The Wrentham Times

Jim Anderson's Letter to Voters

By way of introduction to Wrentham voters and residents I’ve yet to meet, my name is Jim Anderson and I’m running for a seat on the Wrentham Board of Selectmen. I’m asking for your vote on Election Day, this Monday, April 2nd.

This past December, I retired as Wrentham Police Chief after serving on the force for 35 years. I was privileged to fulfill my career goal and dream to rise through the ranks and lead the Wrentham Police Department. During my police career, I dealt with many challenges and witnessed firsthand the best and worst life has to offer. In spite of the challenges, I focused on the positive and brought my very best to every situation. Resolving conflicts, finding solutions, dealing with crisis and leading was part of my everyday life in police work. I’ll bring that with me to the Board of Selectmen.

At the same time I was retiring from the Wrentham Police Department, I was asked to serve as Wrentham Interim Town Administrator while the Board of Selectmen searched for a full time person to fill the position. I accepted the appointment and, somewhat to my surprise, discovered I thoroughly enjoyed it. In very short time, I realized the training, experience and skills gained over my police career played perfectly into the Town Administrator role.

I am thoroughly invested in the Town of Wrentham, having raised my family here, enjoyed my 35 year career with the fine officers of the Wrentham Police Department and eagerly contributed my free time to D.A.R.E. Camp and other youth activities.

Regardless of the different roles I’ve played in Wrentham, I always strived to accomplish what’s best for the town I love, including a great school system, responsive public safety departments, arts and recreation, and a town government that truly represents the people of Wrentham.

My combined lifetime experience will serve me well as a member of the Board of Selectmen. I promise to focus on continued growth of our local economy which generates much needed revenue for the Town while also maintaining Wrentham’s charm which is what attracts people here in the first place.

I am asking for you to support my candidacy for the Board of Selectmen seat on Monday, April 2nd and I look forward to serving the residents of Wrentham, a town I will always love!

Bob Cohen's Letter to Voters

I’m running for my second term on the Board of Selectmen. When I successfully ran for this office in 2008, I was married to my best friend Bobbi for 25 years and our children were 12 and 7. Now we’re up to 35 years (and counting) and our kids are 22 and 17. Olivia will graduate college in May and plans to do graduate work in Post-Colonial Literature in the UK and Hunter is finishing up his junior year at King Philip and plans to study European history in Europe. I shuttered my web design business in 2012 to pursue my love of writing and literature. Now I teach writing at a college in Boston and I am working on two novels and a creative non-fiction book. I have served the town as a member and chair of the Board of Selectmen from 2008 – 2011 and a member and vice-chair of the Planning Board from 2005 – 2012.

During those years of service, Wrentham struggled to balance growth and its rural identity. Those challenges afforded me the privilege of being one of the principal architects of the transition. As a selectman, I played a principal role in hiring new department heads for Police, Fire, Public Works, Finance, and Recreation, and I united the board around the recently retired William Ketchum, who, being the longest tenured Town Manager in recent history, brought much needed stability to Town Hall. His steady hand changed the culture in town hall and empowered our staff to maintain services in an economically difficult situation.

As a member of the planning board, I worked with a great team to update our zoning bylaws after the politically divisive attempt in 2005. We opted for a transparent and incremental approach and in so doing created a bond of trust between the public and the board. I am especially proud of my contributions to the negotiations with the Outlet Mall to open up on Black Friday. At my suggestion, the board adopted the annual Black Friday review and planning process and I worked with the town planner to write the updated Special Permit.

In 2012 I stepped away from public service to focus on my family, career, and to give others space to build on the legacy of financial discipline and the framework for healthy growth that I helped to create. It’s important for people serving in leadership positions to step away from time to time to grow their wisdom, to develop new leadership tools, and to make room for other people and new ideas.

Two things draw me back to public service: My son and some of his friends are interested in politics. I want to teach them how to participate in their community as active citizens instead of consumers of government services by putting them front and center in my election campaign. I want them to understand experientially the relationship between asking for votes to win an election and the responsibilities implicit in the request.

What’s more there’s some unfinished business. When I left the board of selectmen, we created an Affordable Housing Committee to deal with the long term requirement to meet the Commonwealth’s affordable housing numbers. Also, dating back to the $100,000 Master Plan of 2004, Wrentham has been talking about how to develop South Street from Wampum Corner to Plainville and the Crosby Valve property. All these years later, the board never convened the committee. They opted for a short term affordable housing solution that burdens our infrastructure and our officials are still talking and planning rather than acting. I intend to bring some urgency to those conversations.

Developing the center of town and the Wampum Corner Corridor in harmony with the town’s rural character will set the stage for my top priorities, which are lowering the tax burden for seniors, finding new sources of revenue to maintain and improve services, and increasing public participation in town government.

I believe my expertise in communication and my experience serving on both the board of selectmen and the planning board will help achieve those goals and take Wrentham to the next level. Please vote for me on April 2, 2018. For more information about my ideas and to learn more about my campaign, visit me on Facebook @GoinWithCohen or email me at goinwithcohen@gmail.com.