Taking stock

Looking at our municipal machine and its administrative function, here in the town of Paris, just where are we at the end of this November 2010?

A brief tally:

*One year and five-plus months since a newly elected selectboard came on the scene (6-22-09) with an agenda to fashion the town in a new order;

*One year and five months since an interim town manager was hired to assist them (7-01-09);

*One year since more than 1500 Paris voters, in a general election (11-03-09), approved an ordinance for a recall election in the town of Paris;

*Eleven months since a full time town manager was hired (01-04-10). [editor's note: 2 members of the board that hired him still serve on the selectboard today, 11-28-10] ;

*Eleven months since 487 determined Paris voters gathered together, on a bitter cold night, for a special town meeting (01-08-10), and made it crystal clear that they called the shots, not a small group of individuals with a personal agenda;

*Ten months since two special recall elections (2-02-10 and 2-05-10) that saw two of the five selectmen on that board voted out of office by sizeable margins because they had lost the confidence of the voters;

*Nine months since a special election (3-16-10) replaced the two recalled selectmen;

*Five months since the regular election at the annual Paris town meeting (6-08-10) produced an additional individual to fill out the official 5 member selectboard.

A question - perhaps a statement, really - frequently heard here and there, and round about, both in the town of Paris, and beyond:

"Haven't heard anything; haven't seen anything in the papers. Guess things are better in Paris now. Right?"

Are things better?