SELECTMEN'S MEETING TONIGHT
MONDAY FEBRUARY 25 6:30pm
Discuss and sign application for Tomb Restoration Grant
Vote CPC Article for Annual Town Meeting to include in tomb grant application
Revenue Anticipation - Note borrowing - Dan Keeney Treasurer
old Business
new business
Discuss ATM warrant article process
OH BOY, I just read the Gardner News online, Looks like Dana got the royal Skelton treatment and got a ONE sided article on the front page. A typical Poor Me cry from the Pot Smoking Liar. Hopefully someone can make this its own Blog.
ReplyDeleteI HAD TO CUT OUT SEVARAL LINES AS IT WOULD NOT LET ME COPY THAT MANY WORDS.
TEMPLETON — Officials with the Municipal Light and Water Department say a town meeting citizens petition seeking to eliminate the Light and Water Commission is unwarranted.
“We run this department how it’s supposed to be, and we’re efficient at it,” said Dana Blais, chairman of the commission, who’s been with the department for more than 20 years. “Why would anyone want to change the effective management of two of the most efficiently run departments in town? We really turned this place around when we took it over from the (Board of Selectmen) in 2000.”
“It just makes no sense,” said Mr. Blais. “There is no structure set up in town to take over our department ... We’ve had significant volatility with the (select board) over the past several years, which doesn’t support long-term sustainability.”
John Driscoll, general manager of the department, said he is expecting to hear back from an attorney regarding the petition’s legality.
“I have no idea if this is legal or if they can do something like this,” he said. “I can’t sit here and point out something that’s bad (with the department). If there is something that’s bad being done, this board would have brought it up ... I just don’t understand.”
Proponents of the petition say rates have drastically increased in town over the years and assert the commission is not being transparent with its customers.
In 2000, the town enacted Chapter 93 of the Acts of 2000, which established the Water Department under the jurisdiction of the Municipal Light Plant. The select board managed the water department until 2000, according to Mr. Blais.
“The water department was in desperate need of help,” he said. “There was water that residents could not drink and multiple water main breaks every month.”
Members of the department said there were hundreds of meters in town that were not functional, and approximately 40 percent of the water in town being pumped was unaccounted for. They also said customers had not been billed for more than a year.
“There was no money coming in,” said Mr. Blais. “Residents were approaching (the light department) to take the water (department) over.”
Over the years, Mr. Blais said the commission spent millions of dollars on needed capital improvements, such as new meters, installing water mains and a more than $2 million filtration system in East Templeton to improve the water quality.
“With the millions of dollars that have been spent on improvements and the revenue required for daily operations, it is common sense that the water rates would increase,” he said.
Mr. Blais said Templeton is around the middle of the pack when it comes to electric rates, and starting in March, rates will be lower than National Grid’s.
Regarding transparency, department officials say they have been forthcoming with information and have answered all the questions asked by residents during public meetings.
“We have answered all of Mr. Smart’s and his group’s questions,” said Mr. Blais.
Another concern expressed by petition supporters is that the commission does not currently have a website for residents to find information. They also question why an audit has yet to be conducted on the wind turbine behind Narragansett Regional High School.
Mr. Blais said officials have been working on the website for several months, and it is expected to be up and running soon. He also said an audit for the wind turbine was initiated some time ago.
“The audit has been initiated and we want the results back just as much as everyone else does,” he said. “Things just take time ... For some reason, some people in town think everything is a secret over here. It’s not. We get things done over here.”
This article should have been on the comics page.
DeleteDana doesn't have a clue, I've compared my bill with relatives that have Nat'l Grit same bottom line rate. Total amount of bill divided by Kilowatts = .13 per kilowatt both TL and NG. JD is asking the AG to look into the petition. Why - the law states that anyone can bring a petition to the floor, it is ones right. Then it is reviewed by the AG once it passes town floor. JD doesn't even know how TM works. So Dana, because we ask questions and want tansparency we are now "Dave's" people. I haven't made up my mind on the petition yet, But these comments make me want new commissioners and management at the L&W. The worker bees, I have no problems with, they do outstanding work!
ReplyDeleteAs far as I can see, the town can not live with the light and water dept's. off doing their own thing. Three quarters of the town dept's are dying of lack of money, while these fat cats, are rolling in dough!! Of course they have it good! I think they have short changed the rest of the town, by not giving us enough for a pilot, instead bloating their over head. They adopted the feeling that this is their dept. NO, NO, NO, it is not. Good old JD will find out soon enough. How can it take months to put up a simple light web page? Oh, maybe they would have to give the share holders some real information! Don't count on it. Just tell anyone that has doubts about this petition, what JD said, when asked about more money for the PILOT. "If you want more money for the PILOT, we will charge you more, so we can give more back!" That is so WRONG!! In their way of thinking, they would not cut a position, or make any changes, in order to pay the correct amount. It is called a bad case of greed, caused by their leader Mr. Skelton. A electric bill affects every family and business in this town. If the Gsnoos would for once tell the true story, what a difference it would make. Bev.
DeleteI think the $4 charge (now $3) is to pay for legal bills the manager racks up by running to the attorneys every time someone does something or says something he doesn't like. You can't blame him...he learned that behavior from his idol GS.
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