More kudos

Carole Kelly for maintaining a binder of committee/board/commission mission statements. One of the things I didn't realize before the election was how chaotic the process of appointing and supervising the various boards/committees/commissions was. Carole is the office manager for the selectmen, and when this topic came up in conversation the other day, she showed me the binder. It's not (yet) in a format that can be easily shared - many of the pages are simply copies of town meeting warrants - but it's a valuable collection of information that I hope will eventually lead to a cohesive policy.

Chris Neill, and Camile Romano for thinking outside the box. At the last farm plan subcommittee meeting, they argued that there should be natural buffers now. They're right; while the plan calls for a berm to separate the river from the bogs, we've been talking about this for years and it's still not done. A natural buffer can be done now - at no cost and with little effort. As Thomas Edison said, "There's a way to do it better - find it." Indeed, the best solution to this whole debate might not be an expensive berm, but a natural buffer all along the river.

Bob Whritenour and Heather Harper, both of whom now live in Falmouth. The town charter requires that the town managers live in Falmouth, but years ago the selectmen granted Mr. Whritenour and Ms. Harper exemptions. Many folks - myself included - had a problem with this, so it is good to see these two become residents of our community.

Aaron Gouvea at the Cape Cod Times. This fellow has taken a few knocks for his reporting on the high school renovation project. I hear that he was even accused of "tabloid journalism" but there's nothing tabloid about what Aaron has done. A lot of folks (me included) have been asking for an investigation into this project for many months now, and so far Aaron has come the closest to actually carrying out that task.

While we're at it, kudos to the Cape Cod Times for its Data Net, a - growing - collection of databases which provides a lot of public information about Cape towns that is not always easily obtained. It has a way to go (Falmouth isn't yet on the list of Public Employee Salaries), but it's an important step for open, accountable government.

Peter Kirwin for everything he has done. I wish I could say that I know Peter, but the truth is that I only know of him. Our paths have never intersected, but merely crossed; as my tenure begins in town hall, his is ending. There's no doubt that Peter's presence in town hall will be missed, but I'm sure Falmouth will continue to benefit from his work - past, present and future.