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Health & Fitness

Why I would propose a residential exemption and my thoughts on Dedham

Dear Editor,

   I'd like to say thanks again to Matt Perkins and the Patch for continuing to let me get my word out. I've made it known that my ancestry goes back to the early beginning of our town. I'm a direct Descendant of the Fairbanks Family and a life long resident. My family is part of our towns past. I want to be part of our towns future and I want to create my own history in Dedham and I want it to be positive. I truly love this town. I've seen many people came and go in my lifetime and I'm still here because I care. This town is part of my family and its great history and I want to continue its legacy.
   As I've stated in my blog and my interview with Matt Perkins property tax is a big issue here. We've had four major projects completed in an 8 year span and saw Legacy Place come in. Legacy Place was built in 2009. It's been here 5 years. I checked a few sources to obtain the value of Legacy Place. It's estimated value is slightly more than 16.9 million dollars. The property tax rate per $1000 of value for commercial property is roughtly $35 so since that project has been complete Dedham should have been collecting $500,000+ dollars for the last 5 years and yet property tax for all property owners continues to rise. That leads me to believe we are simply spending too much money or we are not spending wisely. This was a real eye opener for me.
   The City of Boston and many towns and cities on the North Shore do have residential exemptions. My brother Stephen lives in West Roxbury in one of the more affluent neighborhoods. His home is similar size to mine although his lot is a bit smaller in square feet, but his property tax bill is roughly half of mine. I had another friend who saw a home in Dedham and saw one in Norwood and chose the home in Norwood because of the taxes. If we are pricing potential residents out from making Dedham their home then that's a problem too. If property taxes are deal breakers for someone purchasing a home then we are doing something wrong.
   The City of Boston does a 30% across the board residential exemption regardless of a homes value so long as the home is owner occupied by January 1st of the prior fiscal year. The reality in Dedham is we are much smaller, we are a town and not a city, but at the same time we need to have growth that is within reason and keeps us true to what Dedham is as a community, a small, charming town.
   Realistically I truly feel that for the property taxes we are paying we simply don't get a heck of a lot in return. While I agreed we needed a Middle School, Avery School and the Football Field among other things not every resident voted for these things. Most folks who are in that 50+ demographic don't have children in school anymore so those projects simply don't benefit them. We have seniors who still own homes who also don't benefit from these projects and also still don't have a senior center. 
   We need to start looking at the town as a whole. What projects and ideas can be the most benefit to our town. I presented two ideas that could in fact benefit us if we can get them passed. A residential exemption can give tax relief to our home owners which is the majority of our citizenship. It's long overdue that we give something back to our homeowners. I threw the number of 10% out there. I don't think that that number is unrealistic, but it will need further discussion. Nonetheless if I am elected I am going to propose an exemption that we can live with because our homeowners deserve it. Simple as that. The other plan was for a Civic Complex that I give details about in my blog.
   In closing my campaign kickoff is tonight at 5 p.m. at The Village Manor in the downstairs hall. I really hope you come out as I kick off my Campaign for Selectman to help us Be the best Dedham we can be. Thank you.

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