As the Town Meeting Precinct 15 Chair, Clerk of the Ways & Means Committee, and member of the Rules Committee, I am deeply involved with our current government.  While essential services like roads and schools are how most residents measure the effectiveness of government, Southside Districts face problems of environmental pollution and blight which have been ignored for decades as well as rapid development of our downtown with the addition of at least 500 new apartments.  Having expended a great deal of effort on solving some of these problems, I would like to continue this work.

 

My education includes a B.A. cum laude from Harvard University in Biology and an M.A. in Teaching and Biology from Wesleyan University.  In addition to teaching, I worked for over 25 years in ophthalmology – assisting in eye surgery at Framingham Union Hospital, training staff and doing research.  My work demanded accuracy and accountability.

 

My research skills have been instrumental in my efforts to improve the lives of Southside residents.  At Town Meeting, Precincts 15-18 (Districts 8 and 9) have a history of high vacancy rates and unequal representation.  My research showed that 100% of the Board of Selectmen and the School Committee lived about Route 9 and only 2 of 55 board appointments made by the Town Meeting Moderator lived in Districts 8 and 9.  This unjust representation and lack of accountability by our Town officials was the primary reason I decided to support Framingham becoming a City.  Now we will have a Councilor and School Committee member from every District.

 

Here are some serious issues I have tackled:

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1. Mary Dennison Park's Neglect and Pollution                 In 2013 I saw few children playing at this 17 acre park. which is dominated by 3 baseball fields but the neighborhood children wanted to have picnic tables, swings, a field to play soccer and paths to ride bikes.  Despite 800 signatures on my petition to improve this park, I got little response from Town officials. Further research led to my discovering that MDP had been a dump for the Town and the Dennison Corporation and was polluted with toxins which the Town had failed to report to DEP when it was discovered in 1994. The MDP tot lot was shut down in 2014 due to high levels of lead considered to be an imminent danger. It is now being cleaned up and there are plans for an improved park for thousands of underserved children but this will be a long process which will need expensive funding and monitoring.

2. Framingham Skatepark – While collecting signatures for my petition, the children talked about a skatepark that “almost got built.”  My research found 2 failed attempts since 2002, the taking of their skatepark site by the Town for  a Parks Department maintenance buildings and the $15,000 raised by the skateboarders given away to other children for camp fees.   In 2013 I founded the Framingham Skatepark Committee, held skateboarding events, and mentored 7 skateboarders to speak at a Board of Selectmen meeting.  My Citizen’s Petition to Town Meeting in 2014 resulted in funds being allocated for a Skatepark which will be built on Farm Pond. Construction will begin in September 2017.

3. Pollution at a 20-acre superfund site at 350 Irving Street ignored by the Town government – A landscape business on this property had polluted the air with 15 mulch fires in 5 years and had allowed 10 companies to squat there while paying no taxes.  I co-founded Stop Toxic Operations and Polluters (S.T.O.P.). We attended BOS and ZBA meetings and held protests. This issue is not resolved but it is now being addressed by Department of Environmental Protection and new taxes are being collected.

4. Restoration of Cedar Swamp – I learned that this 16 acre neglected parcel between Waverly and Cypress Street is Conservation Land. At Town Meeting I presented a Resolution to clean it up and create walking trails connecting the Winthrop Street area with Farm Pond.  Work has begun.

5. Development Projects in the Downtown .  I am knowledgeable about zoning by-laws, have spoken and written about development which will greatly affect the residents of Southside Districts.