Marblehead voters reject all overrides

MARBLEHEAD – Fearful Marblehead voters rejected all 10 debt exclusion overrides in Tuesday’s special election.The one that came closest to passing was the new $28.8 million Glover-Eveleth School, which garnered 2,953 "No" votes and 2,882 "Yes" votes – a 71-vote loss.All the other questions, including the state-required $22.2 million landfill cap and transfer station construction project, failed by margins of about 2-1.Voter turnout was high – 5,880 or roughly 32 percent.Tuesday’s ballot featured a record-setting 10 debt exclusion overrides with a total value of $56.9 million. A simple majority was required to pass each of the questions. Funded by bond issues, the borrowing required for all 10 questions would have added 83 cents to the town’s $9.57 tax rate, or $423.27 to the $4.900 annual tax bill for a $512,000 median home, an 8.6 percent hike for the first year."It’s back to the drawing board," Director of Public Health Wayne Attridge said about the landfill and transfer station plan. "I’ll have to talk about this with the Board of Health."School Committee Chairman Patricia Blackmer, who also chairs the Glover School Building Committee, called the school vote "incredibly disappointing" and "a loss for the town."Obviously emotional, she declined to rule out a request for a recount."We have to retrench," she said. "We will come back and ask again. We can’t do nothing so we will be back."The $28.8 million new building cost included $11.18 million in Massachusetts School Building Authority reimbursement, or 40 percent. The town was grandfathered in at 40 percent because the state is no longer offering that much.The school figure would have been funded with a 20-year bond issue, adding 24.7 cents to the tax rate and $126.55 to the annual median home tax bill.Blackmer admitted that the 10-question ballot "could feel overwhelming.""But I would hope that people could take a look at each question and vote on them individually," she said.Jack Buba, leader of the group "Not Now, We’re in a Recession" that opposed all the overrides, offered a prepared statement Tuesday evening:"The people of Marblehead sounded a resounding ‘Not now, we’re in a recession’ to our town leaders today. Many residents, including those on fixed incomes, those who have lost their jobs or are worried about losing their jobs, will rest a little easier tonight.""I hope the town leaders will listen to the voice of the people. The Board of Health should go back to the drawing board and come to the voters with a much more modest and total solution to the dump issues so we can comply with the state mandate.""I also hope that the town leaders do not show disrespect to the citizens who voted today and begin a tedious round of ‘do-over overrides.’ Our selectmen should ensure that the will of the people is heard and wait at least until next year’s Town Meeting before reconsidering any other articles."The other questions included a $706,961 landfill monitoring program, the $899,955 purchase of a landfill-contaminated home at 57 Stony Brook Road, $100,000 for additional sidewalk repair, purchase of a vacant 195 Pleasant St. gas station, the $1.64 million Pleasant Street traffic safety program (including a $400,000 Massachusetts Highway Department grant), $292,394 for access improvements at Abbot Public Library, $1.5 million for Astro-turf at the Marblehead High football field and $450,000 for furniture and technology purchases for the new Marblehead Village School.