But Wait, There's Less!

We've got the possibility of another $1 billion in state-wide budget cuts coming on top of the already $5.3 billion announced in October. The October cuts would have spared local aid, but not any more, according to the governor: "Everything's on the table," he said, "including local aid."

In previous years, the Selectmen blamed our bad finances on the state. This came to a head in the State Senate race when Jimmy McCaffrey launched an angry diatribe against the Democrats in Boston saying that only Republican John Lebeaux could turn things around.

Will they now use this as an excuse to cut all sorts of programs? As previously noted on this blog, we have become addicted to State Aid. Who are the addicts: The Selectmen or the taxpayers? Is the state is the pusher?

Knuckle bump to SELCO; Thump on the Head to Unitil

Unitil, the NH based utility company seems to not only have lost energy during the big ice storm, but they seemed to have a lack of energy and management to maintain any type of customer service during the state of emergency. The past couple of weeks I have been reading about the people in Fitchburg and Lunenburg without power and their loser electric company, Unitil. The residents of those areas also think Unitil is a loser and have created a petition, letting the company, their legislators and Gov. Patrick know that I want another company.

I don’t know how a town goes about having their own municipal utility, but my experiences with Shrewsbury owned, SELCO have been quite good and I would urge them to look into ownership.

We might whine, complain, grump and get ticked off at our town officials and services, BUT come on, admit it, they have done a kick-butt job during and after the storm. I don’t care who was in charge, who was supposed to be in charge, who was pondering or pandering, pouting or puttering, the community effort was impressive. It is comforting to know in an emergency situation, your community can still function. And I thank you, knuckle bump to ya’ll.

The future is not looking rosy for the home finances of many and it is not looking even slightly pink on any other level. It would be great if we could get a little closer as a community, whether you wrapped your gifts in newspaper, handmade imported French art paper, couldn’t afford one or don’t believe in them, we are all human. What is truly important to us as a community?

Safety is number one for me. I will end on that note and wish everyone a happy and safe New Year.

Sweet Caroline

Once more into the national scene.

I'll get right to the punch: Caroline Kennedy would be a bad pick for U.S. Senate from New York.

Some say she's unqualified. But what qualifications do you need? Do you have to rise up through the ranks? Do you have to be a Congressman or a Governor to become a Senator? You just have to be good at: 1) Voting the right way; and 2) Dealing behind the scenes. That's it. Yes, I think a seasoned politician is more likely able to do the job well. However, plenty of non-politicians have done a good job, too.

Who cares that her father was President? That has nothing to do with this.

I know she's a smart person, but there's isn't much more than that other than her celebrity. But there should be more that that.

There are five people already in the Senate who rose to power on their family name: Bennett (R-UT), Clinton (D-NY), Bayh (D-IN), Casey (D-PA), and let's not forget our own Kennedy (D-MA). Family legacies even trickle down to Boards of Selectmen: Lebeaux (R-Shrewsbury).

No, the reason I oppose the idea of appointing her is that there is no good reason to do it. Why appoint her? Appointing her just continues the sorry legacy of celebrity politicians. Governor Paterson could do better. Luckily for him there are a lot better choices.

I welcome your comments, but I ask you to refrain from Kennedy bashing and so forth.

I’m dreaming of a Greenish White Christmas and Hanukkah

Do you find yourself hauling too many recycling bins to the curb? I have noticed many people using the small totes from the town piled up on recycling day. You do not have to use the special bins from the town; you can use your old garbage cans or other largish bins, just write RECYCLING on it. If you do this DO NOT put your paper recycling in with the glass and plastic and DO NOT go over the 40 pound weight limit.

We have started wrapping gifts and my husband is not happy about my refusal to buy anymore wrapping paper. I am reusing gift bags, even the cute baby shower ones and using the paper from a gigantic roll of leftover newspaper print given to us years ago. A few stickers, and marker squiggles and our newspaper paper is colorful. Some people even use printed newspapers and comics.

Gift wrap even that expensive kind the kids sell from their fundraisers is kind of like the junk food of the recycling world, so don’t even bother to put it in your recycling bins. The Shrewsbury Health Dept(the folks in charge of our waste disposal) has issued a statement, “gift wrap, ribbon and Styrofoam are not recyclable.” Take advantage of Shrewsbury’s offer to allow residents one free (non blue pay as you throw bag up to 34 gallons) the week of 12/29 to 1/3. However that does not mean that you can’t save your paper and gift bags for reuse next year, yes remember your great Aunt Minnie doing this? I have never been able to manage this feat of saving; I get tired of looking at it and toss it out. I have read that if is wrinkled you can spritz it with water and iron it. I have never tried this, heck I don’t even iron my clothes.

Look before you toss: many of those evil plastic clam shell packages can be recycled, just look for that Mobius Loop. Remember to remove the paperboard from it and put in your regular paper recycling bin. The same goes for food packaging, just look for that loop, especially on those food things you buy once a year and don't know what to do with them. Just Look!

How To Get Your Comments Approved

For a snowy weekend, I'm going to write about the ShrewsBuried commenting policy.

When you submit a comment, I have the option of approving or rejecting it. About 90% of comments are approved. But when I reject a comment, there's no way for that person to know why it was rejected.

So why do I reject a comment?

Now for the first time: all is revealed!  Here are some guidelines. They're not hard and fast rules; just guiding principles that help me decide. 

• Going way off topic is a bad idea.  I understand how some discussions can evolve and eventually end up far away from the original subject.  I'll try to steer us back with a follow-up comment.
  
• Make a really mean personal comment about someone else.  Going after a selectman for sleeping at a board meeting is fair game, however.
  
• Don't whine about "whining." It will be rejected.  If you criticize people for the very act of criticism then you're gonna get rejected.
  
• You can be critical of ShrewsBuried, but within reason.  It can take a little heat, but "I hate this blog" will never see the light of day.
  
• "Get a life" won't get you anywhere.
  
• Most of all: Don't use comments to try to start a new topic.  If you want to start a discussion, send me a letter.
  
• There may be others, and I'll add them here if/when I think of them.

These only apply to comments, not articles: My fellow authors and I don't have to follow these guidelines when we write our articles.

Your comments about my commenting policy are welcome.

Storm Photos Needed

Press release from the Town:

As part of the effort to document damage to property resulting from the December 12, 2008 ice storm, the Town of Shrewsbury is asking residents to email 2-3 photos showing the most destruction to their property or public property to icestorm@townisp.com. It is important that you include the address of the photos taken. This information will be compiled and included with the filing the Town will make to the federal government to recover its debris removal cost. Please send photos by Friday, December 26th.

Financial Workshop Falls Flat

October 20, November 20, November 25 and December 2 -- four nights and over 11 hours of not-so-riveting dialogue (most are still available for viewing through Shrewsbury's Video on Demand). The Town Manager presented his annual "state of the town" to the Board of Selectmen in the Financial Workshop. In the past few years, this meeting has been held in a small room, behind closed doors, with no cameras. Despite being a public meeting, few, if any, other people attended the meeting. Luckily for the public, all four sessions of this year's meeting were shown on Channel 30 on local cable.

This is my third year attending the meeting and I was glad to see some members of the Finance Committee and School Committee in attendance. In my opinion, attending this meeting should be MANDATORY for the Finance Committee and strongly recommended for all Town Meeting Members.

Very early on it became clear that the revenue picture for FY10 (the fiscal year which begins on 7/1/09) is going to be downright horrible. Most traditional categories of incremental revenue will be flat or show little growth. Our property tax increase is capped by Proposition 2-1/2 and most other local sources (new homes or businesses, excise tax, investment income, fees) are not expected to contribute much. The Town Manager expects a total of (at best) $1.5 million incremental revenue from local sources.

This nominal increase, on a nearly $100 million budget, will no doubt result in serious cuts to service, personnel levels and programs, in municipal as well as school departments. But where, exactly, will those cuts be made and how will the Town Manager prepare his first draft of the budget, to be distributed in late January?

The Board spent many hours reviewing a document which attempted to show possible areas of savings across the MUNICIPAL departments. This document, called Desired Outcomes, shows the results of cuts which could be made this year.

Possible cuts include:
1. Reduce "special" positions in the Police Dept. such as the two School Resource Officers, the liaison to the Council on Aging and perhaps the Police Boat on Lake Quinsigamond.
2. Trim fire fighter staffing by one person per shift.
3. Modify janitorial cleaning schedule at Town Hall and other public buildings -- instead of nightly cleaning, the buildings will only be cleaned twice per week.
4. Close the service windows of some/all town offices for a portion of the week; this will impact customer service.
5. Reduce or eliminate roadside mowing and common space mowing.
6. Extend route times for snow plowing, sanding and street sweeping. Some streets would not get swept each year. Citizens may be dissatisfied with the timeliness of plowing & sanding in winter.
7. Eliminate one of the 3 Senior Center vans unless Shrewbury begins to receive the agreed-to reimbursement from WRTA.
8. Contract out interment business and expand use of contractor for cemetery mowing.
9. Reduce street lighting by 20%. Perceived reduction in safety.
10. Eliminate yard waste drop-off program.

If any or all of these changes are implemented, would the average citizen notice? Would you?

Would the average citizen care? Would you?

It sounds like some delays and inconvenience, but no major impact to the day-to-day existence of most citizens. For the many people who want continued low tax bills they will not mind these reductions in service.

Will these changes be sufficient to balance the budget, or will the cuts need to go deeper?

Can anyone suggest other cuts to help balance our town's budget this year?

Pander Alert: Moe DePalo

As the Town's website states:

Volunteers Needed to Help Seniors Clear Brush - A volunteer program has been organized to assist seniors in clearing broken tree limbs and other debris. Volunteers will be asked to drag wood debris to the curb for later processing. Volunteers may call 508-841-8374 or email mbdepalo@townisp.com to get more information or to be signed up as a volunteer.

I guess disabled people need not bother calling Moe.

Poor people ditto.

Pregnant women ditto.

Thank you, Moe. You're my hero.

"Who should I vote for? Well, there's that nice boy, Moe, who cleared my yard a couple years ago…."

Why wasn't this organized through the Senior Center and/or the Council on Aging? Why Moe?

Who Pays for the Clean-up?

The town website tells residents to stack their tree branches (less than 6 inches in diameter) neatly by the curb for pick-up by the town following the damage of last Friday's ice storm. Pick-up may take a while. I already saw many piles on the side of the road today.

Am I the only one who wants to know how we are going to pay for it?

Before you say, "Hey, I pay my taxes and that's what they are for", you need a reality check. By voting down overrides year after year, Shrewsbury has no cushion of reserves for events like this ice storm or a major blizzard. All town departments are running on their leanest budgets ever, with no room for unplanned overtime or "unusual" expenses. Picking up storm debris is a service any town WOULD LOVE to offer when there are extra funds available. Shrewsbury runs so tight that we cannot afford to (and should not) provide this service for free.

Many overtime hours were expended this past weekend by Fire, Police and Highway crews. In terms of keeping the public safe, there's no doubt that they were needed -- thank goodness for the dedication and cooperation of all the town workers who went the extra mile! Clearly, the town has the responsibility for cleaning up town roads and town-owned property.

But hauling away debris from private property? Wouldn't this be the responsibility of the homeowner or business owner?

Shrewsbury has a very small budget for Forestry -- only about $70,000 for this fiscal year. That budget is used for any/all tree trimming and removal of trees on town property, most of it to pay outside contractors. Wonder if there will be anything left in that budget after next week?

If our town expends extra money for debris pick-up over the next several weeks or months, will we be eligible for reimbursement by the State or Federal government? I read one article that said IF the state exceeds a certain amount of spending ($7 million?) on the clean-up for an official "State of Emergency", then reimbursement may be possible for up to 75% of the costs. I'd want confirmation of reimbursement BEFORE committing to picking everything up curbside.

Clean Up Time

We're home, here on Gulf Street.

The power came on in the middle of the night so this morning we came home. Everything is now warm and no pipes burst.

Thank you all to the many people emailed me directly to suggest how to prevent frozen pipes. The consensus was to let the faucets drip a little because running water is less likely to freeze than still water.

My cat and bird came with us while we stayed at our friends house. But now the pets are happy to have their own house back. Our tropical fish, however, stayed behind to guard the house against the hordes of marauding zombies. Some of the fish, bless their unholy souls, didn't make it. They will be flushed with full military honors.

I believe there are still people without power tonight. If they're reading this (somehow), take heart that it will be over soon.

Keep warm, everyone.

The Ice Storm That Ate Shrewsbury

A few disorganized thoughts for a fragmented day.

We've been vagabonds today. Some very kind friends are putting us up at night, but we've tried to spend a little time at our own home, too. We're still without power (on Gulf Street), and I have no idea when it's going to be fixed. I'm very worried about my pipes freezing. If anyone has any suggestions for me (or for other readers) on how to prevent frozen pipes, post a comment here.

Did you see the line-out-the-door at Dunkin' Donuts on Maple Ave?

We picked up some sandwiches at Panera. Very busy there. Too busy even to find a table. So we bagged them and drove up North Quinsig thinking maybe we'd go to Tower Hill and have an (indoor) picnic. Closed. I can't imagine what damage they have there or maybe its just that the staff is all dealing with their homes.

So we drove up to the high school. There's a shelter set up there. Very nicely done, by the way. Kudos to Don Filiere of SEMA and to the Red Cross people too. We ate our lunches there and had a nice time hunkering down. They told me that 13 people stayed overnight there and they're getting prepared if more should come tonight.

Glavin Center may close

The Patrick administration has proposed closing the Glavin Regional Center on Lake St.

Read more here.

I'm sorry I can't cover this more tonight, and it deserved my attention. But I'm wicked busy.

RUOK- Frosty Edition

The power is off at my house, but otherwise we're doing OK. I'm slumming at a neighbor's house. Thanks to them, we've got a warm home for the night.

How are you all doing?

Addicted to State Aid

Shrewsbury has become addicted to State Aid, after experiencing increases in "Net State Aid" of (on average) more than 10% EACH YEAR from $8.83 million in FY00 to a whopping $21.78 million in the current fiscal year. The lion's share of the increase came from Aid to Education, which rose (on average) nearly 13% a year, every year from $6.56 million in FY2000 to $19.44 million in FY2009 (excluding specific SBAB grants for new school buildings). During the same timeframe, State Aid for General Government only rose from $3.02 million to $3.92 million, an average of less than 3% each year.

During the years of increasing student enrollment, Shrewsbury used State Aid increases like a crutch to balance the budget. We were grateful for the continuing increases in Chapter 70 aid and any other monies which came our way from Boston.

During those same years of growth, however, Shrewsbury's LOCAL contribution to the school's operating budget did not keep pace. As a percentage of the total school operating budget, the local contribution DECREASED over those years. NOBODY made plans for a time when enrollment would begin flattening out and we would have to be weaned from our addiction to State Aid.

In an effort to mitigate program cuts (though there have been many) and loss of classroom teachers over the past four years, the school department responded by adding fees, which have become increasingly burdensome to parents of school-age children:

Bus Fee: $210 per child; max. $420 per family (4th year)
Sports Fee: $290 per sport; max. $870 per family (3rd year)
Activity Fee: $50 per student (Grades 5-8); $100 student Grades 9-12), to participate in extra-curricular activities (Select Choir, Drama Club, Running Club, Speech & Debate)

Families which have 2 or more middle/high school students can easily be paying over $1400 per year in school fees. Fees for things which were included in a quality public education less than five years ago.

Two years ago, the Commonwealth sent a message to Shrewsbury and many other communities, that their local contribution to education must increase to avoid a penalty in the form of a reduction in Chapter 70 Aid. We did not respond to this message; our aid was reduced. Last year, Shrewsbury again was deemed to be UNDERSUPPORTING our schools and our Chapter 70 money was cut by 2%, or $565,000. Because Shrewsbury has not structurally changed the way local tax dollars are allocated to the school budget we will see a 3rd year of penalty in FY10.

For FY08 and FY09 Shrewsbury still saw a modest increase in overall (net) state aid of approximately 8% and 6%, respectively.

We already know the state is running very tight on its revenue for FY09. What happens if, for FY10, instead of a relatively small (3-5%) increase in State Aid, Shrewsbury actually sees NO INCREASE in State Aid. During the Financial Workshop last week, the Town Manager advised -- "do not count on any increases in State Aid".

Our Selectmen chose not to strongly advocate for an override in 2005 or 2006 or 2007 or 2008, leaving our town woefully unprepared for a possible downturn. This lack of leadership has eliminated all flexibility to respond to the current economic situation.

An article in the December 3 Telegram & Gazette notes that Westboro officals met with their state legislators last week and were advised of the possibility of a 5-10% DECREASE in State Aid for FY10. What do Shrewsbury's representatives see in THEIR crystal ball? Another article in yesterday's paper had the ominous headline: "Cities, towns could see 10% aid cut", referencing recent comments from House Speaker Sal DiMasi.

A decrease in State Aid will feel like a "cold turkey" withdrawal since we have no other sources of revenue to make up for such a cut. Would it cause Shrewsbury's Selectmen to re-examine their affirmative NO OPERATIONAL OVERRIDE policy for FY10? Even if the Selectmen reluctantly changed their minds and put a question on the ballot, would it have ANY chance of passing?

In the absence of an increase in property taxes, the only option will be to begin a serious deconstruction of Shrewsbury's school program, along with municipal departments and services. FY10 will likely bring the deepest, broadest cuts in decades. It's going to be a bloodbath.

The Right Stuff

I have been watching Mass High Tech Council’s Mass Track for 3 years and I have had the opportunity of watching Shrewsbury’s ranking move up the charts. The big leap happened in last year’s ranking when we provided Charles River Labs with tax incentives to relocate from Worcester to Shrewsbury. This year’s raking has Shrewsbury rated #2 overall!

The nonprofit industry groupMass High Tech Council uses the following to rank 351 towns, with our ranking in parentheses: single tax rate (n/a); commercial property rate differential (3)commercial property tax rate (60); % of 10ths graders who are Adv/Prof in 2008 Math(38) Change in % Adv/Prof 10th grade math MCAS 07-08 (167); College Grads with 30min drive(128); % of Workforce in Technology (241); #of MEPA Projectsfrom 2004-07 (23); Avg Annual % change in Com’l/Indust. New Growth 2004-07 (338); Expedited Permiting-43D (1); Housing Starts per 1000hh in 2007 (224).

It all seems to boil down to taxes, permitting, current educated workforce, future educated work force and housing. What is Shrewsbury doing wrong? We are ranked 338 out of 351 for Avg. Annual % Change in Commerical/Industrial New Growth , 2004-2007 with -4.4% in growth? Is it the water issue, our zoning regulations or our lack of Starbucks, golf course or legal beverage watering holes? Well right now we have to make a bunch of cuts to make the budget work, but we must also look to the future to increase business in town. More business will not solve our problems, but it is a part of the big picture. What are Shrewsbury’s long term plans for cost containment and growth? Would we have been better off letting Avalon buy the Allen Farm? We would have had more car registration fees. What is the cost of residential services compared to the tax revenue generated from that property?

Yup, I am going to bring it all back to schools before anyone else brings it up. MCAS are devoted to 2 categories, the number in the Adv/Prof Math Category and the Change in that percentage. I don’t have the previous rankings but I think we were not so low on the list; we seem to be slipping and will continue to slip, if the upcoming budget is any indicator.

Let’s get creative, we have been lucky in the past, but we have to roll up our sleeves make tough cuts in many areas and still plan for the future. And we cannot expect any help from Boston or D.C. On paper we have the right stuff, let’s make it happen.

Protecting the Core - A Tragedy in 4 Acts

During the Financial Workshop, the Board of Selectmen could not come to grips with the concept of establishing priorities. If you missed the meeting, here's a little dramatization of how the dialogue went:

Soapbox: We must protect the core -- Public Safety, Public Education and Infrastructure -- there are no sacred cows. Moooo!

Pander-boy: Well, we can't just set certain departments above the others and treat them in a special way...I'm all for public safety, but in this economic environment, we cannot ignore the social services agencies. The Council on Aging, Shrewsbury Youth & Family Services, and what goes on at the Senior Center -- that's all so very important too.

Thing 1: Don't forget the Engineering Department -- they've been cut already and if we reduce the staff any more, we won't be positioned to take advantage of infrastructure projects and state money to get them done.

Thing 2: What about the Library? Everyone loves the library and it's such a vital gathering place. Any town worth its salt in this state has a good library. Plus, if we cut the Library's operating budget, we might lose State Certification and all its benefits. We'd have to kiss the grant for the Library Building project good-bye!

Soapbox: Of course we can't cut the departments at Town Hall -- we can't get rid of the Tax Collector, the Assessor, the Town Clerk or the Accountant. Likewise with Public Buildings -- most of what they do is support the schools anyway! We need the department of Health -- someone's got to oversee Pay As You Throw, our one new source of revenue for the town.

Newbie: Could we re-look at having the State to pick up the cost of paying Meals on Wheels drivers? That would save us $18,000.

Town Manager: I'm not touching that idea with a 10 foot pole this year!

Pander-boy: What about the ambulance service provided by UMass? That's really a luxury, isn't it? It costs the town $80,000 a year. Even though we like the service, maybe we can't afford it anymore.

Thing 2: This is really hard...I really don't know how we can prioritize among all the municipal departments and services. We need them all and people do value them, especially street sweeping.

Thing 1: Well, the municipal departments have really taken the brunt of the cuts in the past few years...there is nowhere left to cut. Maybe we need to reconsider the allocation of our incremental revenue between municipal and schools. In recent years, the split has been about 30% to municipal and 70% to schools. Maybe for FY10, a 50-50 split would be more realistic?

Pander-Boy: Well, it doesn't seem like we are making any headway with these priority trade-offs. Why don't we let the Manager do it like he's done every other year. Dan, what do you see as the core services in Shrewsbury that should be protected at all costs?

Town Manager: Well, it's pretty straightforward. My definition of CORE SERVICES is:

1) BASIC Public Safety
2) BASIC Public Works
3) core financial operations to run the town.

Everything else would be subject to reduction or elimination.

THE END

{Curtain falls slowly}

Stay Put, Stay

Did you see it?

On Tuesday, I wrote an article about Assistant Town Manager Mike Hale deciding to forgo the Bolton Town Administrator job. I headlined it, "Hale's Staying Put."

Then on Friday, the T&G finally caught up; better late than never. In fact, reporter Elaine Thompson did a great job with the story and covered it a lot better than I did. It sure helps to be a professional.

But that's not the point here, my dear bloggees.

Did you see their headline? "Longtime town official to stay put."

I know it's common expression, but I'm taking credit anyway.

BOS nixes public hearing

After a marathon Financial Workshop that spanned four nights and more than 11 hours of talking, discussing and debating, but very little action or decisive direction, on December 2 the Selectmen finally reached their 12th and final financial question, as posed by the Town Manager:

"What changes should be made in the budget development process, including what changes should be made relative to the public participation process?"

The Board reviewed a very full calendar of meetings and critical deadlines for the budget process from now until Town Meeting. They noted that their "3 Board Meeting" with the School Committee and the Finance Committee would be held on March 4 -- a full three months from now. This date startled me since a year ago the 3 Boards sat down together in October (2007), well before actual FY09 budgets were under development.

In what will likely be Shrewsbury's toughest budget cycle in decades, wouldn't it make sense for these 3 key groups of elected and appointed officials to sit down NOW and talk about the urgent financial issues facing our town? They MUST share information and build consensus about the priorities and direction for Shrewsbury in FY10.

The Town Manager then pointed out that the Board of Selectmen has a Public Hearing on the FY10 budget scheduled for March 9. This is the public's one and only opportunity to voice their opinions about budget priorities in an open hearing with the Board of Selectmen. In my opinion, this timeframe is much too late for public input and will not permit meaningful adjustments to the budget.

Chairman McCaffrey threw out the idea of adding a Public Hearing earlier in the process; he suggested Monday, January 5, so that the public could provide feedback on the set of fiscal policies recently issued by the Board, including the debt policy, or on any other budget issues. Mr. Tartaglia applauded the suggestion, saying he welcomes public input "the earlier, the better". The other Selectmen voiced concerns about what this early public hearing could possibly accomplish, whether it was the "right time", and worried that it might impede Mr. Morgado's tight timeframe for issuing his first draft of the FY10 budget.

A motion to hold the January 5 public hearing was made and seconded; further discussion ensued. When the vote was taken there were two AYE (Tartaglia & LeBeaux) and two NAY (Miller & DePalo), while the Chairman opted to ABSTAIN from the vote. He stated that "I don't have a dog in this fight." Since the motion did not receive 3 votes it failed.

Are they afraid of hearing from the public about what services are valued more than others?

As Selectman Miller pointed out, "the public has plenty of opportunities to E-mail, write or call members of the Board to express their opinions".

I hope they will.

Hale's Staying Put

Turns out our Assistant Town Manager, Mike Hale, will be staying in Shrewsbury after all.

Mike had been offered the position of Town Administrator in Bolton. A Town Administrator is like a Town Manager, but Bolton's town government is quite different from Shrewsbury's and he would have had a much different job from our Town Manager Dan Morgado.

At the fourth chapter of the Financial Workshop tonight, Mike announced that he was staying in Shrewsbury, where he has worked for about 20 years. It will let him grow professionally. That cryptic information is, alas, all I know.

I would welcome more details and will publish them when I learn them.

Update 3 Dec (9:47am):

I spoke with Mike Hale first thing this morning. He tells me that some of the additional responsibilities he'll be adding will include public works projects. That will include the Grafton Street rebuild, and working on a new relationship with a wastewater consultant. Mike said that the people in Bolton were outstanding. But although "the money was there, his heart is here."