As Election Day Nears, Three Candidates Vie For Falmouth Select Board
Falmouth voters will be heading to the ballot box on Tuesday, May 17, to decide which of the three candidates will fill two open seats on the select board.
Incumbent Douglas C. Brown and zoning board of appeals vice chairman Edwin P. (Scott) Zylinski II have been campaigning in town and each participated in candidates night, a program organized by FCTV and the League of Women Voters.
The third candidate, East Falmouth resident Dianna T. Mota, did not participate in candidates night; however she has been attending select board meetings and has used the public comment section to air her many concerns and hopes for change.
In addition to serving as the current select board chairman, Mr. Brown has been involved in a number of municipal boards and committees over the years. A lack of community engagement from public officials is part of what prompted his initial involvement in town politics and is something he says he has sought to change during his tenure. Staying engaged with the public, he said, is the most important thing.
At candidates night, Mr. Brown said his priority for the next three years would be affordable housing first and foremost, followed by sewering, addressing the opioid epidemic, and coastal resiliency. He believes that sewering is the best way to protect Falmouth’s water quality and has acknowledged that although progress is slow, the town is on the right track and must continue forward.
One question posed during the League program asked the candidates how best to promote respectful exchanges and maintain decorum at public meetings, to which Mr. Brown said that he hopes to lead by example, but there is only so much one can do to control others’ speech.
Ms. Mota, in voicing her concerns and priorities at select board meetings, has been repeatedly reprimanded for not following the policies of the select board’s public comment period or generally being disruptive or out of order. Most recently, at the May 9 meeting of the select board, Ms. Mota exceeded the two-minute limit and became increasingly agitated with the board for being cut off and for their inability to answer her numerous questions, despite being previously told that the board is following a statewide policy under Open Meeting Law. Other select board members expressed their frustration with Ms. Mota’s repeated disruptions and Mr. Brown was asked twice by the board’s vice chairwoman Nancy Taylor to “control these outbursts.” Ms. Mota left her three-page pamphlet of talking points with the board and left the meeting.
Despite her unconventional way of voicing her political stances, Ms. Mota has been a vocal critic of the town’s government, specifically the select board and its policies. Her three-page pamphlet, obtained by the Enterprise, lists her numerous qualms with things like the holding of executive sessions, municipal operations, and concerns with specific town employees who were mentioned by name.
As zoning board vice chairman, Mr. Zylinski has experience working with affordable housing and believes that the key to getting more affordable units in Falmouth is to engage the state Legislature to create more attractive incentives for developers.
Mr. Zylinski has also gone on the record in opposition to the Mayflower Wind project because of the unknown long-term effects. He believes overbuilding is counterintuitive to the concept of being economically friendly and that it is somewhat of a balancing act.
During candidates night, Mr. Zylinski said that his highest priority would be to engage more of the community in municipal politics and that he would like to see more people and new faces at meetings. Through this, he hopes to bring people together to find common ground and make real progress.
Town elections will take place on Tuesday, May 17. Polls are open from 7 AM to 8 PM.