One-word tradition on overrides: No
No, no, no. Seriously. No.
Shrewsbury is quickly earning a reputation as one of the more fiscally conservative towns in the state, now that voters have rejected the fourth request to raise property taxes since 2004.
The town has never approved overriding Proposition 2 1/2, which limits annual increases in property taxes to 2.5 percent of a community's total tax levy without the approval of voters.
Tuesday's vote in Shrewsbury on the latest attempt was 3,548 in favor of the $1.5 million tax increase, and 5,215 against, according to results from the town clerk's office.
Last year, a $5 million override was rejected in a much closer vote, 5,568 to 5,160.
One key difference this year was an almost nonexistent campaign from residents in support of the override. Last year, Yes4Shrewsbury had hundreds of volunteers calling voters and handing out fliers in favor of the override. Not so this spring.
Many of last year's supporters seemed to be frustrated that their hard work didn't pay off, said the school district's superintendent, Anthony Bent.
"In part, they realized that the effort that they made last time, which was very public, though it was close, was unsuccessful," he said. Bent also said he was surprised that even though last year's request was for a bigger amount, the vote was so much closer than last week's tally.
"Shrewsbury is clearly a conservative and frugal town," said Bent. "Certainly, the economy didn't help. People every day waking up to the news that gas is still more money than it was yesterday - that works counter to an individual saying, 'Yes I'll pay more taxes.' "
Of the $1.5 million, $500,000 was earmarked for the schools. School cuts will likely include nine teaching positions, some of which will have to be layoffs, Bent said.
"The most frustrating part is the general decline in the service to children," said Bent. "The result of one negative override isn't of such consequence that we fail to recover. It's the continual failure of overrides that over time has pulled out the percentage of instructional aides that we used to have, that has pulled out the technology teachers that we used to have at the elementary level."
Also, librarians and reading teachers have been cut in recent years along with some programs, he said. There used to be several English electives at the high school, but now it's mostly the traditional courses that are left. Bent said he fears reverting to a "basic vanilla program" if cuts continue.
Cuts on the municipal side were not yet determined. Some under discussion include library hours and paid drivers for the Meals on Wheels program, which would use volunteers instead, Town Manager Dan Morgado said.
Town Meeting member Mark Adler supported the override on his blog, ShrewsBuried.com. After the vote, he said the Board of Selectmen should have done a much better job of communicating why the override was needed.
"The selectmen came into it grudgingly," he said. "This was the selectmen's override and it failed big time."
Selectman Maurice M. DePalo, the top vote-getter in winning reelection on Tuesday, said it's naive to think elected officials can obtain approval for a tax increase without help from residents.
"The way an override passes is by grass-roots. The way anything passes, it's neighbor to neighbor," he said.
The lack of signs and support didn't help, he said, but it's impossible to know if a louder campaign would have made the difference. Last year, voter turnout was 52 percent, as opposed to 42 percent on Tuesday.
"I think a lot of people were voting on how they felt about their own economic situation - that's not an unreasonable position," said DePalo.
Benjamin W. Tartaglia Sr., who opposed the override, finished second in the seven-person race for two seats, and will be a new face on the Board of Selectmen.
He said the rejection of the override was not as much about people's wallets as about a desire for careful money management.
"I don't think it's a question of affordability," he said. "I think people are tired of them every single year coming back with an override attempt."
Lisa Kocian can be reached at 508-820-4231 or lkocian@globe.com.
