The timing of Rutland City mayor Mike Doenges’ resignation plan announced last week created an unusual dilemma for residents who wondered what would come next. Now, the smoke has cleared, with a write-in election underway.
Doenges’ resignation, planned for Feb. 27, came halfway through his term and five days before the next Town Meeting Day, sending Rutland residents reeling with the news and wondering how candidates would be vetted in a matter of weeks.
Rutland locals had questioned whether the president of the Board of Alderman David Allaire would take over the rest of Doenges’ term or whether the city could hold a special election for mayor, Board of Aldermen member Matt Whitcomb said.
Rutland turned to outside counsel, Matt Bloomer, for advice on how to handle the matter. Bloomer looked at the City Charter language and determined that voters must elect a mayor at the next annual meeting, which is Town Meeting Day on March 3, according to a letter shared by Alliare at the Board of Aldermen meeting Monday.
Had Doenges resigned earlier or later into his term, the board president would have assumed the mayoral post until the next annual meeting, according to the City Charter.
Some Board of Aldermen members expressed surprise and frustration over the mayor resigning after campaign petitions were due for Town Meeting Day, but before the next annual meeting. Among the concerns are that it could be challenging for the public to review candidates on a short timeline.
“Our legal advice to the Board of Aldermen was that it has to be a write-in candidate. That has spurred some controversy locally,” board member Larry Cupoli said.
Under these unusual circumstances, Whitcomb said it is important to offer opportunities for residents to vet candidates since the city is required to hold a write-in election at Town Meeting Day due to the timeline of the mayor’s resignation.
“I am still deeply disappointed that this is how it’s playing out,” Whitcomb said. “My definitive focus at this moment and forward is how do we get as much education and clarity out to the Rutland community and help them just be prepared for what will be definitively an unconventional mayoral race. I don’t know that we’ve ever had a write-in campaign in history.”
Write-ins
Shortly after Doenges’ Thursday statements, Board of Aldermen member and chief executive officer of BROC community action, Tom Donahue, threw his hat in the ring for mayor. Donahue said it was important that the process was clarified to the public Monday to ensure a “free and fair election.”
Donahue’s campaign focus will be improving public safety and economic development in the city, he said Monday. Donahue said he plans to build upon the groundwork laid with the Tax Increment Financing district’s approval. Rutland residents voted in favor of the first TIF bond for infrastructure projects necessary for a hotel development in an empty lot called “the pit” in downtown Rutland.
“We have an interest in attracting families and others to move to Rutland for all the reasons you might imagine, including workforce and new business,” Donahue said. “We have a lot of opportunity here, but I don’t think that we’ve done the best job of selling that yet.”
Rutland resident Robert Reynolds also announced his write-in candidacy at the Board of Aldermen meeting Monday night. Reynolds said Tuesday he is an electrician and business owner who grew up in Rutland and returned four years ago. His write-in campaign will center on ensuring the city’s financial transparency and rehabbing abandoned buildings to address homelessness in the city, Reynolds said.
Amid the fluster that ensued after Doenges’ resignation notice, local co-op manager, punk musician and community organizer Nick Grandchamp said he experienced a groundswell of support for a write-in campaign, though he said he does not want to serve as mayor.
Grandchamp said he was saddened by Doenges’ resignation given his work to set the Tax Increment Financing district and a downtown hotel in motion.
“Rutland is in a really strange situation right now,” he said.
Grandchamp said he was dubbed the “people’s mayor” and “unofficial mayor of Rutland” in a Vermont Public Brave Little State podcast episode on Rutland City’s reputation in November, because of his unbridled support of Rutland and organizing of an annual punk rock flea market, art exhibits and playing local punk shows in the city for around 25 years.
Grandchamp said he wants to harness the political attention to encourage people to support a petition launched Tuesday, calling on local leadership to create a skate park in Rutland City, adding that he believes skate parks help build community.
“I want people to understand that power in your community lives outside the walls of City Hall. You can do things on a DIY, grassroot level,” Grandchamp said. “Hopefully, if I get enough signatures, we can make a city skate park a reality.”
