The W-H School Committee, on Wednesday, Dec. 21 discussed the points they want to address during meetings of the Regional Agreement Committee, as the towns’ select boards are also being asked to do.
“We kind of wanted to do it in executive session so both towns weren’t watching what your concerns might be, but we can’t do that,” said Superintendent of Schools Jeffrey Szymaniak. “What we’ like to talk [about] here, or get some thoughts, are what you would like us to focus on as a committee or what your concerns are in the Regional Agreement, so we can have those discussions.”
Fred Small suggested one item that would likely come up is the definition of a capital cost and what is considered an emergency repair vs an extraordinary repair.
“I think that needs to be defined very clearly, especially with the mold incident last year at Whitman Middle School,” he said.
Dawn Byers suggested a discussion of how to handle capital costs in general should be conducted, as some districts place the costs in their operating budgets.
“I think that’s step one,” she said. Transportation is another issue that she said should be discussed.
“I was waiting for that,” School Committee Chair Christopher Howard. “I knew someone has to bring it up.”
Beth Stafford said that the agreement needs to be reviewed more carefully, in order to determine specifically what it needs.
“Just in general, that, to me, has been a problem from Day One with the agreement,” she said.
Hillary Kniffen said language, which determines the makeup of the School Committee’s representation from the towns, should also be discussed.
“If we’re going to put population in, there should be a clause that says you can’t give one town a majority (equal to the 2/3 margin needed for some votes),” she said. “We don’t vote like that anyway, but that’s just going to open a can of worms that we don’t need to deal with.”
The Whitman Select Board had also advocated clarifying non-mandated busing language, including that involving reimbursement of costs, during their Tuesday, Dec. 20 meeting. They also want to include the the statutory funding method in the agreement.
The District also voted to increase the pay scale for Food Services employees.
The lowest position on the pay scale — substitutes — now at $14.25 per hour, will be increased to $15 per hour, in keeping with the state’s minimum wage. The change went into effect Jan. 1.
All other salaries in the department will also be increased by 75 cents per hour to “give it to everyone who’s working in Food Service,” he said of the raise.
The School Committee approved the increase at its Wednesday, Dec. 21 meeting.
“It’s difficult to retain people,” Business Manager John Stanbrook said. “We’ve got some very talented people and we’d like to give that as a raise.”
The increase would be $17,685 for the current fiscal year and $10,316.2 for the rest of the calendar year.
Superintendent of Schools Jeffrey Szymaniak reminded the School Committee that the Food Services budget is self-funded.
“There’s a significant amount of money in retained earnings in that fund,” Stanbrook agreed.
The district’s strategic planning consultant has indicated a willingness to offer a workshop to School Committee members sometime this month, according to Szymaniak.
Assistant Superintendent George Ferro said a group of administrators have already met with the consultant and are forming the rest of a larger team — including parents and students — and the consultant will also be meeting with stakeholders at the individual schools.
He will then discuss what the groups consider their top two or three initiatives, based on the information the meetings come up with, Ferro said.
“Then it’s [a question of] where do we want to move forward?” Ferro said. “It could easily be something where there’s an active participation, or it’s just hear your thoughts on what you think the next five years might mean or need of input for the district.”
Whitman Middle School Building Committee [Chair] Fred Small reported that he met with interim Town Administrator Frank Lynam, Select Board member Randy LaMattina, Whitman town counsel, Owner’s Project Manager John Bates of Colliers and MSBA Director Jack McCarthy and his staff, during which an agreement was reached for the town to maintain its longstanding lease agreement with the school district for use of athletic fields at Whitman Middle School.
“Santa Claus came early,” he said. “It was a brief, very nice meeting. [McCarthy] understands what the town’s concerns are, he ended up saying, ‘I don’t have a problem with that.’”
But Small said unfettered access during construction has been requested and something in writing outlining steps should a repair be needed in the future, MSBA would be able to have the unfettered access they require.
Small also said the MSBA Board of Directors have increased the allowable reimbursement per square foot for projects from $360 per square foot to $393 and site work reimbursement were increased as well. The per-square foot limitations are in addition to the overall reimbursement rates for communities.
“Towns and cities that are in project right now, with signed contracts with MSBA, are getting nothing,” Szymaniak said. “These are for future costs due to inflation.” The increases are tailored for towns like Whitman that have not signed a contract yet.
“We’re right in the right spot at the right time, because some cities and towns are down $10 [million] to $15 million in costs and have to go back to their towns to get those costs.”
— Tracy F. Seelye

HANSON – The Select Board met virtually with representatives of Capital Strategic Solutions of Marlborough on Tuesday, Dec. 13 to describe their services in relation to help with ARPA funds and communication strategies as the board discussed issues that had arisen during a recent strategic planning workshop.

They will return for a further discussion on the issues at the Tuesday, Jan. 10 meeting to further discuss the consulting firm’s communication plan. Police Chief Michael Miksch had suggested the presentation concerning the communication aspect at the town’s recent strategic planning session.

“I love seeing the community transform when people actively become a part of their government,” said CSS CEO Nicole Figeroa is a communications specialist who ha also worked with many area communities. “Local government is a big part of everyone’s quality of life.”

Figeroa’s comment echoed an earlier comment by Select Board member Ann Rein, who expressed a preference for baby steps in the communications plan, rather than a big, over-arching thing because the residents have said enough about how bad the website is and how important it is to them to change it. 

“I think that the [town’s] website and the outreach to the citizens is more important than ARPA,” Select Board member Ann Rein said. “I really, really, really want that website fixed.”

American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), signed into law by President Biden in March 2021, creating the Coronavirus Local Recovery Fund aimed at helping local government pay for their efforts to contain COVID-19. Hanson is eligible to receive $3,196,672 in ARPA funds both directly and through Plymouth County.

Cities and towns have until Dec. 31, 2024 to obligate the ARPA funds and until Dec. 31, 2026 to spend them. Most counties are asking that funds be obligated sooner to ensure all funds are used.

ARPA funds can be used to respond directly to the public health crisis COVID-19; assistance to households, small business and nonprofits and aid to affected industries such as tourism and travel; premium pay for essential municipal employees and offset a drop in revenue to fund government services;  and to make needed investments in water, sewer and broadband internet services.

Hanson is eligible for $1,142,353 in the lost revenue category.

Figeroa stressed that the company is Massachusetts-based  certified woman-owned business comprised of municipal experts specializing in public administration and municipal finance, human resources and policy development, emergency management services and public safety, public works and infrastructure operations, public relations and community engagement, project management and oversight, grant writing and administration, and onsite support services. 

Town Administrator met ARPA consultant Jennifer Thompson at a Mass. Municipal Association meeting. Thompson is “very versed in ARPA and has helped many towns navigate through the complexity of ARPA,” from paperwork involved to reporting requirements and project regulations.

“She is highly recommended from other towns that have used her services,” Green said. “I think this company is going to do a great job for us.”

Thompson said the firm assists 22 municipalities with their ARPA fund administration.

“You should be cautious with this money because it is one-time money, it’s not recurring, so you want to be cautious about funding operating expenses because the money is going to go away after 2026,” Thompson said of the funds aimed at recouping lost revenue.

For that reason, she noted, ARPA funds cannot be used to fund any pension fund; pay debt on capital projects, fund settlement of judgment agreements; replenish reserve or stabilization funds or match other federal grants. But ARPA funds may be used to match state grants.

ARPA funds can be used to build infrastructure, schools or municipal facilities; modernize computer/software assets to bolster cybersecurity; health services; environmental remediation; school or educational services; public safety services or other government expenses.

Thompson said CSS could work with Hanson officials to help them spend ARPA funds not already spent.

Communications services offered help community outreach, Figeroa said, including website support services and proper use of social media.

“It’s an all-hands-on-deck approach we use to get everyone’s attention,” she said. “We operate as an extension of the town [and] we act accordingly.”

She said they would initially work with the IT director to determine what infrastructure improvements the town might need for its communications, including the need to get town departments on the same page before building outward.

“It’s hard for me to make a decision on a company like that without having Steve [Moberg, the town’s IT director] in front of us to be able to ask him questions and expressing his concerns,” Select Board member Ed Heal said.

“In a nutshell, your services help us identify various projects that we could work on, and you’re trying to help us stretch the ARPA fund dollars as far as they could go,” Select Board member Joe Weeks said.

Thompson said that was an accurate summation and added they could help the town with it’s reporting on those expenditures to Plymouth County and the federal government.

Select Board Chair asked if CSS could help empower the town’s Capital Improvement Committee.

“It’s something we’ve been very comfortable with,” Thompson said, applauding Hanson’s foresight in that effort. ARPA funds can be used to pay for CSS’ services, which Thompson described as being provided on an on-call basis in response to a question of cost for their services from Select Board member Jim Hickey.

“Some cities and towns put a ‘not to exceed’ on there,” she said. “We could certainly do that.”

Thompson estimated Hanson would likely spend about $15,000 for that service over the next three years, based on its size and the scope of it’s need for assistance. She said the town could do not-to-exceed on a year-to-year of three-year scope of the program basis.

Figeroa said the communication service may be able to be paid for on that basis, as well.

“We don’t want to create this false sense that we’re going to have this money forever and it’s going to solve all of our many, many budget woes. It won’t,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said. “But we do have an opportunity to move the ball forward just a bit in some areas.”