Moorecol     No.7
09-18-2004
hed :

Sannicastro sticks around to repeat on the Hill.

BY BOB MOORE

A funny thing happened to me on the way to the polls the other day. I voted 
for Tom Sannicandro, and I was glad. A man who can muster 1665  votes to win a 
sticker campaign is a fighter. 

And a fighter is what 14,000 people in Ashland and 26,000 in Framingham will 
have to work for us on Beacon Hill. As you know, he succeeds, Rep. Karen 
Spilka as our representative. Two fighters. Two winners.

Explanation :  In Precinct 8, I needed a ride to the McCarthy School where 
I'd planned to vote for Framingham Selectman Ginger Esty.. As we pulled up to 
the polls, my driver, Mike Ring of Ashland, cadged a Sannicastro sticker and 
offered it to me.. 

Bingo. I took it and pasted his name on the ballot. Easily done. Cleverly 
fitted. Well, I thought he was an excellent successor to Karen as School 
Committee chairman and in Ashland they rave about him. So I became one of the 80 
Sannicandro votes in Precinct 8. 

Tom grew up in Framingham, on the Ashland line. There are many who still 
remember him and his family along Waverley Street. A fighter we had in the 7th 
Representative District, and a fighter we have again because he has friends. Glad 
to contribute one of the 1665 total, and I look forward to his working with 
the Hill. We'll see.

LOOKING AHEAD - I said Spilka fights, even against the odds, and she looks 
for a way to score. Looking to get $475,000 to extend the LIFT buses from 
Framingham to Milford, including Ashland and Holliston, she got the money on a bill 
which Gov, Romney vetoed. Anticipating that, she had a fall-back position : 
inclusion of the money in a Supplementary Budget.

She worked with Reps. Marie Parente, D-Milford and Paul Loscoco, R-Holliston 
for help. And she continued pressure on the MBTA and the governor's office. 
Hoping Romney would not repeat his veto. He has not.
So what? You don't hear much about a Supplementary Budget but after many 
years there is still money left over after all the trimming. It's nice to know the 
ropes. 

Spilka points out that ridership on that line can help bring the district 
[MetroWest] together. It's important for those without cars commuting to work. 
She adds that reviving this line that was wiped out on June 30 now has a chance 
to grow. She maintains that ridership has been low because MBTA schedule 
changes confused commuters. We'll see.

HOW TO SWIM - Those pontificators who found it hard to figure out the results 
last Tuesday might heed the old saying: "If you can't swim, don't go in over 
your head." Sub-text : If you're not serious about making daily events 
understood, don't pontificate.
__________________________________
You can reach Bob Moore at edmoore4@aol.com or at 1-508-620-1449. [Let it 
ring; he's slow.]