ATHENS — Recently, there have been news stories and letters to the editor in the local media about the efforts of our newest Selectboard member, Dennis Mirante, and his attempt to rein in town spending.
Mirante has asked for accountability, transparency, and consistency in reporting - all seemingly reasonable requests of town officials and employees. We should all applaud his willingness to tackle this and take the heat.
Yet this effort has brought much criticism from a vocal few in town. Understandably, family and friends of town employees are very concerned that this examination of town expenses might result in cutbacks that would reduce their incomes, never a welcome event.
But at the same time, asking the question - just what should a town our size need to pay for the staff, equipment and services required to maintain our roads - seems like the responsible thing to do. The majority of residents so far have not weighed in on the matter, so we wonder how they see it.
The town of Athens has been facing the challenge of ever increasing taxes over the 23 years we've been residents here. It has been pointed out by many that we have one of the highest tax rates in Windham County. Yet we have little to show for it other than paying for our schools, curbside trash removal, and the upkeep of our roads.
The property owners of Athens are the only tax base to draw from. Thus, our Town Office fell into such disrepair that it was at risk of having the doors padlocked until a group of volunteers took action. And our beloved Brick Meeting House is sorely in need of attention so that we can again open the doors to the public for its 200th anniversary in two years.
Our hats are off to our road crew for the work they have done to get our roads into the good condition they are in now, and for their availability to get out and stay out until the job is done and the roads are safe when winter weather hits. But sometimes we have to ask hard questions and be willing to grapple with the answers that may come.
Therefore, we support Mirante in this effort because in doing so he is serving the town as a whole, which is what he was elected to do. We hope that others in town will express their support for this effort as well.
And hopefully, those opinions will be shared at the next Selectboard meeting on July 16, in a signed letter to the Selectboard, or in a letter to the editor, rather than anonymous posters put up around town.