Selectman In Trouble For Re-Painting Town Sidewalks

George Simolaris' so-so crosswalk paintjob
in Billerica, Mass.  

I'm sure mayors, city councilors, selectmen and other community leaders are sick of hearing it:

You know, the daily drone of constituents saying, "When are you going to fix the pothole, the parking problem, the boarded up building etc. etc.

In Billerica, Massachusetts, Selectman George Simolaris heard over and over again from residents complaining about faded crosswalks.

Nothing was done for months and months.

Finally, Simolaris heard enough: He got cans of paint, and repainted six crosswalks himself, says Reuters. 

A hero? Well, maybe, maybe not.

Police ended up charging Simolaris with two counts of destruction of property. Apparently, repainting crosswalks without authorization is illegal.

Billerica Town Manager John Curren said the crosswalks weren't repainted because the town is about to embark on a street improvement project that would involve digging up some of the crosswalks, then repaving.

The town figured it would wait until after the construction to repaint. Makes sense.

Also, Simolaris did kind of a lousy paint job. Passing cars smeared the paint, and he's on the hook for $4,000 worth of cleanup, Reuters reported. 

Still, Simolaris defends himself. "I'm just trying to do right by the people in my town...I didn't think I was intervening in other people's activities or doing anything wrong."

Well, at least it's easy to find the crosswalks if you ever find yourself walking around the lovely streets of Billerica.