First Year Challenges

First Year Challenges

By Larry Cain, Town Council

It has been an eventful and challenging first year on the Town Council. I was elected in June last year to fill a partial term. The phrase "I didn't know how much I didn’t know” is certainly applicable. It is not like the issues and work were just waiting for me to show up. It is more like jumping into a moving river. You have to swim like hell just to keep up.  

If I had to pick one word to describe my first year, it would be rewarding. Working with the various levels of talented and committed Town staff taught me that we are fortunate to have people who truly want the best possible results for Scarborough.

Your Town Council is a dedicated group that considers and debates issues with respect and seriousness. Most importantly, our residents have taught me the meaning of civic responsibility. I am continuously learning about the history, culture and diverse opinions affecting issues that face our town.

However, it is disingenuous to only write about the positive events while serving as a Town Councilor. While the original intent of this article was to provide some feedback and thoughts about that first year, the tragic killing of Mr. Guerrero in Biddeford has certainly overshadowed recent events. I will reemphasize that I am speaking only for myself, and not for the full Council.

As you may know, the Town Council held a special meeting last Wednesday with the specific purpose of passing a proclamation that expresses support, sympathy and respect for Mr. Guerrero’s family, along with the Biddeford community as a whole. The proclamation also calls on our Congressional delegation to work on our behalf to achieve tangible results regarding the ICE facility located here as well as improving transparency, accountability, and community safety from this agency. In addition, we set expectations that all law enforcement personnel treat every person with respect, dignity and common decency.  

About a hundred people attended that meeting, and many spoke publicly with passion and concern regarding the horrible treatment of their immigrant neighbors and friends. That meeting was the most rewarding of my tenure on the Council. Our residents were not there to speak on their own behalf or on their own issue. They selflessly spoke on behalf of others that may not have a voice themselves. To witness that incredible concern for others was moving and impressive. You can read the proclamation here. After a heartfelt and inspiring discussion amongst Councilors, we passed the proclamation unanimously.

While this is not a solution to the serious concerns that were raised that night, this proclamation was a thoughtful and timely first step in exploring options that may be available to pursue regarding these issues.

There is significant frustration that our Town cannot do more to affect the ability of ICE to operate a facility located in our town. It is difficult for any town to have an impact on a federal agency’s performance. In this case, GSA is leasing a building from a private property owner. It is unclear if the Town has the authority to change that legal arrangement in any way. There is a viable discussion to have on whether this is even a role for the Town to pursue. Instead, I have always believed that the primary role of a town government is to be responsible for the basic safety, education, and well being of its own residents. The fact that people do not feel safe right now is blurring those distinctions.

Providing high quality services by spreading available resources over the entire community is the primary function of our Town staff and elected officials. Scarborough does an outstanding job performing these services. Along with our natural resources, recreational facilities and businesses, it is one of the most attractive places to live in the entire State. In addition to services provided by town government, our culture of personally caring, helping and lifting up our neighbors is the intangible that drives our town to excellence.

That commitment to helping our community has definitely shown up in my first year of service. Very rewarding Council accomplishments include increasing the Senior Property Tax Relief credit by 20%. We passed various initiatives to make our roads safer. There was an “all hands” effort to reduce the negative impacts of new growth initiatives and housing laws implemented by the State. We constrained new growth housing permits as much as legally possible. We increased building impact fees to help offset infrastructure improvement costs related to housing construction. You overwhelmingly voted to approve a generational improvement to our school buildings. We passed town and school budgets that support public safety and continue educational excellence while recognizing the financial strain that many people are feeling.

In addition, the generosity of community organizations to improve our town and provide valuable assistance to our neighbors is significant. Scarborough Land Trust continues their innovative efforts to conserve vulnerable land at an impressive pace. Project Grace provides heating fuel assistance, along with food insecurity relief, to those in need. Just recently, a group of committed volunteers have created the non-profit Scarborough Wood Bank that will provide firewood to folks that struggle to heat their homes.

So, while any efforts to change a federal agency’s authorization and behavior will be lengthy and challenging, I do not want to lose sight of the remarkable character of our town; and I celebrate the commitment and tenacity of our community. Extending that generosity and care to our immigrant neighbors simply provides respect, recognizes dignity and increases good will.  

I will finish by offering sincere appreciation to my fellow councilors, Town staff, and the wonderful residents who have offered me support, feedback, constructive criticism and a little bit of humor during my first year serving the Town. I will continue swimming hard to keep up! Thank You!

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Scarborough Town Council.