Up Close and Personal in the Field: Ann Bond

UP CLOSE &

PERSONAL In the Field

Ann Bond

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Welcome to Up Close and Personal – In the Field, a regular column in New Hampshire Town and City dedicated to giving readers a closer look at staff from New Hampshire municipalities. In this issue, we hope you enjoy meeting Ann Bond, Chair of the Board of Selectmen in the Town of Pembroke. Ann is a recent graduate of The Academy for Good Governance. Congrats Ann!

TC: What are your duties and responsibilities as Selectmen?

AB: The selectmen serve as a town’s chief executive body. We have overall responsibility for the general operations of town government. We write all the municipality budgets, we are directly involved in personnel hires, and to facilitate Selectmen meetings to address issues in the town and allow residents to voice their concerns.

TC: What is your biggest challenge in performing your duties?

AB: Helping residents understand the difference between what they want to have the Town look like or what can legally be done. I would say another hurdle is getting resident engagement through volunteer programs or committees.

TC: How has NHMA helped you to do your job?

AB: NHMA has given me valuable resources and a unique perspective which has allowed me to analyze my day-to-day responsibilities a bit differently. They are our voice in the government.

TC: Give us an example of a problem you solved or a dilemma you faced and overcame in the line of duty?

AB: The Energy committee voted to convert the non-LED light poles to more energy efficient lights. In the process of trying to complete the conversion, I found many discrepancies in the current light pole inventory and needed to verify each light pole. This took many nights and weekends of traveling through the town and identifying each pole and had many meetings with the Energy provider to be sure the job was completed accurately and made sure they came in on budget.

TC: What is the public perception about your job and how does it differ from the reality of your job?

AB: The Selectmen can fix anything. The public can always approach the Selectmen with any issues they have and the Selectmen will listen and guide them to a solution or the reason why they can’t get the results they want.

TC: Tell us a story about an unusual experience you have had while doing your job.

AB: Once the decision was made to convert all the light poles in my town, I took on the task of getting the job completed accurately and on budget. Not realizing that not only did this mean many emails and meetings with the energy supplier, I also needed to go out and verify each and every light pole. Also, after the meetings with the supplier, I again had to go out and verify each and every pole. This took many hours of driving all the roads in my town. Many residents and my local police stopped to question what I was doing. It was a lot of fun.

TC: Has your public position changed you personally?

AB: Change is such a tricky word, I would say my public position has allowed me the opportunity to become more responsive and inspired to meet the needs of the township. Made me more aware of the status of our residents and where there is a need for more assistance in their daily lives. It has made me more aware of the Town’s Master Plan and how our residents would like the Town to look like in the future.

TC: Has your job changed the way you look at the role of government?

AB: It has given me more knowledge in how the state government affects local government. The laws in NH allow residents to have local control over their town. This is very important as what works in other towns does not always in our town. I have become aware of how important it is to get our residents to get involved with their community and most importantly to vote.