The cost to Arlington homeowners is minimal — an average of $84 per year with many exemptions. Even with reductions in state funding, Arlington will receive at least several hundred thousand dollars of new state money each year. In a time of tight budgets and continuing needs, the CPA is a wide investment. For more information, go to www.arlingtoncpa.org. Thank you for your consideration.
This letter was published Monday, Oct. 20, 2014.
Senior citizen backs law
The following letter to the editor was written by Ann FitzGerald of Arlington:
As a senior, Town Meeting member, and taxpayer, I am asking Arlington citizens to vote yes on Ballot question 5, the Community Preservation Act on Tuesday, Nov 4.
The CPA adds a 1.5% tax on our real estate bills. Low-to-moderate-income seniors or those with low income may exempt out of the tax. The funds collected are to be used by Arlington, 10% each for redesign, renovation of historic resources, open space/recreation, and affordable housing. A permanent committee will have oversight of projects. Mass. CPA Trust Fund will contribute approximately another 30% to 50% in funds.
As a senior on fixed income, I am willing to contribute extra if it means that the Senior Center, a historic building, last renovated in 1984 receives funds to redesign and renovate space for handicapped accessibility, new facilities, outside entrance bricks, kitchen, offices, and for wellness, entertainment and recreation programs. The number of seniors is expected to rise, now at 23% of population and the need for social, health, information services is rising as dramatically.
The intention of CPA is to ensure that historic buildings be brought up to date as the schools have been, that these buildings belong to the community and reflect community pride. Please vote yes on question 5 and please vote. The Community Preservation Act website is www.arlingtoncpa.org.
A CPA community information forum Oct. 23, from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m., is at the Senior Center. Senator Ken Donnelly will be speaking.
This letter was published Monday, Oct. 20, 2014.
Library trustee supports
The following letter to the editor was written by Kathy Fennelly of Arlington, trustee of the Robbins Library and a former member of the School Committee and Town Meeting:
I’ve thought the Community Preservation Act was a good idea when it was first introduced approx 14 years ago and very short sighted of those who opposed it. It provides another source of funds for organizations in the town that are important to us, for activities that are important for us to remain the kind of community we all believe in.
The four areas eligible for funding — historic preservation, open space, outdoor recreation and community housing — are never going to beat public safety and public works as high priorities for the town. But that doesn’t mean that they are not important values. We have historic buildings and open space/recreation today because years ago people of the town preserved them for future generations.
Arlington’s 5 square miles, some of it water, doesn’t leave us with a lot of opportunities to create more open space, but we should preserve what we have and be able to increase it if we have the chance. Our housing prices are discouraging for young families who could be great contributors to the vibrancy of the town. I saw my 11-year-old granddaughter’s face when she described seeing Paul Revere’s house and the Buckman Tavern, which was just renovated and opened last spring. History became alive for her. These are public treasures, as are the Jason Russell House and Old Schwamb Mill.
We are the public. This act takes a little bit from all of us and the state matches according to receipts. The committee (made up of people like us) is going to sift through proposals and to make tough choices every year to get a yes from Town Meeting. Our part of the founding of our country is real. We’re not a town in the middle of Oklahoma. Paul Revere and William Dawes rode through our town, we sent our men into battle for independence. I think that’s worth paying to preserve.
Maybe we, all of us who are alive now, won’t benefit from every dollar spent, but just as we enjoy buildings and parks and pieces of history that others built so long ago, Arlingtonians in the future will reap the benefits of having the historical places and open spaces this act helps create.
This letter was published Monday, Oct. 20, 2014.
League, ex-School Committee member back Community Preservation Act
The following letter was submitted by Barbara C. Goodman, who was a member of the Arlington School Committee from 1993 to 2005:
I’ve been a longtime advocate for the Arlington Public Schools and plan to continue to be. I am also a strong supporter of the Community Preservation Act.
Arlington is a wonderful place to live. Seeking great schools, young families move here, and stay because of our strong sense of community. We pride ourselves in caring for our youth, our seniors and those less fortunate. That’s why Arlington tax payers have generously supported Proposition 21/2 overrides that have allowed us to maintain quality education, safety, health and human services.
Unfortunately, for the last 30 years — since the enactment of Prop.2½ — we have not been able to dedicate sufficient funds to the preservation and restoration of our historical sites and open spaces. Adopting the Community Preservation Act will help us, for example, to renovate the Senior Center, restore graves and walls at the Old Burying Grounds and repair the Menotomy Hunter.
Funds can also be used to enhance our parks and playing fields and to restore Mill Brook.
The Arlington Housing Corporation has a 1,000-person waiting list for affordable housing. CPA money can be used to speed up the purchasing and refurbishing of homes.
Education and public safety are our town priorities; but they are not our only obligations as members of this wonderful community. Please join me in voting Yes on Question 5.
This viewpoint was published Monday, Oct. 6, 2014.
Angela Olszewski and Carolyn Parsons, co-presidents of the League of Women Voters of Arlington submitted the following statement:
The League of Women Voters of Arlington supports adoption of the Community Preservation Act (CPA), which is Question 5 on November ballot in Arlington. The CPA enables cities and towns in Massachusetts to create a locally dedicated fund for open space, historic preservation, community housing, and outdoor recreation. It will enable Arlington to maintain, protect and expand on important town assets.
Funds could be used to preserve land for the enjoyment of all residents, create trails for recreational use, provide affordable housing for seniors, restore and preserve historic structures, and complete other projects that the Town has been unable to adequately fund over the years. The Town Hall gardens are in disrepair; the Menotomy Indian Hunter rarely sees his reflection in the reflecting pool; the bathrooms at the Senior Center need modernization.
Question 5 on the Nov. 4 ballot asks the voter whether or not to accept the CPA legislation for Arlington. The CPA funds would be generated through two sources: a surcharge of 1.5 percent on property tax bills, and an annual disbursement from the statewide Community Preservation Trust Fund to communities that have adopted the CPA.
The trust fund’s revenues are derived from fees collected at the Registry of Deeds and from the state budget surplus. The legislation includes an exemption of the first $100,000 of assessed value of residential and commercial/industrial real estate and an exemption for low-income homeowners and low-to-moderate-income seniors. For an average home in Arlington (a little over $500,000) the tax surcharge would be $86 per year.
The CPA’s three core areas, open space and recreation, affordable housing, and historic preservation, are included in the program supported by the League. Vote yes on Question 5 on the November 4 ballot.
For more information, see the website of the campaign in favor of Question 5 of the campaign in favor of Question 5.
This viewpoint was published Friday, Oct. 3, 2014.
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