On Friday evening I, like many others I've heard from, received a "robocall" encouraging me to go to town meeting and vote against article 4. The call, which did not identify its sponsor, made a few statements that call for comment:
* "The Selectmen say 'who needs these building?'" -- not true. The Selectmen have been working for years to find a use for these buildings because we recognize their importance and prominence.
* The Selectmen say there are no good ideas any way -- again, not true. There are MANY good ideas. What we are lacking is viable proposals, a real plan for how to turn these ideas into action. Some of the proponents of other ideas are starting to develop such plans, so that's good news.
* Rezoning to permit condominiums -- Both of these buildings were in a residential district as long as we have had zoning. In 2009 we voted at Town Meeting to rezone them as commercial. Article 4 recognizes that successfully finding an enduring use for these buildings may require the flexibility of mixed use commercial and residential.
* Upkeep currently costs us each less than $25/year -- We currently spend money on heat, electricity and staff time for monitoring and minor maintenance. Several years ago we authorized and spent about $650,000 on exterior renovations to the Tavern. We are also continuing to undertake exterior renovations to the Old Library amounting to about $750,000. The Tavern will need to be repainted in a few years. When you amortize all of the costs over their useful life, we are spending $85,000-100,000 per year for upkeep to these buildings.
I can't help but think that if the person or persons who organized and paid for the robocall would devote that effort to preparing a plan, we would have more proposals to consider, not just other ideas.
I encourage all who join me in treasuring these buildings to come to Town Meeting on Monday, December 2 to join the discussion, and cast your vote. I hope you will vote yes on Article 4.