Stack of historical documents including the 'Annual Budget for the Year 1935' and 'Finance Commission Report' from the Town of Norwood, placed on a wooden table next to a pair of glasses.

Norwood citizens packed the Civic Association Building last evening and appropriated approximately one million and a quarter dollars.

With two exceptions, the largest town meeting in history adopted the budget of the Finance Commission. The first exception was the emphatic refusal to increase the salary of Town Manager Clarence A. Bingham from $5000 to $6000, as proposed by the Selectmen. This was a matter that had attracted much interest.

The motion to appropriate $150,000 for a new auditorium at the Senior High School was held for further information on the question.

Mr. Bingham was formally appointed to the position of Town Manager at the meeting of the Selectmen Tuesday evening, and the Selectmen proposed that his salary be set at $6000. The Finance Commission allowed for this amount in the budget. They recommended on the floor of the town meeting that the salary remain at $5000, which was finally determined by the citizens.

John P. Riley and James M. Folan formed the nucleus of the opposition, stating that the town could not afford to pay more than $5000, and that the position was worth no more than that amount. Mr. Folan fought against every increase that was provided for in the budget on the ground that the citizens were at the present time overburdened by the high tax rate.

The police chief and fire chief were each voted an increase in salary of $200, and the superintendent of public works was voted an increase of $150. These three motions were passed according to the budget of the Finance Commission and excited little interest among the citizens present.

George F. Willett strenuously opposed the power of the members of the Finance Commission in public affairs, stating that they in so doing were not acting under the rights of the town charter. He pointed out that the members of this commission in no way informed the citizens of what the commission was doing, and that the citizens present at the meeting were “ayeing” all the recommendations of the commission because they were unable to intelligently criticize the commission’s actions, realizing that they were unaware of the recommendations before the time of the town meeting.

Source: Boston Globe, March 27, 1935