Lyman returned: 'A lot of support from people I didn't know'

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March 27, 2008

By Brian Messenger

After a day spent holding campaign signs outside Andover High School, Selectman Mary Lyman returned from the polls to a home bustling with supporters.

Re-elected on March 25, Lyman began her third term as a selectmen by feeding house guests and reflecting on her recent victory over challenger Peter Cotch.

First elected to the board in 2001, Lyman defeated Cotch — 1,446 votes to 1,186 — in the annual town election.

"I'm just kind of enjoying the moment," said Lyman. "It was a long day. We were out there for 13 hours.

"It was really, it was 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Any day I didn't have a meeting at night I was campaigning. You're constantly getting feedback. It was hard to juggle," she said.

Lyman, a School Street resident who is married with three sons, served on the School Committee from 1992 to 1995. She also worked as the human resources director for the Andover School Department from 1985 to 1990.

With the town's budget planning already in full swing for fiscal year 2009, Lyman considered her re-election a confirmation of what she's offered residents.

"I was doing the right things," said Lyman. "I got a lot of support from a lot of people I didn't know."

A Salem Street resident and attorney, Cotch said Lyman benefited from her status as an incumbent.

Cotch called his campaign a "referendum on the status quo," and said he was happy to have broken the 1,000-vote mark.

"It seems change wasn't as urgent on people's minds as it might have been," said Cotch. "I stand by my belief that new taxes are not the appropriate solution, that we need to find new sources of revenue, that we need to push back on unfunded mandates, and that we need to do a better job of allocating our resources."

Cotch previously was a city councilor in Concord, N.H., in the late 1970s. This was his first campaign in Massachusetts.

"I want to congratulate Mary on a job well done," said Cotch. "She got her people out, and obviously that was the key to victory."

While on the campaign trail, Lyman said she was told she is seen as approachable and willing to listen to residents.

"In the end I got so much feedback," said Lyman. "I did everything that I think responsible government should do and try to be responsive. I think Andover's a nice place to live. We just need to continue making it a nice place to live."

Lyman said proposing changes to the town vehicle policy and pursuing "budget savings through attrition" — potentially not replacing workers who retire — will be two of her priorities during her third term.

"Those are my two biggies right now that I think have immediate and long-term impact," said Lyman.

"I still want to work with the Commission on Disabilities," said Lyman. "I'm looking forward to the next three years and the opportunities. I-93 is going to be a real opportunity for Andover, let's hope. And [there is] the youth center, which is something that should happen."

"It's very alluring for people to hear 'No new taxes," said Lyman, referring to Cotch's campaign. "It was never specifically how you made the cuts. Realistically, I think it presented him a dilemma. ... There's nothing easy to cut."