Two contested races in Swampscott election

SWAMPSCOTT – Residents who want to vote in the April 29 town election have less than one week left to register.Connie Hayes, who works in the Town Clerk’s Office, said Town Hall would remain open for voter registration until 8 p.m. on Wednesday, April 9.The only two contested races in the upcoming election are for the Board of Selectmen and the Board of Health. Jill Sullivan, Mathew Strauss and Robert Mazow are jockeying for two available seats on the Board of Selectmen.Sullivan, who was elected Oct. 2 in a special election to serve the remainder of an unexpired term, is a Town Meeting member. She graduated from Brown University in 1989 and holds a Master’s degree in East Asian Studies from Harvard.Sullivan, who lives in town with her husband and their three children, said she enjoys serving as selectman.She said one of the issues she has been tackling since she was sworn in a few months ago is inequity in the Chapter 70 funding formula for schools.”This funding problem is at the state level,” she said. “We are looking into working with other underfunded communities to do some lobbying at the state level.”Sullivan also said buying health insurance for town employees through the Group Insurance Commission would save the town approximately $800,000 a year.”I’m still very strongly in favor of it,” she said. “We need to reopen the GIC discussion with the unions.”Strauss, who has lived in town for 17 years, is a Town Meeting member and has been employed in the hospitality industry for 30 years. He said his experience in business leadership would be an asset to the town.Strauss, who lives in town with his wife and their children, said the schools and public safety are both important issues in his campaign.”There are a few burning issues including the schools and Chapter 70,” he said. “I have already reached out to (state Rep. Lori) Ehrlich and (Sen. Thomas) McGee regarding equitable funding for Swampscott.”As for public safety, Strauss said it is something that needs to be addressed.”I think our police and firefighters are spread too thin,” he said. “We should not leave funded positions unfilled and then use overtime to maintain minimum staffing levels. Public safety has to be maintained.”Strauss said as a selectmen, he is also prepared to look for alternatives that would increase revenue.”We need to think outside the box,” he said. “We have to find ways to make revenue producing streams.”Mazow, who is an attorney and former Essex County assistant district attorney, said if elected his priorities would include ensuring the town receives its fair share of Chapter 70 funding.”The number one issue regarding our public schools should be to achieve parity for Chapter 70 funding,” he said. “It is supposed to equally provide 17.5 percent funding but Swampscott receives less. I am ready to work with Swampscott citizens to file a lawsuit if necessary to get the same 17.5 percent funding that our neighbors are receiving.”Mazow, who lives in town with his wife and three children, said he is also concerned about public safety and the cost of overtime.”It makes no sense that due to a shortage of police, our detectives are being used for patrol purposes when they should be spending their time and resources investigating crime,” he said. “Our schools and the town as a whole are not as safe as they used to be and it does not need to be this way. I am ready to help find solutions.”For the Board of Health seat, Martha Dansdill and Marianne Sperenza-Hartmann are vying the one vacant seat.