“I ran because people told me they needed me in there doing what I do,” stated Tyler Macallister on the eve of the special election to fill the unexpired term on the Mattapoisett Select Board created by the passing of John DeCosta.
On Tuesday night, Macallister secured his return to the conference room table, winning 471 votes to Ken Wilbur’s 224. Town Clerk Catherine Heuberger said that approximately 12.3-percent of the town’s 5,512 registered voters came out for this mid-summer election.
And timing of the election made campaigning difficult for Macallister, who owns a charter fishing business. He said family and friends called and sent texts to voters reminding them to get out and vote on July 27. “It’s really tough to run a campaign in June and July, my busiest season, but I had people around me helping,” he said.
Two of Macallister’s strongest supporters were his wife, Cynthia, and campaign treasurer Abigale Field. Macallister was not able to attend the reading of the election results due to fishing commitments, but his wife stated after learning her husband had won, “We thank the town of Mattapoisett [and] the people who gave us support. Tyler is looking forward to serving the town in this capacity.”
The Wanderer was able to reach Macallister as he returned home from a day at sea. He said of the win, “I’m relieved and happy. … [Wednesday] morning, I’ll reach out to Mike Lorenco (town administrator) and find out what the hot button items are now.” But Macallister is confident it will not take him long to come up to speed. “Thank you, Mattapoisett. I appreciate the opportunity to serve and the encouragement I’ve received. I like Mattapoisett, that’s why I want to serve.”
During his campaigning in June, Macallister spoke of the work he had done during his first eight years on the Select Board. During those years, the town built up stabilization funds, paid down debt, and secured the town with a triple-A bond rating, he said. “We are doing well in spite of COVID-19 because we planned for things like this with stability funds,” he said in June. “We came through because of a lot of hard work on the part of various boards and committees. I can continue those efforts to keep our funds strong.”
He vacated his selectman’s seat to apply for the town administrator opening that was filled by the hire of Mike Lorenco, then lost a close race to DeCosta when he tried to get back onto the Select Board.
Macallister, 53, currently serves on the town’s Finance Committee. He had also held a five-year seat on the Conservation Commission and the Plymouth County Advisory Board. He spoke in June of the need to study the future of such buildings as Town Hall, the possibility of school consolidation, the needs of the aging population, and upcoming contract negotiations.
Holding an MBA from UMass and a bachelor’s degree from UMass Dartmouth in Marine Biology, Macallister works as a consultant to the renewable energy industry in addition to his charter fishing business. Originally from Cape Cod, Macallister and his family have lived in Mattapoisett for 20 years.
By Marilou Newell