Surprisingly quiet

I'm talking about the political scene in West Tisbury. I had expected to at least see some signs on people's lawns and an ad or two in the newspaper. But, here we are a little more than two weeks until election day and nada. I had expected some activity but this is ridiculous. I guess the candidates have made a decision that campaigning is not necessary. Perhaps, the League of Women Voters Candidates' Night on Friday might stir some action.

The activity seems to be on the issue front. The Space Needs committee has issued their report and will hold a final forum on April 4. The Community Preservation Committee will hold a forum this Wednesday. The Finance Committee will present its recommendations on Saturday. People are passing out pamphlets touting the virtues of an article which limits the number of elective offices someone can hold.

Everyone, including me, thinks that the Space Needs Committee has done a great job. They've put in a lot of work. They've actually had a plan and they executed it. People have had ample time to review the committee's work. Now comes the hard part - presenting their recommendations and convincing Town Meeting to support them. The issue, as always, is do we want to spend more money renovating the existing Town hall or do we want to give up the ghost and build a new building in what has become the town business center. From a financial point of view the answer to me is obvious.

Despite all the investigations that have been done as to the condition of the Town Hall, no one can predict with sufficient degree of certainty that some major problem is not lurking there. Proponents of renovation argue for preserving history. While the building has been there for over a hundred years, it's only been a Town Hall for thirty or so of those years. I think it's time to acknowledge that, in the 21st century, the center of the Town has moved and build a new building for less money than renovating Town Hall.

The Community Preservation Committee has not had the opportunity to spend much money in this its first year. For some unknown reason West Tisbury received very few proposals and the committee is only recommending that the Town spend about $125,000 of CPA funds now. This wasn't the case in Oak Bluffs where they had applications for twice as much money as the Town had in CPA funds.

And, finally I come to Article 45 which seeks to limit the number of elective offices that can be held by one person. A similar article was rejected last year, but the proponents have modified that article and are trying again. Their basic argument is that the article will encourage more people to run for office. Well, the article is based on one that has been available in Chilmark for twenty years. Are there more contests for office in Chilmark than in other Island towns? No. Last Fall there were two vacancies for the Up-Island School committee. Did we have more than two people running for these offices? No.

The real problem with this article is that it is aimed at one person. The article does not say that someone can only hold one elective office. It specifically names offices, some of which this person holds. I just don't think that is fair.