Letter From Selectmen Candidate

Fellow Winchester Residents:

My name is Jennifer Wilson, and I am a candidate for the Board of Selectmen in the March 27 election.

I moved to Winchester in 1999 when I married my husband, John.  We have three children, all of whom attend Muraco Elementary School.  I worked for many years as a lawyer, but have been at home since starting a family.  During this time, I have spent the largest share of my free time volunteering in Town government and at our children’s school.   From 2001 through 2009, I served on the Town’s Finance Committee, acting as Vice Chair and Chair for two years.  Last year, I assisted the Board of Selectmen as a member of the Town Manager Search Advisory Committee. I have been a Town Meeting Member since 2003.  At Muraco School, I am a board member and treasurer for the parents association, and a regular volunteer in the library.

I now seek to serve the Town as a member of the Board of Selectmen.  In my approach to community service, I value a transparent and efficient process and I believe that good governing habits lead to good decision-making.  As a Selectman, I would prioritize:

Commitment to Charter Roles and Responsibilities: The Town Charter defines the roles and responsibilities of both the Town Manager and the Board of Selectmen. As a Board member, I would reinforce the Board’s role as a policy-making body and support the new Town Manager and other professionals whose job it is to manage the day-to-day affairs of the Town.

Long-term Sustainability of Excellent Service: Our town’s ongoing challenge is to preserve sustainable – and excellent -- school and municipal services without overburdening taxpayers or relying too heavily on external sources of income, such as state funding.  We should explore best practices in other communities and, where appropriate, consider public and private partnerships.  The town’s leadership should communicate early and often with residents on long-term planning.  As steward of citizens’ tax dollars, the Board should demonstrate that it has thoroughly considered alternatives before proposing any Proposition 2 ½ override.

Winchester faces critical decisions that will shape its long-term future.  These include the treatment of Wright-Locke Farm, renovation/rebuilding of the High School, flood mitigation and redevelopment of the Town Center.  As the community considers these issues, I will press for early identification of issues and early inclusion of stakeholders, with a process that is open, transparent and defined, and decision-making that is crisp, timely and promptly communicated.

In short, in addressing the community’s needs, I would strive to act with respect for the time, opinions and wallets of our town’s residents.

I welcome the chance to meet with you, answer your questions and hear your thoughts.  Please drop in for bread, coffee and conversation at Mamadou’s (63 Swanton St.) between 10am and noon on Saturday, March 17.  Visit my web site, http://wilsonforselectman.com/, for other meeting opportunities, or e-mail me at jenniferwilsonforselectman@gmail.com.

I respectfully ask for your vote in the March 27 town election.

Jennifer Wilson

3 Euclid Avenue

Precinct 2