Special meeting added for Tuesday
By:Purvi Desai
The Charter Study Commission continued interviewing Township Committee members March 14, with Committeeman Paul Drake, and former committee members Christine Jensen and Sonya Martin, all of whom are Democrats.
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The next charter study commission meeting will be 7:30 p.m. Tuesday to make up for a session canceled earlier last month.
Mr. Drake told commission members that he thinks the current form of government "works well together," but if given a choice, he would opt to have a publicly elected mayor, who would be able to execute long-term goals faster.
"The level of continuity is critical when you have state or federal entities that look for a contact in town, because (some) projects take a long time," he said. "There’s clear benefits for having a longer term for mayor."
Ms. Martin, who served between 1999 and 2003, said any good government system should "limit power, protect people and preserve the liberties and rights of our people." Ms. Martin also said the separation of powers into executive, legislative and judicial branches is critical.
"The Township Committee may have been appropriate for our rural community, when the government had little responsibilities to perform," she said. "It is no longer appropriate for such a large and populated town, with complex residential and environmental needs."
Ms. Jensen, who was deputy mayor from 2000-2002, is the wife of commission Chairman Christian Jensen.
Ms. Jensen said the role of a committee member requires full-time dedication, which is hard "especially when you’re holding a 50 plus hour job."
She said that adding more people in the government, such as increasing members that can serve on a Township Committee or any other form of government would lighten the load on government representatives and allow some room for better planning, both long and short term.
"Sometimes, accomplishing goals can get very diluted as there is so much the Township Committee has to accomplish to keep the township going," she said. "The sheer volume of regular work leaves little time for anything else."
For more on last week’s meeting, check Thursday’s Hillsborough Beacon.