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Vol. 4, No. 14 - FREE - www.advocatenews.net Lynnfield@advocatenews.net 978-777-6397 Friday, April 6, 2018
Easter Bunny hops by St. Maria Goretti Two contested races to be
decided on April 10
By Christopher Roberson
O
Michael, Josephine, Genevieve, and Diana Sechrist are all smiles with the Easter Bunny at St. Maria Goretti Church on March 24. See more photo highlights on page 10. (Photos courtesy of Jamie Bossi)
Fixed Rate Mortgages NO POINTS 30 YEAR
3.990%
4.500%
4.075%
4.549%
APR*
E V E R E T T – 4 1 9 B R O A D WAY LY N N F I E L D – 7 7 1 S A L E M S T R E E T 617-387-1110
R AT E
APR*
For more rates visit our website at
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*Annual Percentage Rate (APR) is effective March 30, 2018 and is subject to change. All rates and APR’s are calculated based on a $250,000 loan for an owner-occupied single family dwelling with a 20% down payment. Rates are also based on Loan to Value and credit scores. The monthly principal and interest payment for a 15 Year fixed rate mortgage is $7.39 per $1,000 borrowed. The monthly principal and interest payment for a 30 Year fixed rate mortgage is $5.07 per $1,000 borrowed. Those payment do not included taxes and insurance. Your payment may be greater if the loan is secured by a first lien. Loans are subject to credit approval. NMLS #443050.
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RACES | SEE PAGE 2
Questions raised on several budget items By Christopher Roberson
15 YEAR
R AT E
ut of the eight races for elected office this year, voters will find that only two of them are being contested. In the race for School Committee, incumbent Chairman Timothy Doyle is running for another three-year term. He is being challenged by Philip McQueen and Kimberlee Kossover-Hansen. (Dr. Salvatore Cammarata’s term will also be expiring. Although he initially pulled papers to run again, Cammarata did not meet the Feb. 21 filing deadline. Therefore, he is not listed on the April 10 ballot.) For the Planning Board election, John Gioioso is challenging incumbent Member Scott Gromko for a two-year term. Board of Selectmen Chairman Christopher Barrett is running unopposed this year for another three-year term. Other uncontested candidates in-
clude Donald Garrity, chairman of the Board of Assessors, for a three-year term, Planning Board Member Katherine Flaws, for a five-year term, James Wilkie, for a fiveyear term on the Housing Authority and incumbent Arthur Bourque for another one-year term as the town moderator. For the Library Board of Trustees, incumbent Members Russell Boekenkroeger and Dr. Janine Rodrigues-Saldanha are on the ballot for three-year terms. In a prior interview, Barrett said he does not expect this year’s election to be much different from the 2017 race, which did not have any contested races and produced a voter turnout of 5.75 percent. “Many of the same issues discussed last year remain relevant to the discussion this year,”
A
lthough only a handful of residents attended this year’s Annual Budget Hearing, resident Patricia Campbell was still on hand to share her thoughts and ask questions. Speaking about the school budget request of $24.8 million, Campbell said she is concerned that this year’s request is 4.5 percent higher than last year’s. “I do question how sustainable that is,” she said during the March 29 joint hearing with the Board of Selectmen and the Finance Committee. Should the school budget continue to increase at this rate, Campbell said, there would be a very real possibility of a Proposition 2 ½ Override. Regarding busing, she said she has seen very few children on school buses. “The buses are empty,” said Campbell, adding that the current arrangement is “ridiculous.” “It’s a shame to be spending what we spend on buses.” Regarding school salaries,
Campbell said it is unreasonable that employee contracts are finalized prior to Town Meeting. “What we’re giving them is a blank check,” she said. “The people of the town have the right to vote on the bottom line.” On the subject of pay increases, Town Administrator Robert Dolan said it is standard practice to raise salaries by 2.5 percent; however, he said, there is a request for a $10,000 raise for Assistant to the Administration Robert Curtin. Dolan said the increase would compensate Curtin for additional job responsibilities and changing his title to assistant town administrator. Yet, Campbell said she found examples of employees who are in line for raises of 3.9 percent, 4.1 percent and 5.7 percent. “They’re not getting that in the private sector,” she said. “It doesn’t seem fair to us taxpayers who, in the outside world, aren’t making increases like that.”
BUDGET | SEE PAGE 15