This Week’s Letters to the Editor

Editor’s Note: The Letters to the Editor section in the Woodbridge Town Chronicle is a place where community voices can be shared and heard. In the print newspapers of years past, letters to the editor were often the liveliest section, where readers spoke directly to one another, the broader community, and its leaders. To submit a letter for consideration please refer to the submission guidelines.

Why we voted no on Beecher Road School resolutions

To the editor,

At our April Selectmen’s meeting, we voted against passage of both a charge and resolution related to the proposal to build a new Beecher Road School. Here’s why.

The Beecher Building Committee Charge authorizes design and construction of a new school. The resolution authorizes the Woodbridge Board of Education to apply for and accept state construction grants. Both documents suffer from the same flaw – they fail to make clear that the decision whether to build a new school and accept state grants lies with the voters. When we offered revisions to fix the problem, the Democratic party majority refused to edit either document. They even refused to accept an edit suggested by the Town Attorney. These are legal documents; accuracy matters. 

Faced with this intransigence, we voted no — on the text, but not on the idea that the new school construction proposal should be brought to residents for a referendum vote. Whether our town should build a new Beecher Road School should be decided by referendum, and we will work diligently to ensure everyone receives comprehensive, accurate information before voting.

We have tried to understand why our fellow selectmen refused edits on the documents when — that very same evening — they accepted similar edits regarding a charge creating the Police Renovation Building Committee. Sadly, we have concluded that they refused reasonable, clarifying edits because they wanted us to vote against the Beecher documents. They purposely sought to score political points, mischaracterizing us as “anti-education,” though that is absurd.  Andrea is a proud Beecher graduate and current Beecher parent. We both place the highest value on top-quality education and understand how important it is to our town.

We are saddened to see our fellow selectmen resorting to partisan tactics rather than productive governance. Woodbridge residents deserve better.

— Amey Marrella and Andrea Urbano

The writers are members of the Board of Selectmen.

Editor’s Note: Letters reflect the perspectives of their authors. They are published to foster dialogue about issues of local concern, including questions of governance, transparency, and accountability, as well as topics such as highlighting upcoming or past events from community groups. To submit a letter for consideration please refer to the submission guidelines.