Did any individual on the BOA even demonstrate a wrinkled brow when Gerry Mroz revealed a week ago that the school administration (aka super and SC, because they act in perfect harmony without a hint of due diligence of actual oversight, now headed by a convicted felon who stole from old people) lied overtly over the last many years about "school security," charging over $5 million fraudulently to that line item. This is, by the way, something Mr. M has been bringing to their (and our) attention for many years and which he finally had confirmed in Taymore's "oops my bad" admission to his formal public records request and which he spoke multiple times about to both the SC and BOA in the last couple of weeks. Predictably there was nary a nod or even barest of acknowledgment to that $5 MILLION DOLLAR "ERROR" from either the School Committee or BOA (Council, powwow or whatever they think would be most PC this week). $5 Million Dollars in taxpayer monies misrepresented in the fully approved budgets. Gee that number has a familiar ring to it....
You can watch it here if you actually care (beginning of the June 3 BOA mtg):
https://vimeo.com/340118680
You can also see Lipper-G try (2 times this week) to shut down Mr. M, claiming only discussions around the "budget" (which this most certainly was) were allowed. She is a real piece of work, totally now in line with the rest of the disgusting cabal.
Mr. Mroz's revelation about misreporting of expenditures, while shocking, should really come as no big surprise. If in fact the BOA members did NOT know about this already, it constitutes an almost wilful dereliction of their duty as elected officials.
Why, you might ask, would they be silent when this was revealed publicly? Because they are scared to death, realizing that if they DID know about it and went along with it, it constitutes a willing participation in a criminal conspiracy to defraud the citizens of Melrose.
They should all be brought before a Grand Jury and forced to testify under oath.
Except for the chicanery, this is actually very good news. Now they won’t have to assess the override that was passed specifically for the schools. Thank heavens!
Wrong. The $5 million in question has already been spent. It was accounted for as "school security", but in fact it was not spent on "school security" at all. They probably don't even know exactly where it was spent. It just disappeared.
Well that’s not right!
What happened to the 5 million ? When was error. Will it be corrected?
It just disappeared.
$5 Million Dollars in taxpayer monies misrepresented in the fully approved budgets.
Whether the 'hidden' $5 mil is/was spent or not, it still seems like the override campaign was based on a false premise, and if that's not legally improper, it's certainly immoral!
I would be pretty upset if I worked as hard as the One Melrose team did and then had to read this
To Concerned:
It wasn't an error. It was an outright lie. Over the course of several years, the administration claimed to have spent the $5 million on "school security". They did not. They actually spent the money on other things and reported it was spent on "school security". It was and is an outright lie, intended to cover up where they actually spent it. It's not an error at all. It was deliberate.
To Oldie:
Of course the override was based on a false premise. Opponents tried to tell voters that all along, but Melrose voters, apparently content to go through life with their heads up their a$$es, chose to believe the lies instead. Again.
To One Melrose:
You can't be serious. If you expect them to be upset you're living in la-la land. They got what they wanted and they already knew about this, or at least some of the supporters within the administration did.
I repeat - every single member of the school administration, the SC, and the BOA ought to be dragged before a Grand Jury and forced to testify under oath about what they knew and when they knew it. How many times are you going to let this bunch screw you before you finally get off your a$$es and do something about it? If it's left up to them absolutely nothing will happen, because as should be obvious to everyone by now, they don't have the moral fiber or the integrity we so desperately need.
More to the point (listen to both of Gerry's and Mr. Pelrine's statements last night at BOA), this strategy of misreporting where the money is or isn't defines the way mayoral (and superintendent) power has been unified and secured over and over again. The unitary executive with unchecked power is a longstanding system that Dolan carefully crafted over his 15 years and then transferred to his henchwoman. Hiding large sums of money in various slush funds is how votes are bought (sudden "generous" infusions for pet projects, mostly for the youngest children, since that is the constituency that is the most ignorant and most eager to buy into the myth). The super has adopted the same methodology and learned that the only way she can pay for the huge legal expenses and administrative raises is to keep large sums tucked away in odd places (transportation, salaries, Special Education).
Although too late, of course, at least maybe now they’ll see (but never admit) that we were right!
The Police Department is now aware that a $5 million fraud has been perpetrated against the citizens of Melrose. Where is the investigation?
Push.
It will be very interesting to see if this is even mentioned in the Weekly News. It certainly has not been mentioned in the Patch.
Here's Why Paymore Needs $5 million To Retire. After she maxing out her 401(k) and other pre-tax retirement contributions its important to generate as much after-tax investments as possible for passive income...You've worked at least 18 years and have given your investments a good enough amount of time to compound. Mrs. Cyndy Taymore will retire on Melrose money.
This is nothing new.Maybe it"time for all of us to wake up.When was the last time someone ask questions how the spending of money.Spending vs saving ;Striking the right balance ]Decision.Your basic financial needs are covered-You are not current going into debt just paying for are current expenses.Schools
Yeah, keep believing that. How's the world look with your head in the clouds?
I hope I see Gerry Mroz on the news tonight talking about the way our City Officials used taxpayer money. It's disgusting. One Melrose, GI, BOA, SC, CT and the rest of them should lose their jobs, positions on boards and all credibility publicly for this unthinkable act. Meanwhile, read the statement released today thanking the public for their trust, and passing the override so the teacher's contract could be finalized.
NO TRUST in Melrose.
What news outlet even cares about this pathetic burb, let alone about its pathetic corrupt politics? Why should they care when the residents don't (for the most part)?
With all but one of our elected officials, including at the state and federal level, firmly in the tank with the singular, insulated, bigoted, Undiverse "One" mentality, there is only a handful of citizen activists to fight for truth or anything approaching justice or honest governance. Does anyone actually believe the great Katherine would stand up for actual integrity here, or Paul, or ...? (They've certainly embraced all manner of hypocrisy and phony organizations/values in their local alliances, and they've failed, 100% of the time, to stand up when real issues in real time should have demanded their voice and action. Instead they reliably show up for all the photo ops when it's easy to "stand.") With zero support in the bigger picture, Melrose is getting exactly the governance it deserves, absolutely small-minded and dirty. Patronage and corruption are totally embedded in all aspects of the city now. Look at all the goody-two-shoes organizations and you will find more of the same, with zero actual integrity and a heap of hypocrisy at every turn. There is zero respect for actual diversity, especially if that must include diversity of opinion. Instead, there is a total lockdown on anything that appears to rock the boat, pathetic little provincial boat that it is.
Cynical, you say? No, actually. Realistic, yes. Still hopeful that there are enough people of actual principles that can prevail in the long haul. But it is a grim landscape here, for sure.
When was the last time you really honest with yourself?About politics Melrose?
With all but one of our elected officials, including at the state and federal level, firmly in the tank with the singular, insulated, bigoted, Undiverse "One" mentality, there is only a handful of citizen activists to fight for truth or anything approaching justice or honest governance. Does anyone actually believe the great Katherine would stand up for actual integrity here, or Paul, or ...? (They've certainly embraced all manner of hypocrisy and phony organizations/values in their local alliances, and they've failed, 100% of the time, to stand up when real issues in real time should have demanded their voice and action. Instead they reliably show up for all the photo ops when it's easy to "stand.") With zero support in the bigger picture, Melrose is getting exactly the governance it deserves, absolutely small-minded and dirty. Patronage and corruption are totally embedded in all aspects of the city now. Look at all the goody-two-shoes organizations and you will find more of the same, with zero actual integrity and a heap of hypocrisy at every turn. There is zero respect for actual diversity, especially if that must include diversity of opinion. Instead, there is a total lockdown on anything that appears to rock the boat, pathetic little provincial boat that it is.
Cynical, you say? No, actually. Realistic, yes. Still hopeful that there are enough people of actual principles that can prevail in the long haul. But it is a grim landscape here, for sure.
I'm sure it's because I'm old, but I'm having trouble finding any article that mentions the false "school security" line item. Can anyone tell me where it's mentioned in the paper?
It's not mentioned in any paper.
The video of the meeting where Gerry Mroz revealed the Mea Culpa letter he'd gotten from the superintendent indicating the "error" is here:
You can watch it here if you actually care (beginning of the June 3 BOA mtg):
https://vimeo.com/340118680
Thank you for that link to the video, I have indeed just watched a portion of it, and will certainly watch the rest.
I do however resent "if you actually care"! Simply because I am physically unable to go to meetings to express my displeasure does not mean I don't care where my MY tax money is or isn't going.
What do you expect now that we have a convicted felon as head of the school committee! Secrecy and deception has gotten worse since he joined the school committee.
5 million unaccounted for, 2 months after a 5 million override....too funny. Taymor, the school committee and all those One Melrose phonies should be held accountable....can anyone say fraud?
Sorry, Oldie, not meant to criticize you. Thank you for watching AND for caring! Was referring to the fakes in this town who sanctimoniously wield their "caring" but have never attended or watched anything other than maybe PTO or sports meetings. They come off like the great experts of educational policy (demonstrating their profound ignorance with every self-aggrandizing statement). Many of the worst then weaponize their "ONEM" bumper stickers and self-importance, screaming the f-bomb at a senior citizen on a walker (holding a "NO" sign) and thinking this constitutes their civic service. Sorry, absolutely meant no disrespect to those who take the time to understand the issues and respond accordingly.
Thank you 'FT', I appreciate that.
And you're right, I'm sorry to say that when I was "installing" the vote no sign in front of my home I did have someone blow their horn and give me the finger. In addition, the morning after the vote, the sign (which was on private property) was gone. Sad.
