Middleboro's Financial Geniuses

Taking a brief walk down Memory Lane, Middleboro residents would do well to reminisce about past history of land sales and the wondrous job Middleboro's Board of Selectmen has done giving away land to the lowest bidder and buying swampland for far more than its value.

.

The short-sighted Middleboro Board of Selectmen hasn't changed and will not change until qualified candidates are elected to the Board, another issue entirely.

.

September 2008, this was posted (emphasis mine):


You Can't Blame the New Town Manager excerpts below:
.
You can't blame the new Town Manager because the Middleboro Board of Selectmen failed to explain the surrounding issues to him.
.
During the BOS Meeting (Monday, September 8, 2008), the Town ownership and disposition of the Rock Village School on Highland St. was discussed.
.
The Rock Village School became vacant because the church group that had occupied the building was delinquent in their rent, hadn't maintained the building, as was required in their lease and Town Counsel opined that occupancy by the church was illegal.
.
In the intervening + 1 year, has anyone heard mention of RFPs (Request for Proposals)? Has there been any solicitation for ideas about using the property for community purposes?
.
...possibly selling the Rock Village School property, in a depressed real estate market, which would allow for residential construction .
.
This one clearly bears watching because mostly the same short-sighted BOS is in place.
.

In May 2008, this was posted (emphasis mine):
.
Jack Healey and the Casino Investors
.
Casino investors engineered secret deal
.
In a secret deal, casino investors for the Mashpee Wampanoag secured an option on 200 acres in Middleboro two days before they purchased 125 adjacent acres from the town.
.
The deal, and the secrecy surrounding it, may have resulted in the town garnering less money than it could have had the deal last April been more widely advertised.
.
Former Middleboro Town Manager Jack Healey, who first proposed the auction to raise money for the cash-strapped town, has since retired and could not be reached for comment. Town and tribe officials first met in March to begin talking about a proposed casino, according to Times archives.
.
Middleboro selectmen approved the auction April 9 and it was held April 27. The auction was advertised only in the local weekly newspaper, town Treasurer Judy MacDonald said.
.
But if the town wanted to get top dollar for the property, it should have done more advertising, Stevens said.
.
The Late Victor Sylvia stood at Town Meeting and protested the proposed sale of the Rock Village School because the land had been given to the Town to be used for educational purposes and has been used as such, for many years.
.
Illustrious Town Counsel, Daniel Murray ruled the sale is OK!
.
I'm not an attorney, but would remind Middleboro residents, that as unskilled and unschooled as I am in the law, I beat Mr. Murray twice in court.

.

He wasted the Town's paid time traveling to Boston to challenge me on basic issues and LOST. Novice that I am, I represented myself.

.

There are other occasions when Mr. Murray's legal advice has proven defective. The most recent public issue was ruling that Mrs. Duphily could participate in discussions involving hiring the new Fire Chief, although her husband was on the Call Fire Department. The Ethics Commission said No! The Ethics statutes are clearly displayed on the web site for review.

.

I am aware of other matters in which Town Counsel's rulings have cost the town money and merely raise the issues regarding this matter to question the validity of retaining that parcel, but urge residents to pay attention to their town's governance.

.

.

All of the background brings me to rumors circulating around Town that the Town Manager, no longer so new, is moving in the direction of selling the Rock Village School.

.

The proposed sale, having been defeated once by Town Meeting because of previous failures of our Financial Geniuses guiding the Town, should alert residents about what is being done. Does any potential value, in a depressed real estate market, make sense at this time? These Financial Geniuses have allowed other properties to fall into total disrepair prior to action.

This looks like more Mushroom Farming while you're paying attention to other things.

The honeymoon with the 'new' Town Manager appears over and someone needs to 'xplain past history to him.

The Town Manager's handling of various aspects of the last Special Town Meeting were questionable and we might excuse it because of his 'newness,' but let's not allow town property to be sold without adequate discussion and consideration given to potential community use because I am aware of someone who approached the Town for just such a use. Are we returning to the Lazy BOS Sydrome in which the Town Manager runs amok?

And remember, the Gavel Queen is Chairman again. When residents attempted to discuss the poorly advertised land auction in which the Precinct Street property was practically given away, cheating taxpayers out of money, the Gavel Queen REFUSED to allow residents to comment. Keep that gavel handy, Marsha! And with Wayne Perkins as Town Moderator, you won't even be allowed to comment. He'll simply ignore you!