly by Councilors Armand Bolduc (Ward 6), Bob Hamel (Ward 5) and Greg Knytych (Ward 1). "Their concerns were that there seemed to be a concerted effort to override or repeal the tax cap in order to proceed with the high school project as soon as possible," he said. The building of a new high school, or extensive reconstruction of the current facility, has long been a top priority of the School Board and its most ardent supporters and they were clearly miffed when the council majority refused to take a first step, involving the Huot Technical Center, in the Spring of 2008

Seymour said that he has sought to reassure all the incumbent councilors that he was not party to any conspiracy or wedded to any hidden agenda. "I have tremendous respect for all the sitting councilors, including Brenda," he stressed. "I wish that she had picked up the phone and we'd had the same conversation I had with the other councilors. My phone number is in the book and I am always willing to discuss any issue or concern."

"The perception is out there," Knytych said of what some call a "conspiracy," adding, "and you know they say that perception is reality."

The perception stems from a handful of elements, including Seymour's decision to contest the mayoral election against Bob Luther, who represented Ward 2 for seven terms before moving out of the ward — though Luther has long been considered sympathetic to School Board causes and was one of two votes on council in support of the Huot Center project. Marge Kerns, long the heart and soul of the School Board, is challenging Knytych for the council seat in Ward 1. Mayor Matt Lahey, a known champion of the public schools who in 2004 was the lead spokesman for the ill-fated plan to build a new middle school and high school off Parade Road, is leaving the mayor's office to run for the council in Ward 2. Finally, on the last day of the filing period, Jack Terrill, president of the Lakes Region United Way, chose to challenge Baer in Ward 4.

"I've talked to quire a few people who asked what's going on?" said Hamel. "Can't you figure it out? It's deja vu all over again from four years ago."

In 2005, with the property tax cap initiative on the ballot and the building of a new middle school at stake, a slate of candidates headed by Lahey — coming out of retirement to seek a fourth term as mayor — Brad Fitzgerald in Ward 1, Luther in Ward 2, Henry Lipman in Ward 3, Baer in Ward 4, Diane Roberts in Ward 5 and Joe Cormier of the School Board in Ward 6, all skeptical or opposed to the tax cap and favoring the school project, mounted a coordinated campaign marked by a barrage of newspaper advertising. The tax cap passed and several council races determined by razor-thin margins but the school builders emerged with a 4-2 council majority.

Part of the original pro-school building coalition, Baer has appeared to become more fiscally conservative in her second term and she voted against the Huot Center project.

Fitzgerald served only one term and was replaced in the Ward 1 seat by the much more conservative Knytych.

Seymour said that he understood the concerns, but insists that he is not part of any group, let alone a conspiracy. "To the best of my knowledge there is no group out there," he said. "No individual, no group has approached me about pursuing any agenda." More particularly, Seymour said that he would not accept any financial contributions for his campaign. "I want to remove any perceptions of a conspiracy or back-room deals," he declared. "In this climate, I believe it is very important to be completely above board and transparent. I will accept no donations."

Nor, he explained, was he recruited to run for mayor. He acknowledged that one day at a health club Lahey mentioned that he would make a good candidate. "At the time, I had not given it much thought," he said. Seymour said that Lahey's remark set him thinking and spoke with his family and officials at Franklin Savings Bank, where he is vice-president of marketing and public relations. "As I deliberated about running I spoke with Lahey about the dimensions of the job, what it entails in terms of expectations and time, but not about setting any sort of agenda," he said.

Seymour acknowledged his relationships with Kerns and Terrill while denying that they extended to any sort of political alliance. "I served on the School Board with Marge for one term," he said, noting that while he had great respect for her, the two did not always see eye-to-eye. As a volunteer serving as a "loaned executive" for the United Way, he said that he worked with Terrill, but only learned of his candidacy for the council shortly before he filed. "He told Armand (Bolduc) and I at the same time," he said.

Seymour declared that if he is elected, he has no intention of overriding, let alone repealing, the tax cap. "I was not in favor of the tax cap when it was proposed," he said, explaining that he had misgivings that the variables used to calculate it . However, he continued I see a certain wisdom in the cap that I did not see before and we have managed well with it,"

At the same time, he said that he would not altogether rule out overriding the cap if circumstances required it. "Ruling it out would be too close-minded. If the city were faced with dire fiscal circumstances that required severe reductions in essential services that would place onerous burdens on taxpayers, I would be open to overriding the cap," he said, "but certainly not to fund any discretionary expenditures and especially not to build a high school."

As for the high school, Seymour said that "it will be on the docket in the future, but right now it is not financially possible." He said that while it is appropriate to begin the process of planning for the redevelopment of the high school at its existing site, fiscal conditions currently preclude any significant investment in the project.

Seymour shares the widespread view that the next City Council will be sorely tested by the 2010 budget, since both the rate of inflation and value of new construction, the factors that determine the allowable increase in spending permitted by the tax cap, have fallen sharply with the recession. "I expect that funding for discretionary expenditures will be very scarce," he said. "This will be a time to start being creative in finding ways to reduce expenses and achieving more efficiencies."

Seymour appears to have overcome the concerns of some councilors. Hamel said that while he could not support Kerns in Ward 1, he was willing to "give Seymour the benefit of the doubt." Knytych, one of two incumbents facing a challenge, was more emphatic. "I've known Mike for a long time and believe him to be very honest. What he tells you, you can take to the bank."

Nevertheless, both expected the role of the School Board to overshadow the election. "I have no evidence one way or the other and I'm not saying there are any back-room deals," said Knytych. "But, I can see where the public could get the perception of a conspiracy." He said that the challengers would "have to prove their innocence."

"I'm going to make sure it is an issue," Hamel declared flatly.