ROYALSTON — “Well, obviously, the outcome was disappointing.” That pretty well sums up Royalston Public Works Director Keith Newton’s reaction to the voters’ rejection of a Proposition 2 ½ override that would have provided $200,000 for the creation of a Road Improvement Stabilization Fund. The measure went to defeat by a 119-72 margin. The proposal was defeated by a relatively thin 65-52 vote in Precinct 1, while it was roundly defeated by a 54-20 margin in Precinct 2.
Newton said a recent dialogue with residents revealed that the number one issue they would like to see addressed is that of road conditions in town.
“The overwhelming topic became roads,” he said, “They’d say ‘we’d like to see our roads better. We’d like to see a few more projects each year.’ That was pretty clear. We always knew roads were important, but we finally had an opportunity to identify that which we did. We put this article together based on that information.”
The cash sought for the fund would have been used to supplement the approximately $220,000 the town receives each year in state Chapter 90 road funding.
“The Chapter 90 money is the only money we can rely upon,” Newton explained. “As long as I’ve been involved in the management side of the DPW, we’ve not put any town money toward road projects. The town of Royalston relies solely upon Chapter 90.”
“So,” he continued, “I identified that, if there was more work to be done, then perhaps the town could put in a portion. With that we could expect to do more work. We absolutely thought the overwhelming concern with residents was identified as roads. We thought this would be a reasonable request. We thought it would be a reasonable request to get some money through basic taxation.”
At the annual town meeting in May, where voters gave initial approval to the plan, residents were told property owners would see an increase of about 11.5 percent in their tax bills.
Asked if he and other town officials might come back to voters with a request for a small amount to establish the reserve account, Newton said, “I’m not sure. I’m going to have to sit with the Selectboard and the Finance Committee and see what strategies we’re going to go forward with next.”
“I don’t give up,” Newton emphasized. “I explained the reasons we needed to do this and I’m still committed to that.”
The second question on Tuesday’s ballot, a Prop. ½ debt exclusion, sought $146,000 for the removal of asbestos and other hazardous materials from the former Raymond School. It was approved by a narrow 101-90 margin. Voters in Precinct One favored the proposal 76-41, enough to off-set the vote in Precinct Two, where it was defeated 49-25.
Town officials want to relocate several municipal offices to the old school, constructed in 1938 or 1939 by the Works Progress Administration. Those offices would be moved from Whitney Hall in South Royalston. The cost of renovating of the hall has been estimated at $500,000.