8/11/2019 Decaying Dynasty: Paquette Faces Dissent and Three Challengers | Vanguard Press | Feb. 20, 1981

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S W E P T A W A Y : E IG H T -P A G E T R A V E L S E C T IO N

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B U R L I N G T O NW A N T ST L

P A G E 2 3

BY DEBBI E BOOKCHI N

"You can't fight City Hall:' the say-ing goes. It conjures up images of agiant bureaucracy, a city teeming

with conflicting interests, a place ofpavement and concrete 80 large thatthe average citizen exerts little controlover city policy.

Only in New York or Chicago, yousay? Look again. City government inBurlington, caught in a web of "irn-

provements" - highways, shoppingmalls, and housing projects, appearsto have left its citizenry behind.

The proof is in this year's mayoralrace. Many city residents have ac-cepted with resignation a likely victo-ry by Mayor Gordon H. Paquette. Yetthere is a notable lack of enthusiasmfor the five-term, 64year-old mayor-and not just among the communitygroups who feel slighted by his lack ofinterest in their concerns. or among

the low income and elderly residentsconfused about the need for a 65centtex hike. Democratic party regularsfeel Paquette has been good for Bur-lington in the past, but more than afew wish he'd bow out now.

Some Democrats complain aboutthe proposed 65cent tax hike; othersapprove of the tax hike but say hehasn't made the best use of federalfunds in the past. But most cite lesstangible reasons. They say he's be-come complacent. that he doesn'tlisten to the taxpayers any more. Evenamong some party regulars there isgrowing resentment toward Pa-quette's self-righteous attitude aboutwhat's good for Burlington. To somecritics, he appears more interested incompleting projects than in makingsure they address people's needs.

"He's been 80heavily engrossed inbuilding up the city in a physicalsense," says oneprominent Democrat,"that people-oriented programs havegone down the tubes. That's not new.It's always been that way for GordiePaquette and I, personally, resent it."

Not content to step down now that hehas seen through anum ber of projectswhich have drastically changed theface ofthe city, Paquette "seems to be

building a monument to himself,"offers Oasis Diner owner StrattyLines. another long time Democrat.

Normally such discontent wouldbreed strong oppositi ~n - either

within the Democratic party or fromthe Republicans. But what the may-oral race has also proved is that tredi-tional party politics in Burlington are

at a new ebb. With Paquette at thehelm, the city Democratic party hasdisplayed a conservative stalenessand reluctance to admit new ideas oractively involve a broad spectrum ofthe citizenry.

The Repu .cans are also sufferingfrom a lac of innovation aad cohe-sion. Their citywide caucus in .Ianu-ary lasted only 15 minutes. De.pite alongsra Iding premise that an opposition c didate would be recruited tochallenge Paquette, the Republican.came up empty handed. Meanwhil e,city residents who feel increasingly ex-

eluded from the political process haveformed neighborhood groups to pub-licize their concerns.

Continued onpage J0

8/11/2019 Decaying Dynasty: Paquette Faces Dissent and Three Challengers | Vanguard Press | Feb. 20, 1981

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CoratlnuH from cover

Groupa l ike P eople Acting for Change Together (PACT), The Lake-side Neighborhood Association. andthe South End Community Organization have begun to raise .issues 8u~has the need for8fair housmg com~18'sion the inadequacy of the Lakesideund;rpass and the safety of thesouthern connector, concerns they feelhave not received a fair review fromthecity administration. .

All of this activity has had an rm -pact on the current mayoral race, un-derscoring the degree to which peoplefeel the need for a change in the pres'ent city administration. The problemis that city residents don't know ex-actly where to find it.

Mulling over the events of the lastfew weeks voters find an incumbent

perfecting ~ rose garden campaigningtechnique that would make evenformer President Jimmy Carter en-vious. Paquette has gone to ,greatlengths to avoid discussion of Issueswith his most serious challenger: In-dependent Coalition csndidate Ber-nard Sanders.

After he announced his candidacyin December Paquette avoided re-

spending to Sanders' criticism.s byclaiming he was not really a candlda~until nominated by the Democratic

party in January. Even afterward ~econtinued to avoid debate or a publicexchange of ideas until finally pres-sured into a trio of forums by neigh-borhood groups and concerned cityresidents such as the L eague of Women Voters.

Paquette has barely admitted he isrunning foroffice and has not adopteda campaign style designed to givevoters an idea of what he has in storefor the city in the next two years. In-stead he has tied his candidacy to the

proposed 65cent tax hike and adoptedthe altruistic, some say "patroniztng"attitude that it is hi. job. for the nexttwo weeks, to explain to city voterswhy they must approve the tax hike.At the same time, however, he kept offthe ballot an issue of concern to agrowing number of city residents: aninitiative to separate the unpopularsouthern connector highway from itsnorthern counterpart. He also backedaway from early support of a FairHousing Commission recommended

by his own Housing Task Force.For the first time in many years two

long term Democrats - Richard Boveand Thomas McGrath.Jr. - have tern

porarily bolted the party sndlaunched independent campaigns.McGrath has not run actively, citingsupport of a special 12- P o m e r l e a u ; Al-

dermen Paterson. Asher. ond

Wadhams. lakeside re~denf

Theresa RInguette. a connector cnflc,south erxl AI

derman Blanchard and

board ptesldenf Desoufel~

north erxl Alderman Goor.

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