Candidate Profile: Richard Vaillancourt, N. Andover Select Board

NORTH ANDOVER, MA — North Andover will have two contested races in the March 30 town election: School Committee and Board of Selectmen. North Andover Patch asked candidates to answer questions about their campaigns and will be publishing candidate profiles over the coming weeks.

Richard Vaillancourt is running for re-election to the Select Board. There are three people running for two available seats. Vaillancourt, the sole incumbent, faces Janice Phillips and Joe Finn.

Vaillancourt works in IT and has been on the Select Board for nine years.

Are you running for office in North Andover? Contact Christopher Huffaker at chris.huffaker@patch.com for information on being featured in a candidate profile and submitting campaign announcements to North Andover Patch.

Previously on Patch: North Andover Election Guide: Who's Running

Richard M. Vaillancourt

Age (as of Election Day)

58

Position Sought

Select Board

Family

Spouse: Kathleen. We will be celebrating our 35th wedding anniversary on March 15th, 2021
Children:
Richard (Electric Engineer) and wife Ashley (Marketing Manager) resides in North Andover. Grandson: Richard III (2 years old)
Jenna (Administrative Manager) and husband William Enright (Police Officer), resides in Bradford Ma.
Kelly Ann (Special Needs Teacher) resides in Brighton Ma.

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

No

Education

• BS: Computer Science from - UMass Lowell
• MS: Information Technology - New Hampshire College
• MBA from Southern - New Hampshire University

Occupation

• 1985 - 2006: AT&T/Lucent Technologies - IT Engineer
• 2006 - Current: Cisco Systems - Program Manager

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office

• 2006 - 2014: Treasurer: North Andover Booster Club
• 2006 - 2012: North Andover Zoning Board of Appeals (Associate Member)
• 2009 - 2014: North Andover Merchants Association (Founding Member)
• 2009 - 2011 NAMA President
• 2011 - 2014 Board Member
• 2012 - Current: North Andover Select Board
  • Chair: 2014/2015, 2016/2017, 2019/2020
  • Licensing Chair: 2013/2014, 2015/2016, 2017/2018
• 2018 - Current: Affordable Housing Trust

Campaign website

https://www.facebook.com/Vaillancourt4SelectBoard

Why are you seeking elective office?

I have been on the Select Board for nine years. In that time we have had some amazing accomplishments in North Andover including

• Completion of the first Facilities Master Plan, which included: Total renovation of Town Hall, New Fire Station, New School administration building, Kittredge School Gym, Addition to the DPW building, construction of the Anne Bradstreet Early Childhood Center
• Eight years of consensus budgets brought to the floor of town meeting
• Sustained AAA bond rating

Currently, we are on the verge of some major initiatives in North Andover. The Amazon project is going to be transformative for North Andover. I was part of the negotiating team that worked on the TIF and Community Agreement.

Also, the Royal Crest is going to bring major changes to the southwest part of town. Along with the Pandemic crisis and potential financial backlash, I feel my experience, leadership skills and commitment to North Andover makes me the ideal person to see these projects and issues through to the end.

The single most pressing issue facing our (board, district, etc.) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

Covid Recovery

Four priorities coming out of Covid:

• Get the vaccine out to people to slow the spread of the virus.
• Assist with scheduling appointments, transporting to vaccination sites and administering vaccines.
• Help people economically, with things like the town’s rental and mortgage assistance program through town organizations like The Affordable Housing Trust.
• Help local businesses with grants to get them back up and running.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

Experience

How do you think local officials performed in responding to the coronavirus? What if anything would you have done differently?

I feel the Town officials and staff and Emergency Response have done an outstanding job dealing with the pandemic. Early on, we spent weeks providing meals (lunch) to anyone who needed one. Town staff handed them out in drive through locations and the meals were provided by School culinary staff. We have provided rental and mortgage assistance to individuals in need. We have also provided grants and PPE to local businesses.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

Amazon Development. I was part of the team that negotiated the TIF with Amazon that provides for approximately 6.6 million in payments to North Andover for items such as: $3,000,000 for STEM Education over 10 years, $700,000 for the planting of trees and maintenance, $100,000 for furniture for the new senior center, 2.3 Million for the Osgood St. Sewer extension and equipment for the North Andover Fire Department to be able to service the Amazon site.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

Completion of the Facilities Master Plan.
Eight years of consensus budgets brought to town meeting.
Four years of sustained AAA bond rating for the town of North Andover.
Nine years of on-the-job experience.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

My father was not much for verbal advice. However, he led by example: He worked hard, took care of his family, cared about his community, had fun with his customers and never let anyone leave his diner hungry. He taught me the meaning of Committed to Community.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I feel the last nine years I have served North Andover with Dignity, Respect and Honor. It has been the privilege of my life and I hope you will allow me to continue to serve the community that we all love so dearly.

I am asking that you cast one of your two votes for Select Board for me, Richard (Dick) Vaillancourt. Thank you for your consideration.

Christopher Huffaker can be reached at 412-265-8353 or chris.huffaker@patch.com.