To the Editor:

My name is Jim Filan and I’m seeking reelection to the Board of Finance.  I’ve lived in Newtown for 18 years and I’ve had the honor of serving on the board since September 2013.  Since I joined the board we’ve lowered taxes while maintaining the quality of our schools and improved our town infrastructure.  We've strengthened our senior tax relief program and achieved a AAA bond rating, saving our town hundreds of thousands of dollars. We’ve worked hard to help all of our residents and I’m asking for the opportunity to continue to serve you as a member of the board.

I also serve as the Board of Finance representative to the Municipal Space Needs Committee, which is advising the Board of Selectmen about our future space needs, a critical aspect of our future.

I see my most important priority as helping our citizens make informed decisions – and we have many upcoming decisions that will affect us for years to come.  A prime example is the future of our town and educational facilities.  Student enrollment is down and the Board of Education is considering whether this necessitates closing a school.  That decision, which is first an educational decision but also a facili-ties decision, is intertwined with the work of the Municipal Space Needs committee, the Community Center committee and the Fairfield Hills Authority.  The decisions by all of these groups will affect our students, our seniors, our tax burden and, ultimately, our quality of life.  Yet the work of each commit-tee is being done by different people, with different needs and priorities and on different timelines.

While the ultimate decision whether or not to close a school rests with the Board of Education, noth-ing prohibits every one of us, including the Board of Selectman, the Legislative Council and the Board of Finance, from helping the Board of Education make that decision.  It’s unfair and unwise to lay a decision that impacts so many non-educational aspects of our future at the feet of the Board of Education.

These decisions are going to set the tone in our town for years to come.  We must work together in the best interests of every senior, individual, family and student while relying on the same taxpayer re-sources for everyone’s welfare. With communication, open-mindedness and genuine respect, I believe we can use these decisions to come together.

I don’t know what we as a community will ultimately decide.  But I do know that we have to decide together.  If we don’t, we won’t succeed.  I want the opportunity – and I have the ability – to help us succeed.

I don’t come to this job with an agenda.  I come to it determined to work to make the best decisions for Newtown now and for the future. In that spirit, I ask that you re-elect me to the Board of Finance

Jim Filan

10 Old Castle Hill Road,         October 27, 2015