That is what most of us should be doing at this point in the on going town wide mandatory water ban. We should also hold our breath because we are only an electrical switch or broken pump or even a broken pipe away from losing all of our town wide water production. With the Mill Pond treatment plant still down we are currently relying on the Vine Brook plant as well as a one million gallon a day connection with Lexington to meet our daily needs. If the Vine Brook plant gets knocked off line for any reason it will be a political and economic catastrophe for the town.
So far the Board of Selectmen and town management have been long on fretting and very short on explanations as to how we have found ourselves in this situation.The Board has responded with mandatory restrictions and turned the Police Department into water enforcement police while blaming residents for lack of enthusiastic compliance for a problem that is primarily of the board's and management's own making.
The problem begins in January when town meeting approved a $400,000 bond issue to finish the upgrades at the plant. The project was bid and initial estimates were that the work would be done during the peak of spring rainy periods to minimize impact and that the plant would be back online by May 1.
The central question that needs to be asked and thoroughly examined by the Ways and Means Committee or perhaps a special committee is how on earth could the town's water consultant, the new DPW superintendent, Town Administrator and Board of Selectmen have allowed the Mill Pond Plant to be taken off line without complete assurance that it would be back in production on the stated date?
Explanations are sketchy at this point but it seems that once the contract was bid and the work began, one of the sub contractors doing the electrical work found that he could not get the parts necessary to complete the job. If we were fixing a window or a truck or even a building such a situation can be worked around. When you are talking about one of the primary responsibilities and reasons town government exists that is another matter entirely.
If this were the private sector and we were soup factory as an example and the leadership of the factory planned an upgrade to the water processing facility needed to produce the soup and that project was delayed for 40 days beyond the projected completion and 40 days of soup sales were lost as a result what do you think would happen to those responsible?
This piece is not about pointing fingers at individuals. It is more about how and why this happened and how we can prepare to prevent such re-occurrences in the future. It is also about openness on the part of the board of selectmen.
None of the basic questions regarding this event have been answered or even broached publicly. What are the costs associated with this failure by the contractor? How much money in water sales has been lost? What is the total cost of water purchases from Lexington likely to be. How about the cost to the police department for diversion of man power from crime to water enforcement?
Is there legal recourse against the people who have brought this upon us and are they insured against such incompetence?
Even more importantly, from the perspective of the homeowner, has there been measurable costs associated with the loss of lawn improvements or garden and flower planting?
Perhaps these questions will be addressed or perhaps the new deadline of July 10 will be met without further incident and the selectmen will breathe a sigh of relief and hope the whole issue passes quietly into history.
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Thursday, June 21, 2007
A Fascinating place
The one water shed event in the evolution of Burlington as a regional center of economic development was the construction of Route 128 in the early 1950’s.
In 1955, Business Week referred to 128 as the Magic semi circle. It was the first limited access circumferential highway in the United States.
The economic impact on the region in general can be seen by the number of companies drawn to the area. By 1958 there were 99 companies employing 17,000 workers, by 1973 there were over 1200.
The three keys to success in real estate are location, location and location. With the connection of Route 128 to the Northbound Route 3 to New Hampshire, Burlington suddenly became the major crossroads to the Northern kingdoms.
The town exploited this junction to its advantage by adding a couple of key ingredients which were water under pressure and zoning.
The leadership of the town envisioned that commercial development would occur along the highway and provided for and encouraged it by zoning the one thousand feet back from 128 on both sides as well as along route 3 north. This one decision is largely responsible for the concentration of business in one area while the rest of the town is essentially comprised of quiet neighborhoods.
These two items would change a largely rural farming community into a retail, office and manufacturing center within a roughly ten year period.
Once accomplished the zoning change attracted people who now are considered visionaries in the various real estate categories. In the early 60’s Hank Spaulding developed New England Executive Park which was one of the first suburban office parks developed in the entire country. It continues to be an important destination as it has changed hands a number of times and most recently was included in the Blackstone acquisition of Equity Office Properties which is one of the biggest deals ever in the country.
Roger Nordblom who created the Northwest Industrial Park over 50 years ago is still active in town and is once again in the center of innovation with the recent approval of the re-development of the park.
The Burlington Mall completed in the sixties has consistently been a top performing retail location on the east coast and several years ago was acquired by Simon Properties, another nationally known real estate holding company.
Dick Kelly, Bob Murray and Arthur Guiterrez are also examples of developers who have a long history of leading edge participation in the economic evolution of the community and are to this day still involved.
The over all magnitude of the economic impact can be measured in assessed value of the town as well as population growth.
In 1956 the assessed value of the town was just over 12 million dollars by 1985 it had reached 1.3 billion and today stands at 4.9 billion. If we account for inflation that is still quite an increase.
The population growth shows similar impacts. In the early fifties the population stood at approximately 5000 which grew to 13,000 in 1960 and to 22,000 by 1970. In 1966 the town was the youngest in the state with an average age of just 23 years old.
With this tremendous growth has come similar stress in the municipal areas which the town has managed to cope with over the years primarily because it has had sufficient financial resources from its tax base.
Significant infrastructure improvements have included the construction of a reservoir which enables the town to remain water independent as well as improvements in the water distribution and sewer systems.
The most significant impact however has been on the town’s adult residents and its children. The lightning speed at which the town’s industries have evolved has enabled our people and products to impact almost all areas of industry and technology through out the world.
Companies that have been residents of Burlington over the years have been involved in space exploration, microprocessors, photonics, robotics, micro computers, mini computers and main frames. Medicine and science, optics and wind power and most everything else you can think of.
The benefit of this has been felt through out the community with the level of expertise brought to the community by employees extending through all walks of life and the school system.
Altogether it has been quite a fascinating place to grow up in as well be an observer.
In 1955, Business Week referred to 128 as the Magic semi circle. It was the first limited access circumferential highway in the United States.
The economic impact on the region in general can be seen by the number of companies drawn to the area. By 1958 there were 99 companies employing 17,000 workers, by 1973 there were over 1200.
The three keys to success in real estate are location, location and location. With the connection of Route 128 to the Northbound Route 3 to New Hampshire, Burlington suddenly became the major crossroads to the Northern kingdoms.
The town exploited this junction to its advantage by adding a couple of key ingredients which were water under pressure and zoning.
The leadership of the town envisioned that commercial development would occur along the highway and provided for and encouraged it by zoning the one thousand feet back from 128 on both sides as well as along route 3 north. This one decision is largely responsible for the concentration of business in one area while the rest of the town is essentially comprised of quiet neighborhoods.
These two items would change a largely rural farming community into a retail, office and manufacturing center within a roughly ten year period.
Once accomplished the zoning change attracted people who now are considered visionaries in the various real estate categories. In the early 60’s Hank Spaulding developed New England Executive Park which was one of the first suburban office parks developed in the entire country. It continues to be an important destination as it has changed hands a number of times and most recently was included in the Blackstone acquisition of Equity Office Properties which is one of the biggest deals ever in the country.
Roger Nordblom who created the Northwest Industrial Park over 50 years ago is still active in town and is once again in the center of innovation with the recent approval of the re-development of the park.
The Burlington Mall completed in the sixties has consistently been a top performing retail location on the east coast and several years ago was acquired by Simon Properties, another nationally known real estate holding company.
Dick Kelly, Bob Murray and Arthur Guiterrez are also examples of developers who have a long history of leading edge participation in the economic evolution of the community and are to this day still involved.
The over all magnitude of the economic impact can be measured in assessed value of the town as well as population growth.
In 1956 the assessed value of the town was just over 12 million dollars by 1985 it had reached 1.3 billion and today stands at 4.9 billion. If we account for inflation that is still quite an increase.
The population growth shows similar impacts. In the early fifties the population stood at approximately 5000 which grew to 13,000 in 1960 and to 22,000 by 1970. In 1966 the town was the youngest in the state with an average age of just 23 years old.
With this tremendous growth has come similar stress in the municipal areas which the town has managed to cope with over the years primarily because it has had sufficient financial resources from its tax base.
Significant infrastructure improvements have included the construction of a reservoir which enables the town to remain water independent as well as improvements in the water distribution and sewer systems.
The most significant impact however has been on the town’s adult residents and its children. The lightning speed at which the town’s industries have evolved has enabled our people and products to impact almost all areas of industry and technology through out the world.
Companies that have been residents of Burlington over the years have been involved in space exploration, microprocessors, photonics, robotics, micro computers, mini computers and main frames. Medicine and science, optics and wind power and most everything else you can think of.
The benefit of this has been felt through out the community with the level of expertise brought to the community by employees extending through all walks of life and the school system.
Altogether it has been quite a fascinating place to grow up in as well be an observer.
Saturday, June 09, 2007
Three blind mice
The Wall Street Journal had an article in it's Thursday edition that illustrated in stark terms some of the reasons for the complete and utter decay of the American automobile industry. The big three automakers met with members of congress to request a slow down in the efforts to increase fuel efficiency standards.
According to the journal, "GM's Rick Wagoner, Ford's Alan Mulally and Chrysler's Tom LaSorda told congressional leaders that a 35 mpg fleet-wide target isn't cost-effective or technologically achievable". They didn't explain why, that after a nearly 30 years that they have been unable or unwilling to take the lead in fuel efficient technology.
Instead they have attempted to exploit legislation that has allowed trucks to be held to a much lower standard. That of course is the primary reason why we have seen the explosion of SUV's on the roads in this country.
While they have sold a great deal more of these vehicles over time they have also seen their domestic and international market share shrink in favor of company's that have focused on efficiency. Even now, as gas prices hover just above three dollars Honda and Toyota are beginning to give even more attention to such models as the Fit and Civic. They rightly are expecting that the auto buying public will switch to something more economical rather than give up their ride!
The argument from the big three is that congress is attempting to force them to build cars that Americans won't buy. The argument being that the lightweight fuel efficient cars are not big enough nor powerful enough to lure American buyers into their show rooms.
How is it possible that people in these positions can be so blind to world economic and political events? The leaders of these companies have literally driven the most powerful domestic industry ever seen into near bankruptcy and they still argue against common sense.
Why isn't the chairman of General Motors saying this, "We will be the world leader in fuel efficiency in the next ten years." It is not exactly the equivalent of President Kennedy's declaration that we would put a man on the moon but it might be more of an important event to the country at large.
The time has come for a line in the sand to be drawn and for these companies to step up to a national challenge. We are one or two events away from five or six dollar a gallon gasoline and we still don't have industry leadership prepared for the challenge. What will it take to wake these people up?
According to the journal, "GM's Rick Wagoner, Ford's Alan Mulally and Chrysler's Tom LaSorda told congressional leaders that a 35 mpg fleet-wide target isn't cost-effective or technologically achievable". They didn't explain why, that after a nearly 30 years that they have been unable or unwilling to take the lead in fuel efficient technology.
Instead they have attempted to exploit legislation that has allowed trucks to be held to a much lower standard. That of course is the primary reason why we have seen the explosion of SUV's on the roads in this country.
While they have sold a great deal more of these vehicles over time they have also seen their domestic and international market share shrink in favor of company's that have focused on efficiency. Even now, as gas prices hover just above three dollars Honda and Toyota are beginning to give even more attention to such models as the Fit and Civic. They rightly are expecting that the auto buying public will switch to something more economical rather than give up their ride!
The argument from the big three is that congress is attempting to force them to build cars that Americans won't buy. The argument being that the lightweight fuel efficient cars are not big enough nor powerful enough to lure American buyers into their show rooms.
How is it possible that people in these positions can be so blind to world economic and political events? The leaders of these companies have literally driven the most powerful domestic industry ever seen into near bankruptcy and they still argue against common sense.
Why isn't the chairman of General Motors saying this, "We will be the world leader in fuel efficiency in the next ten years." It is not exactly the equivalent of President Kennedy's declaration that we would put a man on the moon but it might be more of an important event to the country at large.
The time has come for a line in the sand to be drawn and for these companies to step up to a national challenge. We are one or two events away from five or six dollar a gallon gasoline and we still don't have industry leadership prepared for the challenge. What will it take to wake these people up?
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