Protect residents from SMOC

Protect residents from SMOC Sunday, March 12, 2006

Octavio Filipe, Framingham Metrowest Daily News

In the Jan. 18 issue under the banner "Local View," the MetroWest Daily News printed an article prepared by the leadership of SMOC, with which I take issue. The article you published is just a rendition by SMOC leadership of its charter and advertising their views.
It does not represent the "local view" of the majority of the citizens in Framingham regarding this organization, which in fact is quite different from the one presented in the article.
A great majority of us, taxpayers and citizens of Framingham, believe that SMOC is a self-serving organization, which inserted itself in this town against our wishes. The result of this insertion has been great damage to the town. Property values have squandered. The once excellent, well considered Framingham school system is losing its standing among the other Massachusetts towns.
SMOC was created under the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964, a social philosophy now considered a failure. Operating under this banner, SMOC purchased properties in residential areas and without approval by the town and against the wishes of the neighborhood residents, transformed these properties into group homes. Then, like a thief, moved people in in the cloak of the night.
It would behoove all of us citizens of Framingham to pressure the town's officers to pass the necessary bylaws to protect us from SMOC and other such organizations, and to pressure SMOC to amend its ways, or move out of town.

Protect residents from SMOC	Sunday, March 12, 2006
Octavio Filipe, Framingham	Metrowest Daily News
In the Jan. 18 issue under the banner "Local View," the MetroWest Daily News printed an article prepared by the leadership of SMOC, with which I take issue. The article you published is just a rendition by SMOC leadership of its charter and advertising their views. It does not represent the "local view" of the majority of the citizens in Framingham regarding this organization, which in fact is quite different from the one presented in the article. A great majority of us, taxpayers and citizens of Framingham, believe that SMOC is a self-serving organization, which inserted itself in this town against our wishes. The result of this insertion has been great damage to the town. Property values have squandered. The once excellent, well considered Framingham school system is losing its standing among the other Massachusetts towns. SMOC was created under the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964, a social philosophy now considered a failure. Operating under this banner, SMOC purchased properties in residential areas and without approval by the town and against the wishes of the neighborhood residents, transformed these properties into group homes. Then, like a thief, moved people in in the cloak of the night. It would behoove all of us citizens of Framingham to pressure the town's officers to pass the necessary bylaws to protect us from SMOC and other such organizations, and to pressure SMOC to amend its ways, or move out of town.

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