BREAKING NEWS!!

Hi Everyone, 

Usually I don't send you e-mails re: local issues, but I thought this issue, like the new Galvin, was of enough importance that I wanted to let you know my opinion.   

I'm voting against the parking garage at the upcoming Town Meeting.  

When an election occurs, even if we don't like the result, we have to live with it, or else our town will become ungovernable.  I am voting against the parking garage because a majority of Wakefield residents, in a historically high turn out, voted against it by a significant margin.  

Multiple times I have found myself not liking an election result (my personal campaigns aside) - previous votes to build new schools, votes for increased school budgets.  Specifically in 2008 the School Department requested a higher school budget than what was recommended by the Board of Selectmen and Finance Committee.  It passed overwhelmingly at Town Meeting.  It lost in a town wide vote.

Many of you on this e-mail were with me in that campaign.  We could have went back to the Town Meeting, most likely won at Town Meeting again, and then it would have went back on the ballot and lost...again.  If that had happened our town would be ungovernable, we would never get anything done and it would have hurt our students, taxpayers, and our community overall.  

This situation is similar to that of 2008.  The parking garage passed Town Meeting, it lost at the ballot.  There should be no more vote.  However, it is now at Town Meeting again, and if it passes Town Meeting, it will probably go back on the ballot a second time, lose, and then this back and forth will continue, and the businesses, taxpayers, and community we're trying to improve will be worst off because of it.  While some may argue that the majority was mis-informed in the first election, that argument fails for two major reasons: (1) it's anecdotal, the winning side had more than 400+ than the losing side, it's hard to believe that many people were mis-informed.  (2) Elections are based on campaigns, it's up to the campaign to inspire people to vote for or against something, just because you did not do a good enough job of running your campaign the first time doesn't mean you get to try it again.  Trust me I wish this was the case! 

Personally, I want more parking, and I think highly of our municipal officials and all of the community activists on both sides of the issues, both have done an excellent job presenting their case.  The fact is though, that they did it once before, and the community chose not to have the parking garage.  The community choice should be respected.  Therefore, I ask you to join me at Town Meeting, and help me in respecting Wakefield's choice and voting down the garage. 

Thank you,  

Anthony Guardia