WOODSTOCK — The Selectboard is now back to full force after the three remaining board members appointed temporary members this week to fill two recently vacated seats.
Following interviews of seven candidates and a brief executive session Thursday evening, the board selected residents Gay Travers and Dick Sweeney to fill in.
The board announced that while it was a difficult decision, appointing two qualified individuals interested in only the two-month position made the most sense.
“We felt that it was the best thing to do just to try to keep things as objective as possible heading into the August election,” when the two open seats will be filled for the remainder of each term, said board member Cliff Johnson.
The first vacancy was created after former Selectboard member Ray Bourgeois resigned from the board in April because he moved to New Hampshire. His second two-year term was slated to next March.
Then, Selectboard Vice Chairwoman Laura Powell delivered an emotional resignation speech at the end of the May 4 meeting. Her departure came just over a year into a three-year term ending in 2028. She first joined the board in 2023.
Powell, in her statement, expressed concern over retaliation against town officials, particularly through offensive signs, threats of legal action and misuse of police assistance.
“I have been asked by town staff and asked myself if we should be worried for our safety,” said Powell.
While Powell did not explicitly name anyone as the source of these concerns, attorney Nicholas Seldon — husband of former Woodstock Police Chief Joe Swanson who is suing the town over its efforts to demote him to a patrol officer — is certain that her gripes were a stab at him.
Seldon specified that while he did produce signs that said “Fire Eric Duffy, We deserve better” and contact police regarding behavior by a town official, those actions were taken out of context in Powell’s speech.
“I thought all of it was directed toward me and all of it was inaccurate,” Seldon said Thursday by phone. “…There’s nothing she can point to that has ever been directed at her that would have put her in a state of concern for her safety.”
Powell stepped down due to “problematic behavior,” she said in a Thursday email. She did not respond when asked if she was specifically referring to Seldon.
Chairwoman Susan Ford said Thursday by phone that Powell’s concerns over the treatment of town officials is shared by other members of the Selectboard, particularly with regard to name calling.
“It’s hard to have meetings and do the work of the town when you’re under attack,” said Ford, who declined to say who she considers the source of it.
The selection of new members on Thursday was necessary to avoid roadblocks in conducting town business following the resignations.
Operating with only three members — Ford, Norm Frates Jr. and Johnson — posed a problem: Every vote had to be 3-0 for anything pass because approval requires a majority of the number of seats, not a majority of those present. Each of the three remaining members had to be present for a public meeting even to take place.
Frates has a vacation scheduled during the upcoming June 2 meeting, Ford said. The Selectboard needed to appoint at least one new member, otherwise the meeting would be canceled.
The two newly-appointed Selectboard members aren’t in it for the long haul.
Travers, who has lived in Woodstock for over 30 years, was a Village Trustee for five years and has been involved with several town committees, she said during her interview.
“I actually can’t believe I’m sitting here, because I thought I was done,” Travers said. “But I feel so strongly that the election in August should be unencumbered with any hint of preference.”
Travers believes that if the temporary appointed person decides to run in August, they would have a leg up against other candidates. For this reason, she decided to offer her services as a “placeholder, nothing more, nothing less” in the interest of a fair election, she said.
When Johnson asked if she would consider running in a March or in a future election, Travers responded, “We’ll see.”
Dick Sweeney, a resident of eight years and a co-founder of Keurig, has been a “critic of the town,” he said during his interview at the meeting. Particularly, Sweeney has expressed dissatisfaction over budgeting practices and wants to be part of the solution.
“I have no intention of running for office. I’m here to make sure that this respected board has a quorum at all times,” said Sweeney.
Johnson encouraged others who applied for the vacancies to run for a spot this summer, with petitions due July 6. The other five applicants included residents Susan Chiefsky, Eric Nesbitt, Byron Kelly, Marybeth DeFalco and Clay Reed.
Another election for the position formerly held by Bourgeois will take place next March, at the end of his term. The person who replaces Powell in August would remain on the board until the end of her term in March 2028.
“I’m hoping we can all just put our heads down and get the work done and maybe block out all the noise,” Ford said.
