Author: kerriganforclinton

The Clinton Item did a story this week on the resolution the Select Board passed on October 22. While I appreciate the coverage and all the Item does to cover our community, I wanted to clarify a few things written in the story.

The lede—”National debate entered the Clinton Select Board meeting…”—makes it sound as if we were debating tariffs or the federal government shutdown. What we were talking about was Clinton, and whether we should show our support for members of our community who are feeling anxious and unsafe because of the color of the skin, the language they speak, or the jobs they work.

Nothing could be more local.

It’s easy to brush off the Trump administration’s mistreatment of immigrants as a “national debate,” something that’s happening in Boston, or Chicago, or New York. But the fact is it’s happening everywhere, including Clinton. Members of our community—neighbors and friends, merchants and coworkers—are being targeted by federal immigration and customs enforcement simply because they look different, or speak Spanish or Brazilian, or sometimes just because an ICE agent has a hunch. That’s illegal under our Constitution and I don’t want it happening anywhere, including in Clinton.

Clinton is where my family and I live, and it’s where I’ve been elected since 2017 to represent the community—not just people who look like me, but the entire community. Clinton is a town of immigrants and has been since before my great grandfather came here near the turn of last century. But we need to stop thinking of Clinton as the town of our childhoods, whether that’s 20, 30, 40, or 70 years ago. All it takes is a walk down High Street or a visit to any classroom in our schools to see that our community is more diverse than ever.

That diversity makes us stronger, but only if we treat every member of our community with dignity and respect. I’m proud to have put forth this resolution, and I’m grateful for the support of Matt Kobus and Julie Perusse. I think the Clinton Police Department does a great job looking out for everyone in our community, and I have no doubt they’ll continue to do so. This resolution in no way challenges the work they’re doing or their partnership with state and federal authorities on things like drug enforcement.

Two other issues with the Item’s story. First, my colleague’s name is Bill Connolly. It was misspelled throughout the story. Second, the quote  “I think, unfortunately, maybe we’re looking at different news sources, but it’s exactly people like those new citizens that I’m looking at” was attributed to Mary Dickhaut when I said it in reaction to Mr. Connolly’s comment about members of the community who recently became U.S. citizens through the outstanding work done through the Philip E. Philbin Clinton Adult Learning Center. To the best of my recollection, Ms. Dickhaut offered no comments on the matter other that saying she didn’t support the resolution.

The text of the resolution is as follows:

A RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF FREEDOM IN OUR COMMUNITY

A resolution of the Clinton (Mass.) Select Board affirming its commitment to the freedom and dignity of all members of our community in the wake of increased unlawful attacks and abductions from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other federal agencies. 

WHEREAS, the American experience—and the history of the town of Clinton—is inherently rooted in the immigrant experience; 

WHEREAS, the 2020 U.S. Census reported that more than 17 percent of Clinton respondents were foreign born;

WHEREAS, statistics from the Massachusetts Department of Education for the 2024–25 school year reported that 44.5 percent of all Clinton students were of Hispanic or Latino descent, and that 36.1 percent of them spoke something other than English as their first language ;

WHEREAS, the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution guarantees protection for all from unreasonable searches and seizures without a valid judicial warrant;  

WHEREAS, the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution provides that no state may deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law;

WHEREAS, recent law enforcement actions across the country, throughout Massachusetts, and in Clinton have caused fear, anxiety, anger, and uncertainty for many in our community;

WHEREAS, these actions have discredited the Clinton Police Department and negatively affected the department’s relationship with its community; 

WHEREAS, we hear the concerns and feel the pain of our neighbors, their friends, and their families; 

WHEREAS, we believe that a diverse and unified community means a better, stronger, and safer Clinton for all of us; 

WHEREAS, the Clinton Select Board is committed to the freedom and dignity of every member of our community; 

NOW, THEREFORE, THE CLINTON SELECT BOARD RESOLVES AS FOLLOWS: 

1. The Town of Clinton stands with those affected and offers them our full support.
2. The Town of Clinton condemns the targeting of individuals because of their race, how they speak, or the jobs they work.
3. The Town of Clinton demands U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and any members of law enforcement or the military obey the United States Constitution and all federal, state, and local laws.
4. The Town of Clinton shall dedicate no resources toward supporting illegal abduction by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement or any other federal agency.
5. This resolution confirms our commitment to local actions that promote the freedom and dignity of every member of our community. 
6. These values will be reflected in all local government institutions, effective immediately.

Your town’s official website, clintonma.gov, has been redesigned and relaunched.

Besides getting a much-needed facelift, we’ve tried to make clintonma.gov easier to navigate and more useful, giving you quick access to the answers and services you need from local government.

It’s also a great way to pay your municipal bills and see what’s happening in town. And you can sign up for text and email alerts to get notified when an agenda is posted, an event is scheduled, or when town news or jobs are posted.

Check out clintoma.gov today and let us know what you think!

Clinton’s Annual Town Meeting is this Monday, June 5, at 7 p.m. in the Town Hall auditorium.

It’s the time we gather each year to debate and vote on the annual budget, capital requests, and any other town business. It’s representative democracy in its purest form.

The warrant and proposed budget are attached below.

Hope to see everyone on Monday!

As a candidate for re-election to the Clinton Select Board, it was great to get together and talk about some of the issues facing our town.

Video of candidates night is now live on the Clinton, Mass. YouTube page here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_8Dg7dLNcY

It’ll also be shown daily on Clinton Cable TV Comcast Channel 8 through June 1 at 9 a.m., 1 p.m., 6 p.m., and 9 p.m.

If you aren’t registered to vote, you can still do so in the Clerk’s Office at Town Hall until this Friday, May 26. And don’t forget Annual Town Meeting on June 5 and Election Day on June 12.

It’s campaign lawn sign season once again. If you or someone you know would like a lawn sign to support my re-election to the Clinton Select Board, please let me know and I can drop one off.

Email kerriganforclinton@gmail.com with your address and I’ll have one there soon.

I’m running for re-election on Clinton’s Select Board, and I need your help.

If you’re out and about this Saturday, April 8, or just want to treat yourself to a tasty cold beverage, stop by Sterling Street Brewery from 1 to 3 p.m. While you’re there, you can share your ideas for making Clinton better and help me get on the ballot for another term on your Select Board by signing my nomination papers.

See you Saturday at SSB!

Tonight, the Select Board will cast its most important vote of the year: Setting the annual tax rate for residential and business property owners.

First, some background: In Clinton, where we have a split rate — one for residential property and another for commercial, industrial and personal property (CIP) — setting the tax rate involves deciding how much more the CIP rate will be. The total amount of property taxes raised remains the same. It’s simply a matter of how big a share each group pays.

After many years at the maximum shift, giving artificial relief to homeowners by shifting more of the burden onto business owners, the board began to chip away at the business rate in 2013. In 2018, I chaired a commission to look into the tax split and what might be best for Clinton going forward. 

The board adopted two recommendations from that commission: 

1. Reduce the town’s tax rate split at the rate of 2 percentage points a year until a single rate is achieved. Chipping away at the split would spread out that impact to residential property owners over time, and demonstrate that the town is committed to improving the climate for businesses here. 
2. Continue to expand exemption programs as allowed by law. Publicize the availability of these programs, and the senior work program, to increase participation among those potentially affected by a tax increase.

We’ve continued to stick to that plan, and the tax split now sits at an historic low of 1.50. It’s small but steady progress, a sign to the business community that we understand their part in making Clinton what it is.

Last year, after dramatic increases in property values, the board voted to hit pause on this plan and hold the split at 1.50. We received some great news from our Assessors Office on new growth this past week, and so I was looking forward to returning to our schedule and setting the FY2023 split at 1.48. 

After unanimously approving a reduction every year and mostly without debate, times have apparently changed. A majority of the board now seeks to reverse our course and increase the split again, possibly as high as 1.55.

We’re not elected to make easy decisions. We’re elected to make the right ones.

What does this mean? At my proposed split, the average residential homeowner would see an increase to their tax bill of $70, well below the average annual increase of $131.75 and the lowest increase in more than a decade. In turn, owners of a commercial/industrial parcel of the same value would see a decrease of $49 as we work to close the historical imbalance past boards have burdened us with.

However, under a split that’s increased to 1.55, the average residential homeowner would pay $11 less than last year, while the owner of a business property at the same value would see an astonishing jump of $339.

After five years of welcoming new businesses to town, we’re now going to thank them for choosing Clinton by taxing them 175 percent more for their property than a home of equal value.

It’s always a hard vote to take when you’re raising taxes. But that doesn’t mean lowering the split isn’t a smart vote. We’re not elected to make easy decisions. We’re elected to make the right ones.

Critics will say that the tax rate isn’t a major factor in attracting businesses. It’s certainly not the only factor, but it is a factor we can control. By voting to raise the split, we’ll be losing a key tool from our economic development toolbox. More important, we’ll be sending a message that Clinton is in danger of heading back to the bad old days when petty politics too often trumped good policy. 

Others might say that things have changed in the five years since the board adopted this policy. They’re right: Clinton is a better, stronger town, thanks in part to our reduction of the tax split.

In 2018, we had the 25th highest commercial tax rate in the state. Last year it had dropped to 46th, lower than Berlin, Maynard, Ayer, Worcester and Hudson.

Downtown is alive again, with half as many vacancies as in March 2017 and more new storefronts opening every month. Our town is growing, with total property valuation topping $2 billion for the first time ever. 

And the tax rate is just one part of a bigger story of financial stability and success. We continue to add money to our stabilization account, and last year Moodys raised our municipal bond rating. 

I know times are hard for many. But our commitment to our long-term plan of strengthening and broadening our tax base is worth the sacrifice. Clinton isn’t like other towns in our region. We were built on mills and stores and factories. Business and industry is part of who we are. We would not survive without them.

The bottom line is that Clinton is once again a place where people want to live, work and spend their free time because we were willing to make the hard decisions necessary to put us on this path. We cannot change course now.

If this about-face bothers you as much as it does me, speak up. Tonight’s hearing is the first item on the agenda and will start just after 7 p.m. Come and have your voice heard. Or email us today at selectmen@clintonma.gov. Every voice counts.

I wanted to expand on my comments during the Select Board’s recent discussion about getting more town boards and committees onto local cable television and the town’s YouTube account.

The Item had a story on the meeting on the front page of today’s paper.

When I joined the Cable Committee in 2017, one of my first goals was to get as much local government on television as possible. The Select Board and School Committee are fortunate in that all of our meetings are broadcast live on CCTV (and, once we expanded to web broadcasting, also YouTube). Archives of our meetings can also now be found online, for people who can’t watch live.

But, back then, most other town boards didn’t have that option. We didn’t have the personnel or equipment to cover so many meeting spaces, and some people didn’t see the need.

In 2019, when Ed Devault joined the Cable Committee and I took over as chair, we hired a full-time station director and started work on filling out programming. We both agreed that broadcasting more meetings wouldn’t just give us more content, but it would help you better see all the good work the rest of local government does. We really saw it as a win-win, both for our rebooted cable channel and the community at large.

So I have to say I was disappointed to learn that the Council on Aging voted unanimously last month to keep their meetings off the air. I guess I can understand how some people who aren’t accustomed to a spotlight might feel uncomfortable in it. And I understand that the majority of people who work in town government don’t do it to get famous or to draw attention to themselves.

As an independent board, it was a unanimous decision by the COA board to not video meetings for Community Television. The overall feeling is that the public is well aware of the activities and programming provided by the COA and the logistics of videotaping could impact scheduled activities at the center and would be redundant for people who would be interested in the schedule and activities of the COA.

Council on Aging Chair James LeBlanc, in an September 22 email to Select Board Chair Matt Kobus

What I don’t understand is how anyone in pubic service can claim that we’re doing enough to get the word out about what is happening in town, the decisions we debate and make each meeting, or how your tax dollars are being spent.

We don’t have a daily newspaper. Our weekly newspaper was just spared from near death, but is still understaffed and under-resourced. (Here’s hoping this week’s announcement soon changes that.) And yet local government is more complicated and important than ever. To hide anything we do from the biggest possible audience is a disservice to democracy and our duty as public servants.

Forget about relying on the “‘number of avenues that communications are put out,’ such as [the Council on Aging’s] newsletter, emails and Facebook page.” These are all well produced and well read, I’m sure.

Still, it’s not enough. We need to find more ways to connect with you and and the community at large. We need to show that transparency and accountability aren’t just words some people throw around at election time. They have to mean something.

You deserve nothing less.

We’ll keep working with the COA and other boards to show them the value that broadcasting meetings can bring to their mission and to our community. In the meantime, you’re welcome to wander in to the Council on Aging meetings, as COA Chair James LeBlanc offered when he met with us. (But don’t take my word for it. Thanks to our meetings being broadcast, you can click here and see for yourself.)

Or better yet, as Mr. LeBlanc suggested, contact the Council on Aging at 978-733-4747 or coa@clintonma.gov and tell them how you feel about seeing their meetings on CCTV and YouTube. If they don’t listen to us, maybe they’ll listen to you.

I was thrilled to take part in yesterday’s Clinton Area Chamber of Commerce economic development summit at The Museum of Russian Icons. So great to see local, state and business leaders come together to talk about keeping our momentum going. After a breakfast meeting, we took a walking tour of downtown, including a look backstage at The Strand Theatre.

We’ve come a long way, but there’s still so much more we want to do. It’s nice to know we have the support of our delegation at the State House — Harriette Chandler, Senator John J. Cronin, and State Representative Meg Kilcoyne — and a newly invigorated Chamber in our corner. Thanks also to Tim Murray and his team at the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce for their help in pulling this event together. #thisisclinton

The town of Clinton is currently updating its Hazard Mitigation Plan. This plan is important because it helps the town plan and receive funding for projects that reduce the risk of injury or damage to property from future natural hazard events such as flooding, severe storms, and drought.

The Clinton Local Hazard Mitigation Committee needs your help and input as it gathers information for the plan. The information you provide in the attached survey will help coordinate activities and identify projects. The survey should take less then 10 minutes to complete and responses will remain anonymous.

Please take a few minutes to complete the survey today. It’ll go a long way toward making sure Clinton gets the funding it needs to help fight future natural disasters.