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| Committees kept in dark on override idea | Wednesday, September 29, 2004 |
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| D. Craig MacCormack 508-626-4429 | Metrowest Daily News |
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FRAMINGHAM -- Leaders of the town Finance and Capital Budget committees
yesterday questioned Town Manager George King's approach to a proposed
$90 million capital budget override, saying they were left out of the loop.
Finance Committee Chairman John Zucchi was "unfortunately ... surprised" when he heard about the package, and Capital Budget Committee Chairwoman Jeanne Bullock wonders why King didn't talk to her board before presenting it. "Maybe he thinks (the debt exclusion override) is necessary, but I don't agree," said Bullock. "There are other ways of getting some of these things done. "Some of the items on this list are nice to have, but that doesn't mean they're necessary," she said, pointing to the proposed townwide communications center ($5 million) and installation of wireless Internet access ($2 million). King, who is not required to present the override proposal to the Capital Budget Committee before showing it to selectmen, declined an interview request from a News reporter yesterday. He made his pitch to selectmen late Thursday night. "I think it was appropriate for George to go to the policy-making board with this first," said selectmen Vice Chairwoman Katie Murphy. "If we had said to go no further, he would have gone no further with it. "This in no way minimizes those other committees' impact on the process. A proposal like this needs to go before every board, committee and neighborhood group before it gets approved," she said. The proposal, which King hopes will go to a special Town Meeting in January and be on the townwide ballot in April, includes money to renovate the Memorial Building, repair roads and sidewalks, and fix schools and historic buildings. Zucchi was surprised to hear about King's presentation to selectmen, saying the town manager didn't mention it to the Finance Committee during a meeting with members two days earlier. "The bond rates are favorable right now, but we already have the high school override on our tax bills," said Zucchi. "Whether some parts of the community can afford the increase is questionable, but maintaining the town's infrastructure is important. "If there are necessary improvements to our infrastructure, this is a good time to enter the bond market. That's not saying all of the items on that list are necessary, appropriate or would be approved," he said. Bullock wants to see King use free cash only for capital projects, not spend it on operational expenses. That would give the town more money for big-ticket items, she said. "We can do projects as they come along," she said. "We don't have to do them all at once." She also questioned King's calculations that the average homeowner, with a house assessed at $298,000, would pay another $150 per year in taxes if the $90 million proposal passes muster with voters. "When the new assessments come out (in late 2005), there's not going to be anybody in that price range," said Bullock. "You're going to see people with $400 to $500 increases (per year in taxes). How are they going to afford it?" Zucchi called King's timetable "very ambitious," and Bullock wonders how it will come together so quickly. "To try to get all of this information together in such a short time isn't easy," she said. "You don't ask taxpayers for $20 million for roads unless you know exactly what roads. You need precision." |
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