One Family Says Yes To Override, Yes to Alvarado

A Letter to the Editor from Karen Gately, Stephen, and Madeleine Herrick:

My family and I strongly encourage our neighbors to join us in voting for “Yes for Reading” and for Vanessa Alvarado, Board of Selectmen during the Town election on April 3rd.

As a long time Town Meeting members, RMHS parents, and residents since 1996 my husband, Stephen and I understand that we are at a critical crossroad for our community. Since 2014, the Finance Committee, Town Manager, and the Superintendent of Schools have been urging elected officials to take action in the face of increasingly dire financial constraints. During this time a number of the current Selectmen failed to do little more than pay lip service to the community’s growing concern while teachers were laid off and public safety, library, and other important social services suffered significant cuts. It’s time to set Reading back on a positive course.

The “Yes for Reading” Board has done a wonderful job summarizing why we need this override, and I urge you to visit their Facebook page. Reading is not alone with this financial problem. With 51% less funding from the state over the last ten years, and large annual increases in mandatory costs such as insurance - this need for an override was inevitable. At risk now are more cuts to public safety, teaching staff and the entire middle school foreign language program.

My family - like so many others - chose Reading because it was a safe community with excellent schools and a well managed town. Proposition 2 ½ was passed by our legislature during a time when the the state provided a much larger pool of funds to Towns and cities. If Prop 2 ½ were passed today- it would surely come with the warning that - every town will require a periodic “reset” in taxes. Reading is now long overdue as the last override was in 2003.

From my professional perspective as a 15 year veteran of residential real estate, the typical $488 increase that will result from this override should be viewed as a tactical investment to preserve tens of thousands of dollars of your home’s value. When a community stops spending on schools and essential services, property values suffer. When a community has a reputation for mismanaging it’s finances, property values suffer. If this override does not pass, our tax bills will still rise because of the aforementioned reasons - but word on the street will be that Reading schools are in trouble and underfunded. Good schools support good real estate values.

And finally - to ensure that we never again find ourselves four years behind the fiscal curve - we urge you to vote for Vanessa Alvarado for the Board of Selectmen. We need a smart, strong voice for Reading - a leader and a steward for the future. A key strength of Vanessa’s is her deep knowledge of current municipal and state funding constraints and her willingness to reach out beyond Reading for solutions. Having served with her on the Finance Committee during her first term, I personally saw that her first instincts were to listen and learn. We also admire that as a candidate Vanessa was quick to step forward and make the decision to support the override because it was the right thing for Reading - not because it was easy or popular.

A second major strength is Vanessa’s commitment to transparency in government. The most recent town wide survey revealed a trust gap between the residents and our town government. This is unacceptable. When elected, we trust Vanessa will listen with an open mind and employ a collaborative effort towards problem solving. As a parent of Reading school children, we know that Vanessa will stand up for the families in Reading and for strong schools. We trust Vanessa to listen to all residents’ concerns, to be respectful of volunteers, and to work collaboratively with other town boards and commissions toward our common goals for Reading.

For these reasons and many more - my family and I respectfully ask you to Vote YES for the Override and YES for Vanessa Alvarado on April 3rd.

Karen Gately, Stephen, and Madeleine Herrick, Dividence Road