I am directing this letter to all of the voters who may not feel strongly about the elementary school issue, but who are concerned that our form of town governance is respected and followed.
There have now been three town meetings about the elementary school project in which our manner of governing has been bent or ignored.
1) Four years ago when the town voted to authorize improvements to Winthrop;
2) Last year’s town meeting regarding a request for funds to study feasibility of the Doyon Site, which failed to receive the required two-thirds majority;
3) The failure to meet the required two-thirds majority at our most recent town meeting.
Special town meetings are not free; we the taxpayers pay for these meetings every time they are held.
If this is not an issue that you care passionately for one way or the other, then consider how you might feel if the next issue is one that you are passionate about.
Imagine that you’ve achieved either the votes required to move something forward, or just enough votes to block something.
Now imagine the town moving forward (or not) with the issue that you care about, regardless of how the citizens voted at Town Meeting.
I would imagine that you might feel infuriated. Those of us who voted “No” last Tuesday the 8th certainly feel infuriated by news reports of the latest developments on this project.
What happens with this issue will set the tone for all future voting. Please consider that at the polls this Tuesday, May 15.
Is this how we want our votes to be handled in Ipswich? Do we want to keep paying for town meetings on the same issue until a certain group’s desired outcome is achieved?
How long does this continue until we’ve completely lost confidence in our town’s form of government and elected leaders?
If you want to insure that your future votes count, and put a stop to yet another vote on a project that has been the subject of three prior town meetings, I urge you to vote “No” on Question 1.
Maegan Chaggaris
Lafayette Road