Patricia Pacella Runs For Fairhaven Selectman

Fairhaven residents will have four choices for Selectman when they vote in the Annual Town Elections on Monday.

Among them will be Patricia Pacella who served as a member of the Town Government Study Committee which recommended Fairhaven switch from having an Executive Secretary to Town Administrator.

Pacella told WBSM's Phil Paleologos that while Executive Secretary Jeffrey Osuch did a great job he didn't have as much authority to make decisions.

Pacella says the new Town Administrator Mark Rees can handle day to day affairs without constantly having to go back to the Board of Selectmen.

"He's already produced a budget for the Town Meeting and he really is handling day to day activities and the Board of Selectmen meeting are not going until 10 or 11 o'clock at night," said Pacella.

Pacella also says the town needs to do a better job promoting itself as an attractive place for companies to do business.

She says the first step in that endeavor should be talking to businesses that have been in the town a long time and find out why they chose to stay in Fairhaven.

"Speak to their board members, find out what's worked for them, what keeps them in Fairhaven," said Pacella "I'm not sure you can give new business a huge tax break but I think that if you start talking to people who have been in business a long time in Fairhaven, there's a reason why they stay here."

However, Pacella says Fairhaven's biggest problem seems to be communication between town government and residents.

"I've been at meetings where people say 'I didn't know that was happening, it's happening in my backyard, I had no idea that was happening'" said Pacella "so I think we need to give a little more communication to residents."

Pacella is one of four candidates seeking a seat on the Board of Selectmen.