Town Meeting Voters Approve Water and Sewer Budgets, Shoot Down Signage Bylaw
114 voters braved an approaching squall line to attend the 2022 Annual and Special Town Meeting on Monday night, May 16 in the Murdock Middle High School auditorium. With most of the questions and discussion focused on the ever-vexing issue of the Water and Wastewater rates, voters passed all but one of the motions made. The evening's big upset was the failure of the proposed new Zoning Bylaw regarding signs, which required a two-thirds majority to pass and lost by three percentage points.
Town Moderator Coral Grout, fresh from re-election for a second term, began by opening Special Town Meeting. Voters approved a motion to pass over Article 1, to hear reports of committees, as Annual Town Meeting begins with the identical article.
Article 2, to pay bills left over from prior fiscal years in the amount of $8,412.93 from Free Cash, passed with the required nine-tenths majority vote: 97 percent in favor, 3 percent opposed.
Article 3, to use $35,000 of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to cover inflation-related expenses in the Wastewater Enterprise Fund for the current fiscal year, elicited a question about how long the Water and Wastewater Enterprise Fund shortfalls have been an issue. The motion passed with 85 percent in favor, 15 percent opposed.
Moderator Grout then opened Annual Town Meeting. (Traditionally, a Special Town Meeting takes place twice each year and mostly concerns business, often of a "housekeeping" nature such as unpaid bills, for the current fiscal year. Annual Town Meeting concerns business for the coming fiscal year. The fiscal year begins on July 1 and ends on June 30.) Article 1 asked voters to hear the report of the Finance Committee (and any other committees, although other reports are rare). FinCom Chair Thomas Kane rose to give his report, which focused on the Water and Wastewater Enterprise Fund deficits, how they evolved over time and why rate increases are necessary to rein them in.
This led to the longest period of discussion during Town Meeting, as voters rose to ask questions about the Water and Wastewater budgets and rates. It was 27 minutes before Town Meeting could continue to Article 2. Voters asked numerous questions about the water and sewer rates and the ongoing shortfall. Voter Tina Santos rose to argue that all town residents, including those with private wells and septic, benefited in various ways from town water service, not just the rate payers. Another voter leaped up to respond to speakers without being recognized twice, leading to some disorder on Town Meeting floor. The general questions--of the fairness of rate increases and whether residents not on town water and/or sewer should contribute in some way--had been wrangled over in numerous hearings and Board of Selectmen's meetings over the past several months. (For a recap, see "BOS Choke Up Over Water/Sewer Rate Increases, Defer Vote to April 11" in the April 7-14 2022 edition of The Winchendon Courier) and "BOS Hold Their Noses and Vote on a Compromise Water/Sewer Rate Increase" in the April 14-21 2022 edition of The Winchendon Courier)
Moderator Grout stopped the discussion and prompted voters to move on. A motion was made to pass over Article 2, to authorize forming or dissolving committees, as no changes were anticipated. Voters approved 97 percent in favor, 3 percent opposed.
Article 3, to set spending limits on various revolving accounts, was approved with 98 percent in favor, 2 percent opposed.
Article 4, to appropriate $8,800 for the Senior Tax Workoff Program, in which senior citizens can work part time for the town in exchange for an offset on their property taxes, was approved with 94 percent in favor, 6 percent opposed.
Article 5, to appropriate $25,000 in support of the Winchendon Community Action Committee, which assists low-income residents of the town, was approved with 93 percent in favor, 7 percent opposed.
Article 6 asked voters to approve the town budget for Fiscal Year 2023, beginning July 1, 2022. The total amount, not including the Winchendon Public School District or Montachusett Regional Vocational School Technical Assessment amounts, was $16,001,424. Moderator Grout read each category item in the budget, after instructing voters to call out "hold" if they wanted to ask a question about any category. No "holds" were called. The town's FY23 budget was approved with 90 percent in favor, 10 percent opposed.
Article 7 asked voters to approve funding for the Water Enterprise Fund in a total of $1,111,532 for FY23, of which $29,827 would come from ARPA funds, filling in a gap left by a water rate increase of 10 percent for FY23. Discussion of the topic had largely been exhausted in the debate for Article 1, although voter David Watkin did ask if the town was ever going to catch up with these deficits. The article was approved with 81 percent in favor, 19 percent opposed.
Article 8 asked voters to approve a total of $1,555,315 to fund the Wastewater Enterprise Fund, of which $414,495 would come from Betterment Revenue and $1,140,820 would come from Wastewater Receipts, with a rate increase of 10 percent for FY23. There was no discussion, and the article was approved with 78 percent in favor, 22 percent opposed.
Article 9 asked voters to approve $195,297 from Transfer Station Receipts to fund the Transfer Station Enterprise Fund for FY23. There was no discussion and the article was approved with 92 percent in favor, 8 percent opposed.
Article 10 asked voters to approve the Winchendon Public School District budget for FY23, with a total amount of $15,604,992.02. There was no discussion, and the article was approved with 83 percent in favor, 17 percent opposed.
Article 11 was the second article to elicit a fairly lengthy debate on the floor. It asked voters to approve $702,108 to fund Winchendon's assessment for the Montachusett Regional Vocational Technical School ("Monty Tech") for FY23.
School Committee Chair Lawrence Murphy provided a detailed explanation of how the Monty Tech assessment is calculated and why the town is locked into the proportional amounts that it pays. Selectman Danielle LaPointe brought up a question raised by town resident Rick Lucier about the Prop 2-1/2 override amount in the public schools budget, arguing that the money should stay in the school budget to help fund programs to keep students in the district. A voter asked what the difference is between the per-student cost to the district for Monty Tech and the per-student cost for school choice students. Mr. Murphy explained that it costs $60,000 for a Monty Tech student and about $5,000 for school choice. Voters were told that there are 354 students on the waiting list for Monty Tech now. Chair of the Board of Selectmen Audrey LaBrie described speaking to the mayor of Gardner about the Monty Tech contract, which is 50 years old and needs to be reviewed.
Article 11 was approved with 70 percent in favor, 30 percent opposed.
Articles 12, 13, 14 and 15 asked voters to approve various capital expenditures for FY23, grouped by funding source. All of these articles passed. The Beals Memorial Library had prepared for questions about their request for $314,500 from Free Cash to continue Phase 2 repairs to the library building, which was included in Article 12, and had handed out information sheets to voters as they arrived. But there was no debate at all about Article 12, which was approved with 91 percent in favor, 9 percent opposed. Article 13 included items to be purchased by borrowing and required a two-thirds majority; it was approved with 89 percent in favor, 11 percent opposed.
Voter Tina Santos rose to question Article 14, which asked voters to approve the purchase of a vehicle for the transfer station from the Transfer Station Enterprise Fund (which has never been in deficit and is self-sustaining). She asked what the vehicle would be used for, and why other town vehicles couldn't be used by the transfer station. Department of Public Works Director Brian Croteau rose to explain that the vehicle would be used to service the transfer station, take recyclable materials to recycling centers and perform tasks during the winter when other vehicles were in use. The Article was approved with 88 percent in favor, 12 percent opposed.
Article 15 included items to be funded from grants and ARPA funds. $406,134 in ARPA funds was requested for the purchase of vehicles for the Department of Public Works, and another $40,000 for the Planning Department to fund project designs needed for grant applications. With no discussion, Article 15 was approved with 95 percent in favor, 5 percent opposed.
A motion was made to pass over Article 16, which asked voters to approve paying off the $60,405 debt service on a 2016 ambulance purchase a year early. The motion to pass over was approved with 93 percent in favor, 7 percent opposed.
Articles 17 and 18, which asked voters to approve changes to the Town Charter and the Town Bylaws respectively, were passed over. No explanation was requested or given on Town Meeting floor. The Town Manager told the Courier that these changes are tied to amendments to the Charter and Bylaws made by Town Meeting in 2021 that had never gone to the required ballot vote, so those changes need to be voted on again. All the changes will be brought before voters as a package at the Fall 2022 Special Town Meeting, and, if they pass at Town Meeting, the required ballot vote will be scheduled in 2023.
Article 19 asked voters to approve amending Chapter 9 of the Zoning Bylaw, regulating the use of signs in Winchendon. Like all Zoning Bylaw amendments, this required a two-thirds majority to pass. The Board of Selectmen had voted not to recommend the Article, which was the end result of a long process, part of an ongoing audit of the Zoning Bylaws with a professional consultant, and public hearings. (See "Residents Voice Questions, Concerns at Public Hearing for Revised Signage Bylaw" in the April 7-14 2022 edition of The Winchendon Courier)
Selectman LaPointe explained that she felt the new Bylaw was "far too restrictive" for small businesses in town. Selectman Rick Ward argued that the proposed bylaw was much clearer, allowed things like electronic signs, and could be revised further in the future. He added that existing signs are all grandfathered in and would not have to be changed--only new signs would fall under the new bylaw. Voter Tina Santos rose to question the authority the bylaws give to one person, the Building Commissioner, to make determinations about signs.
Some voters apparently were seeing the proposed new bylaw for the first time, and asked questions about how it would impact them personally. Ted Brovitz, the consultant who worked on the Zoning Bylaws audit, rose to reply to some of the questions.
Voters were 64 percent in favor and 36 percent opposed to the Article. It would have needed at least 67 percent in favor in order to pass, so the motion failed. (Planning Board Chair Guy Corbosiero did not respond to a request from the Courier for comment by press time.)
Article 20 asked voters to approve funding, some of which is reimbursable, for the Winchendon Drinking Water and Sewer Asset Management Project. Voter Karen Kast asked if the funding was for "a study" or if "they're actually doing something." It was explained that the project will set up a system for tracking water and sewer assets and anticipating expenses for repair and replacement. The Article was approved with 95 percent in favor, 5 percent opposed.
Article 21 asked voters to approve the transfer of a parcel of land on Webster Street, running northwest from the back of the Walgreens building, to the Winchendon Redevelopment Authority. There was no discussion, and the Article was approved with 93 percent in favor, 7 percent opposed.
Moderator Grout called for a motion to dissolve the meeting at 8:56 p.m. which was resoundingly approved.
The official results for Town Meeting may be read here: www.townofwinchendon.com/home/news/annual-town-meeting-results
The recording of Town Meeting may be viewed here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3SCwPWq3Hw
Second Annual Taste of Winchendon Celebrates Diversity in Toy Town
Enjoying the tastes of a Taste of Winchendon!
Up to 25 people at a time were easily counted in line waiting for the bountiful selections of foods to be enjoyed at the Saturday, May 14, Taste of Winchendon celebration.Photo by Keith Kent
A Perfect Day.
Taste of Winchendon supporters were treated to temps in the high 80s and blue skies, as they packed the many tables enjoying great food and great live entertainment as part of the festivities.Photo by Keith Kent
The town couldn't have asked for better weather on Saturday, May 14, as A Taste of Winchendon attendees enjoyed blue skies, temperatures in the mid-80s, foods originating from around the globe, music, dance and performing arts, and booths hosted by town organizations from the Winchendon Garden Club to the Beals Memorial Library.
There were activities for the young at heart, such as face painting, to games for those of any age such as Cornhole. Contests and raffles offered prized from jars of candy for offering public service, to children enjoying a bouncy house. How about a "Language Swap" for those wanting to exercise their brain and learn something new, or a free new reusable tote bag courtesy of the GFA Credit Union Winchendon branch just for showing up! These and many more treats, such as tasting foods from around the world, were just some of the many exciting things offered at the 2022 celebration of A Taste of Winchendon.
Everywhere you looked, students from the Murdock High School Sociology Class and The Winchendon School's Student Leadership students proudly wore their bright blue HEAL Winchendon t-shirts, to the count of nearly 40 strong, working jointly as a school project assisting with the event. From station to station and booth to booth, assisting wherever needed, doing what they do best, they contributed to positive change with positive energy. Whether helping serve food or seen multiple times on the dance floor or forming a dance line, HEAL Winchendon members worked hard representing A Taste of Winchendon and Toy Town at the event. Halfway through the event, MHS Sociology student Camille Hart said, "We have a really good turnout so far, and it's also really nice outside, There is a lot to do here and everybody seems pretty happy so yes, everything is going great. We have a lot of help here today, and it's all coming together so we are glad people are enjoying themselves."
The vendor and information tables were many, including the Winchendon Cultural Council, Two Foxes Farm Pizza, GFA Credit Union of Winchendon, Town of Winchendon Recreation Commission, Beals Memorial Library, Winchendon Heart & Soul, and Winchendon Garden Club just to name a few. There was a booth for a "Language Swap" for those with a desire to learn or asking a question, and a face painting booth for both children and adults. The Garden Club had an educational soil and seed planting display. Recreation Commission member Deb Bradley brought some creative thinking to their booth with a candy jar raffle. Tickets to win the jars of candy could be had based on volunteerism. One hour of service got you three tickets or chances, one entire event netted you five tickets! Stepping up and showing strong community pride, local business Simply Grounded Yoga & Pilates of Winchendon, supporting the Recreation Commission, also offered a match of one class of yoga for one hour of volunteer service.
The Taste of Winchendon Team gathers for a group photo.Photo by Inanna Arthen
Line Dancing, HEAL Winchendon Style!
A dozen HEAL Winchendon members and supporters perform line dancing to the popular song, Macarena, one of several performances the crowd enjoyed with total enthusiasm.Photo by Keith Kent
There was no shortage of types of entertainment to watch while filling up on all those above-mentioned tasty treats. Members of HEAL Winchenodon performed several dances such as the Macarena and others. Rajuli Fahey of Magnolia Studio of Winchendon provided a unique and artistic "Belly Dancing" performance for the second year running. In a different physical version of the performing arts, Master Dennis Britt of Britt's Tae Kwon Do of Gardner, MA provided some easier to understand entry level drills and forms performances of martial arts, along with thinner board breaking. Master Britt then upped his game with his well-known performance routine. While he lay on a bed of nails, a cement block was broken on his chest by a large hammer applied by a fellow student, hardly leaving a mark, to the crowd's enthuasiastic applause.
Lastly, in a truly artistic performance of Native American and Indigenous Peoples' history, Chali' Naru Dones, a Native American Indian of Boriken Taino Indian heritage, performed a breathtaking and captivating rendition of an "Owl Honor Dance." Dones' performance, while clearly captivating the audience, made her talents look all to easy to the naked eye. Her rhythmic movements, arms and wing-work, in conjunction with footwork and musical timing, took the audience a step back in American history to a time centuries past, when the creatures of the woodlands and Nature itself were held in much higher respect. Countless photos and videos were taken, and selfies with Dones after the performance were requested. Clearly the performance struck a chord with many who watched.
Dones, whose performance evoked total silence and total respect from the crowd, was followed with another captivating performance by another very talented member of America's Indigenous People, a young boy by the name of Tata' Niki Iraheta. Iraheta, according to Dones, already has National Recognition and top placement in Native American dance performance competitions to his early credit, and his followup performance here left little wonder as to why.
Iraheta provided two performance dances, the first called the "Makana Dance" and the second, the "Sneakup Dance." During his performances, Iraheta reenacted the ground level searching for animal signs, tracks, and clues, while incorporating footwork with dance, balance, and grace in a way that almost mystically became as one with the music. Audiences again took constant photos and videos during the dances.
After both Indigenous Peoples' performances were completed, the Courier met with Chali' Naru Dones to ask what inspires her desire to provide such a performance. Dones replied, "It's so many things for me personally. A lot of people don't know we even ever existed, or don't believe we even existed or exist today. They believe Indigenous people just don't exist. Because of this reason, we push forward to teach, and educate everyone, that Indigenous People lived, are still alive, and we still live here today and we are not going anywhere!"
Chali' Naru Dones, a Boriken Taino Indian, performs live with a brilliant and talented "Owl honor dance" before many spectators with many taking both video and photos of her inspiring performance.
Photos by Keith Kent
Murdock Music Caps Off School Year with Pops Concert
Winchendon Winds Joins Murdock Music as Guest Artists
Murdock Middle High School in Winchendon wraps up its academic year with its annual Pops Concert this Wednesday, May 25 at 6:30 p.m. in the school auditorium. The Pops Concert will feature a variety of short popular works and showcases students in solo and small ensemble performances. After a year of hard work and rapid growth, music teacher Emma Erwin and her students are excited to show off their progress.
Wrapping up her first year at Murdock, Emma has recruited new music students and developed five different performing ensembles. All five groups will perform on Wednesday.
The first half of the program features choral performances. Emma speaks with admiration of her singers, stating "The choir has worked this year to overcome obstacles and handle very high-level repertoire. For this concert, the world language piece the choir prepared is Shule Aroon, a piece partially in Gaelic. The students have successfully tackled the tuning and diction in the type of harmonies uncommon in the music they would typically listen to. The Select Choir will be performing again on the 30th, singing the National Anthem for the Memorial Day service in Winchendon."
The second half of the program features instrumental performances. Emma has been instructing a small number of dedicated players who have taken initiative to improve their playing and bring in fellow students. She observes "Like so many music programs throughout the country, COVID really caused difficulty for the music students in Winchendon. However, they are coming back strong and working hard to recruit; we are looking at a big increase in numbers next year to reflect their efforts. They are a great group and they sound like a group at least twice their size."
An added highlight this year has been the school's collaboration with the professional concert band Winchendon Winds, thanks to a generous grant from the David Greenewalt Charitable Trust. The collaboration included private instruction workshops between students and Win Winds musicians, followed by a combined rehearsal with Win Winds. Win Winds will perform as guest artists during the Pops Concert, and the concert will culminate in the performance of two combined numbers featuring the student and professional musicians playing together.
Emma recognizes this rare opportunity, noting "The kids and I are extremely excited to get to collaborate with Winchendon Winds for our upcoming concert, and to play in a 'normal-sized' band for the first time since COVID began."
Massachusetts COVID Numbers Statewide Rise 19 Percent in One Week as Toy Town Holds the Line
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts COVID-19 14 day average, over the last 7 days, has increased by 20 percent, going from 6.53 percent on Thursday, May 12, to 8.11 percent as of Thursday, May 19, as of the newest Massachusetts Department of Public Health released data.
Winchendon, after increasing for five consecutive weeks from 1.23 percent, to 8.81 percent positivity testing, managed the slightest of decreases, registering a 7 day average of 8.53 percent positivity based on 633 molecular tests taken over the last 14 day reporting period. Like the Commonwealth, Winchendon's local ten-town area also saw a 20 percent increase over the last 7 days on its 14 day rolling positivity average, increasing from 6.62 to 8.22 percent positivity.
Ashburnham went down from 10.84 to 7.45 percent, and its school district partner Westminster increased from 6.90 to 9.34 percent. Templeton increased slightly from 7.43 to 7.48 percent and school district partner Phillipston increased from 7.29 percent to 9.28 percent. Athol increased from 4.76 to 5.50 percent, and school district partner Royalston surged from 9.09 percent to 12.79 percent positivity. Ashby, like Winchendon, decreased slightly from 5.84 to 5.45 percent. Gardner increased by 30 percent, moving upward from 4.53 percent to 6.42 percent, while neighboring Hubbardston went down slightly from a very high 11.57 percent to a still high 10.00 percent positivity.
Of Massachusetts' three largest cities, Boston tests at 7.25 percent positivity, Worcester yields 3.62 percent, and Springfield tests at 7.53 percent. 6000 additional Massachusetts residents have been vaccinated in the last 7 days, with 5,376,129 of the state's 6.9 million residents fully vaccinated, and 56 percent of its residents having received a booster vaccination.
Winchendon's school age population's vaccination rate remains unchanged with children ages 5-11 registering at 22 percent fully vaccinated and 25 percent partially vaccinated, children ages 12-15 registering at 42 and 46 percent fully and partially vaccinated, and those ages 16-19 registering 47 percent fully vaccinated and 55 percent partially vaccinated.
At the Monday, May 16, Winchendon Annual Town Meeting, the Board of Health handed out optional masks and/or COVID-19 I-Health home test kits to any person who wished to take them. The Winchendon Board of Health would like to thank Heywood Hospital and Heywood Health Care for their large donation of face masks to help the Town of Winchendon provide a safer Town Meeting after receiving a request for assistance. The Board of Health continues to recommend vaccination, only if healthy enough to do so, especially if one has a pre-existing condition, or is immunocompromised.
Keith Kent
Chair
Board Of Health
Town of Winchendon
