To the editor:

Don’t let special interest stakeholders take away your voice, attend the FTM Wednesday night, June 16, at 7 p.m. at Barrington High School.

Taxpayers of Barrington please show up to the financial town meeting in force on Wednesday June 16. Our COA did a very good job of keeping the budgets within means this year, cutting some big items including the $500k that the town council wanted to add to make a revolving fund for a down-payment assistance program. This initiative is a feel good option for the Town Council. This program should wait since the town is slated to receive approximately $4.3 million dollars in federal money over the next two years.  

I am against giving local tax money to establish a fund to give people free money. Also, our council wants to start an affordable housing project in town with no real plan in the future. In addition to the down-payment assistance program a Town Council member put in a motion to add another line item, for $250,000, to purchase the Carmelite Monastery land. This acquisition has not been presented to any board in town. 

They are pushing affordable housing and elderly housing. 

They should remember the older generation supported this town and they want to remain in their homes as part of the community they helped build. They deserve a bigger tax break than what is provided, yet our Town Council wants to give someone a $50k down-payment for a house in town. Our council should give the taxpayer a break for a year. The high school needs a new roof, roads need to be repaved, our children need better fields and we need a safe way to utilize the bike path. School and town facilities will no doubt need updates as well. Keeping tax increases in check help make this town affordable to all residents. The town should not ask local taxpayers for this money until after it is decided how to use the Federal funds Barrington is set to receive. 

People of our town, please come out in force and vote no on these motions. The town needs to come up with a better plan for affordable housing and elderly housing. We should not be in the housing business.

At the end of the meeting please stay and vote John Allesandro, Lisa Daft and Cynthia Rosengard back to the COA, I think this has been one of the best committees the past two years looking out for the taxpayer.

Thomas “TR” Rimoshytus

Barrington