More recently, the town’s consideration of a proposal to build a 750-kilowatt solar array at the site of the wastewater treatment plant lent impetus to Kutcher’s decision to run for office. The plan was scuttled after input from residents and officials raised doubts about its feasibility. [Note: The Town Board is weighing a proposal for a smaller solar facility at the site. See story in this issue.]
Kutcher was particularly impressed with councilman Ken Panza’s research on the original solar proposal. “I really appreciate the work that Ken has done on the Town Board,” he said. “He does his homework and readily shares his information.” While he supports solar power as a renewable form of energy, Kutcher said, Panza’s research and other evidence convinced him that the plan for a 750-kw array was “overpriced and understudied.”
Said the candidate: “With the exception of Ken Panza, I feel that the Town Board did a very poor job on a matter that would have been very expensive. There was also a question about whether it was good for the environment to clear-cut (several) acres of land. As an environmentalist I had concerns about the proposal.” Deeming Panza’s election to the board a reflection of “wisdom on the part of voters,” Kutcher added, “Ken needs the support of like-minded people who are environmentally responsible but economically conservative.”
Electoral alliances
Panza, who was a friend of his father, said Kutcher, encouraged him to seek a seat on the Town Board. The candidate reported that he had also spoken with Lorin Rose, who is running for the office of town supervisor against the incumbent, Jeremy Wilber, and former councilwoman Terrie Rosenblum. Town Board members serve a four-year term, while the supervisor’s term is two years. In the 2011 election Wilber handily defeated Rosenblum in the Democratic primary before winning the general election by a narrower margin over Rose.
“I don’t know that much about him, but I think we’re on the same page,” said Kutcher, referring to Rose. “He seems conscientious about financial matters and having the Town Board run in an open manner.” Kutcher mused that if he and Rose both won office in the upcoming election, they, along with Panza, would constitute a voting majority on the five-member Town Board, with councilman Jay Wenk a potential ally.
Rose said in a May 15 interview that he endorsed Kutcher’s candidacy, particularly because Wilber (Rose’s rival in the supervisor race), Magarelli, and McKenna plan to circulate a joint designating petition, thus effectively running as a slate in seeking spots on the Democratic primary ballot. “It seems that (Kutcher’s) ideas line up pretty well with mine,” said Rose, “while the other three are on the same petition, working as a unit. I can’t endorse that unit, which doesn’t allow voters a choice, so I endorse this man who is running independently.”
Although Kutcher reported that Panza had not officially endorsed his candidacy, Panza said in a brief interview on May 14 that he would likely do so, whether formally or informally, since he had encouraged Kutcher to run for one of the two open seats on the board. Panza acknowledged that an endorsement of Kutcher would signify his preference for the newcomer over either Magarelli or McKenna.
Why, Kutcher was asked, should voters favor a returnee from the Pacific Northwest over incumbents who are longtime continuous residents of Woodstock? “On one level I’ve never really left Woodstock,” he responded. “I have come back regularly to visit my family, often spending as much as a month here. I am very familiar with the people and issues here. In Oregon I had dreams in which friends from Woodstock appeared. I love Woodstock; I love the people here, and the culture. I feel that I could do a very good job or representing the people’s interests.”
