There are some big spending issues facing the town.
The school budget, and the related proposed school closings, are really causing heat. There can be no doubt that closing the three outlying schools will save money. Is it worth $330,000 (or whatever the "right" number is) to keep them open? The school budget is about 40% of the entire town budget, so we should be very careful about making decisions that will have big financial impacts for a long time.
The police building committee keeps lumbering along. I have no idea if that committee will be able to produce plans for a building that will be within budget. But I do know it's a BIG number. We voted at the special town meeting to go ahead in a moment of passion (or were we just smoking something), but why shouldn't we reconsider that decision at the May meeting? I've complained for years about pushing through expensive projects with inadequate vetting at a special town meeting. Why not give everyone a meaningful chance to decide? It's not too late to stop.
The water department study committee has submitted its report and it smacks of whitewash. (I was on the committee and dissented via a minority report.) The town's subsidy just grows and grows. I suggest you read the reports carefully and then ask lots of pointed questions.
The voters may be asked in May to appropriate money to acquire the Egremont Inn property. How much is it worth to get that property? Personally, I think the property should be used to provide some affordable housing, whether the town does it or someone else. But how much should the town spend?
Please come to the town meeting. When you add these things up, it's real money. And if you really support a particular one of them, you have to think about opposing the others. Do your homework. As Craig Elliott has often said, make spending decisions as if it were your own money, because it is.
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4 comments:
Richard
I couldn’t agree more with your first and last statements. "There are some big spending issues facing the town." and "Make spending decisions as if it were your own money, because it is."
I would opine that rather than highlight the way the issues are settled at these town meetings we concentrate on getting more of the town’s people involved in the decision making process. This is not a representative form of government, yet it seems that this is the way the people treat it. While every resident has a vote, only about half the people actually exercise their right to vote. If you go to the special meetings there are even less.
I would be willing to sit down with you to hash out ways to get more people involved. But I don’t know that you would be interested. If I am wrong then perhaps we can get together. I am sure we can find many ways to get more people involved. This site is very informative and is one way to get information out, but how many people really read it. One problem we have to overcome is apathy. Another big problem is limited information and misinformation.
Wow!! I've been trying to do something along all these lines for years. We once had the "Egremont Civic Association" that did this, but it died for lack of interest and leadership.
Whoever you are, anonymous, call me at 528-2108. And all you other concerned folks out there, do the same.
Richard
I don't know if you still wish to get together on the idea we discussed before you went on vacation. It seems that since we talked the coles have died down. I have to wonder if it is because we seem to lack unity in our opinion. If so I understand. see you at the meeting
I'm still very interested in doing whatever is possible to get the word out on what is going on in town. But I've been unsuccessful in getting someone to head up an effort to revive the old Egremont Civic Association or something like it. Any ideas, anyone?
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