Tempers Flare

This is so typical of the sad state of politics on every level from local to national. The arguments over this small matter mean that the bigger issue of what happens next year when the guaranteed payments to Westwood that the selectmen negotiated stop and if Westwood Station is still just piles of dirt, are being ignored. I'd like there to be some discussion now about how Westwood will respond to the financial crisis rather than at a future town meeting where we hear that more of what the Town originally voted for (i.e. affordable housing) has been gutted in a private agreement so that we can pretend that anyone is really going to loan that much money to a developer when the world is worried about another depression and banks are failing.

The Canton Citizen reports that the town is "not abandonning" negotiations over Westwood Station, has "made a good faith offer" to the developer, but not heard a response. But they support Representative Galvin blocking the Wegmans liquor license.

The issues of traffic clearly cannot be solved in a couple hour meeting. And delegating resolution to anybody else seems to just be a recipe for elected officials to take credit for the things they like and then come back later and complain that they didn't get what they wanted. Lawsuits cannot possible solve future problems--only address current grievances of process. So rather than playing along with this game, why can't everyone get together and agree on a process and structure to resolve future conflicts? It is pointless to argue how many cars there will be or what will happen on each street--the project needs the flexibility to adapt and the accountability to be required to adapt. Nothing here is static--it is constantly changing--and the political process and its current players cannot handle that. The solution has to be ongoing and credible, not some compromise today to build a bridge or add an extra lane or whatever, but a solution that ensures the anticipated and unanticipated burdens of growth will be handled fairly.

All this complaining is not good for the town. I have been guilty of venting on the blog also. The question is what can we do as residents to step to the plate and try to help.
I think we should start opening discussions on a 5 man BOS instead of 3. Unlike Legacy Place and Foxborough which are smaller projects the town went for the home run instead of a double. I think most residents agree that the size of Westwood Station is what they are against. I like many residents would like to point my finger and blame certain people for what has happened but at the end of the day is that getting anything done. It is time for certain fundamental changes to happen in town.
One last thing if Canton releases the Wegmans beer and wine license will Wegmans sign their lease the next day or hold out also. We should get that answer from CCF, if that's what Wegmans is waiting for then they should let the town know that they will sign the lease the next day. I'm going to try not to vent on the blog, instead im going to bounce some ideas of other residents. My first idea is what do other residents think of a 5 man BOS instead of 3. Is this project just to big for a 3 man BOS to handle?

I'm not sure if a 5 man board is right or wrong but it is something the residents should consider. If you read some post the BOS have been accused of not showing up to important meetings in other towns. The town sends a representative. Maybe if we have a 5 man board then one of the BOS can attend the meetings that are important to other towns instead of sending a representative. Having a 5 man board hopefully would bring more diversity within the BOS. I can only see positive things from a 5 man board. My question is what is the negative?