Write to the Governor

New Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick ran on the campaign slogan "together we can." Write to him and let him know that "together" means each community pulling its weight, not "hub" communities like Framingham shouldering a disproportionate share of the burden of hosting social service facilities.

Talking Points

When calling or writing, please be considerate of the Governor's time and be brief, polite, and to the point. Here are a few "talking points" you may wish to use:

• The governor's "transition team" heard testimony from STEPPS as well as receiving a copy of the Framingham PILOT Committee report. However, the team's report to the governor included none of our concerns. This raises the troubling question of whether those concerns were deliberately whitewashed by the team, which already had the appearance of bias due to having Jerry Desilets, SMOC's planning director, on the team.
• Our property taxes are high and services have been cut despite a recent override. We can't afford to see our tax base eroded by social service agencies which not only don't bring money, but actively cost the town money in police, fire, and other services.
  
• SMOC and similar facilities cause more than their share of problems for the police and fire departments -- and Framingham taxpayers pay for them.
  
• Framingham already has more than its share of social service agencies. For instance, we have more SMOC units than Marlboro, Natick, Waltham, Ashland, Worcester, and Hudson combined -- despite having less than 1/4 the population! You may also wish to refer them to the Worcester Regional Research Bureau's report "Siting Residential Social Service Programs: The Process and the Options," which showed pretty convincingly that Framingham host far more than its share of social services.

Contact Information

Telephone: (617) 725-4005 or (888) 870-7770 (in-state use only)
Fax: (617) 727-9725

Mailing address:

Gov. Deval Patrick
Office of the Governor
Massachusetts Statehouse, Room 360
Boston, MA 02133

Web site: http://www.mass.gov/?pageID=gov3homepage&L=1&L0=Home&sid=Agov3

(There is an email form on the "Contact" page, but you are better off writing or calling.)

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