Mansfield Finance Committee Bolstering its Ranks

Two more candidates were voted into the ranks of the new finance committee Wednesday, as selectmen seek to assemble the critically important board from scratch. The count now stands at four since the mass resignation of six finance committee members shortly after Town Meeting.

The sole original board member, Steve Schoonveld, will be joined by Liz Christo, who was appointed last week, and now Walter Wilk and Jim Bazinet, both appointed last night.

Wilk, who has served on the finance board in the past, told selectmen part of the finance committee’s job is to make sure the numbers make sense, and said it is possible to present two budgets to the public – one with a Proposition 2 ½ override included, and one without – as long as the budget process is completed early enough for everyone to look at the figures and offer input.

“We saw the schools and the town vote against each other,” Wilk said of this year’s town meeting process. “The education of the townspeople is critical.” Wilk said he had “a road map,” and thought the completion of the new strategic plan presents town and school officials with an opportunity to work together toward a common goal

Selectman Doug Annino said he has been impressed so far with the qualifications of those coming forward to volunteer for finance committee positions. “What appears to be a fiasco is also an opportunity,” he said.

Wilk said his prior experience on the board places him in a position to be able to understand the complicated budget schedule right away, and said although disagreement can be healthy, the current town/school tug of war is not.

He added the emphasis should be on openness and trust, and said without such an approach, discontent can increase over time.

Bazinet, who said he has been in the role of internal audit for much of his working life, said he wants to become involved because he has been following the recent political dissention in the Mansfield News, and thought it critical that personal animosities be defused.

“The ability to get along and resolve conflicts is what our business is all about,” he said. “I didn’t take this commitment lightly – we have to have change.”

Bazinet said although he is not yet up to speed on the terminology of Town Hall, he sees the role the committee must play as familiar. “We are not in the business of creating dissention,” he said. “We should act more as an arbiter.”

He added the committee should offer opinions and recommendations to both the school and town on the budget process without getting involved in politics, and said he wants to speak to the former finance committee members who resigned, hoping to get some insight on exactly what happened to force their mass exit.

“It seems like a rather harsh thing to do,” he said. 

Both candidates were appointed to the longest terms left vacant by the previous board.