Published in the April 4, 2018 edition

By DAN TOMASELLO

LYNNFIELD — The annual Town Election will take place on Tuesday, April 10.

Voters in all four precincts will be voting at Lynnfield High School from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. This election will be historic in Lynnfield, as it will be the first Town Election held on a Tuesday instead of a Monday.

The election will be headlined by two contested races for School Committee and Planning Board. There are no other contested races on the ballot.

“Based on past local elections, I think we will have to 20 to 25 percent turnout,” said Town Clerk Trudy Reid.

Three candidates are running for two seats on the School Committee, two of whom are political newcomers. The three candidates are School Committee Chairman Tim Doyle, Ford Avenue resident Phil McQueen and Edgemere Road resident Kimberlee Kossover Hansen. School Committeeman Salvatore Cammarata decided against running for a third three-year in late February.

Doyle is running for a second three-year term after previously serving on the School Committee from 2000-2012. He has been the school board’s chairman for the past two years.

“I hope to have an opportunity to serve the students, families and citizens of Lynnfield for another term,” said Doyle in a campaign statement. “As I did in my previous tenure, I will continue to advocate for the resources necessary to support our administrators, teachers and students.”

McQueen is the current English department head at Lynn Classical High School. In addition to teaching, he has helped write curriculum, create assessments and evaluate teachers. He is the father of three children enrolled in the Lynnfield school system.

“I want to bring my 20 years of education experience as a teacher, an evaluator, a contract negotiator, a professional development trainer and a curriculum and assessment writer to the table to best serve the students, parents and education professionals of our community,” said McQueen in a statement. I am well versed in the current issues and concerns that face public education today, and will listen carefully to the concerns of all and work proactively to make our good school system even better.”

Kossover Hansen has two children in the school system at the kindergarten and preschool level. She has over 20 years of business experience.

“I will not only listen to concerns from members of the community, but I will also work to be proactive before issues become real problems,” said Kossover Hansen in a statement. “I will hold our town leaders, including the superintendent, accountable to the community.”

In addition to the School Committee race, two candidates are running for a two-year term on the Planning Board. Planning Board member Scott Gromko and MarketStreet Advisory Committee (MSAC) member John Gioioso want to fill the remaining two years of former Planning Board co-Chairman John Faria’s five-year term.

Gromko was appointed to the Planning Board last November, where he succeeded former Planning Board co-Chairwoman Heather Sievers.

“Since being appointed to the Planning Board by the Board of Selectmen, I find it very important to take a team approach and work closely with the other Planning Board members, town engineer, town counsel along with other applicable town resources to understand the impact on the town,” said Gromko in a statement sent to the Villager.

Gioioso has served on the MSAC since June 2017. He has worked for Fresenius Medical Care North America for the past 23 years, where he has worked with planning and zoning boards.

“I am running for Planning Board because I want to be involved in our community and give back to the town I value so much,” said Gioioso in a recent letter to the editor. “I want to be a part of the decisions made in town and believe I can bring a unique and insightful approach to the board through my experience as a real estate and building management professional for 38 plus years.”

Additional candidates

There are seven other candidates running unopposed in the April 10 town election.

Board of Selectmen Chairman Chris Barrett is running for a second three-year term.

Town Moderator Arthur Bourque is running for his seventh one-year term. Bourque has served as town moderator since 2012. Under the Town Charter, this position is up for renewal annually.

Planning Board member Katherine Flaws is running for a five-year term on the board. Flaws, who was appointed to the board in December, is running for the seat previously held by Sievers.

Library Trustees Russell Boekenkroeger and Dr. Janine Rodrigues-Saldanha are also running for re-election. Boekenkroeger is running for a second three-year term, while Rodrigues-Saldanha is running for a full three-year term. She was appointed to the Board of Library Trustees in August 2016 to fill late Library Trustee Seavey Bowdoin’s seat. Rodrigues-Saldanha was elected to a one-year term last year.

Board of Assessors Chairman Donald Garrity is running for a third three-year term.

Political newcomer Jim Wilkie, 4 Partridge Ln., is running for a five-year term on the Housing Authority. He is running for the seat currently held by Housing Authority member Susan Broder.