The results are in and Marblehead voters have spoken. Voters approved the capping of the current landfill, the construction of a new transfer station and the reconstruction of Glover School. A project that aimed to make the Old Town House universally accessible, however, was shot down.
Questions:
1. Old Town House renovations: Residents will be asked to approve a question that calls for a renovation project that would make the town's Old Town House universally accessible to all visitors.
2. Capping the landfill: Residents will be asked to approve a question that calls for the capping of the town's old landfill. If the landfill is not capped, the town can expect to be fined for non-compliance.
3. Constructing a new transfer station: Residents will be asked to approve a project that would call for the construction of a new, more modern local transfer station.
4. The Glover School project: Residents will be asked to approve a multi-million dollar project that calls for the reconstruction of The Glover School.
Here are the unofficial results, posted at Abbot Hall:
Question 1 - Old Town House renovations:
| Precinct | P1 | P2 | P3 | P4 | P5 | P6 | P7 | TOTAL |
| Yes | 476 | 269 | 255 | 365 | 413 | 439 | 313 | 2,530 |
| No | 426 | 449 | 399 | 551 | 525 | 576 | 641 | 3,567 |
Question 2 - Landfill Cap:
| Precinct | P1 | P2 | P3 | P4 | P5 | P6 | P7 | TOTAL |
| Yes | 489 | 368 | 355 | 499 | 627 | 688 | 476 | 3,492 |
| No | 410 | 352 | 296 | 417 | 323 | 327 | 475 | 2,600 |
Question 3 - Transfer Station:
| Precinct | P1 | P2 | P3 | P4 | P5 | P6 | P7 | TOTAL |
| Yes | 481 | 371 | 350 | 500 | 596 | 646 | 472 | 3,416 |
| No | 410 | 352 | 296 | 417 | 323 | 327 | 475 | 2,600 |
Question 4 - Glover School project:
| Precinct | P1 | P2 | P3 | P4 | P5 | P6 | P7 | TOTAL |
| Yes | 429 | 312 | 313 | 511 | 716 | 729 | 384 | 3,394 |
| No | 475 | 412 | 348 | 411 | 238 | 295 | 573 | 2,752 |
Marblehead Patch would like to thank all of the town residents who made it out to the polls today.
Joseph Selby
9:19 pm on Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Can't believe how many people voted against building a new Glover - small, petty, shortsighted people who put a few bucks in their pockets ahead of proper educational facilities for our children Glad it passed; embarrassed to be neighbors with those who voted against it.
Oldtown
5:22 am on Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Wow. Tell us how you really feel. I'd say the results of the election paint a pretty good picture of how people move to Marblehead because of its history and beauty, and then decide to completely change it because they want something new and shiny. We passed landfill-related issues because we had to (I get that); we passed the Glover school because, hey, it’s new and shiny; we voted down the Old Town House renovation because those same people decided they didn’t care anymore about the history that attracted them here in the first place. I'm glad to see that you are so happy that Glover passed. Now step-up and demand that the project be done properly, with oversight and transparency. You may not remember when the High School was built but take a look at the football field…it’s too short. You probably also don’t remember when the school department told us over the years that they needed a few more dollars to maintain the school buildings…we gave them the money…they didn’t maintain the schools. See the pattern here? Shortsighted is throwing good money after bad and expecting different results.
Jo Ann Augeri Silva
9:31 pm on Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Well, I am very glad to see that building the new Glover passed. But why vote down the Old Town House renovations, comparatively inexpensive and paid off in one year? And why did voters in precincts where Glover passed in a landslide vote so strongly against making a town treasure handicapped accessible? I find the vote puzzling and disappointing. A true sadness.
susan Kummins
9:47 pm on Tuesday, June 14, 2011
I can't believe that residents would turn down making the Old Town House handicapped accessible. Everyone should be able to access a building that is a treasure to our town. Very disappointing!
Oldtown
6:35 am on Thursday, June 16, 2011
Certainly none of the concerns discussed here are directed towards you Tom, nor to some of the other members of the committee, but don't lay all the blame at Dulac's feet. While he was no genius, and some on the committee showed outrage that millions were being spent without their authorization, most of them just brushed it off as though there was nothing wrong with it. Some good advice: get rid of all the people on building oversight that were involved in the Village project and start with a fresh slate. We appreciate their service but it's time to change things up. Otherwise you're likely to end up with the same problems. Understand that taxpayers deserve answers about how what happened at Village was allowed to happen, more than just hearing from Rob Dana that it was money well-spent. (Apparently the state didn't agree with Rob which is why reimbursement was significantly diminished on the change orders.) What was Michael Rockett's role in all this? He was building oversight chair during all this and my guess is that you can lay a lot of this at his feet. But the environment that allowed him and/or others to spend away without proper oversight and transparency cannot stand.
Tom Connolly
11:35 am on Friday, June 17, 2011
I share the following quotation from Charles Dickens, from Stave One of "A Christmas Carol":
"Oh! But he was a tight-fisted hand at the grind-stone, Scrooge! a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner! " I intentionally invoked Dickens in my letter. I offer this quotation in particular to Barbara Anderson. I do so NOT to call names, but to indicate a higher authority. Surely, no one would deny Dickens his status as one of the great writers of English prose. Ms. Anderson questioned my diction: I am offering her a precedent.