Andover Town Meeting 2015, our Legislative Body made up of the citizens of Andover who attended the meeting, demonstrated its concern for and commitment to the town. That was reassuring, but I was disappointed that more people weren’t there. Apathy and cynicism do not serve the community and do not help to guide its development. We need participation at all levels of our local government with an ongoing commitment of time and well-considered and productive thought.

The positive vote for a beginning Town Road Crew under the direct supervision of our Road Agent was a giant step forward, particularly in getting better control of our labor costs and equipment rental expenses. John Thompson, along with Jim Delaney, Marj Roy, Dennis Fenton, and the Selectboard worked diligently to present a well-considered and supportable plan.

Sophie Viandier’s presentation in an up-to-date format made what would otherwise have been challenging to understand very straightforward. Undoubtedly there will be challenges in instituting the plan, but your vote of confidence was encouraging.

Road-related warrant articles presented a number of issues that need to be addressed. They were not vetted by the Planning Board, and that would have been a much simpler pathway for addressing the various road issues raised.

Two of the three warrants were probably unnecessary and could have been resolved at the Planning Board level. The third really required considerably more understanding of the complex history involved before coming before Town Meeting for consideration. All three of the road warrant issues will be reviewed by the Planning Board.

The Town budget was passed with limited discussion, thanks to the hard work of our Budget Committee under the chairmanship of Arch Weathers. Again, it would be to the advantage of the community to participate more actively in the budget hearings where fine points, details, and questions are better answered. Town Meeting is not the time for microscopic examination.

The balance of the meeting went quite well. I do think that how we communicate during the meeting is important. The formality of addressing the Moderator with questions or statements avoids arguments on the floor which can deteriorate into shouting matches.

However, it is important that everyone who wishes to speak be heard. That poses some difficulty for the Moderator in allowing dynamic communication about issues while giving everyone a chance to speak to their concerns about the warrant articles. One or two people cannot be allowed to dominate the floor, but at the same time open discussion cannot be unduly restricted.

It is a challenging process to manage, and I do not have an immediate answer to the problems we encountered. Admittedly, the meeting showed room for improvement.

So in summary, we got some major things accomplished, learned some lessons, and are challenged to do better. Thank you everyone for your support of our local government, your personal contributions, and your expression of trust.

Please get involved! Help build our town.