Joanna K. Tzouvelis/Wicked Local
The No Override Now campaign celebrated a victory with 56% of voters in Belmont s annual town election voting no on the $6.4 million override. Newcomers Jamal Saeh and Meghan Moriarty were the winners in the School Committee race. Incumbent Anne Mahon won the Housing Authority seat and newcomer Dr. Adrienne Allen won the Board of Health seat.
The voter turn out was 47%. The no vote won in every precinct except Precinct 6 with 61 to 65% of the votes in Precincts 2, 4 and 8 and 51 to 57% of the votes in Precincts 1, 3, 5 and 7. The restults in Precict 6 were 56% in favor and 44% against the override.
Wicked Local
Many residents and business owners who feel financially strained due to the COVID-19 pandemic, are unhappy about the Select Board s recent decision on Jan. 22 to put a $6.4 million override question on the ballot in the upcoming town election.
For a home assessed at $1.25 million, this would increase the property taxes by $896.
Why not delay putting override on ballot?
Dawn McKerron is one of the co-founders of Citizens for a Fiscally Responsible Belmont, a group whose mission is to work collaboratively with town officials to increase accountability, transparency and responsibility in all aspects of town government. She is one of the many residents who asked the Select Board to delay putting an override on the April Ballot.