Author: bobforpownal

Bob Jarvis – Answers to Questions (FPF Post)

bobforpownal
PUBLISHED Bob Jarvis • robert_c_jarvis@yahoo.com • Mt. Anthony Road, North Pownal

Posted to: Pownal
Feb 20, 2018

Discussion

I want to thank those of you who have posed questions to me. As promised, I am answering your questions here.

I received a question via email from Richard regarding my opinion on a new town manager.

I believe it to be fiscally irresponsible to be considering the hiring of a town manager instead of using the resources already available to us. If for some reason the select board feels that Linda or Julie are not equipped to serve our town, then I feel the best solution would be to pay for any extra training they might need to help them perform their duties with the changing requirements of the county and state. We will never find a manager that has the knowledge of Pownal that these two women have, and the relationships they have formed over many years. Let’s preserve their positions and help equip them to meet the changing needs.

Having attended many meetings of the planning commission and select board in the present town office, I can certainly attest to the need for improved accommodations. However, I think that it is irresponsible to depend on only one architect’s plans and ideas to decide the best solution. Instead, I would like to see the job be bid out to multiple contractors, and creative construction practices be considered such as steel buildings and creating an addition to the already existing structure. I believe we can create a sustainable working space for our public servants and public meetings while also spending our citizen’s tax money responsibly and reasonably.

Secondly, I want to thank Megan for her question, and I hope others will keep them coming. The question is quoted here, “What besides obstruction, negativity, and constant harping about the so-called unfairness of anyone who disagrees with his extreme positions does Mr. Jarvis offer? What has he given Pownal?”

I have spent many hours studying the proposed town plan, state policy and legislation, meeting with fellow residents, attending planning commission and select board meetings, writing suggestions and re-writes for changes to the town plan and other policies that I feel would benefit Pownal. I have never denigrated anyone’s character, nor doubted their motives or intentions even when I disagree with them on policy. If you watch any meeting that I have attended on CATTV you will see that I listen, ask questions, and treat everyone with respect.

I am not sure which of my positions you consider extreme, as most of my views come from a liberty minded position which i am certain many in Pownal share. Perhaps if you tell me specifically which views you find extreme I can clarify. It is disheartening to hear that because I express my opinion, it is seen as somehow obstructionist. I love my hometown, and to assume I want anything but the very best for it is an example of the marginalization of opposing views.

In closing, I would like to ask any other candidates a question: what is your view on article 28? Should the people of Pownal be able to continue to vote in their town clerk, or should the clerk be appointed and overseen by the select board?

Thanks to all, and I would appreciate your support on election day.

Email: robert.jarvis001@gmail.com Webpage: www.bobforpownal.com Facebook: Bob for Pownal

Front Porch Forum – Candidacy Announcement

bobforpownal

Hello fellow Pownal citizens. I am Bob Jarvis, and I am running for Pownal Select Board 3year term.

I want to thank those of you who were able to attend my meet and greet at the library this past weekend.  For those of you who were unable to attend, and are interested in learning more about me and what I hope to achieve as a select board member, I want to publicly answer some questions that have been posed to me.  Before I begin, if you have ANY question you would like to ask me, please contact me through any of the following forums;

robert.jarvis001@gmail.com    www.bobforpownal.com    Facebook:  Bob for Pownal

I will answer your questions directly, and publicly post answers to Front Porch Forum.

  1. Why are you running for office?

I am deeply concerned that the true needs of Pownal citizens are not being addressed by our current government.  What I see as the biggest need for Pownal now is jobs and economic development.  The current proposed town plan has put up massive barriers against any large employer being able to come to our town.  The proposed town plan’s vision is almost exclusively dedicated to the arts.  The only mention of a large employer is in a negative comment.  I should add that it is wonderful that we have a growing arts community in Pownal, but that is only one small part of our town.  The town plan MUST represent ALL Pownal citizens.  A lopsided focus on one sector of our economy will hurt ALL sectors of the economy INCLUDING the arts.

  1. What are the proposed barriers to a large employer who might want to locate in Pownal?

According to the proposed town plan, before a large employer can locate in Pownal, it must meet 8 highly restrictive requirements. These requirements would bar any large employer from actually being able to do business in Pownal.  These barriers are not required of any other kind of business.  Having these barriers in place will signal to ANY large business that might want to locate here that the local government will not support them and will likely prevent them from being able to succeed.

  1. Do you think the town clerk should be an elected or appointed position?

I have personally witnessed Julie Weber (our current acting town clerk) courageously hold the planning commission and select board accountable to legal process and procedure on multiple occasions.  That accountability disappears if she reports to the select board.  The town clerk MUST remain an elected position.  Please vote NO on Article 28.

  1. How will you be able to serve on the select board while also holding your current job?

My love of this town and my concern for its direction is what has motivated me to run for this position.  I will absolutely make the time for this job as it is one of my highest priorities.  I am compelled to help change the current direction of the town that I am from and am raising my family in.

robert.jarvis001@gmail.com     www.bobforpownal.com     Facebook:  Bob for Pownal

Vermont’s Economic Outlook

bobforpownal

Forbes ranks Vermont 48 out of 50 for economic outlook.  Vermont’s overuse of the ‘Grant’ process has a lot to do with this abysmal ranking. We need to stop listening to the state as to how to grow our economy. They clearly don’t know.

Every dollar secured through a grant is a dollar that a working family cannot spend on food, clothing, housing, education, or healthcare. It’s a dollar a business can’t spend on expanding, hiring, or increasing wages. And it is a loss of control at the local level. Grants are for state initiatives, many of which would be done better through local government and/or charity. The result is wasted money, and a deterioration of our social fabric.

Pownal is now looking at hiring a full time administrator, with the idea that this person will spend a lot of time trying to secure more grants. Stated another way, we are considering a tax-payer funded full time position, with benefits for someone to spend most of their time thinking up new ways to spend other peoples money. The cost to the taxpayers and the working families isn’t even considered. Grants are incorrectly treated like ‘free money’. This is not only not sustainable, it is destroying Vermont’s economic outlook. Pool money at the state level, and then pit each town against each other to compete for it.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/kurtbadenhausen/2017/11/28/north-carolina-heads-the-best-states-for-business-2017/#55a7d762571e

Best States For Business
Utah, North Carolina and Nebraska lead Forbes’ annual study of the states with the best business climates.
FORBES.COM

Position Statement

bobforpownal

BOB FOR POWNAL·MONDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2018

BANNER CANDIDATE QUESTIONNAIRE
1. What are your top goals if you are elected to this office?
Ensure that Pownal is business friendly. Economic opportunity is the primary need of Pownal residents.  I want to do all I can to help provide a stable, predictable business environment that treats all businesses fairly and equally. To achieve this, we will need to curb the rapid growth of town government and spending. Vermont’s out of control spending has now earned us a 48 out of 50 ranking for economic outlook by Forbes. A select board member is limited in what can be done about this, but this has to change. That change needs to start locally.
2. In your view, what are the most pressing issues related to this position and/or the town?
I am becoming increasingly concerned about a growing trend of separation and vilification of opposing political views. The divide is even greater along socio economic lines. The local government has not been listening to the voices of locals. This has become most evident in the recently proposed town plan, which has as a majority of its vision geared towards creating an art community. While the arts are important and always enriching, this lopsided focus as a primary need for Pownal shows a deep lack of connection with the true needs of Pownal citizens, especially those in financial stress. Our town needs elected officials who are willing to challenge the status quo, and to make sometimes very hard evaluations of policy, spending and municipal actions. This needs to happen now before we lose even more struggling families and workers to states that have more financial opportunity and less constrictive regulations on business and industry development.

Conversation – Large Employers

bobforpownal
Comments
Fred Miller
Fred Miller Master of Science in Manufacturing Engineering. I’d bet you could provide some insight and guidance toward bringing manufacturing jobs back to Pownal, Are there some local and State imposed barriers to manufacturing here? I remember Pownal as a vibrant manufacturing town. I remember one or two large employers providing a pretty solid foundation off which lots of smaller businesses could build. Restaurants and lodging, hardware and lumber stores, we even had a bank for awhile. Lets do it again, but do it smart.
Fred Miller
Fred Miller At that first “Empower Pownal” meeting, when someone brought up the subject of manufacturing jobs, someone from the Empower Pownal camp boldly stated manufacturing jobs are gone and will not be coming back. I say “oh is that so? Who says they won’t be coming back?”
Bob Jarvis
Bob Jarvis I glad you brought up the statement about manufacturing jobs not coming back. This defeatist position has now been written into our proposed town plan. Rather than approach your question from an engineering standpoint, I would prefer to approach from an economics standpoint. Since it is not just manufacturing jobs that Vermont, and our proposed town plan have put on the chopping block. It is any large employer.

Our proposed town plan offers a lot of assistance and resources for farms, farm to table, the arts (heavily weighted towards the arts), home based business, and cottage industries. But when large employers are discussed, there is a warning to avoid becoming dependent on them, and the planning commission includes a list of 8 ‘requirements’ before Pownal will let them into our town. The requirements listed are absurd, and do NOT exist for any other type of business.

Why do we demand that a large employer ‘Contribute to our social fabric’ (for example), particularly when the same requirement does not exist for any other type of business? We are sending a clear message to any potential employer that our town government will not hesitate to insert themselves into their internal business decisions. THE REAL MESSAGE IS THAT LARGE EMPLOYERS ARE NOT WELCOME. My pleas to the planning commission to make Pownal business friendly were not incorporated into the latest draft of the town plan.

It is not hard to see why the proposed town plan does not represent the people of Pownal. Just read the ‘Vision Statement’. Not including the opening paragraph, or the 1 sentence closing paragraph, the vision has 4 paragraphs with substance. The first talks about farms, small business, home businesses, and cottage industry. The other 3 are EXCLUSIVELY dedicated to the arts community. Not only does the proposed town plan not represent the people of Pownal, it was never intended to. 

This might seem like a harsh statement, but I don’t know how else to interpret such a hostile position towards those businesses that can bring the most benefit to our citizens. To me, the town plan reads like someone’s fantasy image of what rural Vermont life should be like (apparently from someone who watched too many episodes of Green Acres).

Bob Jarvis
Bob Jarvis I should add that it is wonderful that we have a strong arts community in Pownal. But that is only part of our town. The town plan MUST represent all Pownal citizens. A lopsided focus on one sector of our economy will hurt all sectors of the economy; including the arts. The economy is interdependent, and all types of business should be treated equally.