Some Inconvenient Truths About Weston
Sometimes we see things that we wish weren’t true. Sometimes we ignore facts that get in the way of whatever we have imagined or the outcomes we have expected. Sometimes we put our heads in the sand when we don’t want to address the challenges that are happening around us. The truth can be inconvenient.
Governing a town like Weston is hard work. Even our small town has a $100 million budget and faces many complex management challenges. To do it right requires a broad field of vision, a head for rigorous planning, and excruciating attention to detail in execution. Success also depends upon the kind of leadership that invites questions, debate, discussion and good ideas, and can leverage all of that into delivering high-quality, cost-effective services to residents. This is the standard to which we should hold our leaders.
Much of our writing last fall focused on sins of commission and sins of omission. Unfortunately, there was plenty to talk about. Between now and the Annual Town Meeting in May, we plan to focus on why we think those things arise – the way Town Government is structured, the way Town leaders operate, the way we plan and manage our spending, and the way we exclude, dismiss, or patronize those who try to help. That leads to the kinds of broken promises and financial excesses we highlighted in our “Asleep at the Switch” articles.
Collectively, we are coming up short in several important – even critical – areas. And between now and the time you’re asked to vote for candidates for the Select Board and the School Committee on May 6th, and vote on a Town Budget for FY2024 on May 8th, we’re going to write about the key areas of opportunity needed to make Weston Town Government everything we all deserve.
Stewardship & Governance – A lot of “stewardship” depends upon three types of respect – respecting the will of the voters, respecting “other people’s money”, and respecting the legacy left to us and paying it forward. Based upon the Town’s recent performance – ignoring the vote to expand the size of the Select Board, or undermanaging the revival of the Josiah Smith Tavern, or ignoring the voters’ decisions about the Select Board’s Water Management proposal and its “Governance Study” proposal – it feels like we’re coming up very short in this area.
The Select Board & Town Management – The most critical shortcoming with respect to the Select Board is that they need to stop acting like a working group, and start acting like a real Board of Directors, holding the Town management and Town departments to a high standard of excellence in planning and execution. The next most concerning shortcoming is that, in their communication with residents, they are often in “transmit” mode, but rarely in “receive”. They need to start listening.
The Schools & The School Committee – The Weston Public School system represents two-thirds of Town spending. Historically, the School Committee has devoted little or no attention to figuring out exactly why their cost per pupil is 30% higher than comparable schools, while producing academic results that are no better. We’ve been paying for a Mercedes and getting a Volkswagen. More recently, the composition of the School Committee has been changing, for the better, but the current Committee is facing the challenges of extraordinary, unjustified teacher union demands and potentially higher operating costs, yet they have no effective approach, tools, or long-term plan for actually managing the cost of education.
The Finance Committee – As the Town’s chartered fiscal watchdog, FinCom has every reason (and every opportunity) to take a leadership role for tools, planning, and benchmarking to ensure that taxpayer dollars are well-spent and that major capital projects are designed properly and managed to a tight schedule and budget. Their lack of analysis and “go along to get along” attitude towards proposed programs, projects, and budgets is not in keeping with their mandate.
Vision & Planning – We seem to have a significant imbalance between the attention we give to the present versus the future. When Pickleball attracts more conversation than an $80 million problem with our water management system, something is wrong. The as-yet unanswered question is: What do we want Weston’s future to look like, and how do we get there without creating negative economic consequences, especially with regard to property tax burden, home values, and the quality of the services we all pay for?
Our Consequent Financial Situation – We have property taxes that are much higher than comparable towns, and perhaps not coincidentally the rate of appreciation in Weston home values is lagging those same towns. All of that is driven by our history of higher (and rising) spending for both Town Services and the Weston Public Schools. None of this should be a surprise given the performance of the supporting cast.
The truth can indeed be inconvenient. We hope that you’ll continue to follow us over the course of the next couple of months, and forward this article to others who may be interested. Keep in mind that the quality of the people for whom you vote will determine whether we have all the right skills, all the right experience and all the right values that we need in place to chart Weston’s future. This is the standard to which we should hold ourselves.
Despite our challenges, Weston has an exceptional pool of residents with the types of skills, experience, and capability to address these issues. Becoming a member of the Select Board or School Committee need not be a thankless job. With the right people in the right positions, we can improve the culture, and execute the work of town leadership in a manner that is interesting, meaningful and has broad support.
In that vein, please consider running for a Weston public office, or volunteering for any one of the many important Town committees, if you believe you have the skills and the experience that can help deliver a bright future. If you’re interested, we can help you with the process, which is not as complicated as it may seem.
Focus on Weston continues to believe that community excellence requires ongoing effort, with more active management by our elected officials and more active engagement by all citizens. And we’re trying to help make that happen.