Mayor Candidate Profile: Andrew Lockwood

After two unsuccessful political races in as many years, is hoping the third time is the charm—and that he can make it on his own.

Lockwood is one of three registered Republicans running as an unaffiliated candidate for mayor. He was a GOP candidate in the 2009 City Council election and in the 2010 race for the State House of Representatives. Recently, he has been more critical of the Republican Town Committee, accusing them of passing over his wife, Loreen, for a spot on the Board of Education slate of candidates because she was unsure whether she would support Rob Pero, the party’s candidate for mayor.

Lockwood said he decided to launch not only an independent bid but also to support Loreen and Eric Parnes in a dual unaffiliated campaign for Board of Education. He says the combined effort is an attempt to strengthen the board so it can help the mayor improve the educational system.

“Without our education system making extremely big gains in a short period of time, the city’s not going to be able to grow,” he said.

Lockwood said education issues such as poor scores on the and tests are a disincentive to people looking to move to the city and affect business, tourism, and taxes. He said the administrative salaries in the district are too high and include unnecessary items such as business cell phones, and said he would look to remove Superintendent Nicholas Fischer if he does not improve the budget and academic performance.

The mayor has an ex-officio seat on the Board of Education, and Lockwood said the best way to use that role would be to voice his opinion on certain policies and look to better interaction among city councilors, the Board of Education, and the public. He said he would actively encourage the public to take the school budget to referendum if he believes it is inadequate, and look to the elimination of duplicate services through actions such as combining the finance departments of the city and school district.

“What I would be constantly looking to reaffirm to that school board is that they are in charge, not the superintendent,” he said.

Lockwood said the city can experience additional tourism by better utilizing available resources. He said more events should take place at , including concerts and festivals, while the city could also cooperate with area towns to purchase the HMS Bounty as a new attraction. He said immediate the mayor should immediately take part in promotion efforts for .

Lockwood said the city needs to expand its Grand List through developments including an outlet center on Bank Street and a grocery store to increase tax revenue. His platform also includes initiatives such as improvements to the city’s deep water port and a “Whaler Bucks” discount program for ferry passengers. He supports development at Fort Trumbull, particularly a hotel and conference center. He said he was not in favor of at the peninsula, believing they will have a negative effect on funding for the school district. Lockwood said he believes the has failed as an agency and would like the agency to transfer its deeds to the city and cease as an organization.

“I’ve seen what they’ve done in the last 10 years for this city. Last year they were all but dissolved and ready to leave the city…I just don’t believe in New London buying into the same mistakes of the past,” he said.

Lockwood said he is personally against the sale of a portion of to the , and believes the proponents of the site are likely to keep fighting for it if a referendum vote favors selling it. He said the group could continue to be stewards of the park in a manner similar to Save Ocean Beach’s work with . Lockwood has also said that if the nine acres of the park do sell, he feels the Coast Guard Academy is paying too little for the parcel.

Lockwood grew up in Stowe, Vt., and earned a GED after dropping out of high school. He went on to earn an associate’s degree from Three Rivers Community College, bachelor’s degree from the University of Connecticut, and a Juris Doctorate from the Massachusetts School of Law at Andover. He said he has been a “jack of all trades,” working in areas such as real estate, law, contracting, car sales, and substitute teaching. Lockwood also owned the before passing the property on to his daughter.

A number of lawsuits have been filed against Lockwood in recent years, while Lockwood has filed three of his own. He said most of the suits related to difficulties in maintaining the inn during a low tourism years and his unwillingness to declare bankruptcy. He said the most recent one, in which he appeals an increased city assessment on his property, is a result of a former rooming house being taxed commercially rather than residentially after he converted it into a two-family home. Lockwood said he chose to bring the matter to court due to the possibility that the time period to appeal would expire before it could be resolved in another way.

“I’ll bet that’s happened a bunch of time, and people haven’t had the money to litigate it,” he said. “The litigations have made me a more rounded person. I’m not going to run away from a fight…And I don’t think the mayor can run away from the problems here.”

Lockwood said the votes of New London residents are the strongest voice in the coming election, and hoped for a strong turnout. He also urged residents to get behind a candidate whose concepts they agree with.

“I think from my standpoint, no matter who you vote for it’s very important to get out and look at all the candidates and don’t think your vote is being wasted,” he said.

We are profiling a candidate for mayor every weekday at 3 p.m. through Oct. 17. Tomorrow, the profile will be on Martin Olsen.