Wayland 2021 Candidate: Clifford Lewis For Board Of Public Works

WAYLAND, MA — With four candidates running for two seats and a recent crisis over contamination in Wayland's water, the 2021 Board of Public Works race has taken on a new significance.

Clifford Lewis is the only incumbent in the race this year with member Jonathan Mishara not seeking another term. Apart from Lewis, Sherre Greenbaum, Abner Bruno, Jr. and Duane Galbi are vying for a chance to pick up Mishara's seat.

The two winners will be tasked with helping to fix Wayland's PFAS problem. The town recently discovered elevated levels of the harmful chemicals in the Happy Hollow well field, Wayland's main water supply. Under new state regulations, the town has to come up with long and short-term solutions to remove the contamination from the water.

Patch sent each of the four candidates a questionnaire so voters can get to know them better. Here's how Lewis answered:

Clifford Lewis

Position Sought: Board of Public Works
Family: Anette, wife. Emily, daughter.
Does anyone in your family work in politics or government? My wife Anette is an Associate Member of the Wayland Planning Board
Education: B.S. ChE, Rose Hulman; MBA, Amos Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth; CFA, CFA Institute
Occupation: Financial Analyst -10 years; Instrumentation Business Owner - 25 years; Chemical Engineer - 3 years
Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office: Board of Public Works, Vice Chair. Wayland OPEB Advisory Committee, Chair. Management Selection Committees for the Wayland Public Schools
Campaign website: www.electcliffordlewis.com

Why are you seeking elective office?

To support the efforts of the DPW and to continue to provide the necessary services to the entire Wayland community in an efficient and cost-effective manner.

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

PFAS. I will be part of the team that sorts through the details, defines the options and fixes it.
The Board of Public Works, where I serve as Vice-Chair, has been planning short-term and long-term solutions. None are simple and easy. However, we have identified what may prove to be a source of a significant PFAS concentration in the Happy Hollow well area. It may be possible to isolate and treat this source.

We are scrutinizing the sizing requirements along with successfully implemented removal technologies including: carbon filtration, ion exchange, reverse osmosis, closed circuit reverse osmosis and polymer sand absorption. Also under consideration is full or partial conversion to MWRA water supplies or drilling new wells. Please see the "Water" tab on my website for more details.

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

I have a substantial background in critical areas - specifically: technical, business and financial analysis which is enhanced by a list of proven accomplishments. The PFAS issue is a problem that needs a solution now. Experience is needed to get it done. There is not an opportunity to get up to speed.

I currently represent you on the Board of Public Works as Vice Chair. Every position on the Board needs extensive and direct experience with the issues we face along with a set of skills that complement the skills of other members of the Board.

I can point to a track record that includes an overwhelmingly positive result on another thorny issue in Town - that of our OPEB obligation along with a track record that is furthered by the budget of the DPW which actually has gone down during my term on the Board. There are very, very few elected officials that can make that statement.

My technical and business background, coupled with experience on the Board and long tenure in Wayland, gives me the tools needed to drive an effective and immediate solution to the immediate problem.

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

It is easy now to look retrospectively at how the coronavirus was handled. As a member of the Board of Public Works throughout the period, the vista when decisions were made is quite different than the vista that we enjoy today in hindsight.

That said, I believe that the decisions made by the local officials were consistent with the best advice and counsel. In particular, Board of Public Works was responsible for decisions on the parks and playgrounds, where our decisions helped keep our children and our citizens safe during the period.

Even in retrospect, I would not have changed the decisions we made.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

PFAS is not the only issue before the Board, but it is the immediate issue.
The other defining issues of my campaign platform are the need for forward-looking planning and my capabilities as evidenced by my "Seventeen-Uses-for-Seventeen-Acres" plan for the old landfill area and the proven record of operational efficiencies. Please see the pages on my website for "Water", "Old Landfill" and "Efficiency". wwwlelectcliffordlewis.com

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

On my website, you will see a running list going from being a high school minority student to graduating from one of the finest business schools in the world.

I've successfully started a business, from scratch, without any outside funding. It grew to see millions in sales revenues and provide jobs for over fifty Massachusetts workers.

I have a successful career in financial analysis and investing with a track record that handily eclipses the gains on the S&P 500 for the past 20 years.

In Wayland, I chaired the OPEB Advisory Committee which converted a highly contentious issue into one barely noticed any longer in the budget approvals at Town Meeting.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

For people that plan their actions and then take them - "Be sure you are right, then go ahead." from Davy Crockett's book. It does not always work, but it goes a long way.

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

There is substantial information answering this question on my website: www.electcliffordlewis.com. See the tabs for "Background:, "Water", "Old Landfill", "Efficiency" along with a summary in my "Candidate's Statement"

I'm asking for your vote in this election. I don't need to come up to speed and I'm ready to drive the solutions we need in Wayland now.