Town Meeting members on Wednesday approved Arlington’s $109.7 million town budget. The fiscal year 2012 budget is .3 percent smaller than last year, when the town budgeted $110.1 million for fiscal year 2011. Some of the largest items approved were schools ($38.7 million), community safety ($11.9 million), Department of Public Works ($7.2 million) and health and human services ($750,000). It was a lengthy discussion Wednesday night. Town Meeting members stripped the budget to the bones, questioning items such as the responsibilities of the town’s deputy town manager. When it was time to …
In addition to authorizing the Board of Selectmen to sell the Crosby School, Town Meeting members addressed 24 other articles Monday, ultimately deciding to postpone five until Wednesday, June 8, the day after the override vote. Members passed 15 articles, mostly appropriations voted annually, unanimously or near unanimously with little to no discussion, including articles 52-53, 55, 59-60, 62-64, 66-67, 70, 72-74 and 76 on the Town Meeting Warrant. Members took no action on three articles (Articles 58, 65 and 71) at the request of the Finance Committee, and voted against Article 49, which …
Less than a week after deciding to hold on to the Parmenter School, Town Meeting members on Monday authorized the Board of Selectmen to sell Crosby School. The somewhat controversial article, Article 39, passed by the necessary two-thirds majority, 125-44, after just over an hour of debate. Proponents of the article said it would help the current tenant, Dearborn Academy, stay in the space. Ted Wilson, the president and executive director of Schools for Children, which oversees the special needs school, told Town Meeting members that his organization would be prepared to make an offer if the …
Town Meeting members on Wednesday defeated a proposal to sell Parmenter School for a minimum of $1.7 million. Several members spoke out against the sale because of Parmenter’s significance and place in Arlington history. Others argued the school hasn’t belonged to the town for decades and the space could yield much-needed revenue. Parmenter School, 17 Irving St., houses two educational programs, Arlington Children’s Center and the International School of Boston. The property to be sold, which hasn't been used by the town since the 1980s, would only include the school, leaving Parmenter Park …
When Jane Biondi sends her 9-year-old daughter Grace to school everyday, it is to a building with no fire sprinkler or fire safety system, a seriously compromised roof and failing heating. That’s the situation parents of Thompson Elementary School students report. There, parents say, major building systems and windows need to be replaced and special education teaching spaces are inadequate. “The children at Thompson never dress for the weather outside,” Biondi told Town Meeting members Monday, “they dress for the unique internal weather system in the building—where it is roasting hot in …
In their smoothest vote yet, Town Meeting members on Wednesday approved a contribution of $2.3 million to Minuteman Career and Technical High School’s fiscal year 2012 budget. The vote was unanimous and followed a round of applause. A few Arlington old-timers pointed out this year's smooth vote appears to indicate Town Meeting members' level of support of the technical school run by Superintendent Edward Bouquillon. After the meeting, Bouquillon said the relationship between Town Meeting and Minuteman Tech has been shaky in the past. But the superintendent said his team has changed their …
Town Meeting members approved Monday an amended version of a proposal to study whether Arlington should merge town and schools finances. As amended, the approved article requests the town manager to research a consolidated finance department and report back to next year’s town meeting. The original article included language about Town Meeting members “indicating support” of a consolidated finance department, a move that did not sit well with several members. Some who did not approve of the original article said it was too vague, and they didn’t want to vote until there was a solid proposal. …
After a heated three-hour debate on whether Arlington should consider consolidating town and schools finances, Town Meeting members on Wednesday adjourned without a vote. The matter up for discussion was Article 51, a proposal unanimously approved by the Board of Selectmen asking the town manager to compose a feasibility plan on whether there should be a body or official to oversee finances at Town Hall and Arlington Public Schools. The proposal comes in the heels of a dire 2010 for Arlington schools, which last year faced a $1.5 million budget shortfall. Still, town officials said Article 51…
It is now up to the voters: Should Arlingon allow for two additional liquor stores? On Monday, Town Meeting members approved an article (94-60) allowing the Board of Selectmen to ask voters if the town should be allowed to do just that. The hotly debated liquor license article comes about three years after Arlington moved from being entirely dry to having three beer and wine licenses. During previous discussions about this article at Town Meeting, some members expressed concerns about the logistics of having two additional liquor stores, especially as it touched underage drinking and …
Next time you fail to shovel the sidewalk after a snowstorm, Arlington workers will do the job for you. But here’s the catch: You’ll be the one paying for the service. On Wednesday, Town Meeting members approved an article that would allow town officials to clear ice and snow from sidewalks where the owner or tenant failed to do so. In return, those who fail to shovel will pick up the tab and reimburse the town for the service. “This bylaw enforcement tool is really a way to give us a little more teeth for the people who are not doing their snow removal in a timely way,” said Clarissa Rowe, …
Arlington's Capitol Theatre could soon become a spot to grab a beer along with a movie. On Wednesday, Town Meeting members passed an article allowing the Board of Selectmen to ask voters whether theaters with seating capacity of more than 100 should be allowed to sell wine and malt beverages. Owner Richard Fraiman, who also owns Somerville Theatre, said selling beer and wine has been an attractive feature of his theater in Somerville. There, Fraiman has offered alcoholic beverages since 2007. The business owner said he's served about half a million customers—though not all ordered alcoholic …
Pet owners caught violating dog-leashing regulations in Arlington will soon begin paying heftier fines, beginning with $75 for the first offense and rising to $200 by the fourth. As it stands, leashing violations in Arlington result on a warning for the first offense. But on Wednesday, Town Meeting members approved an article that will change the fee scale and establish a fine from the get-go. “I cannot think of a good reason for a dog to be off leash outside of the off-leash hours in an off-leash park,” Selectman Annie LaCourt said. The new fee schedule will be $75 for first offense, $100 …
The state of local finances is “very troubled” and Arlington needs to change the way it does business or face layoffs for public employees, Board of Selectmen Chair Clarissa Rowe said Monday. In her State of the Town address, Rowe told the audience at Town Hall that failure to change key aspects of how Arlington conducts finances could result in fewer teachers, firefighters, police officers and workers at the Department of Public Works. One of the options she suggested is urging state officials to give Arlington the ability to put employees into a different healthcare program, one that would …
Arlington’s economy, schools and a nearly $6.5 million budget override will be the focus of tonight’s State of the Town address, a town official said Sunday. Board of Selectmen Chair Clarissa Rowe, who will deliver the address, said this is the time to regroup as a town and focus on important decisions coming up this year. “This is a time for action for the citizens,” Rowe said. In her address, Rowe will focus on asking for citizen support on June 7, when Arlingtonians will vote on a nearly $6.5 million override the Board of Selectmen put on the ballot. The proposed override would increase …
