Candidates for Select Board and School Committee in the upcoming Longmeadow Annual Town Elections on June 11 were asked to provide their election profile and answer a series of questions so that town voters would be better informed about their candidacy. The following information was submitted to LongmeadowBuzz blog by Joshua Levine- a candidate for relection to the Longmeadow Select Board.
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| Josh Levine |
Why are you running (again) for Select Board?
I have lived in town since 2018 with my wife Katie and three children currently attending Center School. We love Longmeadow’s vibrant and welcoming community and I want to continue the good work I have been doing for the past 3 years to keep it that way.
Being a Select Board member (as with any town position) requires a lot of learning on the job, and there is a real value in keeping experience on the board as new members learn the ropes. My position on the SB also allows me to serve as a voting member of the Middle School Building Committee, which is currently very active.
What are your qualifications including relevant experience?
I am a solo attorney in East Longmeadow with experience in real estate, estate planning, and litigation. All of my practice areas are helpful in my work on the Select Board, some in surprising ways.
For real estate, I bring a lawyer’s perspective on contracts for the town and help strengthen our negotiating positions. I also help our residents buy and sell homes every day and hear firsthand that our schools and green spaces are what brings new folks to town.
For estate planning, I work with clients to consider the legacy they want to leave for their children. I think of our town in the same way - I want to make sure to leave it in a better condition than when I arrived.
My litigation experience helps the Select Board behind the scenes, as I am able to ask probing questions of our outside counsel and assess situations with an experienced eye.
Also, with a term on the SB under my belt and a prior stint on the Planning Board, I have learned a lot from my fellow members, town officials, and other volunteers, and I want to use that knowledge going forward.
What are the key challenges facing Longmeadow as a community?
It’s no surprise to say that town revenue is the foremost concern and drives many of the other issues facing our town. We are a built-out community with a residential tax base around 95%. This means that there are no obvious growth areas, and we can’t rely on forms of revenue other than property taxation for our budget. We can’t raise taxes too much both under state law and because residents don’t want to feel squeezed. This revenue shortfall leads to many challenges. The top challenges include the following:
- Many of our roads are in abysmal shape, and there is little room in the budget for paving. The state Chapter 90 money barely makes a dent in what we need to do.
-Our water and sewer system is, in many places, approaching 100 years old. We will continue to have water main breaks and sewer collapses, at great expense, unless we take proactive action.
-For a town that prides itself on green spaces, we are in danger of losing a great number of our trees. We need to care for our existing trees and plant new ones every year to give them time to grow before we lose our existing cover.
-Many of our town facilities are in need of repair. Town offices are being temporarily moved to Greenwood, which will give us the chance to do some important updating at our town hall and community house, although it will be challenging to find the money to do so.
-The Eversource pipeline is an issue about which many residents are concerned. This redundant project, if approved, is not only an environmental and safety risk, it will also be a massive drain on our resources.
-Finally, through my work on the Middle School Building Committee, it is clear to me that our middle schools are not serving our student population as well as we would like. Middle school students are at such an important transitional age and we need to provide a resilient, effective, and safe place for them to grow.
How would you propose to resolve the top 3 issues?
-As for revenue, our current tax base can only handle so much. There is very little space to build in Longmeadow. I am hopeful that senior housing will be considered by owners of available space. This would allow our tax base to grow without causing undue burden on our schools.
We also are coming up on a unique opportunity with the middle school project. If we do consolidate to one school, we will have a parcel available to create revenue for the town. I don’t know in what form that will be, but I’m excited to work on the problem.
We also need to continue to put pressure on our state officials to find funding for Western Mass and Longmeadow in particular. We have done a fantastic job of finding grants for projects in town, but there should be more available to us.
-The pipeline issue is currently in a holding pattern while we wait for the state to take up the matter, but Town Meeting has fully funded the attorney and consultants guiding us through the process. This could heat up at any moment and I hope to be on SB to contribute when it does.
-The middle school process is proceeding apace and it will be up for a vote at Town Meeting before we know it. I think updating our middle schools is incredibly important. Longmeadow is known across the state for its schools and that is what makes our town desirable. A state-of-the-art middle school will show everyone that we are committed to providing our kids the best education possible.
I appreciate you taking the time to read my answers and I ask for your vote again on June 11th.
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| https://www.facebook.com/joshlevineforlongmeadow/ |
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