OGUNQUIT, Maine — Next week’s Select Board recall election is the culmination of months of bitter discourse, further dividing a community that has seen years of turmoil and controversy in town government.
“The anger is palpable, and it’s unhealthy,” said Select Board Chair Charles “Bunky” Waite, one of the three Select Board members on the ballot to be recalled, alongside Madeline Mooney and Bob Winn. “People are intent on the destruction of this board.”
The recall election is set to take place Thursday, May 9, with polls open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Dunaway Center.
A campaign to launch the recall began last October after the Select Board voted 3-2 to uphold Town Manager Pat Finnigan’s decision to fire Mark O’Brien as the town’s fire chief. The movement gained momentum largely on social media, on the Facebook pages Take Back Ogunquit and Ogunquit United, created to support the recall efforts.
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The accusations against the three embattled board members, both online and at Select Board meetings over the past several months, brought forth an equally vocal group who support the three, and have also used social media, particularly on the Ogunquit Residents Alliance Facebook page, to promote their stance on the issue.
The two sides are represented in political signs that dot the landscape of the tiny four-square-mile town. Reports of vandalism — the word “Yes” sprayed across the “No” signs in yellow spray paint — and security camera videos of vandals ripping signs out of the ground, have only added fuel to the flames of anger in recent weeks. Letters to the editor from both sides have appeared nearly weekly in the York County Coast Star since late last fall.
Resident Jackie Connerty said the issue is tarnishing the town she loves deeply.
“Our summer visitors are starting to arrive, and they’re driving into town and they see these signs, and they want to know what’s going on. It’s shameful, really,” said Connerty, who does not support the recall. “It’s divided this town and it’s brought such sadness to the people who love the community, and people who have lived here for a long time. This is a disgrace.”
Residents and Select Board members on both sides of the issue agree. The town is more divided than ever, and repairing the divide, regardless of the outcome of next week’s election, will not be easy.
Select Board members Rick Dolliver and John Daley, the two members not up for recall – support the effort. Daley says the board needs to do a better job of supporting Finnigan. Dolliver, however, is suing her.
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Dolliver feels the town charter, the board’s purchasing policy and code of ethics are all being violated by Finnigan. He has made several requests to Finnigan for public documents under the Freedom of Information Act stemming back to 2017, he said, and has not received most of the documents. Dolliver filed a legal complaint against Finnigan late last month, asking the court to force her to comply with his requests and pay his legal fees.
“I want public information to be available to everyone, and I want the laws and the town charter to be followed. Right now there isn’t a majority on this board who are following the town policies and holding the town manager to her job. They’re saying they did nothing wrong. It’s not just about what they did wrong. I say, what did you do right? We have a town charter and a purchasing policy, and they don’t uphold it,” Dolliver said.
Daley says his board peers up for recall make it impossible for the board to hold Finnigan accountable and give her feedback to help her do her job.
“I know a lot of people say it’s about the town manager, but it’s not, even though she is an integral part of running the town. Like any manager, she has made some bad decisions in my opinion,” Daley said. “I believe she has good intentions, I really do, but it doesn’t always lead to good decisions. Our job is to hold her accountable, and I believe this board has not done that, specifically the three being recalled. They have rubber stamped every decision she has made in the last 12 months. We all need guidance and we all make mistakes. She has not gotten constructive feedback so she can improve. We owe it to her to give her constructive feedback. I don’t think it’s fair to the town manager or the residents.”
Recall supporter Ben Hershenson agrees.
“I just want the Select Board to properly manage the town manager. I think she’s capable, but there has to be oversight by the Select Board, that’s their job. People who have positions such as hers (Finnigan) are there for a reason and there was a search committee. I’m sure a new board would look at it more aggressively than the makeup of the board as it is right now,” he said.
The Select Board sets the tone, Daley said, and he doesn’t think the tone can change unless the board changes.
“Our role is to bring this community together in the place of severe divisiveness. This current board cannot do this. We are unable to bring the community together,” he said.
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The anger and rhetoric mushroomed over the winter months as four residents filed a lawsuit seeking to halt the recall, calling into question signatures on the recall petitions, and the petition process as a whole. A York County Superior Court judge ruled against the lawsuit in March, but the process pushed out the scheduling of the recall election, some say to the detriment of the town.
Months of back-and-forth name calling and finger pointing has led to outbursts at Select Board meetings by a handful of impassioned and vocal residents on both sides of the issue.
Shouts from the audience could often be heard during the public comment section of the Select Board meetings, which has been hijacked by the recall issue at the majority of meetings since last fall.
Select Board member Madeline Mooney said the recall has stalled important work the board needs to do, and added to the backlog created by several years of upheaval at town hall.
The town has had two different interim town managers since the fall of 2016 when then town manager Tom Fortier resigned after being charged with illegally collecting parking fees for a free municipal lot. Fortier later took a plea agreement to have his case dismissed after serving 100 hours of community service. Finnigan was hired in the fall of 2018.
Mooney said the heart of the issue comes down to a group of people who want to get rid of Finnigan because she “is not beholden to special interests and she brings progressive things to our town.”
“I think there was frustration from those who ‘ruled the town’ in the past, that they could not control the board and they couldn’t get any favors from the town manager,” Mooney said. “She’s getting things done after inheriting a lot of problems. The previous town manager let a lot of things slip, and we’ve already addressed a lot of infrastructure needs.”
Finnigan said that while she can’t comment on the recall issue, she is saddened to see the divide in the community.
“I’ve been here less than two years, and I’ve been working with the staff and community to get things accomplished. I’m saddened that the community is so divided right now. But I think the staff and I have a lot to show that we’ve accomplished. We are all proud to serve the people of Ogunquit,” Finnigan said.
Mooney doesn’t think she’s done anything wrong, and neither do Waite or Winn.
“The only thing I’ve done is to voice my opinions and votes,” she said.
Connerty, a friend of Mooney’s, said it’s hard to see her friends treated so poorly.
“It’s a sweet, sweet town and this has brought out the worst in people. I’m angry to see my friends bullied and abused. Who does this? These are people that I’ve known for years who are saying these awful things against people who have devoted themselves in service to doing good things in life and for this town. I never thought I would see this,” she said.
In most municipalities, a recall is provided for under a Town Charter due to illegal activity by an elected official. Ogunquit’s charter, however, is much broader and proponents of the recall say its within their rights to call for it.
Hershenson said the lawsuit filed by Peter Kahn, Mary Buck, Barbara Ferraro and Patricia Hussey, added to the frustration and anger around the issue.
“I think the lawsuit, where they called into question the town clerk’s process, caused further division. The lawsuit really heightened that, this could have been over months ago,” he said.
The recall movement galvanized following O’Brien’s appeal hearing last October, when it became apparent to many, he said, that Waite, Mooney and Winn had already made up their minds to support Finnigan’s decision.
Winn, who has been largely silent amid the swirl of controversy, said he has always held himself to a high standard, and no part of that has changed.
“This hasn’t really affected me personally. It is upsetting to see people in town arguing and fighting. I don’t live my life that way. I give, and I help and that’s what I want to do. I thought being on the Select Board was a good way to do that,” Winn said.
Winn agreed that there was trouble in the previous administration and the current divide in town stems from that.
“I’ve been on the board for a few years now, and we have a new town manager and we are working toward a better future,” he said.
If he is not recalled, he will serve out his term.
“I have never, and will never quit anything. I believe that’s important to my character. I care a lot about this town. I will probably never run again but I will finish out my tenure, if that’s the way it happens. And if not, I will continue to volunteer for the town and serve in other ways,” he said.
Dolliver said he’s not sure how the town will move forward after next Thursday, regardless of the outcome. His three-year term on the board is up in June, and he is not seeking re-election. He said he feels he can be more effective as a watchdog of town policies outside of the confines of the board. He didn’t rule out a run if one of the current board members is recalled.
“This is going to be close. No matter what the outcome, I hope we can come together and run the town in a more fiscally responsible way, and more importantly follow the procedures and purchasing policies,” he said.
[Former Ogunquit fire chief sues town over firing]
Waite and Mooney both fear that the recall will deter the community from serving on committees and boards.
“People are fearful. I can’t believe we are here, but we are. It’s very sad. We are losing talent, we are turning off the electorate from ever wanting to serve in this town. We haven’t fostered a feeling of doing well for the community, and people are in fear of getting involved,” Waite said.
“This recall has made people nervous. Right now we have a very diverse Select Board and it encourages lively debate, it would be unproductive if people were always looking over their shoulder fearing a recall for standing up for what they believe,” Mooney said.
“May 9 will come and May 9 will go and we’ll all wake up and look forward to the summer season coming and we will all have to work together,” Hershenson said. “I hope we come together.”
Daley believes his three colleagues up for recall have forgotten their role. He said regardless of the vote, he will work hard to bring the guidance and direction needed to the board.
“I’m staying here, and I’m going to try my hardest to bring people together. At this point I have no idea how to do it. I love Ogunquit, I really love it, but I’m struggling with this,” he said.
Connerty said the town must come together.
“I think it has to come back together. I think that we collectively have to work toward that goal. We have families, we have grandchildren, we have things in common,” she said, “There’s a commonality, we all love the community. We have all seen what this has done, it’s brought us to our knees. I feel we need to sit down and come together. If we want it enough, we will work it through.”
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