Town Meeting update

Well, we are rounding 3rd base at Town Meeting this week. The members supported the raising of the Wildwood School for $750,000. This cost is about half of what was estimated a couple of years ago, which is a true reflection of a hurting real estate market. The low cost includes the asbestos removal, demolition of the building, and grading of the land. I am very pleased that Town Meeting recognized that the building is a safety issue and responded appropriately. (The vote was 60-17 in favor.) What's next for this town owned site? For the near future, it will be nothing more than open space. I can see possible uses for the land: recreational fields, playground, and cemetery space. I can't emphasize enough that Town Meeting completed its objective without selling off this pristine neighborhood property.

A study of the land-locked parcel was approved. This study will not cost the town any money. The development consortium, Patriot Partners, who bought up all the options on the property, will foot the bill for the study. They have the first right to purchase the properly until the end of 2010. Keep in mind that the town on Burlington still owns the property. This is simply a feasibility study of what the land could be used for. We are not obligated to sell this property to Patriots Partners or anyone else. Let your feelings be heard by the town and your Town Meeting members.

I voted against funding the B-Line at a cost of $217,000 of the tax payers' money. This service is used by less than 200 residents (and some non residents). The fares from the ridership bring in only $30,000 per year in revenue to the town. With the exception of
Lexington, most communities do not provide in-town transportation for its residents. As you can see, it is very costly and will continue to rise with gas prices going up. The town does not have a protection clause in its contract if the fuel costs continue to rise this year.
It's important to note that I do support the COA bus service for our seniors and I have recommended we get a second bus if we eliminate the B-Line.

Coming up this week will be the Francis Wyman play ground article. Last year, we gave them$100,000. They are looking for additional funds to match the $54,000 they have raised. Town meeting resumed last night. Feel free to email or call me if you want to discuss any of the latest agenda items.

22 Votes

This past Tuesday was the Burlington Board of Selectman recount. The
results were the same in that Gary Gianino came in first. I did pick
up a three of votes. All in all, I came in second by 22 votes, won
four precincts, tied one precincts, and lost only 1 precinct. In other
news, we are finishing up the budgets for the May Town Meeting and
then onto the warrant articles. The Wildwood demolition costs will be
on the warrant this May. If anyone has a question about the budget or
warrant article please contact me.

Feedback

It has been two weeks since the 2008 Burlington town election. I must
admit, it took me 10 days to recover from the physical stress of the
campaign. (Three to four hours of sign holding a day plus walking
around the neighborhoods of Burlington knocking on doors served as a
good workout.) Although I came in second by 26 votes, I was not
disappointed with our campaign strategy. We had a great group of
supporters, many who were never involved in politics at the town
level. Having such dedicated supporters made the campaign very
rewarding. A day does not go by without someone asking me about the
election. Some people who did not closely follow the election tell me
they are surprised to hear that I came in second. Most people ask if I
am planning to run again next year. Well, the recount is this Tuesday,
4/21. Let's get through that first and finally put the 2008 election
behind us. I'm happy to be back to the gym and playing golf. I played
Tewksbury Country Club this past Thursday and Billerica Country Club
on Friday afternoon. The weather is great and winter is over so it's a
victory for everyone.

26 Votes

The election is now over, and Garry Gianino will start his 6th term as a member of the Board of Selectmen. Although we lost by only 26 votes, I am pleased we won 4 of the 6 precincts. Virginia Mooney came in third with 259 votes and also lost her bid for a seat on Town Meeting. On Monday, we will formally ask the town for a recount, which is standard procedure for an election this close. Approx 25 years ago, there was a School Committee seat that was decided by 6 votes. We do not know if a Board of Selectmen's race was ever this close.

Thank you to all my supporters, especially those who volunteered to hold signs with me and those I met when going door to door. A special thanks to Cindy Gilpin, my campaign manager, and Rose Manni, co-chair. I also want to thank Dan Raske for building and distributing the many signs we had around Burlington. Finally, thank you to everyone who got out there and voted. With a margin as slim as 26 votes, it is clear that every vote does count.

I look forward to continuing to serve the Town of Burlington as a Town Meeting Member (Precinct 6) and Ways and Means Committee member. I will continue to post to the blog on a regular basis.

The Truth

Less than 48 hours left until judgment day. The election is this Saturday, April 5th from 8am-8pm. The opposition is now spreading the trash talk. One rumor being spread is that I want to privatize the ambulance and remove it from the Fire Department. The Fire Department is doing an outstanding job. Why would I want to privatize this service? Next rumor: I’m going to remove the DPW from the town service. Our infrastructure is in tough shape but, if we did that, who will maintain the water, sewer, and roads? These rumors are being spread around Burlington for the purpose of making people afraid to vote for me, Dan DiTucci. These rumors are simply untrue.

Tonight, I started to receive phone calls. Turns out that my opponent sent a mailing to some residents with a list of people who endorse his campaign. The calls I received were from people on that list. Each caller told me that they did not authorize their name to be on that list and wanted to assure me that I had their support. By the way, if your name happens to appear on that list and you did not authorize it, don’t worry about it. I see the game going on here.

Situations like this are exactly why my promise to the voters is “HONEST GOVERNMENT.” As always, I’m happy to speak further on this. I’ve been thrilled to receive emails and phone calls from voters. Keep them coming. Most important, please get out and vote this Saturday.

Five days to go

Today, at the request of a few Town Meeting members in precinct 3, I hit the streets of Mueller, Eugene, and Cormier Roads. I knocked ondoors to introduce myself. Almost every person thanked me for stopping by. I meet a few home owners that I knew from high school and some residents that knew my brothers and sister.

Nine days away

This morning I held signs at the intersection of Cambridge and Bedford Street. I blew-off sign holding this afternoon so I could knock on doors. (Thank you to my friends, family, and supporters who were out there in the cold holding Dan DiTucci signs.) I started at 3pm and worked my way down Fox Hill, Vincent, and Donald roads. My announcement of candidacy is now on the Wicked Local Burlington website. I was happy with the first comment: http://www.wickedlocal.com/burlington/news/x125179354.

The election is nine days away. My goal is to hit 600 homes. This is the most rewarding part of the campaign. Even though I prefer to talk to people in person, I’m excited anytime a voter calls or emails me…. So keep the emails and phone calls coming.