Enfield Development To Have Little Impact on Longmeadow

The following LTE written by Elayne Eyan is in response to last week's article in The Reminder entitled Enfield Development To Have Little Impact on Longmeadow

_______________________________________________________

Mayfield Road Project Plan (click image to enlarge)

To the Editor:

Contrary to The Reminder's recent article, the proposed development on Mayfield Road in Enfield, CT WILL have a huge impact on Longmeadow, particularly to the residents on Shaker and Maple Roads.  The article quotes Longmeadow Planning Chair Walter Gunn saying he saw "no impact on Longmeadow residents" from this project.  But what the headline doesn't point out is that, when interviewed for the article, Mr. Gunn stated he had "not heard specifically about this proposal".

Since Mr. Gunn had not yet heard about the proposal, we must assume he did not know the plans include 34 separate apartment buildings, with 10 units in each, housing between 600 and 1000 people.  He would also not have seen the study which shows 70% of the cars leaving the development will turn north, directly into the intersection of Maple Road/Shaker Road in Longmeadow.. Most of these cars will continue west on Maple Road to Longmeadow Street, adding hundreds of cars to this residential neighborhood during commute times.  I would like to hear Mr. Gunn's opinion of this project once he has had a chance to review the plans for this inordinately large complex, "by far the largest in the area" according to your article, which will directly impact all residents of Longmeadow's Maple Road, not just the abutters of this large development.

I would also like to point out that this proposed development is apartment rental units and bears little resemblance to the small condo developments mentioned in the article.   

The Enfield Planning and Zoning Commission has not yet approved the required special permit for the Mayfield development.  The public hearing for the permit has been continued until their July 11th meeting.  Anyone from the public may go to the meeting to express their concerns, or may submit letters to the Commission prior to July 11th, if they are unable to attend.

I'm all for the improvement of this neglected piece of land.  But an over-sized development that exports its traffic problems directly into our neighborhood, is not an improvement to Longmeadow.

Elayne Ayan
(875 Maple Road, Longmeadow, MA 01106)

Thank you for your support!

Longmeadow voters…. let’s not "bullet vote"

Bullet voting is a tactic in which the voter only selects one candidate, despite the option to vote for a second candidate.  Candidates may encourage bullet voting by their supporters.

One example is where there is an election for two seats of the same office, and there are several candidates (say A, B, and C).  The upcoming Select Board election on Tuesday is a good example.

Voters in such a situation have two votes. Candidate A encourages his voters to vote only for him and not use their second vote. If the second vote is cast for B or C, it helps A's opponents. If supporters for B and C vote for them, while A's supporters cast one vote for A and split their second vote between B and C, A is significantly disadvantaged.

If enough voters bullet vote, almost any voting system functions like a plurality voting system which is generally considered a poor result.

Longmeadow voters…. get to the polls on Tuesday but let’s not bullet vote.

We need to elect the two best qualified candidates for Select Board in this upcoming election.

[some excerpts from Wikipedia were used in the above commentary]

Time For Change by Alex Grant

             In the past few months, I have spoken to many Longmeadow town residents with differing political philosophies, people with differing views about the role of government, about the appropriate level of taxation, and about how to prioritize the needs of today and the needs of tomorrow.  Many of these people would seldom agree on matters of town politics, or even of state or national politics.  But these same people have consistently said that Longmeadow needs change on the Select Board.

            Over the past year, town residents have seen a town manager search that started too slowly and took too long; the result was that it took 18 months to replace Robin Crosbie after she gave her notice.  The vacancy for the director of Adult Center was not posted for five months, and that position went unfilled for most of the year.  The Maple Road paving project started too late, it took too long, and the result was a big mess and wasted tax dollars.  And the year culminated with the overwhelming rejection of the Select Board's budget at Town Meeting.

            If that track record counts as success, then town residents would hate to see failure.  The current lineup on the Select Board is out of step with what the people of Longmeadow want to see in their town government.  The dysfunction on the Select Board can be traced to the disconnect that exists between the voters and the board. 

            A symptom of that disconnect is the overwhelming percentage of men–80%–on our appointed boards.  The Finance Committee has no female members, and it hasn't included a woman since 2009.  We are clearly not utilizing all of the talent that exists in Longmeadow.  If elected, I will have no higher priority than to reach out to talented people who have not served before to fill the vacancies that exist on our appointed boards.

            Keeping the same group in power in times of good performance and bad means that we keep having the same conversations over and over.  The same issues repeat.  Politicians try to divide residents over town vs. school.  We hear clarion calls of crisis over the state of the town's infrastructure by the same politicians who presided over the making of that crisis.  We hear startling figures of $140 million and $180 million for capital spending, and there is no long term capital plan, and apparently, no desire to produce one.

            It is said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.  If we return the same group on the Select Board, if we maintain the status quo, we can expect the same conversations during the next year, and we can expect the same results.

            Some of the dysfunction on the Select Board can be traced simply to rigidity.  What sense did it make to only make appointments once per year when there were both qualified and interested applicants and vacancies at other times of the year?  What sense did it make for the Select Board to meet this year on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, a step strongly discouraged by the Attorney General in her guidance on the state's open meeting laws?  What sense did it make to not televise many of the meetings?

            In my professional life, I have worked at a corporate law firm in Boston, and I have been a federal prosecutor for nearly 15 years both here and in Washington, DC.  I can recognize when government is working well and when it is not.  I also understand the meaning of public service.  A member of the Select Board, above all, serves the public.  Questions, comments, and concerns from town residents are not impediments to getting things done on the Select Board.  The input of town residents is not an annoyance.  That interaction is an essential part of the job, and indeed, the most important part of the job.

            The Select Board cannot, under our Town Charter, go it alone.  Our form of direct democracy requires engagement with voters because they have the final say.  The Select Board also needs to work collaboratively with the School Committee and our other boards, just as our interim town manager suggested we should do in coming up with a capital plan. 

            The genius of our form of government is its capacity for change.  We are not doomed to stagnation because the opportunity for new ideas and fresh perspectives exists so long as we have elections and people are willing to serve.  I am willing to serve, and I am ready to listen and to communicate with voters in a way that no Select Board member has done in the recent past.  Together we can make a change on June 11.

My email address is alex.grant68@yahoo.com.

Mark Gold Asks For Your Vote on Election Day

The following letter to the editor was submitted by Mark Gold, current member of the Longmeadow Select Board to the Longmeadow Buzz blog and Longmeadow News for publication this week.



                                                                    
                                             June 6, 2013
Dear Neighbor,                                                                                    

I have been privileged to serve on the Longmeadow Select Board for the past four years.  During that time we have accomplished much, but there is work that remains to be done and I am again asking for your vote so that I may continue to serve the Town as a member of your Select Board.

In each of the past four years I have been instrumental in the preparation of the town budget – balanced budgets that have maintained the level of services that town residents have come to expect, while at the same time keeping our tax rate within the limits of proposition 2 ½ . As I promised when I ran for this position, I have come to each meeting prepared and having done my homework, bringing a common sense approach to resolving the town’s issues.  I have initiated compromises when I felt they were necessary yet was not afraid to assert my position when that made the most sense.

I am proud of my contributions to the town these past four years, not just in the role I played in four consecutive quality budgets, but in many other specific activities, including the following:

• Setting a payment schedule for the $44 million in high school bonds that minimizes their tax impact
• Identifying and implementing an energy conservation and electric bill reduction program for the town buildings funded by utility grants and interest-free loans
• Leading our October, 2011 storm recovery effort
• Negotiating a six figure reduction in the purchase price of replacement water meters.
• Initiating and passing the optional meals tax that will provide an estimated $80,000 in added town revenue each year.
• Leading the negotiation process that brought about a compromise with the school department resulting in the budget approved at this year’s annual town meeting.

Despite these successes, there is much more to do.  Chief among my goals remains the implementation of new cost saving and revenue generating programs for the community.  The values that Longmeadow residents continue to express require that town expenses be able to grow beyond the constraints of property tax revenues.  By seeking new revenue sources that are consistent with the character and priorities of the town, we can continue to fund the programs and services that are important to all our residents while minimizing tax increases.

To provide the balance that I believe we all realize is necessary to this town, I ask for your vote on June 11, 2013.

                                                                                                Sincerely,

                                                                                                Mark Gold 

Watch the May 29 Select Board Debate

Watch the May 29 Select Board Debate here and decide for yourself whether it is time for change on the Select Board.

To the Citizens of Longmeadow

The following article was submitted by Mark Gold, incumbent candidate for re-election to the Longmeadow Select Board in the upcoming Annual Town Elections (June 11) to the Longmeadow Buzz blog and Longmeadow News.

__________________________________________

Dear Longmeadow Neighbor,

I am writing this open letter to the citizens of Longmeadow asking for each of your votes in the June 11, 2013 Longmeadow Select Board election.  I am asking for your vote based on my four year track record of achievement for the town of Longmeadow – a record that has demonstrated that I am making balanced and appropriate decisions on behalf of the entire population. 

Back in 2007 our town residents passed a proposition 2-1/2 over-ride by 7 votes.  At the time, town residents were told that the over-ride was designed to last 3 years at which time we would likely need another.  The budget we just passed at this month’s town meeting was our 8thsince that over-ride – and I’ve played a major role in each of the last four budgets.   I believe that fiscal responsibility is a key characteristic that most citizens want in a Select Board member, and our ability to run the town within the proposition 2-1/2 limit for the past eight years has shown that I have that ability.  Most importantly, this budgeting was done with NO impact on town services or school programs.  This year I was the force leading the compromise with the School Department that showed them why we really needed only $353,000 to achieve the educational goals they sought, not their original requested $750,000.  Did I cut the school budget – NO – I increased it by $353,000!  In the budget negotiations with the School Committee I pointed out, for example, that they should BUDGET for the teachers who would be retiring and replaced with teachers at a lower salary step – change that allowed us to reduce their originally requested budget salary line item by $160,000 to reflect those retirements.  Working with the school committee we found $400,000 in reductions to the original school budget that we could all live with that didn't cut educational excellence.

During my four years as a member of the Select Board I’ve also pushed for other financial benefits for the town to reduce our dependence on real estate tax revenue.  I got the local meals tax before town meeting.  The revenue from this tax will raise $80,000 for the town.  I negotiated contracts with vendors that saved hundreds of thousands of dollars for the town.  But my achievements go beyond just financial.  The leadership I showed during the October, 2011 storm recovery, the leadership in behind the scenes labor negotiations, and the BALANCE I have brought to the deliberations of the Select Board and the discussions between the Select Board and the School committee have truly been positive for the town.

Moving forward, I have ideas that will continue to further the programs that the citizens of Longmeadow generally support.   There’s no reason why we can’t have a town-wide wireless internet system.  Residents could cut their Comcast internet bills, use their smart phones on Wi-Fi settings throughout town to save on phone bills, all while the town gets a share of the proceeds.  Such town-wide WiFi systems are being installed all over the country, and we can have this system in Longmeadow.  We can purchase our street lights from WMECo and save as much as half of the $750,000 per year we spend in rental and lighting costs.  We can upgrade our roads and sidewalks.  I’ve expressed these very concrete (pardon the pun) proposals that will continue to move the town forward in a fiscally responsible manner while maintaining the character of the town that drew most residents here in the first place.

So, it is based on these specific examples of achievement and forward thinking that I ask for your vote on June 11th.  I have a demonstrated record of service to the town for over fourteen years that shows that the residents of Longmeadow can expect this level of dedication and achievement to continue through my next term on the Select Board.

I would leave you with this thought:  There’s nothing broken about the town of Longmeadow and how it’s operating.  Certainly things can always be better, and I plan on continuing our progress for the next three years.  I plan on achieving that progress from a position of understanding, experience, and demonstrated performance.   

I would ask for your vote on June 11th and the vote of your friends and family.

Warmest Regards,
Mark Gold

Is our Town Meeting form of government broken?

This year's Annual Town Meeting (ATM) was held on May 7 in the gymnasium of the new Longmeadow High School.  Having attended many town meetings during the past 33 years that I have lived in town I was amazed to see a new dynamic in play at this last meeting.  It seems that the pro-school coalition- a well organized group with an ability to fill any town meeting venue using social media and with direct ties to the School Committee (SC) was determined to increase school department spending in direct opposition to the Select Board (SB) and Finance Committee (FC) recommendations.

A large contingent of town voters came to this town meeting for one vote only- Article 6, to increase the School Department's FY2014 budget by $353,000. (If you doubt that this was the case, watch the end of the video clip below to see 40-50% of the meeting attendees leave after this vote.)

Background Information
Prior to the town meeting there had been many discussions between the SB and the SC regarding the level of FY2014 funding for the Longmeadow School Department.  The FY2014 budget guideline established by the SB for all town departments including the School Department was for a 0% increase vs. the current FY2013 budget.

All town departments except the School Department submitted budgets with 0% increases.  The SC approved an increase of $706K citing significant effects on Longmeadow education if they were forced to accept a 0% increase.  A compromise budget increase of $353K developed by a joint SC/SB committee failed to gain approval by the full SB.

SC members + a large contingent of pro-school advocates rallied their forces and showed up at the May 7 ATM in order to move forward an amendment to increase the SB recommended FY14 School Dept. budget.

Article #6 involved the FY2014 budget and was an important article on the 2013 ATM warrant.  In the video clip below showing key portions of the ATM (courtesy of LCTV) you will see three different amendments proposed for Article #6.

1. Addition of $353K as recommended by the joint SB/SC compromise committee and supported by the SC (proposed by Michael Clark, chairman of the Longmeadow School Committee)
2. Addition of $706K to the FY14 school dept budget (proposed by Jessica Hutchins, town meeting member)
3. Addition of $2.5 million to the FY14 school dept budget (proposed by David Gustafson, town meeting member)

Mr. Gustafson's secondary amendment to Article #6 was obviously done to highlight the potential jeopardy of the process for town meeting members to make proposals without due diligence.  SB Vice-Chair Mark Gold also pointed out that approval of amendment #2 (increase by $706K) would be an irresponsible action by the Town Meeting without having identified funding sources first and could lead to some dire consequences with other portions of the town budget.

I believe that if SC Chair Michael Clark had not pushed back on the need for the $706K amendment, town meeting members would have approved it.

In the end, the School Dept budget for FY14 was increased by $353K.

Bottom line:

Now that this pro-school special interest group has been successful, it may be emboldened to do more.  Don't be surprised to see another attempt to increase school funding at a future town meeting- particularly a fall town meeting when fewer people are in attendance.

Voters looking to see that there is balanced spending of their tax dollars between schools and everything else better paid heed to what is happening at town meetings. Better still, they should attend them rather than watching the meetings on LCTV.

A Poor Case for a Mayor

            Winston Churchill once said, "democracy is the worst form of Government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time."  And so it may be said of our direct democracy, the Town Meeting form of government rooted in the very founding of this town.

            In a May 19 interview on LCTV, Select Board member Mark Barowsky put forth a different idea, a mayoral form of government in order to put an end to Town Meeting.  He further stated he wanted to put the School Committee under the mayor.  By changing our form of government, this idea would concentrate power in the hands of a single individual, with the Select Board essentially becoming like a city council.  The town manager would be gone.  The mayor, armed with a bare majority on the Select Board, could re-make the town every few years, with the voters having no direct say over anything.

            This call for an elected mayor comes on the heels of the voters' overwhelming rejection of the Select Board's annual budget at Town Meeting.  This call for a subservient school committee comes at a time when it is clear that the elected representatives of the School Committee have minds of their own, and that they are prepared to make their case to the voters, and not just to three members of the Select Board.

            Barowsky's idea does address the momentary political problem of the voters exercising autonomous will and not following the policies favored by Barowsky.  Putting the School Committee to heel under a mayor would also solve the problem of that pesky board trying to stop cuts that would increase class sizes and diminish the quality of education in Longmeadow's schools.  These benefits are, at best, dubious.  The costs of that kind of change to our town charter, on that other hand, are fundamental.

            In 1774, the tradition of town meetings was considered so sacred that Parliament's act of forbidding them within Massachusetts (part of the "Intolerable Acts") helped lead to the American Revolution.  That act is even referenced in the Declaration of Independence as one of the grievances that justified separation from England.

            To be sure, times and circumstances change, and Town Meeting democracy has been abolished in large cities in New England.  And it never took hold in the same way in the South and the West the way it did here in New England.  But a tradition as longlasting as our form of town government does deserve respect, having proven its worth in different eras and in crises more grave than any problem currently facing Longmeadow.

            More problematic is the notion that we must take power away from the people because the people cannot be trusted to make decisions on matters of the town budget and taxation.  It is certainly true that voters do sometimes make bad decisions, but there is no greater discipline than having to live with one’s own decisions.  Town Meeting has its faults, but there are ways to make its deliberations most robust and more meaningful.  Democracy is, and ever will be, an imperfection. 

              The alternative form of government, one with a strong mayor, is not better, as it depends on the strengths and frailties of a single human being, rather than the checks and balances contained in our town charter.  A mayor, as Holyoke learned, can reverse course on an important issue like casinos, and suddenly, a casino is on the table.  And who exactly would be this mayor?  Is there any town politician in recent memory whose wisdom and judgment was so esteemed that he or she would be worthy of such a powerful office?  If none comes to mind, then this mayor idea should give town residents pause.

            The experience of our larger neighbors in western Massachusetts proves that mayors can be a hit-or-miss proposition.  A recent mayor of Agawam made more headlines for extra-matrimonial scuffles than for forward-thinking policies.  A single bad Select Board member can do little lasting damage. 

            A strong mayor with a school committee in his or her back pocket is an extreme solution for extreme problems, like when Chicago turned to Richard Daley as its savior.  Taking such an exceptional step, and in the process, overturning centuries of political experience, is hardly warranted for losing a vote on a town budget. 

Alex J. Grant is a lawyer living in Longmeadow.  His email address is alex.grant68@yahoo.com.

The True Cost of Quality Education in Longmeadow

At the Annual Town Meeting earlier this month there was significant debate about the Select Board approved cuts of $726K from the School Dept FY2014 proposed budget. School Superintendent Marie Doyle armed with charts and other information described how the budget as approved by the Select Board was going to have a significant effect on the quality of education in Longmeadow.  Article #6- the FY14 budget was then amended by the Town Meeting members to provide for an additional $353K of funding.  I spoke during the debate on this amendment so I thought that it would be worthwhile to share my comments with other town residents who may not have attended this meeting.  Below is a video excerpt of my remarks (courtesy of LCTV) with the cited tables inserted.

 

As mentioned in the above video, there are significant school related line items in the overall budget that are not usually considered when the School Dept budget is being reviewed.  These items include School Dept Employee + Retiree Benefits (including Health Care, Insurance, etc.) and Debt Service (Interest + Principal repayment on school project bonds).  As you can see from Table I below the cost of these items is not trivial.

Table I- The Total Cost of Delivering a Quality Education
-click to enlarge table-

During the past two years, the total cost of delivering a quality education in Longmeadow has increased by $4.8 million or 13.2%- a large portion of this increase is the debt service for our new high school.  Given that the School Maintenance is not listed here but is included within the Town Govt budget, the true cost of delivering a quality education in Longmeadow is even higher than that shown in Table I.

I get a little annoyed when I hear a town resident or a member of the School Committee claim that the town and many of its residents do not support its schools.  Our property taxes which can be seen in the chart below have increased significantly over the past two years primarily because of the new high school construction and increases in the cost of education. (Read an earlier Longmeadow Buzz blog post for additional information on property taxes.)

Table II- Longmeadow Property Taxes
-click to enlarge chart-

Over the next ten years, this recent increase in total education costs will translate to almost $50 million in taxpayer money.

With all of the pressing infrastructure needs of our town ranging from streets/sidewalks to a new DPW facility and middle school renovation/new building, our school department needs to find a way to reduce the cost of delivering their services.