Lorraine Faherty
Two Damariscotta residents have declared themselves write-in candidates for the Damariscotta Board of Selectmen.
Lorraine Faherty and Amy Leshure will seek election to the board.
Faherty, a retired attorney, sits on the Damariscotta Cemetery Committee. She is a former president of the Rotary Club of Damariscotta-Newcastle and currently serves as the club’s secretary and chairs its public relations committee.
Before moving to Damariscotta in 2007, Faherty and her husband, Dennis Faherty, lived in California, where she was on the boards of many nonprofits in Monterey. For a time she was the assistant director of United Way Monterey County.
If elected, Faherty said she will bring a different point of view to the board, as she has lived in other locations and decided to move to Damariscotta.
One of the issues facing the town is having to balance change and growth with “the way things have always been,” Faherty said.
“Change is inevitable, but it’s about balancing that with the concerns of people who have chosen to live here for the things they like about it,” Faherty said.
Leshure, the finance manager at Rising Tide Community Market in Damariscotta, said she was inspired to throw her hat into the ring for a few reasons, including the recent commercial developments that have come before the Damariscotta Planning Board.
Prior to working for Rising Tide, Leshure worked as a senior credit analyst at the First National Bank. While there, she developed an intimate knowledge of local businesses and the stories behind each one, she said.
Leshure said she hopes to bring her understanding of the “interwoven fabric of the community” to the board if elected.
Rising Tide has more than 3,000 member-owners and “each choice and decision we make, we need to consider if it will be good for the whole group,” Leshure said, a principle she believes should also apply to decisions made at the municipal level.
There are two seats up for election this year. One belongs to George Parker, who is seeking a second three-year term. The other belongs to Jim Cosgrove, who is not seeking re-election.
Amy Leshure
Elsewhere on the ballot, Angela Russ is running for a second three-year term on the Damariscotta School Committee. Great Salt Bay Sanitary District Trustee John Gallagher is also seeking re-election.
Polls for the election of officers will be open at the town office from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., Tuesday, June 13.
In addition to elected positions, the town also has appointed positions that will need to be filled this year. The Damariscotta Planning Board has two seats that will be up for appointment, as current members Stephen Cole and Bruce Garren have both indicated they do not wish to be reappointed, Town Manager Matt Lutkus said.
“(Cole and Garren) stepping down is a considerable loss to the town, and we appreciate all they’ve done,” Lutkus said.
The planning board also has a vacant alternate seat, Lutkus said. Dan Day holds the other alternate seat.
The Damariscotta Board of Appeals currently has two vacancies for regular members and two vacancies for alternates.
So far, four residents have submitted applications stating they are interested in either the planning board or the appeals board seats, Lutkus said. During their Wednesday, May 17 meeting, the selectmen decided to hold informal interviews with prospective board members to discuss what the positions entail.
The emphasis for both the planning and appeals board will be on becoming familiar with town ordinances and preparing for meetings by reading the agenda, applications, and materials, Lutkus said.
Anyone interested in serving on the planning board or board of appeals should contact the town by visiting the town office or calling 563-5168 by June 23.
