In the last couple of days, five residents have taken out nomination papers to run for School Committee.
This is in addition to incumbent Erin Canzano, who's also running. The other incumbent who's up this year, John Samia, announced his retirement two weeks ago (see "A Contest After All").
These five new potential candidates are:
I'm very excited about the possibility of Shrewsbury getting involved in the project described below. I've joined a small advisory group that is helping the Town to author its application. We've got a short time to complete the proposal and we need community support.
So I ask you to join us. Read the press release below and get involved!
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For the first time in a decade, local Democrats have a chance to reclaim the representative seat in this, the Eleventh Worcester district.
The seat is being vacated by Republican Karyn Polito, who is running for statewide office. The seat had previously been held by Democrats Roberta Goldman and Leo Corazzini. The district also includes two of Westborough's five districts, but is so thoroughly dominated by Shrewsbury that the next Rep is certain to come from Shrewsbury.
Before the battle begins, however, Shrewsbury Democrats are carefully mulling their many potential candidates.
Among those frequently mentioned as potential candidates are: Peter Whitney (former selectman), Donna O'Connor (former selectman), Kevin Byrne (former moderator), and Moe DePalo (current selectman).
Who do you think is in? If you're mulling a run, you can let me know directly.
What with this little election over, and more around the corner, let us now take a small break and catch our collective breaths.
Apropos of nothing, Here's a cute little blog article you should see: Making love in the street.
Cheers.
Open thread: In which precinct did you vote and what number were you?
I'll be holding a sign around midday at precinct 9 (Centech Fire Dept.). Come by and say HI!
Update: 1:15pm: In case you're wondering (and I know you are), there are 22,061 registered voters in Shrewsbury. 351 absentee ballots were cast by the cut-off time for voting absentee (which is yesterday at noon).
Here's my prediction for the election tomorrow.
Result: Yes 62%; No 38%
Turnout: 34%
The poll (as of this morning) is trending 70%/29%, but I believe that doesn't consider all the NO voters who are not computer savvy enough to have found my dear little blog. (If you know them, please introduce them to ShrewsBuried!)
I also predict that 27 ballots will be counted as "Blank" because they will not be marked. (Blank ballots do not get counted in the final tally percentages.) This means that 27 people will go to vote; cast a ballot; but not actually choose. Go figure. Yes, I think 27 people will do that because 35 people actually did that in the January 19, 2010 Senate election, and I'm working on a hunch.
For the first time in a decade, someone other than Karyn Polito is running for State Representative.
Local businessman, Matt Beaton, is preparing a run for the Republican nomination. He owns Beaton Construction, LLC.
He's a lifelong Shrewsbury resident. a town meeting member and member of the Shrewsbury Development Corporation. He says that, "being a small business owner here in town, I know the struggles small businesses face dealing with taxes, insurance and general obstructions to running a healthy business."
He also says he's an active advocate of environmental preservation. He owns a construction company that focuses on green building and energy efficiency. He is also an avid outdoorsman and says he has "developed a passionate desire to do my part to preserve our natural environment."
Beaton has an undergraduate degree from WPI in Biotechnology with a concentration in Environmental Engineering. He later attended BU for a Masters Degree in Energy and Environmental policy. He worked in a law firm while training for the United Stated National Rowing Team. He trained at the Donohue Rowing Center and represented the club and Shrewsbury at the World Rowing Championships. Beaton practiced as an environmental engineer for two years before starting his own construction company.
For community service, he has been a Big Brother for over 14 years and his "little brother" is now a crew chief for his company. Some of his charitable organizations in which he's been involved has included St. Mary's parish, Why Me, Outdoor
Explorations and Habitat for Humanity.
His website is still under construction, but you'll be hearing more about him here on ShrewsBuried!Rep. Polito is running for State Treasurer, but hasn't made a formal announcement yet. That's likely to come Monday morning at the Omni Parker House in Boston.
Consider the facts … Vote Yes on the New Sherwood project!
To many the vote on the New Sherwood project makes a lot of sense and although no one likes to spend money on infrastructure if you don’t have to, in this case we have to. The old Sherwood building has served us well, but is in need of, at a minimum, extensive renovation and repair. In addition, to garner State funding for the project and to comply with State regulations the facility needs to be expanded to provide adequate support services for the student population (cafeteria, restrooms, auditorium, SPED classes, etc.).
This is sort of like when you have to decide whether it’s worth repairing the old car yet another time, or whether you bite the bullet and buy a new car. This decision might be made a lot easier if someone was willing to split the cost of the new car (I know it would be for me).
So, we are faced with a similar decision as a community, whether we pump money into the old school, or bite the bullet and build a new school. How do we decide? Well, with a car, it’s generally the cost of the repair, or the cumulative cost of the repairs you’ve made lately, and how long the repair will keep you on the road until you have to shell out more money for another repair. What’s the final straw? New transmission? New struts? Rebuilt engine? Well in the case of the old Sherwood, extensive repairs are needed, and asbestos and other toxic material needs to be abated. Almost every physical plant system needs to be replaced and it needs a new roof, and to get state matching funds it needs to be expanded. Because the repairs and new space are expensive it brings the cost of renovation/addition close to the cost of building new. But, even though that might be enough to make most people decide to go with the new school, the State is providing over half the funds to construct the new school. The choice seems clear, to go with the New School. However, how do you know there’s still not a cheaper better option, a cheaper renovation/addition plan that the State will provide over half the funds for? You have to look at the facts and sift the good information from the bad. A letter to the editor was recently published on Shrewsburied, calling on us to “Stop the Insanity and vote No” on the funding for the New Sherwood project. But, let’s not delude ourselves, let’s look at the facts.
Delusion number 1. The MSBA’s approval was based on incorrect data.
This item involves the calculation of the projected energy savings for the new Sherwood verses the renovated Sherwood.
It has been stated regarding the calculation of the projected energy savings for the New Sherwood plan in comparison to the renovation/addition plan that “At the time, $2.5M over 20 years was the projected energy savings compared to the proposed renovation/addition. Updated figures show that savings to be only $0.7M.”
The original calculation was made by engineers who based their calculations on design data and projected fuel costs. I’m not exactly sure where the 0.7M figure comes from, since it does not seem to take into account future factors, like rising energy costs.
Who realistically thinks that once the economy recovers that energy prices will not increase and who thinks that energy prices will not rise dramatically as worldwide oil supplies dwindle over the next 20 years? Energy efficiency will become increasingly important in the future and is a major advantage of the New Sherwood plan.
Delusion number 2. The new building is too big.
This thought is based on the town projections for the middle school population, which shows a decline over the next several years. However, the projected lifespan of the new school is at least 50 years and any short-term downward trend in the student population now is more than likely temporary. All it takes are a couple of more apartment complexes.
Delusion number 3. A renovation meeting the MSBA requirements could be accomplished for $25M.
This estimate is absurd and not supported by the facts. The estimated cost of renovating the existing Sherwood is 20M, without any additional space! Does anyone really believe that the additional required space can be constructed for 5M? And make no mistake about it the new space is required for MSBA approval. The renovation of Oak Middle School made sense because no additional space was required as the school was being reduced from four grades to two.
Delusion number 4. It will have 20% INCREASED energy costs.
Although the proposed larger New Sherwood will have increased energy costs relative to the existing Sherwood, this is not the fair comparison to make. The fair comparison is between the planned New Sherwood and alternative plans to renovate Sherwood. In such comparisons, according to the engineering data, the New Sherwood is much more efficient and therefore more cost-effective than the renovated Sherwood. Energy considerations will become increasingly important in the future as energy costs inevitably rise.
Delusion number 5. It is fiscally irresponsible.
Some have claimed that the existing Sherwood has 38 classrooms and the new Sherwood will have 38 classrooms, implying that the town will gain nothing from the new school. This in the context of complaints that the New Sherwood plan is too big! What this comment fails to mention is that the old Sherwood classrooms are too small according to state regulations, and that new classrooms will be larger and will comply with state regulations. There will also be additional SPED and ESL facilities that will also meet state regulations, while the existing Sherwood does not have adequate facilities in these two areas. These changes are necessary to obtain funding from the State. The New Sherwood will also eliminate the need for the existing modular classrooms that are nearing the end of their estimated longevity and provide adequate cafeteria, auditorium and restroom space the student population, which the present Sherwood building does not.
Delusional number 6. The second option renovation/addition goes too far.
In reference to the renovation/addition proposal, it has been stated that the renovations would result in a renovated school bigger than the proposed new school. In fact, the renovated school with additional required space would be almost exactly the same size as the proposed new school (132,000 sq. ft. vs. 130,000 sq. ft.). This additional space is largely required to meet MSBA standards for state reimbursement.
It has also been stated that “per the MSBA, Sherwood is in good condition and could support renovation.’” This is a misleading characterization of what the report said. The report actually says that “While the facility is generally in good condition and could support renovation and addition structural upgrades, the study indicates that the low floor to ceiling clearances and the need to create physical space for routing new mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and fire protection systems will significantly drive up cost and complicate the project.” In other words, it makes the renovation/addition option more expensive and less cost-effective. To quote (or paraphrase) only the first part of the sentence is misleading and attempts to hide the fact that there are major drawbacks to the renovation/addition option.
I hope you will agree that after consideration of the facts, the best option is to approve the funding for the construction of the New Sherwood on March Tuesday, March 2. Vote Yes for the New Sherwood!
Sincerely,
Paul Dobner
While standing out in the town square today, holding a sign, I noticed the homemade signs by John Lukach. One said, "Stop the Insanity" and the other said, "$1million per Classroom".
Too bad he forgot his third sign, the one that should have said, BUY ONE GET ONE FREE: "$1million for 1 classroom, bathroom is free; $1million for 1 classroom, safe gymnasium is free; $1million for 1 classroom, large cafeteria is free, $1million for 1 classroom, all furnishings are free, etc.
I mean come on, what is he talking about a bunch of one room classrooms? What about all those other rooms are they free?
