Residents gathered once again in the Bromfield School gym last Saturday to take part in the 2015 Annual Town Meeting, Harvard’s yearly legislative session. But turnout was the lowest in a decade, confounding those who thought the return to a weekend session would boost attendance.
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During the morning 270 registered voters signed in, somewhat fewer than the 278 who attended the last meeting held in the gymnasium in 2013 and 21 percent fewer than the 341 who attended the first of last year’s weeknight sessions in Cronin Auditorium.
Three-quarters voted before lunch
Moderator Bob Eubank gaveled the meeting to order shortly after 9 a.m., and following a salute to the flag and his yearly reminder that when the day ended “we’re all still neighbors,” he turned to the first article on this year’s 50-article warrant. By 11:50 a.m., when Eubank paused the meeting to recognize conservationist Charlie Gorss as this year’s citizen of note, voters had already discussed and passed nearly three-quarters of the articles before them.
After a brief lunch, the meeting reconvened at 12:35 p.m., and shortly before 2 p.m., the business of the day was over.
Of the 50 articles on the town warrant, 48 passed and two were withdrawn. The most expensive item by far was Article 5, the town budget, which proposed to appropriate $22.7 million to “defray the expenses of the town” in the coming fiscal year 2016. This amount represents the sum total of the operating budgets of all departments and committees in town after being offset by state aid and other income, such as the amount the schools receive for the education of Devens students. Most of the money to pay for town services—99 percent, in fact—is raised by town property taxes, whose source is overwhelmingly residential.
Finance Committee Chairwoman Alice von Loesecke, who read the motion for Article 5, noted that the coming year’s budget is roughly 3 percent higher than this year’s, driven largely by cost-of-living increases in the salaries of town employees, as well as the addition of a combined assistant town administrator and human resources director to Town Hall staff and a new half-time outreach worker to the Council on Aging.
The town will also add $450,000 to the trust fund that sets aside money for the benefits Harvard will owe its current employees when they reach retirement age. That amount is $25,000 higher than last year’s contribution.
New borrowing and tax add-on
Three purchases that do not appear in the budget will be paid for either by borrowing money with a 15- to 20-year bond or by increasing taxes for one year. Voters overwhelmingly voted to go ahead with a $1.36 million project to improve safety and accessibility at Hildreth House, the town’s senior center; the project would be funded by borrowing up to $1.24 million and using more than $119,000 in existing community development block grant funds. Voters also agreed to purchase a $350,000 tanker firetruck, which will be funded by borrowing as well. The $315,000 for a new air-exchange system for the Bromfield School science labs will be paid for with a combination of town revenue and a one-year increase in taxes. All three measures, however, must be approved by a majority of voters at Town Election on Tuesday, April 7. (See “Next week’s election to decide fate of science labs, firetruck, and Hildreth House.”)
Only three of the 50 articles sparked much debate: Article 9, a proposal to pay for increased roadside tree-trimming; Article 13, a request to purchase a new permitting system for Town Hall; and Article 44, which proposed a change to the definition of “building” as it appears in Harvard’s zoning bylaws. All three seemed to invite complaints beyond the substance of the articles, but in the end, all three passed overwhelmingly. (For details of these discussions see “Come let us reason together: Three articles that sparked debate.” )
Of the remaining articles, 45 were dispatched quickly with nearly unanimous votes, and two were withdrawn. Throughout the morning, whenever Moderator Eubank called for opposing votes, a sprinkling of five to 10 yellow cards could be seen, and sometimes only one, held aloft by a lone attendee. Eight articles passed unanimously. (See “2015 Town Meeting votes at a glance.”)
Box lunch, empty hallway
With the school’s chef, Paul Correnty, out of town, the General Store stepped up to provide boxed lunches. For $7 dollars, attendees could purchase a turkey panini sandwich or a kale salad, with water, chips, and a cookie. According to store owner Scott Hayward, 55 lunches were sold.
In stark contrast to years past, the hallway outside the gym was deserted, save for a presentation by the Friends of the COA in support of the Hildreth renovation and a table with information on the proposed cross country track. There was no coffee or doughnuts, no July 4 T-shirts, and no hats for sale by the Conservation Trust. There were plenty of handouts inside the gym, however, including the 220-page 2014 Annual Town Report, loaded with information about the performance of every department and committee. (A few copies remain and are available from Town Clerk Janet Vellante at Town Hall, according to Executive Assistant Julie Doucet.)
Lowest attendance in 11 years
With seemingly no controversial items on the agenda, attendance sank to its lowest level in 11 years, providing some ammunition for those who think weeknight meetings are better. Conditions favored a warm morning in a gymnasium as snow swirled outside. With playing fields covered by snow, there were no sports events to compete for parents’ time. Yet out of 3,848 registered voters, only 7 percent—a mere 270—had signed in by midmorning Saturday. Observers, including Town Clerk Janet Vellante, estimated that roughly 75 returned after lunch.
These numbers are in contrast with those for last year’s 2014 Annual Town Meeting, which convened on April 1 and lasted two evenings. On the first night, a Tuesday, attendance topped out at 341; on the second night it dropped to 267.
Next up: Town Election
With this year’s meeting over, two steps remain before its votes take effect: The town clerk must prepare minutes of the meeting and send them on to the state’s attorney general so the results can be validated. And a majority of voters who go to the polls on Tuesday, April 7, must cast ballots in favor of raising taxes beyond the Proposition 2 ½ limit to pay for renovation of Hildreth House, the purchase of a new pumper truck, and replacement of the air-exchange system for Bromfield science labs.
Meanwhile, the selectmen are expected to call a combined Super Town Meeting and Special Town Meeting in June, the first to vote on four zoning changes MassDevelopment has requested for Devens, and the second to decide the fate of the withdrawn Article 48, which proposes to enlarge the town center sewer district. Additional bookkeeping items are sure to follow.
