Residents Take Sides on Proposed Proposition 2 1/2 Override

When it comes to a proposed Proposition 2 1/2 override, some Weymouth residents are ready to give the schools and several town department more revenue while others are concerned the town may not be able to afford it.

During Monday’s Annual Town Meeting at Adams Middle School, about 100 residents attended a public hearing for the override, which would ask voters to contribute an extra $6.5 million a year.

$3.5 million would go to the schools, with the police, fire, and public works departments each receiving $1 million. The remaining $500,000 would be distributed among the remaining departments.

Irving Murstein, a local senior resident, said he could not afford to pay for an override on his fixed income.

“(Weymouth) is not going to fall into the ocean if it doesn’t pass. The seniors are not going to vote for this because we’re on a fixed income,” he said during the hearing.

John Sullivan of Tilden Road, however, argued that Weymouth’s focus on keeping costs down has come at the cost of quality services around town.

“We have not focused on our core product. If our town services are not good, it won’t matter how low our costs are, we won’t have a good product,” he said. “My only reservation about the override is that it may be too small. That said, it’s a good start.”

The override would help supplement a proposed $149 million budget. The figure is an increase of 3.7 percent over last year but does not provide for level service, according to Mayor Susan Kay.

The mayor cited an increase in fixed costs, structural deficiencies, and a minimal increase in state aid as the reasons for the tight budget.