Is all this really necessary?

Is all this really necessary? Friday, October 29, 2004

Rob Haneisen Framingham Tab

Framingham does need a facelift but is it really needing $90 million worth of work? And more importantly, should the taxpayers foot the bill on the job?
Town Manager George King is floating the idea around town that a capital improvement override could fix some areas lacking but the idea is running into some stiff resistance outside of the expected conservative corner.
The debt exclusion override would pay through 20-year bonds the cost of the project which includes renovations to the Memorial Building, school projects, idewalk and road repair, replacing the Saxonville branch library and creating a wireless network downtown.
King said the override would cost the average homeowner $150 a year - a figure critics have said is too low especially when you consider that it is based on assessed home values that undoubtedly have risen.
The Memorial Building renovations have been a King pet project for years. He proposed a $50 million idea three years ago that not only renovated the Memorial Building but also put and underground parking garage beneath it, apartments on top and extended town offices along Concord Street by buying out neighboring property. The idea would have created a municipal plaza smack in the middle of downtown. It was ambitious and went nowhere.
The $90 million proposal includes $24 million for the Memorial Building. It needs it but whether the town can afford it is up to homeowners. Suffice to say that working inside some parts of the Memorial Building in the depths of winter or the height of summer can be a less than enjoyable experience. The same goes for anyone trying to do business there.
But there are a few segments of the $90 million override proposal that seem like waste.
For $3.5 million, the proposal calls for replacing the Saxonville branch library. I know the branch is one of the busiest in the state despite its diminutive size but the truth is, Framingham has a great big library downtown that too often is half empty. Could the downtown library accommodate the extra foot traffic? It would appear so. Also, consider that fact that many people from Wayland and Sudbury use the Saxonville branch. they don't pay taxes in Framingham and wouldn't be paying for something they will most likely benefit from.
Solution? Close the Saxonville branch and use the money from the sale to make any necessary improvements to the main library downtown or use the money to help pay the salaries of anyone displaced by the Saxonville branch closing. Not many towns have two libraries, why should Framingham?
Another item that seems a bit extravagant is installing wireless internet townwide that would benefit both private industry, residents and town departments who could better communicate using the technology. All this with a price tag of $2 million. I know Philadelphia has spent $10 million to put in a similar system but isn't this the type of project that private industry would fund, particularly with the business expansion possibilities it could create? I'll admit to being a techno-dummy who still uses dial-up Internet but this seems like $2 million being wasted.
Three other items on the list of goodies seem again like a way to stick it to taxpayers: Improvements to Loring Arena, Bowditch Field and Tercentennial Park. All three of these improvements total $6.5 million. My problem with these projects is they are not necessarily something the entire town benefits from and they all fall under the park and recreation department. Why not create additional user fees for youth sports teams, park and recreation programs, ice time and others to cover the cost of the projects? Maybe Veterans organizations can chip in on the Tercentennial Park project seeing as they are so much a part of that property?
I'm not knocking the whole proposal, but I do think there are some areas where additional fees and maybe some creative fund raising would be a better idea than taxing homeowners.

Is all this really necessary?	Friday, October 29, 2004
Rob Haneisen	Framingham Tab
Framingham does need a facelift but is it really needing $90 million worth of work? And more importantly, should the taxpayers foot the bill on the job? Town Manager George King is floating the idea around town that a capital improvement override could fix some areas lacking but the idea is running into some stiff resistance outside of the expected conservative corner. The debt exclusion override would pay through 20-year bonds the cost of the project which includes renovations to the Memorial Building, school projects, idewalk and road repair, replacing the Saxonville branch library and creating a wireless network downtown. King said the override would cost the average homeowner $150 a year - a figure critics have said is too low especially when you consider that it is based on assessed home values that undoubtedly have risen. The Memorial Building renovations have been a King pet project for years. He proposed a $50 million idea three years ago that not only renovated the Memorial Building but also put and underground parking garage beneath it, apartments on top and extended town offices along Concord Street by buying out neighboring property. The idea would have created a municipal plaza smack in the middle of downtown. It was ambitious and went nowhere. The $90 million proposal includes $24 million for the Memorial Building. It needs it but whether the town can afford it is up to homeowners. Suffice to say that working inside some parts of the Memorial Building in the depths of winter or the height of summer can be a less than enjoyable experience. The same goes for anyone trying to do business there. But there are a few segments of the $90 million override proposal that seem like waste. For $3.5 million, the proposal calls for replacing the Saxonville branch library. I know the branch is one of the busiest in the state despite its diminutive size but the truth is, Framingham has a great big library downtown that too often is half empty. Could the downtown library accommodate the extra foot traffic? It would appear so. Also, consider that fact that many people from Wayland and Sudbury use the Saxonville branch. they don't pay taxes in Framingham and wouldn't be paying for something they will most likely benefit from. Solution? Close the Saxonville branch and use the money from the sale to make any necessary improvements to the main library downtown or use the money to help pay the salaries of anyone displaced by the Saxonville branch closing. Not many towns have two libraries, why should Framingham? Another item that seems a bit extravagant is installing wireless internet townwide that would benefit both private industry, residents and town departments who could better communicate using the technology. All this with a price tag of $2 million. I know Philadelphia has spent $10 million to put in a similar system but isn't this the type of project that private industry would fund, particularly with the business expansion possibilities it could create? I'll admit to being a techno-dummy who still uses dial-up Internet but this seems like $2 million being wasted. Three other items on the list of goodies seem again like a way to stick it to taxpayers: Improvements to Loring Arena, Bowditch Field and Tercentennial Park. All three of these improvements total $6.5 million. My problem with these projects is they are not necessarily something the entire town benefits from and they all fall under the park and recreation department. Why not create additional user fees for youth sports teams, park and recreation programs, ice time and others to cover the cost of the projects? Maybe Veterans organizations can chip in on the Tercentennial Park project seeing as they are so much a part of that property? I'm not knocking the whole proposal, but I do think there are some areas where additional fees and maybe some creative fund raising would be a better idea than taxing homeowners.

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