Published in the September 21, 2018 edition
MELROSE — On Thursday, September 20, OneMelrose made its formal announcement on the formation of a Proposition 2 ½ override support campaign committee led by Melrose residents Alison Sarnoski and Lisa Lewis.
“I’m excited to get this campaign off the ground, as the Mayor has committed to filing a ballot question to support our city services,” said Ms. Sarnoski. “I look forward to the upcoming Listening Sessions hosted by the Mayor – I hope Melrosians from across the city will attend and offer their ideas about the future of Melrose.”
Mayor Infurna recently announced a community input process to solicit comments, concerns, or ideas from residents about the current Melrose city budget, after a difficult budget process earlier this year that left many dissatisfied with funding levels for schools and city services. These concerns are reinforced by the most recent data released by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education show that Melrose ranked 12th from the bottom in total per pupil spending. In addition, Melrose teacher salaries ranked in the bottom 15 percent of districts for the entire state and the second lowest in all of Eastern Massachusetts.
“For years, Melrose has duct-taped together funding for our children’s education, activities for our seniors, and important public safety and public works services,” said Ms. Lewis. “OneMelrose stands ready to turn that trend around by supporting a strong investment in the future of Melrose for all Melrosians.”
In addition to the Melrose Listening Sessions with the Mayor on September 26 and October 2 at the High School Learning Commons, residents can also submit feedback through a community questionnaire available here: https://www.cityofmelrose.org/mayor/pages/community-questionnaire
For more info or to contact the campaign, visit: www.OneMelrose.org
