CAPE ELIZABETH – They may come from different backgrounds, but the four candidates for the two open seats on the Cape Elizabeth Town Council can agree on one thing: they are committed to creating a better Cape Elizabeth for residents.

Incumbent Frank Governali, 55, a retired partner and managing director of Goldman, Sachs & Co.; Caitlin Jordan, 27, Alewives Farm business manager and attorney; John McGinty, 59, retired police lieutenant; and Jamie Wagner, 44, a small business owner and attorney, are competing for two Town Council seats currently filled by Governali and Penny Jordan, who has chosen not to run again.

McGinty, who volunteers as a firefighter and emergency medical technician for the Cape Elizabeth Fire Department, indicates the town budget as being one of the biggest challenges facing town leaders.

McGinty said his previous stint on the council, spanning from 1995 until November 2004, when he resigned shortly after his re-election, citing “personal reasons,” gives him the experience needed to tackle the tough budgetary times of today.

“I see this as a time to have some experience in budgeting on the board,” he said. “I am a firm believer in providing cost savings to the town through cooperation, whether it be across municipal departments, regional or even through consolidation,” said McGinty a self-proclaimed fiscal conservative.

“I have the experience and the outlook to save the taxpayers money while still providing them with good services,” McGinty said.

He would not elaborate on his reasons for his 2004 resignation.

Jordan also said the town’s ability to balance the budget remains a concern.

“Like any community, Cape Elizabeth is trying to get property taxes lowered. They just keep going up and up. We need to find some way to generate revenue to lower them,” she said

Fort Williams

Something that has been brought up in the past, and will continue to be discussed, is finding ways to increase revenue from Fort Williams Park. Voters have overwhelmingly rejected the prospect of introducing fees to enter the park.

Governali, a 17-year-resident of Cape Elizabeth, said he supports exploring ways to generate revenue at the town-owned property, especially ones that are consistent with the mission of the park.

Options could include expanding the size of the gift shop outside the Portland Headlight lighthouse or renting out the former officer quarters again, he said. In the past, he noted, the buildings have been rented out to nonprofit organizations, but the spaces are big enough to be suitable for small business or professional purposes.

Wagner, an attorney who runs a law practice in Portland and the Local Buzz Coffee Shop/Wine Bar on Ocean House Road, said he understands why residents voted against fees to enter the park, but maintains there are some avenues for revenue generation that warrant investigation.

“I’ve constantly thought, and especially now that I have a small business, that Fort Williams yells for some sort of concessions, where you could sell drinks or some food,” he said. “Not only would that be a smart investment, I think people would want it.”

Wagner said charging for tour buses, pending the creation of a plan for organizing the administrative responsibilities and workable fees, could also be an option.

“I am open minded when it comes to having some sort of commercial element to the park, as long as it does not have a significant impact on the passive nature of the park,” McGinty said.

Jordan said she would support charging a modest fee for visitors from outside of Cape Elizabeth.

Pay-per-bag

The four candidates are united in the disapproval of Cape Elizabeth adopting a pay-per-bag trash removal system, in which residents would be forced to buy special trash bags from the town, as it has been presented thus far to the public.

Changing to the pay-per-bag system, which many other communities have already done, has been discussed in a number of council workshops and meetings this year, failing to get the support of town residents.

Governali, Jordan, McGinty and Wagner agree that greater emphasis on recycling is the correct approach to reducing the amount of money the town spends on waste removal.

“I am in favor of coming up with a better recycling plan,” Wagner said. “I think the proposal as put forth was too burdensome on the public.”

As a concept, Governali said, pay-per-bag seemed like a good idea. But the more he learned about it, the less he felt it was the right approach from Cape Elizabeth.

“I don’t support it,” Governali said. “I did support investigating it, because in concept I think it is a good idea to motivate people to increase recycling rates and reduce our costs.”

McGinty said he would advocate putting more time and resources into recycling efforts.

“The people are satisfied with the way things are now,” he said of the current waste removal system. “If they are satisfied, then I am satisfied.”

Switching over to the pay-per-bag approach, Jordan said, is something that she cannot support, nor does she think other residents in town will.

“It seems like the town doesn’t really want it,” she said.

Land plan

One thing McGinty said he hopes to do if elected is re-examine the Comprehensive Plan, a planning document approved in 2007, but because of the subsequent recession, may no longer be appropriate.

“I am open to looking at all those issues again and seeing where we need changes,” he said.

One particular area that needs revision, Jordan said, is the land use section.

“Land use regulations in the Comprehensive Plan definitely need to be re-examined because when it was drafted it didn’t predict the drastic economic downturn, so all the growth projections it predicted were wrong,” she said. “We need to take a long, hard look evaluating and setting out more preservation of land.”

“Being from a historic farming family,” she added, “I am all for preserving land and keeping open space.”

Because of the weak economy and a lessened demand on developers, Governali said, the town has a perfect opportunity to think about the future of the town and work on the Comprehensive Plan.

“It creates an opportunity for us to step back and think thoughtfully about how to use space in town,” he said. “Surveys of residents have shown their top priority is saving open space in town.”

Adapting the Comprehensive Plan, Governali said, is a big undertaking that will require community input.

Now, he added, is the time to figure out the town’s objectives and get citizen input so that “when the economy rebounds and the demand for development increases, everyone can feel happy about how it is occurring, when it is occurring and where it is occurring.”

Wagner said residents are so passionate about preserving open space because once “we have unbridled development, it is going to be with us forever.”

One land preservation project Wagner supports is the proposal to create a public trail from the town center to Fort Williams. The idea, he said, has already been approved council, but funding for the project remains up in the air.

“It is a type of project that excites me, but it takes money, so there are issues to deal with on that front,” he said.

One of the things Governali wants to focus on if he is re-elected is the long-term financial planning of the town.

“Thinking strategically long term in terms of thinking where we want to invest. The town manager has been working hard on that and I think we need to support that effort,” said Governali, the chairman of strategic planning for the Cape Elizabeth Education Foundation.

Wagner, who earlier this year opened The Local Buzz, said, if elected, he would like to increase the reception the town gives to small business owners looking to operate in Cape Elizabeth.

“One of the projects I have in mind is creating a welcome packet for new businesses in town,” he said.

Jordan, an active member of the Cape Farm Alliance, said she comes with no agenda in mind other than bringing a unique, youthful perspective to the council if voted to serve on it.

“I think I have a new young perspective that I hope to bring to the board to come up with some new ways to deal with the same old problems,” Jordan said.

“I have no preset agenda. I want to get on the council to solve problems as they arise,” she added. “I want to keep Cape Elizabeth in the status it has been my entire life. I want to keep it great.”

McGinty also said he is not running with an agenda in mind, but rather for “an efficient, good government that gets the most bang from its buck.”

Election 2010Frank GovernaliCaitlin JordanJohn McGintyJamie Wagner