Ken Swanton. (Photo by Lisa Aciukewicz)
Ken Swanton moved to Harvard five years ago after living in Bolton for three decades. “I was drawn to Harvard for a lot of the same reasons other people are,” he told the Press. “I love the rural character of Harvard, and I like the emphasis on a very strong school system. I also love Harvard Center. It’s one thing Bolton doesn’t have.”
A native of New England, Swanton grew up in Newton, Mass. He earned his undergraduate degree in economics at MIT and an MBA at Harvard Business School. Like many others who moved to Massachusetts in the 1970s, Swanton worked at Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) for 17 years, where he eventually rose to the position of vice president. After leaving DEC he founded the video equipment company BroadcastPix with his brother and two friends in 2001. Though he is now retired, he still serves on the BroadcastPix board.
For the past three years, Swanton has chaired the Harvard Historical Commission. In Bolton he served on the Conservation Commission, Conservation Trust, Planning Board, and School Committee, the last three of which he chaired. We interviewed him Friday morning, Oct. 12, on the second floor of the General Store, a discussion that lasted more than an hour and touched on a range of issues. Here is a sampling. (Read an expanded version of this interview.)
Are you happy with the direction the selectmen have set for the renovation of Town Hall?
One of things that drew me into running for selectman was the Town Hall renovation. I think it’s time to get on with fixing it. The Town Hall is a landmark building at the top of our beautiful town Common, and it can be a building that everyone is proud of…I think the citizens have spoken. It should be done with the money that’s been approved.
Do you agree with those who say the selectmen should hit the ‘pause button’ and return the design to a building committee?
I’m glad to see the selectmen moving ahead. They have some good people that have applied to be on the building committee. I’m also encouraged by the study that the consultant John Holland did. It’s a very thorough analysis of the building envelope and the quality of the building. I’m very happy [the selectmen] are going to Town Meeting with it. It’s very important to build some consensus.
Do you think the selectmen were right in taking on the project rather than asking the building committee to redo its design after last fall’s Town Meeting vote?
You know, it’s been a long and winding road. I have been going to meetings on the Town Hall since the old municipal building committees and studies and whatnot. When the bids came back for what was originally approved at Town Meeting and everything was higher, the citizens spoke pretty loudly [saying], ‘We don’t want to spend more.’ It’s taken awhile—longer than I would have hoped—to get to the point where we can now go back to Town Meeting and say, ‘This is the path we want to go down, we’d like you to affirm that.’ I’m glad that we’re now at that point.
Once the building is fixed, who should decide its ultimate use?
Oh, I think the town should play a big role.” [How would we do that?] I think all previous votes have assumed the building stays the Town Hall. So, if there’s going to be a proposal to do something else, then that should be brought forward to the voters…But before that…there should be a lot of listening and communication around the various alternatives.
Do you favor keeping Town Hall the center of government?
I do. I’m not convinced moving town government somewhere else doesn’t increase our costs. Adding yet another building, isn’t that more expensive than having fewer buildings? I don’t understand the savings.
What should be done with Hildreth House?
I think it should be improved. Last year [the Hildreth House Improvement Committee] brought a package of improvements to the Historical Commission because they needed our support in their quest for Community Preservation funds, and we approved [everything on their list.] So I’m in favor of the improvements. My concern is the very high price tag on the addition…. I find when I talk to many seniors, they don’t favor it because they’re worried about high taxes …What we did [in Bolton] was [to give a couple of acres of land to a developer] who built senior housing that we really needed, and they built a really nice meeting room-dining room for our seniors at no cost to the town. I think we should look at doing something like that in Harvard.
Do you favor some form of tax relief for seniors?
I think the tax thing is a problem of keeping Harvard affordable for all ages. Our taxes are up nearly 80 percent in the last 10 years and [we now have] the 20th highest tax per house in the state. That doesn’t affect just seniors. That discourages young families from moving here that are needed to keep our schools enrolled. Great schools are a huge part of what Harvard is. Keeping Harvard affordable…affects all ages.
Do you favor an increase in the Community Preservation Act surcharge on Harvard tax bills?
The problem I have with CPC money is that the revenue raised by the town can’t be used for most of the things in the budget. You can’t use it for teachers, police, fire, roads. There’s very little it can actually be used foir. I’m not a fan of raising that tax.
How far would you go in developing the commercial district?
I’m in favor of commercial development that fits the rural character of the town.
Devens?
I don’t know enough about Devens. I don’t think that the residents of Harvard or Devens know enough about what the right future path is.
Why do you want to be a selectman?
[Working on volunteer boards] is something I’ve always enjoyed. I’ve been fortunate to live in two towns that have retained a lot of their rural character in a region that has gotten increasingly run over by development. I like working…with other enthusiastic town volunteers because you have to be enthusiastic or you’re not going to do this. I want the job because I think there’s a bunch of issues facing the town that with my track record of consensus building and my experience serving on many boards, I think I can help with.
