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How many years have you lived in Winchester? 25 years
Please describe your professional background and education. I am a lawyer with a background in commercial and residential real estate, having worked in small, mid and large sized law firms and mother of three adult children.
Massachusetts Bar 1994-present
Massachusetts Notary Public 1992-1998, 2017-present
Pennsylvania Bar 1992-present
Education:
Bachelor of Arts, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1989
University of Bonn, Germany -- UW Study Abroad 1988-89
Juris Doctorate, University of Richmond School of Law, 1992
University of Iowa College of Law -- Comparative Law Program, Arcachon, France, June 1990
What Winchester town positions (appointed or elected) have you held, and for how long?
Winchester Zoning Board of Appeals chair March 2024-present
Winchester Zoning Board of Appeals associate full member March 2023-present
Winchester Zoning Board of Appeals associate member May 2016-March 2023
Winchester town meeting member 2016-present
Winchester Communications Study Committee 2022
What are the primary issues motivating your candidacy?
Balanced and responsible growth of diverse housing stock while ensuring historic preservation, optimizing infrastructure and encouraging commercial development and making Winchester a business-friendly community, especially along the North Main Street corridor.
Winchester's commitment to excel in education must translate into adopting updated and best practice curriculum, standards and performance measures to ensure that the needs of all students are met while also supporting our outstanding teachers and staff. Critical issues including literacy, math, professional development and special education.
Financial stability is paramount as we face a backlog of deferred capital projects and current (Lynch School) and future projects such as the Muraco Elementary School. Implementation of sound fiscal policies, transparent budgeting and expenses and prudent resource allocation will be essential for the town's future financial health and stability.
Given Winchester's $2.89 million structural deficit, what specific measures would you propose while maintaining essential services? The current trend of an almost $3 million structural deficit is a repeated pattern of prior years. In FY25, the gaps were filled by using free cash. Like any budget, if expenses exceed revenues, the gap needs to be filled with savings, increased revenue (i.e. taxes), borrowing or cutting expenses (or a combination thereof). The solution requires creative and expert evaluation of the detailed budgets while keeping in mind that it is essential to maintain our bond rating which minimizes our interest on borrowed funds.
Line items in our town's budget are increasing at a rate higher than our taxes (revenues) such as health insurance and energy costs. I would propose looking at alternatives such as rebidding the health insurance.
Our school budget makes up more than 50 percent of the town budget and the SPED budget makes up a significant portion thereof. SPED transportation alone rose by 35 percent from FY25. It would be helpful to do a deep dive into the line items of the school budget and evaluate how resources can be optimally utilized.
What is your comprehensive vision for affordable housing in Winchester, particularly regarding the 160 Forest Street development? I would like to encourage more "friendly" yet manageably sized 40B projects where the developer works collaboratively with the town and the state. I look forward to working with developers to include affordable housing in anticipated development along the North Main Street corridor. The property located at 160 Forest Street is a unique opportunity to bring affordable housing, either owned or rented to a small neighborhood, while maintaining a residence of unique character.
What specific initiatives would you propose to expand Winchester's commercial tax base and enhance economic development in the town center? Winchester needs to have a reputation of being business-friendly. That means working with business owners and various boards and departments to streamline the permitting process to get the businesses open sooner. We need to be overtly encouraging and receptive to our business owners and their concerns, especially parking. I would recommend a parking task force to explore parking alternatives such as a parking structure, satellite parking with a shuttle service or a community shuttle like neighboring towns.
Have questions for Simboli? Contact her at dorothysimboli@gmail.com
