The analogy of the Hildreth Elementary School replacement to purchasing a Toyota posed by Jen Manell is quite appropriate. We have four Toyotas in our family (no Lamborghinis). The one I drive is seven years old and has 170,000 miles. I bought the base model, and not the Limited or Platinum version of my Toyota, because we had other priorities in our family rather than 20-inch alloy wheels, a high-end entertainment system, or a leather interior. Like many families, we have kids in college and future retirement to consider.
Therein lies the analogy. To many the new HES gym looks a lot like the 20-inch alloy wheels—nice to have but far from essential. The fact that others paid a lot of money for those wheels isn’t relevant to the need for them. The same goes for many other elements of the building program, such as the new cafeteria. So much so that the state has substantially declined to reimburse the town for many of these items—the real reason state reimbursement for the project is so low.
That’s the problem with the proposed new school project. It was designed to incorporate a lot of “fancy wheels” without regard for their affordability, future risks, or the impact on other needs of the town.
Bill Marinelli
Stow Road
