Well said Mr Moore. To those concerned about the cost of the lawsuit and the indirect benefit to the Bean family, according to a letter from Mr Bean their family was overcharged for property taxes in excess of $40000 which adjusting for inflation would be approximately $100,000.
Can you please confirm that only Westwood residents may sign your petition? That seems important to its stated purpose.
Hi Erin, Change.org does not allow me to restrict anyone from signing the petition. If this were a vote or something similar to your petition calling for Westwood Government to take some action we would need to weed out the signers that are not from Westwood. At points as the word spread they came in fast and furi
Also, respectfully, some issues with your letter:
While I respect your position of supporting the effort to use the meadow, your statement that “WLT is responsible for “monitoring” the property, not deciding what articles to enforce and what exceptions to approve.
The LT also has the authority to deny the approval. They may not unreasonably withhold approval but they also may not, per the CR, grant any approvals that would impair other conservations purposes like preserving the meadow.
We actually went and took a look at this “meadow” when we got our Christmas tree this year. We’re arguing about a couple acres of dirt that directly abuts Bean Farm and has zero external access, except to go through Bean Farm.
Thank you for your great letter. The Select Board just posted a letter of their own. The letter rounds up by stating that their public comment is limited because of the pending lawsuit. The Select Board should have had public discussion first. Now they hide under the vail of a pending lawsuit.
This letter writer has really hit the nail on the head and expressed concerns and frustrations that many residents in town agree with. I also have asked the Selectboard why this litigation is being pursued but am met with no response whatsoever.
This is so well put. It is interesting that the farm has been trying to get access to the meadow since before the current commercial farming operation really restarted. If that’s the case, the issue isn’t about the farm’s current financial situation.
Hi, This article says it all! The secrecy surrounding this issue is extremely disturbing! Is the Select Board using the fact that they have filed a lawsuit as their rationale for not responding publicly? If so, the issue should have been discussed publicly before the lawsuit was filed. The Bean Farm has been
Town of Westwood residents: In order to set the record straight--
Mr. Cronin,
I was awarded a town recognition for my service as a Westwood Library Trustee by Patrick Ahearn on behalf of the Select Board at Town Meeting. I apologize if I mislabeled it and I would advise you to talk to him for corroboration.
Thank you for writing this, Eric! I agree with you completely.
Great history Cro. Thank you!!
I wholeheartedly agree that CRs are serious documents that should be upheld and respected, much like the laws and ethical guidelines that dictate how a municipality can and cannot use public resources and finances on behalf of a private entity.
Hi Ellen, As someone that i respect and recognize as a respectful debater of issues, how do you feel about WLT banning me from their FB page? You read the content, I was respectful, but disagreed.
If a mistake was made with taxes it should be corrected through the proper legal means. I imagine there is some statute of limitations within which one must identify, document and ask for redress of a tax error. Otherwise this alleged debt remains unplayable and will only grow over time.
Hi Christina, we learned of the error in early 2024 and reached out to the town who tried to rectify the problem, but it was beyond the statute of limitations and unfortunately nothing could be done.
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I agree that this is a false choice, but i see the false choice as being between allowing the farm to use the conservation land and losing the farm to development. I support the farm’s success but I don’t believe that this specific land is the only option for them to survive, it is just the most convenient.
Thank you for your thoughts and I wish there was a way for everyone to communicate this topic in person so that the tone and tenor of our voices wouldn't be confused as argumentative or adversarial.
The town is not subsidizing the farm strictly speaking, but they are funding the lawsuit over the use of the land. Based on typical agricultural lease rates, the cost of the litigation is not likely to be recouped by the town.