Statement of the Problem

In my short two years as a precinct 5 TM representative, I have found the following annoying at best and a hindrance to the quality and efficiency of TM at worst.

1. TM takes too long.  The Fall 2011 session clocked in at just under 24 hours total.  There’s no reason we can’t get that done in half the time.
2. The Moderator must arbitrarily choose who speaks and in what order.  After an article is presented, TMRs begin raising their hands.  With the TV lights in his face, it can be hard to see people, especially in the back under the balcony.  I have even seen TMRs in the fifth row waving their arms like crazy people when the Moderator appears to be looking right at them.  Additionally, the Moderator will always say that he takes hands “in the order that he sees them.”  But when 20 TMRs all put their hands up at the same time, who gets to go first?  Who goes last?  This can be critical because one good speaker can sway a vote on way or another.  (We have had some close votes as you know.)  We have seen speakers passionate on an issue left out because they are down on the list when the question is called.
3. Too few voices are heard on the TM floor.  In the Spring of 2010, there were a total of 192 trips to the microphone made by TMRs.  Of those, 50 — over a quarter — were made by just four TMRs.  Only 68 TMRs spoke at least once.  There are 242 total seats.  Interestingly, only 16 women spoke for a total of 52 times.  Precinct 3 was only heard from 3 times.  A body as large as TM only works well if we hear from as many different people as possible. If just a few TMRs are dominating “air time” at the microphone, other TMRs don’t get a chance.  (See my full report.)
4. Too many frivolous questions and comments.  Some TMRs take full advantage of their right to comment on any article or budget item.  It does not matter if the TMR makes an invalid point or asks a question that has already been answered.  He or she has three minutes, even if it is a waste of time, and these add up.  The Steve Wetzel Show last spring is just one example.

The TM Speaker Waiver System

In brief the Speaker Waiver System is a virtual queue in which all TMRs are always waiting to speak.  Once a TMR takes a turn at the microphone, he or she goes to the end of the line.

Here is how it would work:

1. Before the first session, each TMR is randomly assigned a rank between 1 and 242.
2. After the first article is presented, the Moderator asks TMRs who wish to speak to raise their hands.
3. TMRs who wish to speak are ordered by rank and will speak in that order.
4. TMRs who decide they wish to speak after the debate begins raise their hands and are inserted into the speaking order by their current rank.
5. After a speaker is finished, his or her rank in the queue is set to #242 and everyone else moves up one.
6. The rankings are kept between TM nights.

Note: A TMR moving the question does not count as a turn unless the motion fails.  Points of information or order never count as a turn.

Example

I am randomly assigned #50.  After the first article, 5 people raise their hands, who are ranked 10, 40, 90, 150, and 200.  TMR #10 speaks first and after she is done, her rank is set to #242 (i.e., she goes to the back of the line).  Everyone else gains one spot in the queue (my rank is now #49).  While the second TMR is speaking, I raise my hand.  After the current speaker is done, I am next because my rank is higher than TMR #90.

Benefits

The speaker waiver system addresses the issues in the problem statement by forcing each TMR to assign value to his or her own turn at the microphone.  Once a TMR “spends” his turn, he lands at the bottom of the pile and must hope that no one (or only a few) wants to speak on subsequent articles he is interested in.

In other words, TMRs must select only the articles that are most important to them and only speak on those.  Otherwise, it is likely they will not get a chance at the microphone before the question is called.

If TMRs place a high value on their own turn, they are much more likely to be prepared at the microphone and offer thoughtful commentary and pointed questions.  After all they don’t want to waste their opportunity.

Let’s use the Steve Wetzel as an example.  He spoke 10 times during the budget debate, asking the same question about sick leave and longevity pay each time.  TM was clearly annoyed — the answer was always the same, but he refused to stop.  And under TM rules he had the right to appear as many times as he wanted.

But with a speaker waiver system in place, anyone ahead of him in the virtual queue (which would have been almost everyone) could have spoken ahead of him and moved the question.  Sounds like a dirty trick, but then so is holding 241 TMRs hostage while you grandstand about sick leave and longevity pay.

With “frequent speakers” passing on articles they might otherwise speak on, the length of TM probably will drop, and possibly significantly.

The benefit for the Moderator is that he no longer would be a factor in the speaker order.  No matter how fair he is, he is always open to criticism from the losing side about favoring one speaker over the other.

Electronic Voting

With electronic voting coming, imagine the speaker waiver system being integrated into it.  Each TMR is issued a remote, and in addition to the “yea” and “nay” buttons, there could be an “I want to speak” button.  The queue algorithm can be built into the electronic voting system, and the virtual queue can be shown on the big screen TV above the Moderator.  Also, instead of knowing only how many people are left to speak before a question is moved, TM will know who is left to speak, since it will shown on the big screen.

Summary

A waiver priority system would create an equitable and fair method to encourage TMRs to share time at the microphone.  Since TMRs would essentially take turns speaking, each trip to the microphone would to valuable too waste.  When something has more value, its quality increases.  A higher quality TM means a better government, better decisions, and a higher quality of life for constituents.

A sprawling Walmart store produces far less in property tax revenue for Ashville, NC as compared to a mixed-use building

A recent story at Planetizen has done just that.  Here is a chart comparing the financials of a Walmart vs. a mixed-use building.  The small building is much more lucrative, and it’s not close.  The 0.2 acre parcel generates 100 times more money for Ashville, NC than the Walmart per acre and more than 10 times more jobs.

How do our own strip malls fare?  In 2005, O’Connor’s Plaza paid $175,000 in property tax.  The parcel is 11.6 acres.  This works out to just over $15,000 per acre.  And the Zombie?  In the same year, RD Management forked over just $16,000 more than O’Connor’s, and it is almost 3 times larger.  So in ’05 the Zombie was worth a pathetic $6,400 per acre, or even less than the Ashville Walmart.

When you hear people talk about the “cost of sprawl,” this is what they mean.  It is, in part, an “opportunity cost” — in other words, the money we surrender by not having a higher-value development on that land.

Could a mixed use development make over $600,000 per acre in Billerica?  Maybe not.  But let’s say it’s worth just one third of that: $200,000 per acre annually.  It would earn us about $6,000,000 in revenue.  So, the opportunity cost of not redeveloping this land is just over $5.8M every year.

Mind-blowing, no?  Could Billerica use an extra $5.8 million?

I say yes.

A speaker protests proposed service cuts and fare increases at an MBTA public meeting

The T doesn’t have enough money, so it either needs to reduce its spending, raise its revenue, or both.  The problem is so bad, they have put two awful proposals on the table that would indeed do both in a big way.  Shown at left is a photo from one (in Newton) of 20 planned public meetings.  This meeting is so full you can see people overflowing onto the balcony over the speaker’s shoulder.

The T’s service cuts call for an end to weekend commuter rail service, all ferry service, and many less-used bus routes.

Since you live in Billerica, you probably rarely use the T.  We have no T bus service (we are served by the Lowell Regional Transit Authority in that regard), although we do have a commuter rail station.  Chances are that you drive to work, so whichever plan the T goes with, it won’t affect you, right?

I suppose, except when you consider that the T carries 1.3 million people a day.  And if service is cut, where do you suppose those displaced people will end up?  You got it: on Route 3, in front of you.

But that’s not the point of today’s post.  No, I’m speaking up on this because while I support public transit in general, the T is playing a dirty trick on its customers and taxpayers.  I believe the T will withdraw both current proposals and go with a third, which will make much more modest service cuts and fare increases.  And I also believe this was the MBTA’s plan all along, before they even walked into the first public meeting.

If I am right, the T will not be the first government agency to pull this trick.  Towns do it with overrides all the time.  The plan goes like this:

1. In the upcoming fiscal year, costs cannot be covered with anticipated revenue and/or regular-sized budget cuts.
2. Pick a bread-and-butter service or other service that taxpayers are emotionally tied to (e.g. teacher positions, firemen, police, library) and write a budget that slashes it.
3. Announce your plan.
4. Give constituents plenty of time, space, and opportunity to unite, assemble, and express anger.
5. Plenty of media coverage follows, gaining the sympathy of observers.
6. Ask for more money.
7. Panicked constituents fork over the cash, averting disaster.

In the case of towns, #7 is usually an override.  (How many overrides have you seen that saves the library from losing accreditation?)  For the T, there is an extra step — the angry constituents turn to their state reps and senators, demanding that Beacon Hill come up with the money.

The MBTA is at step #4 of this insidious plan.  They are holding twenty public meetings.  Why so many?  To build a large, motivated horde of activists that will go to bat for the agency’s interests in the political arena. They could have had three public meetings in the middle of the day when everyone is at work if they wanted to.

The anger of the speakers at these meeting is directed squarely at the T, but it needs that anger.  All the T has to do is shrug its shoulders and say, “We have no choice.  We don’t have the money.  But if we did have the money…”

The T can’t ask for more money, but their riders sure can.

Is it underhanded?  Devious?  Manipulative?  Yes, yes, and yes.

But do I blame the T for doing it?  No.  Because the only way to raise revenues in our political environment is with fear.  Rather than have an adult conversation about matching taxes, fees, fares, and other costs to the services we want, there is no alternative.

Put another way, talking about raising taxes will get you stoned in this recession.  (I am hiding behind a stack of old volumes of the World Book Encyclopedias right now.)  So what if the state gas tax hasn’t been touched since 1991?  Can’t go near it.  MBTA fares haven’t changed since 2007?  Keep your damn hands off.

We Americans are becoming allergic to paying our own way.  Someone else should pay.  We pay enough already.  Can’t afford a penny more.

That’s a child’s fantasy.  Here is the reality: costs of anything go up.  Forever.  They call it inflation.  The only question is how fast costs go up and by how much.  So you are left with one of the following 3 options:

1. Pay enough to cover inflation, get the same services
2. Pay more than enough to cover inflation, get more services
3. Don’t pay enough to cover inflation, get less services

But wait, where is option 4, “Pay less and get more services?”  We believe in option 4 because people running for elected office have been telling us for years that it exists, like Atlantis or the Tooth Fairy.  Just cut “wasteful spending,” they say, which itself is imaginary.

Folks, we are grown-ups, not children playing “store.”  Real money, real debt, real needs, real choices.

Last week I wrote about the hurdles citizens must jump in order to serve in Town Meeting.  One of those is collecting signatures for the nomination papers, and I suggested that candidates attend events like Mr. Delaurier’s at the Country Club this past Saturday.  And then I didn’t show up myself, despite it being a 2 minute drive from my house.

After spending the morning painting the bathroom, making bread, and reconfiguring my home wireless network, I was in the shower by 2:30 or so.  After that I found both my kids (ages 3 and 5 months) sleeping.  At the same time.  This is about as common as a new store opening in the Zombie Mall.  Anyway, I got dressed and waited for everyone to wake up so we could go.  Finally a few minutes after 4, when the event started, the 3 year-old woke up, but she was crying.

In the bathroom, she looked up at me with pained eyes and said, “Daddy, I don’t feel good.”

At that point I wasn’t taking her to anywhere.  If I was president I would have postponed the State of the Union address.

After I cleaned up, I made her some ginger ale with the bubbles stirred out (which she didn’t like) and found some crackers.  And I took her downstairs to watch TV under a blanket.

A while later my wife told me I should go to the event myself.  I had made a commitment to go.  And I could have.  I could have jumped in the car and had a drink in my hand in five minutes, talking with my friends.  But that would leave my wife with two sick kids.  (The infant has a cold.)

In that last post I somewhat coldly cited “other priorities” as a reason why it is difficult for many citizens to get involved in their community, especially politics.  For parents, their priority is their kids, and nothing else comes close.

Maybe a generation ago, as the man of the family I would have attended that event and not looked back.  But my wife and I are about as equal as it gets when it comes to raising daughters.  We alternate overnight wake-ups, nasty diapers, bottle feedings, storytime.  We both attend doctor’s appointments.  On rare occasions we each get out of the house by ourselves to get some (vastly underrated) alone time.  But when one (or both, in this case) of the kids is sick, that would always supersede those plans.

The punch line is that it appears the 3 year-old was exaggerating her discomfort.  It would not be the first time she dialed up the drama.  She was fine the rest of the night and it’s even possible her “sickness” was the lingering aftereffect of a bad dream.  In other words, had we gone to the event, she would probably have been fine.  But you don’t take chances with your kids.

So I still have two lonely signatures on my paper — mine and my wife’s.  I’ll have to hit the cold bricks for the rest.  Here’s hoping for an extra warm Saturday or Sunday between now and February 27.

With redistricting this year we need at least 240 people divided into 11 precincts to give voters a choice.  The good news is that, flipping through the clerk’s log book for each precinct — anyone who pulls a paper for any elected office must sign it — there are a fair number of names in it with 6 weeks or so left until the filing deadline.  Most of the names are familiar — long-time TMRs who want their seat back.  (A few have even returned the document with the requisite 10 signatures already.)  I saw a few new names, too, but not enough.

You may have heard me say before in this space that 2012 will be a very important year for TM and that I am nervous that there is not enough interest to sustain such a large body.  I hope that I am wrong, but research (such as by Robert Putnam in “Bowling Alone”) suggests that older people are much more interested in civic engagement (including running for office) than younger people.  With each passing generation — and, indeed, each passing year — general interest in local politics is being lost by attrition.  Locally, look no further than the median age of a Billerica Town Meeting representative (55) as compared to the median age of all adults (45).  There are few TMRs under age 40, and fewer still who have school-age kids.

With every seat empty going into this year we have a chance to elect scores of younger people into TM, but will they even run?  The odds are against this for a number of reasons:

• Too many distractions.  When you have an iPod, iPhone, iPad, Xbox, on-demand HDTV, PSP, high-speed internet, and a host of other whiz-bang entertainment options available without leaving the house, who wants to go sit in town hall for 20 to 30 hours a year listening to people make sanctimonious points of order and grumble at each other?  Electronic voting will bring a little tech bling to TM, but it may not be enough to draw in the first generation that gets more excited about smartphones than cars.
• Other priorities.  Speaking of distractions, a majority of younger people in town are raising kids.  Between sports and other organized activities, school, fund-raising, and the PTA, parents can’t find the time to vote, much less serve in town meeting.
• Wrong time of year.  To get on the ballot, TM candidates must gather 10 signatures from registered voters in their own precinct.  Doesn’t sound like a burden — stopping by 5 or 6 houses in the neighborhood ought to do it.  But who wants to trudge around in January or February, banging on doors asking for nominations?  Who wants to have their door banged on, to stand out on the icy front stoop shaking out ink from a frozen pen?  It’s a shame the election is in April.  Were the election later in the year, TM candidates could hold an informal BBQ (or maybe organize a block party!) for hand-shaking, signature-gathering, and civic engaging.  A winter election season is very community-unfriendly.
• Full-time employment.  You must pick up your papers in person from the Town Clerk, and they are open during normal business hours.  If you have a normal-person, full-time job, when exactly do you pick up the papers (and then return them completed)?  No wonder so many TMRs are retired.

If we want a 242-member Town Meeting to survive Generations X (hello) and Y, we need to make running for a seat and attending 8-10 meeting a year as attractive as possible for our best and brightest citizens.  Just getting on the ballot is a hassle, and it shouldn’t be.  Aside from changing the time of year we hold our election, I’m not sure what other improvements we can make without breaking state election rules.  (Wouldn’t nomination by e-mail be great, for example?)

I do have one suggestion.  If you are running for a TM seat (and if you are reading this, I hope you are), one way to gather signatures inside a warm building is to attend a political campaign event.  They are crawling with registered voters.  One is coming up this weekend (Saturday the 21st) for BOS candidate Andrew Deslaurier at the Country Club on Baldwin Road.  I hope to see you there, and I’ll sign your papers if you sign mine.

But not this year in Billerica.  Gil Moreira, who has been Moderator for two years, will be challenged by Finance Committee member Michael Moore.

Gil has brought notable innovations to Town Meeting is his first term.  For some debates, has used “pro” and “con” microphones, which guaranteed the debate alternated between supporters and detractors.  In a gesture of goodwill he put away the microphone “kill switch,” which remotely cuts off the speaker if he or she refuses to stop talking.  Gil has actively researched electronic voting and intends to deliver it to TM this year.  He has made excellent use of the 3 new flat screen TVs in the Buck auditorium along with PowerPoint.

Speaking of the new presentation technology, it’s his opponent, Michael Moore, is responsible for much of it.  For each meeting he mans the laptop,  deftly shifting among many presentations, spreadsheets, and other materials displayed to TMRs in attendance (and those watching on BATV).

You may also remember Michael from his Planning Board run a few years ago.  (He was not elected.)  Learn more about him at on his blog.

Both men are even-tempered, fair, and among the most reasonable, intelligent men I have have the pleasure of working with in town politics — all good qualities important for a Moderator.  We are lucky to have them both.

A longtime proponent of competition for elected positions, I’m thrilled that we will have a race for this seat.  With all 242 TMRs running fur reelection this year, 2012 may be the most important for Billerica Town Meeting in quite some time.  The direction the body takes over the next ten years may change entirely this year if there is turnover among TMRs.  The Moderator will also be a large factor as well.

It’s an ideal time to have two people running, each with his own perspective on what TM should be.  The Moderator appoints members of many committees, too, including the important and influential Finance Committee.

I will be talking as much as I can to Gil and Michael and following this race here on the blog to help you make the best choice for Moderator.

It remains to be seen if we will have a race for Selectmen (no one has been identified as an opponent to Andrew Deslaurier) or if there will be more than 2 candidates for 2 open seats on the Planning Board.

We can continue to find blame or we can stand up and take action.  Last month I posted some suggested ways to improve the town.  But there is something unique to 2012 that give us a golden opportunity to make a huge difference — a blank slate in Town Meeting, the town’s legislative branch of government.

Due to recent population growth (about 1,000 people), Billerica must redraw boundaries for all 11 precincts.  Although the changes will be minor, the Town Clerk has decided to empty out all 242 TM seats and start over this year.

So, if you are frustrated with what is (or is not) happening in town, this is your chance to step in and take a seat away from a TM representative in your precinct who does not represent your interests.

When I mention this opportunity to people, the most common argument against running is, “I don’t have time.”  But the time commitment is manageable.  TM meets just twice a year — once in May and again in October — and each Meeting is spread out over 3-4 nights on average.  And this year the Moderator plans to install electronic voting which he expects to cut a considerable amount of time that historically has been wasted counting votes by hand.  Each TM night begins at 7:30PM and end between 9:30 and 10.  Meetings are always on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  Also, it’s OK to miss a meeting here and there — on an average night, about 70 TMRs skip the meeting.

Nomination papers are available now from the Town Clerk and are due back in on February 27.  You need only 10 signatures from adults in your precinct.  (If you are in Precinct 5 with me, we can collect signatures together to make it easier.)  Any questions, please comment below.

We need you.  Please run.

My New Year’s prediction: K-Mart closes in Billerica.

Mike, you beat me to it.  I think it’s better than even money.

The news story that prompted this idea reports that Sears Holding Corp. is closing between 100 and 120 stores next year.  Sears owns KMart stores.

Sears has not decided which stores will shut, but the Billerica store will likely appear on some Sears VP’s long list.  My evidence:

- It is sited in an aging, ugly, bloated, sad, dinosaur of a strip mall

- Sears does not appear to have a good relationship with its landlord, RD Management.  Remember back in April 2010 when the Zombie refused to host the Lions Carnival after 19 years?  RDM wrote a letter to the Lions calling out KMart as the tenant that vetoed the event.  It was a move that I’m sure pissed of Sears Corp. and distanced KMart from the community.

- Three establishments — Burlington Coat Factory, the Dollar Tree, and soon-to-open Big Lots — sell a lot of the same stuff.

- Retailers are leaving Billerica in droves — OfficeMax, and Fashion Bug hit the road following Friendly’s and D’Angelo’s restaurants.  This has nothing to do with KMart, but this is no longer a pattern, it’s a trend.  The writing is on the wall.

If you were the Sears Vice President tasked with cutting 120 locations, wouldn’t you take a long look at the Billerica store?

Even if we are wrong and the Billerica KMart survives these cuts, the Sears company is faring poorly, losing out to the likes of WalMart and Target.  Will the parent company survive?  If not early in 2012, is it only a matter of time before the KMart closes?

And where does that leave Billerica Mall Shops at Billerica?  Will KMart customers be pushed to Walmart in Chelmsford?  Will they take their grocery spending with them since a new Stop & Shop opened there?  Can the Zombie survive without KMart, its anchor, which at 84,000 square feet represents a quarter of the malls leasable space?  If you think Big Lots will simply take its place, consider that it will occupy only 30,000 square feet.  (Take a look at the current mall layout here.)

Moreover, where would that leave Billerica as a whole in terms of services available to its citizens and overall economic health?  Do we underestimate how much we depend on KMart?  We have no control over what will happen to KMart, but what can we do as citizens to attract new businesses?

Plus, I only have so much outrage to spend.  But when I read Carla Agustino’s report in the Minuteman last Thursday, my face turned red.  (She did a great job getting these quotes and the story was well-written.  Hope there will be a follow-up.)

Here’s some background before I get into the Zoning Board of Appeals, which green-lighted a huge cell tower near a soccer field last week.  The following is how I understand it — please correct any facts I may have wrong.

On the one side of the issue you have abutters to Akeson field and the Planning Board, who oppose the tower.  On the other, you have the Town Manager, the Board of Selectmen, and of course the cell phone people, who stand to make a profit, and I’m betting it’s a healthy one.  (I should add here that the town stands to pick up some tax revenue, too.)

Let me stop now to remind all staff, elected, and appointed people that your first responsibility is to represent and serve the citizen taxpayers of the town.  Not developers.  If the citizens have a need — in this case, a vehement objection to a cell phone tower — you start by doing everything you can to help them.  Or you bring the two sides together and try to work something out.

According to this story, neither of those two things happened here, with the exception of the Planning Board, which wasn’t backed up by anyone else.  Let’s look at some of the quotes from the article:

“We have a court order, what is Mark supposed to do, not issue it?” said ZBA Vice Chairman Richard Colantuoni. “Someone made the decision to not fight this thing and probably for a good reason.”

“Apparently the selectmen and town manager can overrule the planning board, the judge did not overrule anything,” Christopher Curley said. “Town Manager [John] Curran gave up. No one was defending the abutters, the residents, or the people who play soccer in that field. There seems to be other options available, but bottom line the town wanted the revenue for this location.”

“The 140-foot setback was not met, it needed variance,” he explained. “Billerica town bylaws say there should be no exception given to the 140 feet setback and states variance can only be given in a state of hardship, so why was it given?”

ZBA member Ralph McKenna reasoned the appeal is not lawfully sound because according to town bylaws, an appeal must be made within 30 days. [Building commissioner Mark] LaLumiere stated the building permit was issued on Sept. 13, although Mr. Curley cited it was pulled on Sept. 23.

“The board of appeals received the appeal on Oct, 20, so there is no jurisdiction anyway,” McKenna said. “From what I understand, the petitioner is not on the court mandated abutter’s list, so he has no case, we have to follow laws.

What else will we lose next year?  Is there anything we can do about it?

Yes, there is.  Here is how you can change this town for the better, starting in 2012.

1.  Pay Attention

Being fully aware of what is going on is the first step to changing it.  The traditional media outlets (Billerica Minuteman, Lowell Sun, occasionally the Boston Globe) are decent news sources.  Most of us read at least one of these. But it’s not enough.  Newer media is attempting to fill in the gaps.  Billerica.org has reporting like a newspaper, but its staff are residents, many of whom are elected officials.  Local blogs are expanding.  Facebook, Twitter, and other social media do contain a lot of noise, but you can find some good nuggets of news.  Some rumors you hear this way turn out to be true.  Finally, the Board of Selectmen meetings and Town Meeting sessions are all covered to start to finish by Billerica Access Television.  BATV is probably our most valuable form of communication, and we need to take better advantage of it.

Equally important to paying attention to what is happening is paying attention to what is not happening.  For example, we are not attracting new business or land development. By learning about what is happening around the region, we find out what is missing from our own town’s growth.

2.  Ask Questions

It is your right as a citizen to know what government is up to, and to understand what it means to you.  If you hear a rumor, ask an expert if it’s true.  Take full advantage of town staff, who are here to serve you, the taxpayer.  There is no reason to feel like you are being a pain in the ass or that you are bothering them with a question.  In my experience most staff are happy to help you.  The internet makes it incredibly easy (and fast) to talk to people who can provide you with whatever information you are looking for.

We have all had bad experiences with government in the past, but do not assume all people in government will treat you poorly.  Just be polite and you will be amazed at how pleasant your interaction will be.

And of course the people you elected to represent you (Selectmen, Planning Board, School Committee, etc.) are also eager to answer your question.  (The Town Clerk might ask for TM reps’ e-mail address on the nomination for the first time next year.  If she decides to do this, it would give us direct access to TM as well.)

If you don’t like the answers you’re getting, don’t give up.  Ask other people.

But who do you ask?  Rick M at A Forgotten Man has provided a full roster of department heads and other important contacts on his blog.  Rick has done all the hard work for you.  Now all you have to do is ask away.

3.  Listen, Talk

In that order.

We are all opinionated people.  One of our favorite hobbies is telling people what we think.  But hearing what other citizens are interested in and understanding the perspectives of others is the foundation of a successful community.  When you see your neighbors over the fence or at the store, ask them what they think the town needs.  Ask follow-up questions.

Then, tell them what you think and ask for their reaction.

This is the sort of basic civic discourse that built great towns.  It sounds simplistic, but are we really sharing ideas like this now?  Or when talk about local politics, do we instead talk about people we personally like or dislike?  Spread ideas, not gossip.

4.  Assemble

Americans revere our First Amendment freedoms of speech, religion, and the press.  But our freedom to assemble is exercised less and less nowadays (Occupy Wall Street notwithstanding).  For a large town, Billerica has few civic organizations.  There are zero neighborhood associations, despite having distinct neighborhoods with unique needs.

Neighborhood associations (NAs) are sometimes called “hyper-local government,” providing a forum for people who live near one another to lobby for or against things that affect them.  It could be something as small as a pothole or as large as a looming 40B development.  In some cities and towns, NAs are very powerful political entities.  With the power of several dozen people (and more on occasion!), they can be an irresistible force.

Without this type of unity, good ideas die and old ideas aren’t challenged effectively.

Again, the internet makes it easy to build these sorts of organizations.  Monthly in-person meetings are great, but something as simple as an e-mail list or Facebook page be the political spine of a neighborhood and it can let busy people participate.

5.  Vote

Yes, encouraging people to vote is bordering on corny now.  However, it is still a very important message.  Trends on turnout everywhere, especially in local elections, is pointing in the wrong direction.

But the situation here in Billerica is edging into desperate territory.  Consider the 13.0% turnout this past April.  Effectively that means each person that showed up at the polls represented about seven-and-a-half registered voters.  Now that’s influence.

What it means is that people running for major boards need little more than their personal contacts to simply turn out in order to win elections.  It helps to explain how lifelong residents win so many times — they have plenty of friends left over from high school.

But is a lifelong resident always the best person for the job?  We won’t know until we can substantially increase voter turnout.  Until then, ours will be student council elections.  We will be high school sophomores forever, voting for people who have the most friends or who have the coolest “vote for me” sign posted next to the girls’ bathroom.

Fewer voters mean less competition, and less competition means lower quality of government in any democracy.

In summary, if you are not satisfied in the quality of government, you have choices.  You can complain.  Or you can do something about it.  Make your government yours.  Participate.  Only then will things improve.