Please note I have opted to publish this separately from the regular recap.
Presented by Carrie Marsh Loscocco with Keith Buday and Frank Oguro
Hi, my name is Carrie, and I’m here tonight to ask for the community’s support for the 2024 override — even if you don’t have children in the schools, there are items in the override that benefit all RESIDENTS, and I urge everyone to VOTE YES FOR HOLLISTON.
I think we can all agree that traffic is a major issue in town. In just a few weeks when school starts, we will all notice a significant change in traffic patterns just outside Town Hall.
But what if I told you, school bus traffic could be reduced by up to 30% during the peak morning commute, as well as in the evening? And a further decrease in car traffic as well, as parents are able to combine trips; I think everyone would be in favor of that.
Currently, we have 3 bus runs that are on the roads for roughly 3 hours each morning, at often less than full capacity, if the OVERRIDE PASSES, that number will be reduced to two hours, and the number of bus trips will decline as well, the HS bus run will no longer be recrossing Washington Street to drop off the middle school kids.
I believe everyone understands that there are things we can change, in our community, like adding more buses, but there are also things we cannot change. We cannot change the fact that our schools are not centrally located. We cannot reverse the decision to build more houses, add stop lights, add stop signs, most notably the 6 stop signs on Highland Street near the High School… all of these items contribute to public safety, but they do create more congestion and bus delays, the realty is the current 3 bus runs are no longer sustainable…
- 8 year olds are at the bus stop at 6:35 a.m. for the first bus run, first pick up at 6:40 a.m., drop off at 7:10 a.m., students wait in cafeteria for 20 minutes before school starts, so the bus can make the next and longest bus run.
- Meanwhile, to allow more children to sleep in, we have hundreds of parents driving their kids to school, which further increases traffic congestion.
- Next, the second bus, which is shared between the middle and high school, has to cross Washington Street multiple times, before heading off to pick up Placentino students, the third bus run.
- Placentino students are continually coming to school late. School start times were pushed back to accommodate the delay, and still the buses arrive late because of traffic congestion, often pulling up to Placentino after 9 a.m.
ALSO, A YES vote, will approve the override and provide the necessary funds for a new teacher contract, which includes 10/15 minutes more of educational time daily, a half year during a student’s K-12 career, plus added flexibility to daily/weekly teacher prep time. The new contract will enhance education time for our students; add funding for additional buses, add flexibility to the schedule to rework school start times and schedules at the middle and high school.
I urge the community to SUPPORT the 2024 Override, and VOTE YES FOR HOLLISTON.
Thank you.
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As a retired individual, I don’t see any added benefit in a higher tax bill. The above article also fails to explain how this override benefits all residents, as stated. Are any of these statements backed by facts? Have traffic studies been conducted, or are these simply assumptions? I urge the community to do the opposite and VOTE NO. If we are going to go above our means we need to address more critical needs, like a full time fire department, and sewers .
Hi Gerry,
Keith Buday, the Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Operations was also at the Select Board meeting to present that night. The reduction in bus runs from 3 to 2, will result in more than a 30% decrease in school related traffic during peak commute hours. This benefits all residents, but it also benefits downtown businesses and prospective businesses looking to invest in Holliston, not to mention employees that already work in Holliston. As a small business owner myself, we’ve lost talent because of the 20+ extra minutes (twice a day, 5 days a week) it takes each day to travel through town, with the addition of lights and traffic signs in the town. Traffic is a major concern for all residents, commuters, and businesses.
Gerry, as someone who is still working , but has reached the age of 65, I do understand why you may not think that you personally benefit from higher taxes. I also can see how that affects your outlook on wanting an override to benefit all residents. However, I think that when looking at the totality of taxes, it’s important to determine how “benefit” is defined. For example, you mentioned a full time fire department. Does someone who has never needed the services of the Fire Department benefit from a Fire Department? I’ve lived in Holliston for 37 years and called once because I smelled smoke in my house. Was it a benefit to me to pay for 37 years of service for one call that didn’t even require any equipment to be brought into my house? I would argue that yes, I benefit; everyone benefits from a well trained and well equipped fire department even if they hope they never need it. I also believe that everyone benefits from a well educated population. As Thomas Jefferson is quoted as saying (although unconfirmed), “An educated citizenry is a vital requisite for our survival as free people.” That’s the theory behind public schools. Even if you never have children in school you still benefit. When I say that I mean in a societal way, but you we also all benefit in another way. Better schools mean that people are willing to pay more to live in town and that raises all of our property values.
At the Special Town Meeting in June the Finance Committee, of which I am a member, made a unanimous recommendation to Town Meeting in support of that article that included a new budget for The School Committee. That budget was dependent on the override passing on the ballot. The Finance Committee made no recommendations concerning the override itself. I agree with our decision to not vote to make a recommendation for or against the override. Each voter has to decide how to vote, based on their own opinions and financial needs. I would never tell anyone how to vote on an override because the decision is based on too many issues for me to make that choice for someone. I don’t think more or less of a person based on an override vote.
To address your other issues, just because we do not have firefighters sitting in the fire station does not mean that we do not have full-time firefighters. I’ve heard the argument that our model, a well trained group of people who almost all live in work in the area, is more efficient for a town such as Holliston. When the call goes out a greater percentage of the the total of firefighters can respond than would be available if only the ones stationed at the fire station responded. The town is also in the process of upgrading the ambulance model from BLS to ALS. EMTs/Paramedics are currently scheduled to be at the fire station when possible.
Holliston is in studying sewers for the down town area. If you would like more information on that please see https://www.townofholliston.us/select-board/pages/proposed-downtown-sewer-district .
Hi Michelle,
No one “benefits” from higher taxes. Let’s be honest. Public services like full time Fire Departments serve everyone. With a population of almost 15,000 residents a full time department should be a standard. It’s 2024, and Holliston needs to prioritize municipal services. Even Sherborn has a full time department and they have under 5,000 residents. ALS is great. I’m glad to see this as it’s much over due. Having EMT’s and Paramedics scheduled to be at the station first when possible isn’t good enough for residents. Health and Safety should always be the number one priority for all. In emergencies every second matters.
If everyone benefited from a well educated population I would expect to see Holliston performing higher amongst peer towns. Home values have increased due to a number of factors, but our home values have not increased because of the desirability of our district. We no longer break the top 50. What has happened?
Overrides that predominantly focus on an increase to individual salaries do not benefit the students, nor the town. This override does nothing to ensure that our schools are better or more desirable, and the language within the contract isn’t firm enough to be actually binding . An override should be mutually beneficial between all parties. It’s clearly one sided.
Agree 100% Gerry. Nothing that I’ve read says nothing about what requirements can expect to improve because of the override. They are asking for a lot of residents who earn less per hour to suck it up to give more so that teachers who already make over $100,000 can have some more. Not all make that much, but in addition to the 4% raise another $1500. And you are also correct the Town is already facing financial issues, but I guess the HFT Union only cares about their members, not the people who support them.