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Deserves Better Leadership

On Nov. 5, Madison’s residents will vote for the future leadership of our town. Most folks don’t pay close attention to how the town is run. A few of us do.

One of the first selectman’s jobs is to listen to the desires of town residents and to work with the Board of Selectmen (BOS) toward implementation of those desires. Our current first selectman, Tom Banisch, has shown a penchant for promoting his own instincts, which are often at odds with what the town wants. The vacant Academy School is a case in point. Upon taking office two terms ago, Tom scuttled the existing plan for a cultural arts center at the school. A licensed realtor, he proposed selling it for residential development, including the ball fields, despite public feedback urging other uses. After an uproar by citizens and completion of a professional survey supporting a community center, Tom appears to be going along with a referendum next year. Meanwhile, the building has remained empty without a plan during his time in office.

In addition, Tom has not acted as a consensus builder on the BOS, and he rarely expresses an opinion or explains his vote. His tendencies are often held in check by other selectmen; hence we still have public comment sessions, workshops, and surveys to solicit resident input. And, on numerous occasions, he has made unilateral decisions after little consultation with the BOS or other town officials. A recent example is contracting for a new beach pass system, leading to undesirable consequences.

This pattern of behavior is consistent with earlier missteps in his tenure: interfering with the road paving schedule (costing us taxpayer money) and disrupting the town campus ball field project.

Madison deserves better leadership. I encourage your readers to vote for change on Nov. 5.

Susan Glantz

Madison