Editor’s Note: Today, The Call takes a look at Lincoln’s District 1 Town Council race. Tomorrow, we examine the race in District 3.

By JON BAKER

LINCOLN — On Nov. 4, District 1 voters will have two choices as to whom they want as their Saylesville Town Council representative, and they’re both newcomers.

They include independent Arthur S. Russo Jr., 34, of 23 Carriage Drive; and Democrat Timothy E. McMahon, 47, of 11 Preserved Arnold Court. One of the two will replace current Town Council President Jeremiah T. O’Grady, who earlier this year decided he would leave his post for family reasons.
When asked what issue was most important to him, Russo stated “the civility of the council.”
“In the past  that is, the Ron Lopardo/Dean Lees years — I thought there was too much bickering and partisanship among the council members and then-Town Administrator Sue Sheppard,” offered Russo,
for 10 years a lawyer with Hobson & Coutu LTD in Warwick. “I saw that, and it made me uncomfortable. I mean, these people have a job to do.
“I thought there was too much ‘back-and-forth’ between Republicans and Democrats, and nothing was getting done,” he added. “That’s a reason I’ve always been unaffiliated … I’d also like to see tax stabilization, which (current administrator T. Joseph Almond) has followed, and some innovative economic development of the Saylesville Mill and Higginson Avenue industrial area.
“I believe I’m qualified because I’m a lifelong Lincoln resident, and I can relate to the different people in both our section and town. I think I’m different from Tim McMahon. I have a broader spectrum of seeing the needs of the residents because I have a multi-generational perspective. My grandfather, who’s 85, still lives here, as do my parents (his mother, Barbara, acts as Administrator Almond’s secretary), and I’m raising my family (three youngsters with wife Stephanie) here.
“I’ve served on the Lincoln Zoning Board the last eight years, and I’ve also been a member of the Charter Commission and the Affordable Housing Plan Advisory Panel.”
Russo graduated from Lincoln High School in 1991, then earned a Bachelor’s in Political Science (with a certificate in public administration) from Providence College in 1995. He then received his law degree from Suffolk University in Boston in 1998 (with an emphasis in real estate).
“I’ve always wanted to run for Town Council,” Russo said. “I’d like to represent the people, and I have a vast background in law. It’s just instinctual. I’ve always loved the town, and I’ve always carried that desire to serve the people.
“When I was at PC, I spent three years serving as an intern for Paul Kelley (of North Smithfield), then the Senate Majority Leader,” he continued. “I worked in the constituents’ office, and I think my experience led me to want to get involved in politics. I saw the practical application of what I was studying in college.”
As for McMahon, he claims he’s interested in a “transparent government,” not to mention campaign finance reform, responsible land development, reparation of Lincoln’s infrastructure (roads, dams, bridges, etc.), and a stronger advocacy for the town library.
After graduating from Cumberland High in 1980, he worked assorted jobs before joining the U.S. Army in 1982. In the military, he said, he held two positions: As a cavalry scout in the infantry and, after being transferred to Germany, he worked on the Commanding General’s staff for the Third Infantry Division.
Following four years of active duty and another with the Rhode Island National Guard, he gained a Bachelor’s in history from the University of Rhode Island, then earned a Master’s in Library and Information Science from Simmons College in 1998.
“When I knock on neighbors’ doors, I’ve found they don’t know what’s going on in town,” said McMahon, an electronic publishing specialist at the American Mathematical Society of Providence; husband to Catherine; and father to two girls. “They seem frustrated, and I think that frustration comes from the fact the town isn’t communicating well enough with the people who live here.
“I’m also concerned with ‘electronic government,” he added. “For instance, we should have available on the town’s website a great deal more information that what’s there now. One of the things I intend to do is start an electronic newsletter that will report on the town council and what’s happening, with a strong focus on District 1.”
As for campaign finance reform, McMahon advocates the creation of a town ordinance that caps the amount that a candidate can raise during an electoral race. He would dictate no financial contribution over $250, and that a candidate be unable to accept such from a political party or political action committee.
“What we should be doing is knocking on people’s doors and listening to them, find out what their concerns are and focus on solutions to those problems,” he said. “There is a limit in Pawtucket, and mine will be modeled after it.
“As for responsible land development, in the aggregate, we see developers coming in, seeing a small slice of land and saying, ‘Hey, we’ve got to build on it.’ I am saying planned, balanced development is good, but not building on every open spot in Lincoln.
“And the library, I feel, has become like a second-class citizen,” he added. “People just don’t pay attention to it. The physical building itself is about a quarter of the size it should be, and the staff -- from what I’ve learned -- is one of the lowest paid in Rhode Island. I intend to make sure this important institution no longer gets lost in the shuffle.”
McMahon stated he doesn’t know much about his opponent, Russo.
“From what I heard out and about in the community, he’d like to do away with the Financial Town Meeting, and I think we should keep it,” he said. “I think it’s an important tool in the series of checks and balances in town. The people here, I think, are very passionate about it.”
Noted Russo: “Truth is, I don’t want to do away with the FTM. I believe we should explore some controls to regulate visitor participation, and, perhaps, put some type of cap on expenditures proposed at the meeting. Let’s put it this way: If someone proposes, say, a $20,000 expenditure, but someone else requests something more substantial, it should require a much higher percentage of residents for the approval of a higher budgetary request.”