Refreshing Forum – Councilor Larry Powers Deserves Kudos for Water Forum

One of the great things to watch on the Town Council has been the emergence of Councilor-at-Large Larry Powers as an effective voice of the people. As the former fire chief of the town of Winthrop, his expertise in public safety matters cannot be denied. He is a strong advocate on the Council for the Police Department and Fire Department and making sure that they are given the resources to do their vital task to the best of their abilities.

But the way that Councilor Powers took the reins on the “water bill” controversy and thoroughly researched the issue and then made sure that residents would have a forum entirely devoted to the issue was most impressive. He compiled a nine-page pamphlet to answer the questions residents had about their higher water bills from last summer.

The success of the “Powers water forum” last Wednesday was helped by the presence of MWRA Executive Director Frederick Laskey, who patiently answered every question from residents in a professional manner.

As forums go, Councilor Powers has set the standard for future public discussions. It was great work and we feel Councilor Powers and Mr. Laskey provided the answers that residents were seeking. And on another note, the Town Council approved the reappointment of Winthrop’s Marie Turner to the MWRA Board of Directors. Marie had intended to be at the water forum, but she was under the weather and couldn’t attend. However, her usually erudite comments were read at the meeting.