Westwood Voters Need to be Honest (with Ourselves)

Here in Westwood there is ample opportunity to be involved in the planning of the various projects before they are put before Town Meeting for a vote.

However, if most of us are honest with ourselves, we don’t have the interest or time to attend the meetings. It is not fair to claim that the process has not been transparent, when the truth is, you simply have not taken the time to attend the Select Board, Planning Board, FS1 Committee meetings, etc. For example:

• The FS1 Committee has held frequent meetings open to the public. Anyone interested can attend and offer their viewpoint. They have produced a survey with a comment section, anyone can offer their opinions to the committee.

• The Town is actively seeking input from Westwood residents regarding what they consider important in selecting a new Police Chief.

• The Planning Board meetings, the School Committee meetings, etc. are all open for anyone to attend, listen and offer their input.

I think the Town v WLT lawsuit -- and the Special Town Meeting concerning it, is one of the most divisive issues I have experienced in my 26 years as a Westwood resident. Moreover, it was a waste of approximately $30,000; the vote clearly could have waited until May’s regularly scheduled Town Meeting (when the articles could have been addressed at no cost).

The petitioner says that she only learned about the lawsuit through the signs that appeared around town. However, the Select Board published their agenda and went into executive session a number of times to discuss the potential litigation. Anyone Zooming into the meetings would have known that the issue was under consideration. (Personally, I hadn’t taken the time to Zoom into the meetings.)

I still have not seen the petitioner or any of the WLT supporters admit it was a mistake to insist on a Special Town Meeting; In my opinion, it resulted from their ignorance of the facts that: 1) the Special Town meeting cost more than the expense that was being questioned; and 2) the results of the vote are not binding. Rather than admit the error, they now demand that the Select Board treat it as though it was binding. That said, one positive development came from it: in-person Select Board Meetings.

The in-person Select Board meetings illustrate my point: after pressing for them, how many people are taking advantage and attending? When I watched the March 9th meeting online, it appeared to me there were 4 or 5 people in attendance -- two of whom were there to make presentations. I did not see the petitioner who pushed for in-person meetings. (I was watching on-line.)

The point is: just because we may not know what is happening in our Town government doesn’t mean they are not being transparent.