Wayland Voters Express Support For King, Fay, Lewis: Letters

The following letters to the editor do not reflect the views of Wayland Patch

Why Tom Fay?

Tom is one of the nicest and most approachable people who serves on the Select Board. He has open and positive conversations with people whose interests align with him and those who do not. Tom is open to finding solutions with people of all thoughts and persuasions.

Tom has been a long-serving member of the BoS and he understands how and why that Board is responsible for taking into account a broad range of interests and needs across the Wayland community. Losing Tom from the Select Board would be a serious loss of that critical understanding, as it is not one that exists across a majority of the Board.

Tom is the only current member of the Select Board who was not previously a member of the FinCom. I have been a member of FinCom for 9 years, and he may be the one member of the BoS who understands that Wayland has significant financial challenges, that we need to address; otherwise, we will be looking at cuts to one of the top school systems in the country and cuts to programs that are very important to a large portion of our residents. Tom has always been very supportive of our schools, which is not true across the entire Select Board. He understands that the schools are critical to almost 40% of our population and that our incredible school system supports the values of our homes. He knows that we are challenged to compensate our town employees such that we do not lose them to other communities, which is a real issue. Tom’s solution has been to look at ways that we can utilize economic development to broaden the range of our income from property taxes and the significantly grow the value of our overall real estate. Others on the BoS have not been looking at and supporting these opportunities.

A great example, that would be difficult to duplicate, is the Alta at River’s Edge project that will be completed this year and will spread the property tax cost away from current taxpayers in Wayland. Tom has also supported the improvements along Route 20, which have been paid for in large measure with State funds and which will add value to properties along that route, once again spreading the tax burden from individual homeowners.

Tom supports programs that impact people of all ages in Wayland. He has been a long- time supporter of the Council on Aging project, which has now combined with the Community Center to create a project that will benefit young and old in our community. Tom also understands the needs for playing fields and is open to building them and to also looking at ways to provide these projects in a cost-effective manner.

Tom supports the equity and inclusion program and he supports our various energy efficient initiatives. He also understands that we need to incorporate these programs into the community while maintaining other key elements that ranks Wayland as one of the most desirable communities in the Commonwealth (per a recent ranking).

Keeping Tom Fay on the Select Board is one of the best things we can do for Wayland. We need more people like Tom: great people who work for all of the people and not for just a few select groups of people in the Community.

—Bill Steinberg, Wayland

I am writing to share my excitement to endorse Dovie King for the Wayland Select Board.

There is so much to say about Dovie’s work, education, public service and life experience. Her resume is long and varied. She is a social justice attorney, community activist, mother of a student in Wayland schools and member of Wayland’s Human Rights, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. She has sat on numerous nonprofit boards of directors and served in town positions in Belmont while living there. She has seen impacts of financial and equity decisions in her classroom experience teaching k-12 and higher education. She was even in a busing program similar to METCO. She has organized several community forums in Wayland on issues ranging from domestic violence, indigenous land rights, implicit bias and racism. She has shown herself to be an innovative and practical problem solver. You can read more about her education, background and resume online, at www.electDovie.com.

Sometimes a list of affiliations doesn’t fully describe what those activities entailed. In the labor and employment law practice Dovie founded and co-owned, she represented unions for teachers, construction trade workers, electrical workers, clerical workers, court employees, college faculty, to name a few. She directed a bankruptcy law project at Public Counsel, helping hundreds of clients with complex financial issues and assisting U.S. Bankruptcy Court judges with a high caseload of self-represented debtors. As a community economic development attorney, she worked with elected officials on public works projects ranging from streetscapes and crosswalks to improving storefronts, installing bathrooms in public parks and constructing medians and landscaping in business districts. Dovie’s strong business acumen and experience dealing with municipal needs underscores her strengths as a Select Board candidate.

Dovie’s experience is impressive. Her education, social activism, evidence building community with many groups of people, experience as an economic development attorney, her resume is deep and relevant to municipal governance, but for me, the most important factor is that Dovie has shown that she can bring a courageous voice to governance, a voice that this moment in time demands. As a multilingual, woman of color, she has lived the experiences that our country, and town, are trying to confront. We say we want all voices at the table. This is our opportunity. On May 10, STAND UP and VOTE for Dovie King for Select Board.

—Mary Ann Borkowski, Wayland

This past year has been very challenging for the Board of Public Works, and the Town is fortunate to have had Cliff Lewis as the chair of the board during that time. He has shown the focus, determination, and ability to get many important things done.

Cliff devoted innumerable hours to the DPW’s successful PFAS remediation efforts, working with the board and the DPW staff to get our drinking water in compliance with state regulations. His education and background in engineering and finance have been a perfect fit for the conceptual and detailed planning necessary for implementation of the project.

Throughout the stages of the PFAS remediation project, Cliff encouraged creative thinking and listened respectfully to ideas of board and staff members as well as the public. Those familiar with Wayland Community Forum know of his commitment to transparent communications, keeping residents informed with frequent updates of the milestones sought and achieved.

Cliff has focused on other significant issues facing the Town, many of which have not been prioritized in the past. He has reached out to other Town boards to collaborate on shared issues that have held the Town back from achieving some of its goals.

As a member of the Route 20 South Landfill Visioning Committee, Cliff has pushed for the reuse of the old “dump.” He has repeatedly attempted to get that committee, through its chair Tom Fay, to reinvigorate the stalled efforts to fulfill its mission and make good use of this property. Cliff’s comprehensive proposal for possible uses - school bus parking, playing fields, a dog park, and solar installations – has yet to be addressed.

Cliff also empowers others to pursue initiatives to expand upon and improve existing Town services. One example is the new organic waste composting program at the Transfer Station. Residents are now able to help reduce waste in landfills and its cost of disposal while reducing methane emissions and turning compostable materials into nutrient-rich soil.

I have been very impressed with Cliff while he has served on the Board of Public Works. If elected, he would bring his insight, leadership and commitment to the Select Board and add a positive dynamic for getting things done.

Please join me in voting for Cliff Lewis for the Select Board on May 10. See his website www.electclifflewis.com for more information.

—Sherre Greenbaum, Wayland