From: The Editors Desk by Stephen P. Bjork An ill-conceived plan The Tewksbury activist group known as U-25 is back in the headlines. Regrettably, the group is demonstrating a dangerous pattern - issuing proposals before researching all facets of the plan. The group first came onto the scene early in 2006 with plans to re-allocate the Town's budget for the purpose of increasing the public schools budget by $1 million. With that additional $1 mil- lion, the group argued, the school system could hire enough teachers to reduce classroom sizes below 25 students (hence the name: U-25). When asked by the Town Crier in February 2006, however, the group's primary spokesman, Jamie Cutelis, admit- ted that the group had not endeavored to perform an analysis of the budget. They simply felt confidant that the money was "in there somewhere" and that, if properly motivated, could be located and redistributed by the financial agents of the town. U-25 was eventually convinced to revise its plan and offer it as a Proposition 2 1/2 override question. That override question failed at the ballot. Recently, U-25 issued its latest plan - the group will sponsor three articles to the Special Town Meeting in October. One of those articles will call for a shift of $200,000 from the Tewksbury Public <strong>Library</strong> budget over to the town's stabilization iund. The Town Crier is uncomfortable with such an action. For starters, $200,000 appears to be an arbitrary figure with, once again, no analysis behind it and no plausible plan for deal- ing with the cuts. The group has offered some suggestions for cost cutting measures (opening an hour later each day, closing on Sundays, eliminating the assistant director role, etc.), but the suggestions do not produce savings anywhere near the $200,000 mark, but would result in the loss of the library's accreditation. Perhaps more importantly, the mere proposition of unceremo- niously gutting the budget of a public library, put forth by a group purporting to be in favor of education, leaves a bad taste in one's mouth - and it certainly sends the wrong message to the youth of the community. Especially when more than 900 of Tewksbury's youngsters are currently participating in Tewksbury Public <strong>Library</strong> sponsored programs during the sum- mer months. I'm not exactly sure when public libraries gained the prover- bial "red-headed step-child" status within society, but the idea held by some that libraries have become obsolete as a result of the Internet couldn't be further from the truth. Statistically speaking, library visits throughout the country have more than doubled since the Internet became a household word. The visits to Tewksbury's library reflect, and exceed, those statistics. According to <strong>Library</strong> Director Elisabeth Desmairas, "On each Monday in July, more than 3,000 items slid across the library's circulation desk. Breaking those transactions down to any hourly average, the library's clerks have processed one book every twenty seconds. In fact, approximately 25,000 books and other items have been checked out in the month of July, a rate that would have been unheard of a decade ago." Public libraries exist in the United States, thankfully, as a way to even the playing field between the privileged and the non-priv- ileged- just as public education does. Despite the notion held by many residing in the comfort of the suburbs, not everyone in Massachusetts owns a computer. Particularly when one consid- ers that a number of Tewksbury motels, through state assis- tance, play host to homeless families, the crucial need for cost- free access to books, computers, and the Internet, cannot be understated. Indeed, the free and unhindered access to infor- mation is just one of the things that sets United States citizens apart from those living in third world countries. Yes, the public school system is in dire straits - if all other sta- tistics and evidence is set aside, the recent accreditation warn- ing issued to Tewksbury <strong>Memorial</strong> High School by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges will attest to that fact. But, decimating the library budget is not the answer. The Town Crier applauds any group of citizens that becomes involved in the community with the goal of improving it. However, the only thing more dangerous than pushing forward without a plan is pushing forward with a plan that is ill-con- ceived. Letters to the editor Thanks to the legislators Dear Editor, The <strong>Wilmington</strong> Historical Commission wishes to thank our legislators for their suc- cess in acquiring, through override, $450,000 for the Butters Farmhouse. We wish to extend a special thank you to Rep. James Miceli for his tireless efforts to steer this fiscal request through the House, through the Conference Committee, and through an override of the" Governor's line item veto. __JVe wish to thank Rep. Charles Murphy for his contin- ued support of our acquiring and preserving the Butters Farmhouse. We wish to thank State Senator Bruce Tarr for his senatorial support of the acquisition and preservation of the Butters Farmhouse and his efforts in supporting the over ride and steering it through the Senate. The Historical Commission appreciates the many efforts of our legislators in fulfilling the goal of the Commission to preserve <strong>Wilmington</strong>'s rich heritage. Due to their support, the Butters Farmhouse will be preserved for generations to come. Sincerely, Carolyn Harris Bill Campbell Gerry Duggan Bonny Smith Kathleen Reynolds Julie Fennel! Like every sum- I mer, driving 'around town I've noticed a startling increase in building projects. One project, not yet in the build stage, will gain more visibility over the next few weeks and months as the devel- oper, The Hanover Company, appears before various boards in town working on due diligence. The Lodge at Ames Pond is coming to Tewksbury, and planning to bring 364 rental units in a three phase building process. Of those 364 units, plans desig- nate 25% of the units as affordable with 49% of the units as 1 bedroom, 40% as 2 bedrooms and 11% as 3 bedrooms. The project, still in relative early stages of approval, scares the heck out of lots of residents, particularly parents worried about the already overburdened school system. I had to take a closer look at Tewksbury's 40B situation to sort out whether or not this enormous rental hous- ing project makes sense. Surprisingly, it does. I'm no fan of Chapter 40B, which effec- tively hogties communities trying to man- age growth, when the community possess- es a housing base less than ten percent of which is categorized as "affordable." With 498 units of affordable housing in Tewksbury, the town stands at about 4.9%. Surrounding towns fare better than we do with BuTerica at 6.1%, Chelmsford at 5.8%, Dracut at 5.5%, and <strong>Wilmington</strong> near 9%. Andover has already met its 10% commitment. And yet, residents surely know that the Town has a "higher percentage of condo- miniums and apartments than can be found in most towns nearby," as the Tewksbury Affordable Housing Plan cites in the Comprehensive Needs Assessment portion. QUumt&fllrtcr WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 9, 2006 Fortnight in Review by Jayne W. Miller So, why the contradiction? Poor plan- ning seems like the easy, and obvious, answer. The town has allowed many smaller sized developments offering few affordable housing units compared to the number of units being built. Over the next 1-2 years, according to the Affordable Housing Plan, the town will see eight pro- jects built ranging in size from one to 60 units including the first phase of the Lodge at Ames Hill (again, these are pro- jections). These eight projects will build 222 units but only give the town 76 units designated affordable contributing to the 10% required by 40B. The town needs 77 units in order to have the right to refuse dubious developments for one year, a provision available to towns not yet at the 10% requirement. When a Zoning Board of Appeals rejects a developer's project the developer may appeal that decision to the State Housing Appeals Committee (HAC). Of the 415 appeals that board heard from 1970 -2002 , 45% of the cases were withdrawn, dis- missed or settled, 24% of the cases were negotiated between the town and the developer and 31% were decided by the HAC. Of that 31%, 84% ruled in favor of the developer and only 16% for the town. Clearly, towns are at a disadvantage with developers under the 40B law. But, back to those eight near term pro- jects. Almost all of them are ownership, or condominium, developments requiring up to 25% of affordable housing units as part of the development. When building small 16 unit projects that means only four count toward Tewksbury's 10%. The problem is that the projects, and affordable units, are coming piecemeal. And it gets worse. "As Tewksbury continues to approve market rate homes in conventional subdi- visions and cluster developments, the Letters to the editor town accrues an unmet liability for 40B units," states the Affordable Housing Plan mentioned earlier. Current estimates indi- cate that the town needs an additional 690 affordable units. According to a Northern Middlesex Council of Governments study Tewksbury would have to create a whop- ping 2761 additional homes to obtain 690 units under the 25% allotment. However, all rental units count toward the elusive 10% of total housing stock. Thus, a large development like that planned for Ames Hill, offers 364 units, a big dent in that 690 unit goal, and perhaps presents less stress for our schools. Renter occupied housing in Tewksbury averages 2.08 people per household versus the owner occupied households which average 2.9 people. Ames' projections on the saturation level of children that would move into the Lodge seem grossly under- estimated with only 49 children in the entire 364 complex. The developer con- tends that fifty percent of those children will be high school aged and the other 50 percent will be elementary and middle school aged. That said, the project currently plans for a three phase managed building process over three years, with the first year only opening 34 units. Thus, the pain of a sud- den influx of students will take a little longer to feel, and perhaps give the town more time to repair school budgets and hire teachers. Keep an eye out for 40B developments as you drive around town. Accepting a devel- opment like the Lodge at Ames Hill, ignor- ing for the moment the legitimate cries of "Not In My Backyard" allows Tewksbury to claim a chunk of that 10% and returns some autonomy to town going forward in the near term. library a luxury In support of the library Dear Editor: These facts are well known to almost all Tewksbury resi- dents and are undisputed: • Tewksbury's Public Schools rank a shameful 198th of 207 in the state in per pupil spending. • Our schools rank a disas- trous 206 of 207 in the state in student to teacher ratio. • Class sizes are approaching or at a terrifying 30 in the Elementary/Middle Schools and 40 in the High School. • The High School is on WARNING and will LOSE ITS ACCREDITATION if the class size, lack of program, and lack of elective issues are not addressed. Almost everyone agrees the Tewksbury Public Schools need to hire a significant num- ber of new teachers to address the above issues. As always the issue is money. U25 has proposed a Homeowners Tax Cut By-Law to save each and every Tewksbury homeowner hun- dreds of dollars each year; a pension investment study committee to see if we can invest our pension dollars and get a higher rate of return arid save us substantial tax dollars each year, and a cut to the <strong>Library</strong> budget. Why the <strong>Library</strong>? Simply because the <strong>Library</strong> is a Luxury item. It is not an essential necessary service. Police, fire, DPW, water/sewer, schools are essential musthave services. People's lives depend on police/fire. A child's future and our economic future depend on our school system. This seems harsh to some, but the reality is, nobody depends on the library. Because Tewksbury does not have unlimited tax dollars we have to prioritize. We have few other choices. Everyone loves the library, but in this day and age it's an extra. Nobody is harmed if the library budget is cut. Thousands of children suffer every day when, they are forced into overcrowded class- • rooms of 30 to 40 kids. Cutting the library budget is an incon- venience- Cutting teachers so class size is 30 to 40 is a tragedy. An unaccredited library is sad. An unaccredit- ed High School is a criminal act. U25 thinks the issue is simple and clear. We hope the town's people do too. Very Truly Yours, U25 - Jamie Cutelis Tewksbury Thanks First Baptist Dear Editor, The <strong>Wilmington</strong> Historical Commission wishes to thank Bob Figucia and the members of the First Baptist Church for their efforts to Preserve the Butters Farmhouse. Through their Fourth of July Dunk Tank, $470 was raised to be donated to the Preserve the Butters Farmhouse fund. Their efforts to help us in our COMNGIN OCTOBER... All your quetions answered... goal to raise funds to preserve <strong>Wilmington</strong>'s heritage is greatly appreciated. Sincerely, Carolyn Harris Bill Campbell Gerry Duggan Bonny Smith Kathleen Reynolds Julie Fennell ...in one place Don't miss it! Town Crier Dear Editor, It appears that the School Department is once again over reaching their bound- aries. Why is the Tewksbury <strong>Library</strong> responsible for U25 problems? Attacking the libraries budget is not the answer. It makes little sense to fix one problem by creating another. The Tewksbury Public <strong>Library</strong> apparently satisfied the majority at Town Meeting. The majority authorized a sound <strong>Library</strong> budget, not an extension of the School Department budget. Our library is properly man- aged and should not be target- ed by other departments with- out cause. Which Department will be next? In the past twenty-five years the libraries across the Nation have served the people well providing the necessary tools to move our country forward. The Tewksbury <strong>Library</strong> appears to address all of its problems in a timely responsi- ble fashion, not allowing prob- lems to fester. The School Department has complained about class sizes for the past twenty-five years and longer. Complaining to the taxpayers is not enough, action is required. The people understand that the problems are not the number of stu- dents in a class it is the lack of discipline expected of them. The opportunity is now to do something about class sizes and or restructuring. Money is an excuse and seldom the answer; however, too much money can be the source of the problems leading to waste- ful spending and lack of direc- tion. Taxpayers can no longer afford sacred cows it is that simple. Sharpen your own pencils and do the right thing. The School Department must lead; following has yielded lit- tle in return for way too much. The taxpayers sooner or later must say enough. Return to the basics. It is time to address the wasteful spending by the Department of Education. Don Ordway Tewksbury ®0xmt$yirier Cetokaburp - <strong>Wilmington</strong> <strong>Wilmington</strong> office located at: 226 Lowell Street, <strong>Wilmington</strong>, MA 01887-2947 (978)658-2346 FAX (978)658-2266 E-Mail: office ©yourtowncrier.com Publication No. 635-340 A publication of the Woburn Daily Times, Inc. One Arrow Drive, Woburn, MA 01801, published every Wednesday Founder: Capt. Larz Neilson Publisher: Peter M. Haggerty Gen. Mgr. / Editor: C. Stuart Neilson Advertising: John D. O'Neil News Editor: Stephen Bjork Sports Editor: James Pote Subscription prices: Payable in advance. In <strong>Wilmington</strong> and Tewksbury $25 a year. Elsewhere $30 a year. No financial responsibility is accepted by the Woburn Daily Times, Inc. for errors in advertisements. A reprint will be made of any part of an advertise- ment in which the error affects the value of the advertised item. 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