A letter from Belmont High School Principal Mike Harvey details the cuts that would be necessary at the High School should the town fail to ask for or pass a Proposition 2 1/2 Override to repair a structural hole in the town’s finances.
Questioning the Development=Kids Equation
An op-ed in the Citizen Herald charges that the O’Neil and Cushing Square developments will send more than 200 new children to our schools. But will they? A 2003 study suggests that the link between development and school population is difficult to make.
The Override Playbook: Chill ‘Em then Kill ‘Em
There’s good reason to be very, very, very suspicious of the Board of Selectmen’s call to delay a vote on an override. In fact, the push to delay a vote on the override is part of a well worn strategy for sinking it, altogether.
Selectmen on override: 6 months, 180 degrees
The question for those of you who are planning to attend tonight’s meeting of the Board of Selectmen should be “what has changed” for Belmont since last Spring, when both Selectman Jones and Paolillo ardently supported passage of an Override. If the town needed it in June, why is it suddenly unworthy in January now that our budget deficit has grown and all-important one time funds, such as the Federal ARRA grants, have dried up?!
Globe Covers Override Effort
Just a note, for those of you who didn’t see the article in Friday’s Boston Globe, that there’s a good write up on the effort to get a Proposition 2 1/2 override on the ballot by Sarah Thomas. You can read the article on Boston.com.
Five (Easy) Steps to Save Our Town and Schools
What can you do to show town leaders that you want to improve the quality of life in town and don’t want to see town and school services slashed any deeper? Here’s a check list of “to dos” over the coming weeks that will get you in the mix. It starts tonight with the Board of Selectmen’s meeting at Town Hall (7:15 PM). Put your body in the audience and let the Board of Selectmen know that you support putting a proposal for a Proposition 2 1/2 Override on the April town ballot.