GLOCESTER – On a vote of 370 to 342, Glocester residents denied a $10 million bond to renovate their police station.
“All of these improvements have to happen, but now we have zero money coming from the state or federal government to help fund them.” said Town Council President William Worthy in reaction to the outcome. “Because of this, everyone now is going to have to pay for the capital improvements.”
In an attempt to avoid that, the council called an emergency meeting Wednesday afternoon, passing a motion 3-0 in time to add the bond question to the November 5 ballot in hopes of still getting it approved. Worthy said that because the vote was so close, it was decided to let more voters weigh in. Councilors Worthy, Walter Steere and Stephen Arnold were present. But after drafting and approving the motion, they were told that the wording on the original bond did not allow for a second attempt. So, it basically was a dead issue.
“It wasn’t a last ditch effort to get the bond passed,” said Worthy. “It was a last ditch effort for the town to not lose $5 million.”
There were several reasons for trying to get the bond approved as soon as possible, resulting in the August date for voting, instead of placing it on the November election ballot. Proponents noted construction costs would be lower if work could get started this year, and grant money was on the line. A $490,000 Community Oriented Policing Services grant must be allocated by the end of this year, while a $1 million Federal Emergency Management Act grant has a 2.5 year limit, and a recently awarded American Rescue Plan Act grant of $3.5 million must be earmarked by 2026. All hinged in some way on the bond being approved.
The council had received the financial impact numbers on the $10.7 million bond. At 45 cents per $1,000, the tax rate for a $350,000 home would be about $157. That would be an increase of six cents on the current projected rate of 39 cents. The town is currently seeking other bonds to help offset costs as well.
Improvements still have to be made, and will be, but at the cost of taxpayers and without grant money, said councilors. With no time left to utilize the millions in grants, taxpayers will have to foot the bill.
“If voters who opposed this thought that it wouldn’t have an effect on the future of their tax dollars, they were wrong,” said Worthy.
Additionally, he explained, Glocester was awarded the state and federal grants because it was thought the bond would pass and the money was being invested wisely. Glocester was chosen over another town for the award. As a result, neither town will get the funds.
“Senator Jack Reed is disappointed,” Worthy said. “More about the fact that the other town is not getting the money either. It will also effect our rating for grants in the future.”
Grants, he explained, are given with the expectation of them being put to use. If it is thought that the grant won’t actually be used, there is less chance of receiving it. Worthy added that he realized the town had been hit hard over the last four years or so in taxes, partly due to the previous council’s decisions, especially regarding FM Global, who was not paying their fair share of taxes. That, he said, has been rectified.
“The previous council put a $1.9 million burden on the people of Glocester, and they left if up to us to fix it,” said Worthy.
Some people, he added, may have been misled about the decision to not approve the bond for needed improvements on the police station. Grant money is lost, costs are going up and though it may have appeared to be a good decision now, in the long run it was a bad decision. Worthy was not sure whether the bond would pass or not, but he had hoped it would.
“I was setting myself up for either/or,” he said. “I was trying to stay in the middle. Financially, for the future of the town passing the bond makes the most sense. I think the future of the town is more important. I understand it is not easy.”
“It’s a disappointment,” said Glocester Police Chief Joseph DelPrete. “It was a great opportunity for the future.”
DelPrete explained that $390,000 of the COPS grant was going to be used for the dispatch area, but without the space that had been planned with the renovation, it was unclear whether those changes/additions could even be included.
“I don’t know how we’re going to make the space there,” he said. “We were going to open all that up. If we can’t open that up, I don’t know if we can achieve that. But, we’ll work on that.”
“There is still a lot of work left to do,” said Worthy. “Stuff still needs to get repaired.”
Put the new station on the ballot your just gonna waste all these funds for nothing
Put the new station on the ballot
Please figure a way to put it on the November ballot so everyone can vote and not just those that we’re aware it was a special vote. I saw the ads but assumed it was for the November ballot. My ignorance I know but those same people who voted against it can vote against it again. I agree with the first comments stating people were not aware of the special circumstances.
Ignoring the results or finding ways to override them can undermine public trust in local government and could lead to further division within the community. Residents feel that their votes don’t matter or that decisions are being made without their input.
Good for Glocester voters, holding a mid-August election just weeks before the primary and months before a presidential election is as slimy as it gets and reeks of voter suppression by special interest groups trying to pull a fast one when no one is watching.
I agree with you. Ughh
Council president Worthy indicates repairs will be made and paid by everyone. How will this be accomplished? Though regular budget process? There is no excess capital improvement funds in the annual budgets as PW uses all of it. The August date was was mandated by the State if the town did not want to vote on the bond in the general election in Nov. when more voters would have likely voted. The reason give by Worthy that construction could start this year if voted in August is not truthful. Even with a positive vote there is no way construction would start this year. There is just too much to do, such as permitting, developing bid quality plans ans specs etc. The impact on taxes stated in this article does not include increases in the tax rate due to future budget increases, potential school bond, and revaluation. Although I supported this issue the voters have spoken and another vote should not be taken.