Have the experience and time to return as selectman

To The Daily Sun,

Gilford Voters,

I am running for the position of selectman for the town of Gilford.

Having served as a selectman from 2008 to 2014, I am extremely familiar with the responsibility, workload, and effort necessary to do the best job for Gilford’s residents. People ask me, “Why selectman again”? My wife (an educator for many years at GES) and I have lived in Gilford for almost 35 years and raised our children here. We love this community, its features, and its people. This opportunity to work for the good of the Town is a way to give back to the community we have called “Home”.

I have a passion to serve in local government because the decisions that are made at a Wednesday evening board meeting affect someone immediately and, as a result, I take my role as selectman very seriously.

As a voter, I am a fiscal conservative, believing in keeping the tax rate as low as responsibly practical. During my first term (2008-2011), Gilford was affected by the national economic downturn, and the board and town employees put a lot of effort into reducing spending and keeping taxes as low as possible while providing the services expected by our residents. I maintained that strategy through both terms, even giving up our annual stipend for a number of years to lead the effort to reduce spending and save taxpayers money. We opened up as many of the municipal operations as possible to the public view, including posting the accounts payable register online for transparency.

During my tenure as selectman, we created balanced budgets that met the needs of the residents and our valued employees while maintaining our town municipal tax rate as one of the lowest in the Lakes Region. While selectman, we hired our current town administrator and police chief. Recently, I volunteered to help in the hiring of our new DPW director.

My Board of Selectman responsibilities over the six years included serving on the Planning Board for four years, the Municipal Budget Committee for two years, and negotiating contracts on behalf of the town with the police department’s union. With a commitment at protecting our environment, I pushed for the complete cleanup of the Liberty Hill Coal Tar Project (recently completed).

Prior to 2008, I had been elected to the Gilford School Board for six years and served on the committee that planned and subsequently built the middle school addition to the Gilford school system.

I love this town. I have the proven experience, knowledge, commitment, and the time (semi-retired) to step into the role of selectman (no learning curve), having been attending most of the selectmen’s meetings since last fall.

I have NO hidden agenda with Gilford government. Gilford is a great place to live, work, and raise a family. I welcome the opportunity to again serve the town as selectman and am asking for your vote on Tuesday, March 10, at the Gilford Community Center. Thank you.

J. Kevin Hayes

Gilford