UPDATE ON OUR PETITION: KENNEBUNK TOWN MANAGER CAN’T BE A NO-SHOW JOB

Thank you for signing and supporting our petition telling Town Manager Mike Pardue and the Kennebunk Select Board that they must revise their contract.  Because of you, we have gotten 55 online signatures (+ 7 on a paper version for our non-digital neighbors) in under a week – amazing!  Please keep sharing and liking the petition and our Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/Mike-Pardue-Contract-Bad-Deal-for-Kennebunk-109747393931938/) via social media and email!

Happenings this past week:

• On Tuesday 2/11/20 we spoke during the Public Comment portion of the Select Board meeting.  We shared our new vocabulary word (“sinecure” - https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sinecure) and the revelation that one member of the Select Board is the Town Chair of Mr. Pardue’s political party, a conflict that was not disclosed by him or by the Select Board. We then asked that each Board member disclose any such potential conflicts. In response, the board Chair made a motion that would have prohibited Board members from disclosing these conflicts (yes, you read that right).  The motion was seconded but failed.
• The Board Chair also claimed that we are accusing the Board of "criminal misconduct".  We are not.  We are simply pointing out that they made a poor decision that needs to be corrected. 
• We accepted an invitation from the Democrats of the Kennebunks and Arundel to make a presentation at their meeting.  In response to a question at the Democratic meeting, Rep. Henry Ingwerson (District 10) and Sen.Susan Deschambault (District 32) detailed the time demands on state legislators and confirmed that it is much more than a “part-time job” as some have claimed.  Most importantly, senators are required to be in Augusta at the same times that the Town Manager needs to be in Kennebunk to fulfill his work duties.
• Because this is a non-partisan issue of good government, we have offered to make the same presentation to the Kennebunk Republican Town Committee.

SAVE THE DATE: January 25th is the next meeting of the Kennebunk Select Board.  Please come show your support for revising the Town Manager’s contract! (Meeting begins at 6:30 pm in Room 301 of Kennebunk Town Hall, 1 Summer St, Kennebunk.)