Like our small-town neighbors, Shutesbury is in a tight fiscal squeeze between rising operating costs and flat or reduced revenue. The challenge here is to balance the real and differing concerns of town residents. Many are worried about the costs of quality education (by far the greatest expense among town services!) and everyone is concerned about property taxes. There is no easy solution to this problem nor can any one person ensure its being solved.
Jim Walton is running for the Shutesbury Select Board to face this challenge. He brings a proven ability to work collaboratively — an ability based in his professional management experience and put to good use in his many years on Shutesbury’s Finance Committee, balancing needs and concerns of different town boards and committees in the budgeting process.
Jim has proposed setting up a team to consider sources of additional revenue to support shared goals of sustainable growth, protected land use, and controlled spending. Such a team would be made up of Shutesbury residents who have the planning skills, technical skills, and fiscal know-how at the state and municipal levels to work together toward the common good.
I most strongly recommend a vote for Jim Walton for Shutesbury Select Board.
Gail Fleischaker
Shutesbury