Citizens for Milford

Have you noticed? The advertising and media frenzy that precedes our fall election cycle has begun, unleashing a new stream of glossy postcards filling our mailboxes, campaign ads and interviews consuming air space on the radio, and colorful signs decorating lawns across the state. This fall Massachusetts voters will go to the ballot box to select not only a new governor, but also other critical state and federal leaders. Citizens for Milford encourages all voters to register to vote and to research their choices so they can make an informed vote. To help you do so, we have published the following two new pages here on our website:

• The Election 2014 page provides a list of ALL the candidates on the Democratic and Republican state primary ballots, as well as a list of the ballot questions that will be included on November’s General Election ballot. This page also includes direct links to each of the candidate’s websites. To visit this page, click here or click the Election 2014 tab above.
• The Vote! page provides a comprehensive list of frequently asked questions and answers about voter registration and how to vote. To visit this page, click here or click the Vote! tab above.

Thank you to all Milford residents who took the time not only to attend our first community meeting on June 11th, but also for sharing your sincere concerns and ideas for improving life in Milford. A lot of great topics were raised! Although no definitive decisions were made, some issues received more enthusiasm than others. Many will be revisited for further discussion.

We look forward to working together with as many citizens and groups in Milford as possible!

Read coverage of the meeting in the Milford Daily News.

Stay Connected with Us!
Stay in touch with Citizens for Milford and our initiatives and events by signing up for email updates and liking our Facebook page.

Citizens for Milford is welcoming new members! We invite you to attend an information meeting to learn about our mission, discuss our current projects and plans, and share your ideas for improving the quality of life in Milford.

Wednesday, June 11^th
6:30 p.m.
Milford Town Library, Granite Room

Please join us on June 11^th and find out what Citizens for Milford is all about. Bring a friend or neighbor, as well as a concern or issue you would like to recommend we consider addressing.

Milford Town Meeting voted last night to approve the transfer of land in the sensitive area by Louisa Lake to Milford’s Conservation Commission. Because the ultimate transfer of land to the Trustees of Reservations had been removed from the article by the Board of Selectmen prior to Town Meeting, that option was not up for vote. However, several Town Meeting members urged the town to consider transferring the land to the Trustees at a later date.

Milford Town Meeting also approved the expenditure of over $5 million to facilitate the critical renovations needed at the Armory in order for it continue to serve as a safe venue for the Milford Youth Center.

To read the news coverage in the Milford Daily News, click here.

Milford’s Board of Selectmen voted Monday, May 12 to remove all references to transferring land to the Trustees of Reservations from Article 17, which is included in the warrant to be voted on at Town Meeting on May 19. Instead, Article 17 will now only seek to transfer the town-owned parcels of land in question to the Milford Conservation Commission. Chairman Dino DeBartolomeis and Selectmen Bill Buckley both voted to make this change. Selectman Brian Murray was unable to attend the meeting.

Citizens for Milford co-chairmen John Seaver and Steve Trettel had presented their concerns about transferring Milford’s land to an outside entity to the Board of Selectmen at their previous meeting. At that meeting, Seaver and Trettel encouraged the Selectmen to consider simply transferring the land to the Conservation Commission as an alternative to transferring to the Trustees.

Do you feel that the
Massachusetts casino bill was passed into law on Beacon Hill without regard to your opinion? Do you think you should have had the opportunity at the ballot box, to vote up or down on whether or not to allow casinos in our state? Repeal the Casino Deal (RTCD) wants all Massachusetts voters to make that determination. They are working hard to get that question on the November ballot!

Casinos in Massachusetts continue to be a hot topic and as people learn more about the gaming industry and the selection process that has unfolded in Boston, support for the law among voters is dwindling. Polls now show that the tide is turning; more people have expressed a desire to repeal the casino law and Casino-Free Milford played a HUGE role when we delivered such a decisive victory! 

RTCD is very close to overturning this law. CASINO-FREE MILFORD CAN HELP PUT THAT QUESTION ON THE BALLOT!

Thousands of registered voter signatures must be collected in the next 35+ days. They can be collected in your neighborhoods, at ball fields, school events, etc. We can also organize 2 hour time slots to stand in front of local grocery stores, the post office, etc.

CAN YOU HELP?

This is the final step in the ballot initiative process. If you believe that this law was forced upon the residents of this state and that voters should have been allowed to make this decision, then PLEASE consider volunteering some time to collect signatures.

Sheets are available now and signature collection will continue through June 11^th. This is a Herculean effort and ANY and ALL help is appreciated! Please email votenotocasino@gmail.com

Let’s work together to allow ALL Massachusetts voters the right to vote for or against casinos in our communities!

Thank you,

John Seaver, Steve Trettel, and Cathy Mitchell
Citizens for Milford

To learn more about RTCD, visit their website.

Do You Know What Issues Town Meeting Will Address?

Milford’s next Town Meeting will be voting on 32 articles. All Milford citizens are encouraged to read the warrant, the document which lists the articles to be discussed and voted on by Town Meeting. Even if you are not a Town Meeting member, you have a voice. Town Meeting members represent the citizens in their precinct, so please take  time to review the warrant and share your opinions with the Town Meeting members in your precinct.

Don’t know who your Town Meeting members are? Click here to download the most up-to-date list.

To download the warrant, click here.

Of particular interest to many are the following two articles:

• Article 17, sponsored by the Board of Selectmen/Conservation Commission, requests that the town authorize the transfer of five town-owned parcels of land in the area of Louisa Lake to the Milford Conservation Commission. The article furthermore requests to enter a conservation restriction on those parcels and three other parcels on behalf of the Town with the Trustees of Reservations.
  To read more information about the land conservation issue, including a map of the land parcels and  documents explaining the history of this article,  click here.
• Article 24, sponsored by  the Milford Armory Renovation Committee, requests that the town authorize appropriate money to complete full renovations of the Milford Youth Center (the Armory building). The latest estimate for completing these renovations is $4.6 million.

To download the complete text of these two articles and the other 30, click here.

Congratulations to the following winners in Milford’s contested races:

• Scott Crisafulli, Highway Surveyor
• Theresa Diomedes Dias, Tax Collector
• Jennifer Parson and Joseph Callery,
  School Committee
• George Clemens and Kathryn Mastroianni,
  Board of Library Trustees

To download the complete report that lists the number of votes for each candidate by precinct, click here.   (Note: this report does not include write-in results.)

Citizens for Milford thanks ALL the candidates for sharing your time, energy, and ideas with the voters these last few months. We appreciate your concern and service to the community. Thank you!

Milford’s Town Election is TODAY! Please make time to vote at your designated polling location:

Make your voice heard! VOTE TODAY! Still undecided? Scroll down to watch our Candidates Forum video and to read the candidates’ answers to citizens’ questions in the questionnaire.

The folks from Milford Community TV brought two cameras to our candidates forum and videotaped the whole thing – here’s the video:

Many thanks to Rob O’Keefe and the crew from Milford TV! We appreciate their efforts – for more information about Milford Community TV, visit www.milfordtv.net.

To download our Candidates Forum questionnaire, which includes the candidates’ contact information, job summaries, and answers to questions posed by Milford residents, click here.