Killingworth Republican Town Committee votes to oppose new town hall addition

During its monthly meeting Thursday, the Killingworth Republican Town Committee passed a resolution by majority vote to condemn the proposal to build the Killingworth town hall addition in the project's current form.  

The project to build an addition to the town hall, dubbed sarcastically by many critics as “The Big Red Barn” as well as “Iino’s Barnyard”, has been deemed financially irresponsible for the town in the current economic climate.  It has also been criticized for the many unnecessary and extravagant features it will contain, such as geothermal heating and solar powering.  Above all, the project has been denounced for its $3.5 million dollar price tag, making it one of the most expensive projects in the town’s entire history.  

One member who voted in favor of the resolution explained during Thursday’s meeting that while the KRTC is not opposed to fixing legitimate problems or replacing worn sections of the town hall, legitimate repairs are considered a necessity while the “Big Red Barn” is without a doubt a luxury, and in this economic climate, “we need to draw the line on what the town officials need, and what the town officials want”.  Another member noted that the stated $3.5 million budget was dangerously misleading because if unforeseen cost overruns occur, it could place the total amount well above the original stated $3.5 million budget.  It would then become impractical to abandon the project during mid-completion and the Iino administration would then request and receive from the taxpayers watever additional funding is needed to complete the project.  Many members have noted that the primary reason for the exorbitant cost of the project is due to the inflexibility of the demand that so many features nonessential to town government be included in the project.   This is almost certainly why the planners could not offer more cost effective alternatives to the proposed project.

The Killingworth Republican Town Committee had released an official statement of protest on this project.  There will be additional statements throughout the coming weeks to inform town residents on the impracticality and hidden dangers of the town hall addition.  A town referendum for residents to vote whether they wish to approve or deny the $3.5 million plus addition has been scheduled for July 24th, and the KRTC strongly urges all people who pay taxes in Killingworth regardless of their political affiliation to come to the referendum to vote against this project.  

“This is not a Republican vs. Democrat issue, it is a non-partisan tax and spend issue.”, KRTC Chairman Matthew Young stated after the resolution was passed.  “It is an issue of a town administration with expensive tastes vs. the residents of Killingworth being asked to pay for them.  Enough is enough."

For further information, please visit www.killingworthgop.org