Commentary by Frank Schroth
First, MyTownMatters does not endorse candidates (what do think we are? nuts?). But we take this time of year seriously and believe it matters . . .a lot. This is a gentle reminder to take a few moments to inform yourself on who is running and what they stand for. The town is fortunate to have candidates willing to spend their time, money, and energy for an opportunity to serve the town. You have a responsibility here, too.
Coming out of the Milton Speaks Candidates forum there were three key differences that quickly came to light between the candidates for Board of Selectmen: their height, weight and age. They agreed that the selectmen should not have granted the developer of a 40B on Randolph Ave access through the DPW yard, and they also agreed that the Selectmen acting as Trustees of the town farm should have awarded the project to the Copeland Foundation rather than Pulte. Neither explained how accepting a bid that was millions less than the highest bid would have honored the condition of benefiting the poor, the legal obligation of the Trustees. We understand – those Indian Cliffs people vote! And it’s campaign season. And it is easy for me to be a bit glib. It is much harder to get out and campaign. In the time since that first forum, the two candidates have more clearly etched their positions. You can learn more about them here and can also find the candidate forums on MATV’s Youtube channel.
School Committee, Parks Commissioner, and Library Trustee all have contested races and (in our opinion) strong candidate slates.
If you have a question for them, contact them! Or send it to frank@mytownmatters.com and we will be happy to publish it.
Whatever you do, please take some time to learn who these folks are. They will be controlling a $100 million dollar budget (about half of that is schools). So you may want to think about who you are putting in charge and base that decision on more than where they were born, where they came from, or whom they have their arm around.
I believe the article is off in the school portion of the town’s budget by approximately $49,500,000.
correct – I meant to say “half” – the copy have been revised. Thanks
Last year approximately 15% of Milton voted in the town election.That seems like a very low percentage when one considers that this is the place we call home, rest our heads, raise our children and in most cases own our single largest investment. Here are a few things to consider when you wake up on April 28th and decide how to spend your day:
1.) Voting in Milton almost certainly takes no more than 20 minutes and very likely takes less than 10 minutes.
2.) The winners of this election will greatly impact the annual town budget.
3.) If you are raising a family in Milton, almost half of the town’s annual budget goes to educating your children. The winners of this election will effect this budget.
4.) By the way, if your children are grown but you plan to retire in Milton, some of the children being educated will very possibly be coming back to Milton and running the town when you are a Senior.
5.) If you are a Senior, the winners of the election will impact the Council on Aging and whether the town works to create additional types of housing in town if you are looking to downsize.
6.) If you own a car, generate trash and enjoy showering, remember that the DPW uses over 7% of the Town’s budget.
7.) Do you feel safe? The police use approximately 9% of Milton’s annual budget.
8.) Is your house on fire? The fire department relies on almost 7% of our annual budget.
Get it? If so, please vote. Bring your friends!
Frank – I wouldn’t mock the candidates for wishing the Copeland Foundation had been chosen to purchase the Town Farm. The hard truth was that the Attorney General’s responsibility was to maximize the funds in the Governor Stoughton Trust, and Pulte offered the most money. I, too, wish it could have been otherwise. It’s beginning to appear as though the Pulte project may never happen. If the Copeland Foundation bid had been the winner, the Trust would have had the money for several years now, the Town would have had an amenity, and the animal shelter (my personal priority) would have been built. It’s hard not to dream.