Dates Set for 2012 Town Meetings [POLL]

Town Meetings are held annually on the first Monday in June and October. This year, Annual Town Meeting will be held on June 4 and October Town Meeting will be held on Oct. 1.

Resident Deanna Castro attended the Selectmen's meeting Monday and asked if the board would consider approaching other organizations in town, including youth sports, the Parks and Recreation Department and churches, to see if they would consider canceling practices, classes and other events on the days of Town Meeting in order to get more people to attend.

"Will you enteratin a communication moratorium so that we can maximize participation in our communities efforts?" Castro asked.

She mentioned that last year, on the night of Town Meeting in June, there were other events taking place, including senior prom, Little League playoffs, tryouts for soccer and religious classes. As a resident who is involved in the community, she would like to see the maximum number of people participating in Town Meeting, but realizes that some parents face schedule conflicts and barriers that could be avoided.

The board agreed to communicate dates and times with other organizations. Selectman Michael Prisco took it a step further and suggested that the Parks and Recreation Department not hand out permits for park use during Town Meetings.

Selectman Stephen O'Leary disagreed with that idea, and noted that he coached his children for three seasons a year while they were growing up and playing sports, and was able to make decisions on when to attend a meeting and when to attend a practice.

Selectmen Chairman Robert Mauceri ended the conversation saying, "We have grown-up people living in town, if they want to go to Town Meeting, they are going to go to Town Meeting."

Do you think parents should be relieved of the burden of conflict or make the decision on their own? Take our poll and let us know!