Letter to the Editor: Planning Board Chaos Underscores Need for Accountability

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Photo: The Planning Board

To the editor:

And then there were three. With the unexpected resignations this week of former Planning Board Chairwoman Liz Allison and Board member Barbara Fiacco, Belmont’s Planning Board has been reduced to just three members, having lost half its members to resignation in the past month – all three under clouds of controversy. 

The unraveling of this critical body as major projects, like Cushing Village, demand attention and others like Belmont High School loom poses a serious challenge to the Town’s leadership. It also offers a powerful argument in favor of a motion I have put before Town Meeting on Nov. 13 that will bring accountability and order to Planning Board by letting the town’s voters choose its members, as 35 of 39 other towns in Middlesex county already do.

For those readers who are hearing about this for the first time, I’ve taken the opportunity to answer some “frequently asked questions”. I hope this help inform you about this important, citizen-driven initiative. 

Why are you doing this? 

Amending our bylaws to have voters elect our Planning Board will bring transparency, accountability, and professionalism to a critical body whose jurisdiction extends to every private home and commercial property in town. Popular election of Planning Board will give voters the opportunity to evaluate all candidates for open positions on the Planning Board and to choose those who are best qualified and suited to represent the community’s interests. 

This critical change to our bylaws will also bring Planning Board in line with our Town’s other administrative boards and committees, namely: Selectmen, School Committee, Board of Assessors, Board of Library Trustees and the Board of Health, members of which are all elected by voters.

Do other communities elect their Planning Boards? 

Yes. If we consider Middlesex County of which we are a part, 35 of 39 (or 90 percent) of communities with Belmont’s form of government like Newton, Cambridge, Lowell, Somerville have opted for popularly elected Planning Boards. This list includes Winchester, Lexington, Lincoln, Sudbury, Weston, Natick, Sherborn, Stoneham, Wakefield, Westford, Holliston, Hopkinton, and on and on. Belmont is one of just four that still have Planning Boards that are appointed by the Board of Selectmen.  

Why Planning Board? Why now? 

Planning Board is one of the most critical public bodies in our town. It helps shape the town through its decisions concerning both residential and commercial development and has the power to shape public and private spaces within a town.  As it stands, however, there is no mechanism in Belmont’s bylaws to ensure that Planning Board is accountable to voters and the public in any way. This is a critical omission in Belmont’s bylaws that has directly contributed to the erratic and damaging behavior of our Planning Board in recent months. 

If elected, won’t Planning Board start kowtowing to voters instead of being independent?

Of course not. Elected Planning Board members, like other elected officials, will be expected to think independently and to use their best judgment and make decisions that they feel are in the best interest of the whole community. That’s no different than what we expect of appointed officials. 

Let’s face it: Planning Board is an unpaid, volunteer position. Election to Planning Board is no more likely to engender self-serving, short-term decision making by members than an election to other unpaid positions like Town Meeting or School Committee. Consider: the punishment for losing re-election to Planning Board for a decision that voters disagree with is that the individual is forced to volunteer less. That’s hardly the kind of punishment that will have members betraying their values and common sense.  

What’s wrong with an appointed Board? 

It is critical that voters in Belmont have a means to express their preferences for Planning Board as they do for other administrative bodies like School Committee or the Selectmen themselves.  Under our current bylaws, they do not. 

Consider: it is the Selectmen, not the public, who receive and review applications from community members who are interested in a seat on the Planning Board. Voters in Belmont are not privy to who has applied for open seats or their qualifications, nor are they given the benefit of the Board of Selectmen’s reasons for eliminating any particular candidate or ultimately appointing one over another. Yes, voters may appeal to the Board to choose a specific candidate, assuming they even know who has applied, but the Selectmen are under no obligation to heed the voters. 

Don’t we affect Planning Board with our choice of Selectman?  

It might be argued that voters can express their Planning Board preferences in their vote for a Selectman. As a practical matter, however, this never happens. Planning Board appointments are not an issue in Board of Selectman races nor have promised appointments been deciding factors – or even talking points – in selectman races. Our bylaws left unchanged will continue to shield the selection, decisions, and actions of the Planning Board from voters and any accountability. 

I hope you will support this citizen-driven effort to make an important change to Belmont’s bylaws and inject democratic accountability to this critical body. I urge you to contact Town Meeting members from your precinct and ask them to support the Planning Board article. 

Paul Roberts

Town Meeting Member, Precinct 8

West Nile Virus Found In Belmont and Cambridge

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Photo: West Nile virus back in Belmont.

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health announced today, Thursday, July 13 that West Nile virus has been detected in mosquitos recently collected from Belmont and Cambridge. 

WNV is most commonly transmitted to humans by the bite of a mosquito infected with the virus. While WNV can infect people of all ages; people over the age of 50 are at higher risk for severe infection. 

Information about WNV and reports of WNV activity in Massachusetts during 2017 can be found on the MDPH website.

As always, there are a few precautions people can do to help to protect themselves and their families.

Avoid Mosquito Bites 

  • Be Aware of Peak Mosquito Hours: The hours from dusk to dawn are peak biting times for many mosquitoes. Consider rescheduling outdoor activities that occur during evening or early morning. Otherwise, take extra care to use repellent and protective clothing. 
  • Clothing Can Help reduce mosquito bites: Although it may be difficult to do when it’s hot, wearing long-sleeves, long pants and socks when outdoors will help keep mosquitoes away from your skin. 
  • Apply Insect Repellent when you go outdoors: Use a repellent with DEET (N, N-diethyl-m- toluamide), permethrin, picaridin (KBR 3023), IR3535 or oil of lemon eucalyptus [p-methane 3, 8-diol (PMD)] according to the instructions on the product label.

Mosquito-Proof Your Home 

  • Drain Standing Water: Mosquitoes lay their eggs in standing water. Limit the number of places around your home for mosquitoes to breed by either draining or getting rid of items that hold water. Check rain gutters and drains. Make sure rain barrels are covered or screened. Empty any unused flowerpots and wading pools, and change water in birdbaths frequently. 
  • Install or Repair Screens: Some mosquitoes like to come indoors.

Letter to the Editor: Belmont Day School Expansion A Traffic Problem

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Photo: Belmont Day School.

To the editor:

I sent a letter to the Belmont Planning Board yesterday (April 4, 2017) from my neighbors and my wife and me.

[See letter below]

As you can see from the letter, we only learned last week that the Belmont Day School is proposing adding a 25,000 square feet buildings on its campus and constructing a busy new 1,000-foot roadway and parking lot that would border one side of Highland Meadow Cemetery into Concord Avenue. Besides disturbing the solitude of the cemetery, the new road would lead to serious traffic and safety issues.

Belmont Day School has grown from a small neighborhood grade school with a few children to a significant institution with hundreds of students. It recently added a middle school and is now planning on adding dozens of more students shortly. Four of my children attended the school, and I support its work and mission, but the school’s traffic is overwhelming the capacity of Concord Avenue leading to daily traffic jams and safety issues and, instead of facing and dealing with these issues, the school’s proposal and additional traffic will only make things worse.

The Belmont Planning Board is meeting Thursday night at 7 p.m. on the third floor of the Homer Building to review and possibly approve the school’s plan. The plan should not be approved in its present form, and it is time for the school, the town and residents to come to an agreement on handling travel to and from the school and incorporate solutions such as remote drop off and shuttle/bus services as most other hospitals and schools in the area have done to accommodate growth and reduce traffic congestion and safety hazards in the neighborhoods where they are located.

Tommy and Jane Driscoll

Concord Avenue

[Original letter]

Re: 55 Day School Lane (Belmont Day School) Development. 

Dear Mr. Wheeler, Planning Board Members, Board of Selectmen: 

Thank you for sending us the notice of the hearing on April 6, 2017, regarding the Belmont Day School Development (the “Project”). Despite the school’s claims in its application to have informed nearby residents of its plans, none of our households have been contacted, informed or otherwise given notice by the school of this massive Project before receipt of notice from the board last week. 

It is almost certainly the case that if our three households were not made aware of the Project, neither were most other residents in the nearby area. We ask that you not grant Belmont Day School the permits needed for the Project at this time – the school should explore other alternatives if it intends on continuing to grow its population and physical plant. At the very least, the Planning Board needs to delay action for at least six months while we and others in our neighborhood whose safety may be in endangered by the Project further research matters, seek legal counsel and have time to respond appropriately. There are going to be many upset people if adequate time is not provided by the Planning Board for the community to participate in this matter. 

Had Belmont Day School acted appropriately and taken reasonable measures to provide actual notice and awareness of this project many months ago to those in the community who are impacted, this would not be necessary. Given the importance of this matter, the Planning Board must delay under any reasonable interpretation of the facts and circumstances. 

Overall, Belmont Day School’s growth and ambitious expansion plans would seem to be exceeding the capacity of its location and threaten the tranquility our residential community. This is frequently occurring in the Boston area these days as schools and other non-profit organizations are driven to expansion due to growing funds and endowments. Other private schools and hospitals voluntarily acknowledge when their growth and ambitions are no longer compatible with the residential neighborhoods where they began decades earlier – one recent example is the nearby Carrol School in Lincoln which purchased an additional facility in a more compatible location to 

support adding a middle school to its existing grade school rather than expanding its footprint and imposing a burden on its local residential neighborhood. 

The characterizations and representations of the Project in the application appear to be disingenuous at best. The Cambridge Dictionary defines a driveway as a “short private road that leads from a public road to a house or garage”. What the school is proposing is hardly a driveway. It is a new roadway connecting to Concord Ave that will accommodate close to 1,000 cars per day (by the school’s estimate) and a new parking lot within 30 feet of graves in what is today a quiet and beautiful cemetery where relatives come to visit their loved ones in solitude on a daily basis. There are material safety issues and concerns that need to be fairly considered – the Planning Board cannot simply rely on one-sided reports commissioned and paid for by the School in fairness to us and other nearby residents. 

The traffic on Concord avenue today exceeds the road’s capacity in large part because of existing Belmont Day School traffic. Many mornings we are completely unable to access the road towards Belmont center because of the volume and back up in traffic. The proposed new roadway and increased volume would likely make it impossible at times for us to leave our homes when school traffic is backed up and create an unacceptable public safety risk for residents and children in the area. 

Also, the presence of the stone wall in the cemetery and plantings do not provide sufficient visibility for any roadway or driveway – especially one connecting to an extremely busy road such as Concord Ave where cars sometimes travel at over 60 MPH when the road is not backed up. Basic safety standards prescribed by law in Massachusetts for roadways with this usage and volume cannot be ignored simply by calling the proposed roadway a “driveway”. There are serious and legitimate safety concerns that need to be fairly studied and addressed impartially. The safety issues are not hypothetical – a pedestrian was struck and severely injured recently less than 300 feet of the school’s proposed roadway, and hundreds of bicyclists use the road as the main way through Belmont every week. 

Chip and Cindy Matthes, 711 Concord Ave. 

Laura and Tim Duncan, 699 Concord Ave. 

Tom and Jane Driscoll, 689 Concord Ave.

Letter to the Editor: For Belmont’s Children, Vote Adam Dash

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Photo: Adam Dash
To the editor:

Two years ago, I was inspired by kids studying in Starbucks to share my opinion that passing the override was crucial to our children’s future, and that of subsequent generations.

While those specific kids may have graduated by now, Belmont’s children haven’t gone away. In fact, there are only more of them. Since writing that letter, enrollment in Belmont Public Schools has increased by almost 200 students. Nor is this an isolated bubble: over the past five years, enrollment has soared by more than 500 children, and school committee projections show the trend not only continuing but exacerbating.

We need a leader who is committed to maintaining excellent schools without overburdening taxpayers. Adam Dash is that leader. He has direct experience overseeing the budget on the Warrant Committee.  He has terrific ideas on how to expand small businesses in Belmont. Moreover, he will finish the Community Path with federal funding, which will bring pedestrian and bike traffic to our business districts. And he will ensure that we meet the state’s deadline to benefit from a 30 percent subsidy for renovating or rebuilding the high school. Put quite bluntly; we literally cannot afford to miss this opportunity. If we do not make the right decisions now, we will not only cheat our kids of the school they need but ourselves of savings we could have had.

Dash has a proven track record of leveraging both public and private investment in important town projects. He spearheaded acquiring Community Preservation Act funds. He was the public face of the campaign to prevent drastic cuts to our schools and to add the teachers we needed for keeping up with soaring enrollments. As Vice Chair of the Underwood Pool Building Committee, he worked with Belmont Savings Bank to establish a matching grant campaign that allowed us to build our beautiful new pool after the lowest bidder broke his contract. I helped fundraise for that campaign and saw first-hand the kind of dedication and know-how it takes to quickly and efficiently make such public-private partnerships happen.

In his decade of service to the town on important committees, Dash has demonstrated that he can build consensus and get things done. His opponent touts service from almost forty years ago in a different town. Which do you think is more relevant to our future?

There are still kids studying in Starbucks. They still can’t vote. We owe it to them, once again, to bet on their future and that of all Belmont’s children. Please join me in voting for Adam Dash on April 4.

Mary Lewis
Randolph Street  

Letter to the Editor: OPEB — Complex Issue, Complex Discussion

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Photo: Guy Carbone

To the editor:

A one minute answer during an important debate is not the best way to discuss a complex issue.  OPEB (Other Post Employment Benefits) and how Belmont should pay for these retiree obligations is an exceedingly complex subject and deserves a complete discussion than it was possible to provide at the League of Women Voters debate.

First, Selectman Williams’ desire for a professional analysis of Belmont’s retiree obligations, per the information he sent to me, is something with which I completely agree. I do NOT support any program which would add huge increases to the property tax bill or which would make it impossible for Belmont to undertake needed building programs or meet ordinary budget requirements. For example, Selectman Williams’ proposal for a municipal bond made when he ran for Selectman is not something I support.

As required by the state, Belmont currently makes an annual payment to its pension plan; it will complete payments by 2029 well in advance of the state’s 2040 deadline.  Belmont will begin to pay OPEB requirements in 2030.  This approach was adopted many years ago when sitting selectmen were faced not only with an underfunded retirement fund but one into which no payments had been made for decades. Given the circumstances, the decision was prudent.

Today, Belmont needs to find out: (1) whether this approach is still an effective way to meet both our pension and OPEB obligations; and (2) if there is a more effective approach.  Most important, Belmont must figure out whether any change in approach would make it incredibly difficult, or even impossible, to fund all of our day-to-day requirements — schools, building projects, streets and sidewalks, police, and fire department, to name just a few — without unduly increasing property taxes.

I believe Belmont should hire a financial advisor/consultant with experience in this area to identify whether any changes would make sense. I will come to the table prepared to ask the hard questions needed to determine whether there is a better all round approach that can balance our obligations to the town and to Belmont’s retirees with the ability of Belmont’s residents to pay for them.

Guy Carbone

Woodfall Road

(Editor’s note: Carbone is running for the Board of Selectmen in the upcoming Town Election.)

Letter To The Editor: Adam Dash, An Experienced Leader

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Photo: Adam Dash

To the editor:

I am writing this letter in support of Adam Dash for Selectmen. During my time on the Belmont School Committee, I appreciated the thorough review, thoughtful questions and action-based thinking that Adam brought to the budget process, especially during joint meetings of the Board of Selectmen, Warrant and School committees.

In Somerville, where Adam has his law practice, he is a member of the Chamber of Commerce, the Mayor’s Zoning Advisory Committee and the Homeless Coalition. He has proven experience working within various municipal environments as well a deep understanding of the issues facing some of the most vulnerable in our communities.

In Belmont, Adam’s leadership positions on the successful 2015 override as well as the Warrant, CPA Study and Underwood Pool Building committees have all demonstrated that he approaches issues with an open mind without preconceived decisions. He not only asks cogent questions but listens to the answers while encouraging input from all stakeholders. Adam works to build collective consensus during the decision-making process and, most importantly, he has the skills needed to take action, facilitate the implementation of plans made and to see them through to completion.

I believe that Adam’s experienced leadership makes him the best candidate for Board of Selectmen and ask that you join me in voting for him this April 4.

Laurie Graham

Warwick Road

Former Belmont School Committee member

Town Meeting member, precinct 6

Letter to the Editor: Carbone No Stranger to Smart Governance

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Photo: Guy Carbone

To the editor:

I urge you to vote for Guy Carbone for Selectman on April 4.     

Guy is a former Watertown resident who served two terms as Selectman and three terms as School Committee member. Because of this, he is no stranger to what it takes to have smart and efficient town governance. 

Belmont faces many capital project needs, including a new high school, police station, and library. Guy has the engineering and legal experience, knowledge, and resources to help Belmont tackle these projects pragmatically without overburdening the town any more than necessary. 

Guy is already hard at work exploring creative ways the town can move forward with its capital project needs. His suggestion that the Board of Selectmen explore the use of public-private partnerships to help the town build a new skating rink and library is an example of the creative yet fiscally responsible solutions he can bring to Belmont as your Selectmen. His years of engineering experience applied to actual developments will be a real asset as Belmont deal with projects like Cushing Village.  

Guy has an incredible work ethic. I know he will dedicate every waking moment to serving Belmont.

Of the many reasons I support Guy, it is his heartfelt desire to ease the burdens many singles and families in Belmont bear as a result of high taxes and rents that resonate with me. So many young families and seniors are leaving Belmont because they just can’t afford it anymore. This is truly saddening and not what I imagine most of us want to see happen in our town. 

Guy Carbone is the right person at the right time. Please make sure to vote on April 4 and when you do, vote for Guy Carbone for Selectman.

Silvia Cruz

Winslow Road

Letter to the Editor: Dash’s Experience, Temperament Ensures Strong Selectman

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Photo: Adam Dash

To the editor:

I am writing to urge you to vote for Adam Dash for Selectman on Tuesday, April 4. The combination of Adam’s skills, experience, and temperament will ensure that he is a strong and effective selectman. 

As the senior governing body for the town, the Board of Selectmen should reflect the culmination of a progression of leadership in town governance, rather serve as an entry level position. And, in that regard, Adam has been actively involved in town governance, as a Town Meeting member since 2008, and, more importantly, as a member of the Warrant Committee, the town’s primary financial watchdog, since 2009.

Over the past six years, I have had the opportunity to meet with the Warrant Committee on multiple occasions.  On those occasions, as well as at numerous Town Meetings, I have been impressed by the insightful questions that Adam asks and the well-reasoned positions that he takes. His questions and comments are invariably right on the mark.    

I was also impressed by the approach Adam took in building support for the new Underwood Pool project in 2013. He sincerely solicited public input throughout the design process, making it clear that listening carefully to the citizens was more than just a pro forma exercise. Someone who views his role as a steward for the citizens of the town, not someone who personally wants to control the decisions, is precisely what we need in the position of selectman.  

I urge you to vote for Adam Dash. He has a wealth of experience in town matters and the genuine temperament that we need in a selectman.

Jack Weis

Chenery Terrace, Town Meeting Member, Precinct 1   

Letter to the Editor: Dash’s Experience, Ideas Make Him Ideal Selectman

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Photo: Adam Dash

To the Editor:

I write in support of Adam Dash for Selectman and hope that you will support him, too. I’ve heard Adam speak a couple of times about how he sees the role of Selectman and have been impressed on several levels.

  • First, I am struck by his extensive experience on the Warrant Committee, the fiscal watchdog for the town.  We need a selectman who has the facility with the town budget from Day One.
  • Secondly, I am impressed by his recognition that Belmont needs to get moving on its Climate Action Plan, enacted in 2008 but without any pathway to implementing it.  All over the country, action on climate change must now happen on the local level, now that we have an administration that is openly denying its existence.
  • Finally, I like his ideas on local business and how to make Belmont more business-friendly through better-permitting processes, zoning, and working with surrounding neighbors.

As a practicing attorney in the field, Adam has extensive professional zoning experience and has served on the Belmont Zoning Board of Appeals.  He also sees underused properties in town as opportunities and has the experience to help convert them into tax paying, successful businesses.

I encourage you to learn more about Adam at his website, electadamdash.com. He will serve Belmont well as our next Selectman.

Debora Hoffman

Goden Street 

Letter to the Editor: ‘Belmont’s Poll Workers and Election Staff are Amazing’

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Photo: Belmont poll workers this November.

To the editor:

Dear Neighbors and Belmont voters: 

While many Americans are focused on the results and change of power as a result of the Nov. 8 Presidential election, I call special attention to our fellow Belmont neighbors who served as election workers to guarantee the rightful exercise of our treasured right to vote. They did a fabulous job and need to be recognized for their work:

The official election results for Belmont have been finalized:

82.41 percent of Belmont’s voters cast ballots in the Nov. 8 election. That’s 14,691 residents – of whom more than 6,100 voted during the 11-day Early Voting period. The conclusion – a vigorously active electorate and even more amazing election workers and staff. We enjoyed expert assistance from many town departments, but most particularly the Police, Public Works, Fire, Library, Council on Aging, School Department, Facilities, Treasurer, Information Technology, Community Development, Selectmen’s office, even the Health Department. Lastly, the members of the press/media covering Belmont, each of our media outlets, got the word out to our residents to let them know the details of voting which really made a difference.

More than 115 election workers were trained and ready to go; 99 actually wound up working during the Early Voting Period or on election day itself along with the fantastic, hard-working staff of the Town Clerk’s office:

  • Rising before the sun to arrive at the polls by 6 a.m. and be open to voters by 7 a.m.;
  • Happily greeting every voter;
  • Checking in and out thousands of voters (14,691 to be exact), some routine, some needing extra help;
  • Researching voter information so voters who needed to go to a different precinct or community to vote could do so;
  • Helping voters who needed a little physical help or extra time;
  • Expertly responding to hundreds of phone calls from precinct election workers and voters from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Election Day and many days before and after;
  • Discreetly opening and tabulating more than 6,000 Early Voting ballots, while ensuring a secret ballot for voters;
  • Posting signs, now-famous blue arrows for Early Voting;
  • Giving up hours at home with family in the evenings and even holiday weekends;
  • Scheduling the workers like an air traffic controller;
  • Processing and mailing 1,300 absentee ballots, including those to members of the military and overseas citizens;
  • Registering  2,500 new voters since Jan. 1, 2016 and deleting many more so they could vote in their new communities;
  • Keeping everyone’s spirits buoyed, even when face-to-face with an angry voter when we made a mistake;
  • Closing out the polls, accounting for every ballots and all the legal requirements so we could post Belmont’s results to the website;
  • Hand counting 2,000 ballots for the state’s mandated Post-Election Audit when Belmont’s Precinct 2 was randomly selected, with fabulous result.
  • Most importantly, enjoying one another’s company and looking forward to working the next Belmont election.

We are extremely proud of the work these folks accomplished to make Belmont’s election a huge success with accurate results and we thank them sincerely for their efforts, their attitude and their willingness to participate so wonderfully in this open election process.  When you see them around town, we encourage you to thank them in person.

With thanks and in awe of: Janet Bauer, Ann Beaudoin, Bruce Bell, Lily Benderskaya, Will Bielitz, Walter Bishop, Deborah Blumberg, Dorothy Boyle, Terrence Boyle, Carolyn Bunyon, Mary Butler, Katherine Chaprales, Rick Chasse, Meg Cole, Melinda Comeau, Elaine Crisafi, Elaine Dalaklis, Nancy Davis, Peg Demeritt, Janet Demers, Sheila Doctoroff, Mary Dominguez, Marjory Doyle, Theodore Dukas, Hildy Dvorak, Brenda Dzierzeski, Ron Eckel, Mary Ehler, Naomi Ellenberg-Dukas,  Deborah Falvey, Eilen Farrell, Ernest Fay, Angleo Firenze, Jenna Flanagan, Mary Gavin, Andreas Geovanos, Angela Giovannangelo, Carolyn Geenberg, Suzanne Greenberg, Viktoria Haase, Jane Haverty, Steve Hodgdon, Eleanor Howe, Phil Hughes, Priscilla Hughes, Martha Jacovides, Michael Jacovides, Barbara Johnson, Frances June Jones, Ed Kazarian, Maura Kelley, Elizabeth Kenrick, Janice Knight, Loretta Kravitz, Charles R. Laverty, III, Katy Liang, Warren Logan, Theresa Lorden, Paula Lyons, Janet Macdonald, Anne Marie Mahoney, Patricia Maloney, Zenda Mancini, Ann Marinelli, Markar Markarian, Marshall McCloskey, Robert McKie, Joan McLaughlin, Charlotte Millman, Robin Moore, Gerard Morin, Michael Nasson, Linda Oates, Christine O’Neill, Diane Orfanos, Jennifer Page, Mary Paolillo, Cindy Papa, Dawn Perry, Judy Rizzo, Anne Rosenberg, Phil Rossoni, Brian Saper, Joseph Scali, Maryann Scali, Carolyn Scarbro, Ruth Scarfo, Catherine Sclafani, John Robert Scordino, Judy Singler, Barbara Skelley, Clare Stanley, Hope Stone, Elizabeth Sullivan, Matt Sullivan, Susan Sullivan, Michael Trainor, Paula Van Horn, Dolores Vidal, Wei Wang,  Michael Wissner and Catherine Zevitas.

Town Clerk Staff: Dan Cane, Nancy Casale and Meg Piccione.