Norwood Registry of Motor Vehicles Branch Slated for Closure Under State Budget Cuts-July 24, 1981

On July 24, 1981, The Patriot Ledger reported that despite previous plans to expand its operating hours for the summer, the local branch office of the Registry of Motor Vehicles in Norwood was scheduled to close permanently the following Friday under severe state budget-cutting measures. Registrar Richard E. McLaughlin and Public Safety Secretary George A. Luciano announced that the Norwood facility was one of fourteen branch offices targeted for closure across Massachusetts after the state Legislature slashed the registry’s operating budget from $20.8 million to $19 million. The sweeping austerity plan also mandated the layoff of four hundred employees statewide, including 250 personnel from the main Boston office and the remainder from regional branches. Other facilities slated for closure included Chicopee, Gardner, Great Barrington, Holyoke, Lawrence, Marlboro, Nantucket, North Adams, Northampton, Orleans, Roslindale, Southbridge, and Taunton, while offices in Boston, Quincy, Brockton, Plymouth, and North Attleboro were among the 18 regional locations scheduled to remain open.

Secretary George A. Luciano strongly criticized the legislative funding cuts, noting the vital revenue generated by the agency. “The Registry of Motor Vehicles is the second largest income producer in the Commonwealth,” he stated, pointing out that in 1980 alone the registry collected $296 million while serving four million citizens. Registrar Richard E. McLaughlin explained that closure determinations relied primarily on visitor volume and cash receipts, warning that the reductions would severely degrade customer service and push waiting times for driver’s license road tests out to sixteen weeks or longer. James Conso, a 24-year veteran registry inspector who supervised the Norwood branch, expressed deep disappointment over the shutdown. Located on the first floor of the state-owned National Guard Armory on Nahatan Street—where the office paid no rent and utilized basement expansion space—the branch had operated three days a week and was preparing to transition to a full five-day schedule to handle soaring local demand. Staffed by one full-time clerk, two part-time clerks, and two inspectors, the office regularly served residents from Norwood, Walpole, Dedham, and Canton, issuing approximately 150 licenses, 200 registrations, 60 permit tests, and 18 road tests each operating day. “I’ve got the hardest working help in the state,” James Conso remarked. “This is a convenience for the public. I’ve been getting a lot of calls. People want to know if it’s going to stay open or close.“

Local representatives mobilized quickly to fight the closure, though they acknowledged steep political hurdles. State Reps. Gregory Sullivan (D-Norwood) and Frank Woodward (D-Walpole) vowed to explore every avenue to keep the doors open. “It’s one of the newest offices to open in the state, so it’s going to be the hardest to keep open,” Gregory Sullivan said, asserting that the registry was deliberately targeting high-visibility services to provoke public outrage and force legislative funding restoration. “We asked the registrar to eliminate the fat. And Norwood is not where the fat is. It’s the most utilized office per dollar spent.” While Gregory Sullivan indicated he would push for emergency funding appropriations, he admitted the move would likely require new broad-based taxes to maintain a balanced state budget. Meanwhile, community leaders emphasized the disproportionate impact the closure would inflict on vulnerable populations. William A. Balfour of 38 Nahatan Street, secretary of King Philip Elder Services in Walpole and former chairman of the Council on Aging, stressed that the local branch had been an invaluable resource for seniors. “We tried for years to get something in Norwood,” William A. Balfour noted. “It’s been a big help for seniors—and everybody for that matter. It’s a shame. The people up there are very nice.” He explained that elderly residents on fixed incomes would face severe hardships traveling long distances to facilities in Boston or Quincy, as they would be forced to navigate high-speed thoroughfares like Route 128, incur heavy gasoline expenses, and contend with urban safety concerns.

Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger