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Ward 5 and friends, The City Council is nearing the end of our annual budget hearing process, during which we review the city’s budget through meetings department heads and administrators. We expect to take our final vote on Monday June 16th. We have also voted unanimously to put a set of override questions on the ballot in November. Through the budget review process, it has been clear that every department has been pushed to remove whatever they can. Many departments are forgoing training and materials that would allow them to do their jobs better. Some of these cuts are not sustainable for more than a year or two – for example, continuing education courses are requirements for some of our employees’ licenses. Departments are also leaving vacancies unfilled, forgoing preventative maintenance, and pausing grant-writing work that would bring in millions of dollars to the city if completed. And of course, the Melrose Public Schools are losing another 40 people on top of the 17 they lost last year. I’ll write more about the budget crunch in the future, and the override. In the meantime, I’d be happy to answer questions or discuss at any time. What else is going on in the City Council? I put forward A Resolution recognizing and supporting the goals and ideals of National Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month, which we passed. We’ve reviewed updated zoning related to both flood zones and marijuana. We’ve reviewed one-time capital expenses for needs such as asbestos removal at the schools, a new accessible van for the Council on Aging, and planting flowers at veterans memorials. And finally – recently, for Civics Day, I had a wonderful time sharing more of what we do with the 8th graders at MMVS, along with Councilor Romanul and School Committee Members Jen McAndrew and Margaret Driscoll. We set up a series of roleplays to debate topics such as “should we make graduation day a no-school day” and “should we extend lunchtime”. We even got some of the 8th graders and their teachers to participate in our debate via public comment. They had a great time and asked us some good questions.
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