HANSON – The Select Board wants your [reasonable] suggestions for town priorities, including use of the Maquan property, highway department and fire department building needs and the potential need for an operational override next year.
“I thought it’s good to know where the citizens are in their thoughts toward all these different projects,” Town Administrator Lisa Green said during the Tuesday, Aug. 20 meeting, proposing a citizen’s survey to find out.
Dr. Melinda Tarsi, a professor at Bridgewater State University’s Department of Public Administration master’s degree program,
Tarsi had helped Whitman conduct a similar survey a couple of years ago.
“I thought maybe this would be a good time to conduct such a survey in Hanson,” Green explained.
There is no charge for BSU’s service to the town. The board voted to work with the university on such a survey.
“My research interest is in local government and municipal finance,” Tarsi said, joining the meeting via Zoom. Her research areas are local government and municipal finance and serves in that capacity in Mansfield and has been the Finance Committee chair in Halifax. “I really enjoy bringing my students into different projects – real world applications of principals and I find that these citizen satisfaction surveys can not only be a great tool for you as decision makers, but also a great educational tool,”
Tarsi said her students, can help with drafting the survey as well as tabulating results.
The surveys are done as a community surveys, using scientific survey techniques both online and on paper.
Select Board Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett said the board would insist on some paper surveys for residents who might feel challenged or uncomfortable by filling one out online.
“We want to reach people where they’re at,” she said in urging use of survey questions asked through media they are most comfortable with as they tell the Select Board where they want to spend money.
Board member Joe Weeks said residents should be asked what they want as well as what the town needs.
“I do think there’s a huge distinction there,” he said. “We’re trying to get our foundational resources in order here.”
He argued the survey should direct the town where it can practically do with the resources available to make Hanson the best town possible.
Tarsi said that kind of priority ranking is the guidance they look to in creating surveys.
Maquan bill
The Select Board also approved a new contract agreement for the demolition costs for the razing of the former Maquan School.
When the initially town entered into a contract agreement to demolish Maquan School they had received some ARPA funds toward the demolition work, Town Administrator Lisa Green said during the Select Board’s meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 20.
The town then needed to borrow $580,000 to cover the rest of the cost.
“What we have here now is basically the bond anticipatory note of $480,000,” Green said. “The town paid $100,000 toward that $580,000 that we borrowed before. This is the bond note to re-borrow the $480,000 at a 4.5-percent interest rate.”
Green did not have the current interest rate with her, but said she could call the treasurer-collector to the Select Board’s meeting room to provide that information. The due date is Aug. 28, 2025.
FitzGerald-Kemmett asked for the additional information about what the bond rate is now, what it’s going to be
“Help us help you,” she said when Treasurer-Collector Lisa Clark joined the meeting.
“It was a one-year BAN,” Clark said. “Eric [Kinsherf] and I discussed it. To help the budget, we’re paying $100,000 out of that and rebidding for the balance. We would have had to pay the full amount this year.”
Articles clarified
In other business, the Select Board voted to close the warrant for the Monday, Oct.
The board had made that vote at its last meeting, but there were some “circumstances” that came up, according to Green involving the submission of additional articles after the warrant had already been closed.
The articles in question would: Reinstate the Health Agent as a full-time position; and a request by Green for some ARPA updates of $125,000 for the Hanson Food Pantry.
FitzGerald-Kemmett said the Health Agent Article was a place-holder. because no vote had yet been made on it.
“The chair was very clear that he didn’t want anybody to think he was unilaterally placing this article in,” she said. He absolutely said he just wanted a place-holder and that the board, as a whole, would decide the next time they met.”
Weeks noted that, prior to the annual Town Meeting, the board was trying to figure out less the content of late article submissions, but why they were late.
FitzGerald-Kemmett said that Health Board Chair Kevin Perkins was not aware what the deadline was.
“He apologized profusely in his email and his conversation with me,” she said. “They had sort of touched on this as a potential article, but they didn’t know the actual deadline for the article.”
She said she did mention that “historically, perhaps that department has not been diligent about meeting deadlines,” and that, at some point, all departments need to meet the deadline.
“That was accepted and understood,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said.
Green also submitted an application on behalf of the Food Pantry for needed updates in the amount of $125,000 in ARPA funds.
FitzGerald-Kemmett said there appeared to be two different articles with different dollar amounts, asking which was the correct one. The pantry request was filed with ARPA under the negative economic impact under COVID, meaning the money had to be spent first and then seek reimbursement.
“Because I do have that email that says the application I submitted was eligible for ARPA funds, basically that article is no longer required,” Green said, noting it was a procedural issue that does not bring the need of the funds into question.
Another article concerns an easement request Green’s office just found out about involving the owner of four condominiums on Main Street next to the satellite fire station, granting the fire department access to utilities.
The article for the South Shore Tech regional agreement amendment has now been received, as well, Green said. It had been represented on the warrant as a place-holder until now.
State issues EEE warning
After nearly five inactive years, Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) has been found in the Bay State – the first human case has been found in Oxford, and a 41-year-old New Hamphire man died from EEE, Closer to home, a mosquito test sample from an area behind the Whitman DPW yielded a positive result for EEE.
But, while they are strongly recommending the proper insect repellant and protective clothing, town and school athletics officials are not sounding the alarm yet.
Health Inspector Daniel Kelly on Monday, said he sent out a robocall on Friday, Aug. 23 advising residents that the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH) had increased the alert level for West Nile Virus from moderate to high in Whitman and a few other surrounding communities that day.
In Hanson, however, Health Agent Gil Amado, said the EEE threat level remained at moderate, and that there would be no restrictions placed on recreation fields in town unless the threat level were to be increased to high.
“We’re on top of it,” said Amado, who met with other members of the town’s emergency response team Tuesday morning.
Hanson Fire Chief Robert O’Brien Jr., who also attended the meeting, said mosquito spraying for a large portion of the South Shore would be the focus of aerial spraying beginning Tuesday, Aug. 27 and would continue over several evenings in Carver, Halifax, Kingston, Middleborough, Plymouth, Plympton, Rochester and Wareham. Truck-mounted ground spraying will take place in: Douglas, Dudley, Oxford, Sutton, and Uxbridge. For both methods, spraying begins at dusk and continues until about 4:30 a.m. the next day.
“It is important to note that this is weather dependent, and plans could change up to the last minute,” the Mass. Department of Health and Social Services posted on its site. “Coverage of the entire area at risk in Plymouth County may take several nights of spraying. The truck-based spray in Worcester County will occur over multiple nights.”
The site noted the substance used in the spraying is called Anvil 10+10, an EPA-registered product extensively tested and used in both ground-level and aerial spraying in the U.S. to control mosquitoes. Anvil 10+10 contains two active ingredients: Sumithrin and Piperonyl butoxide (PBO). Sumithrin is a pyrethroid insecticide that kills insects when the insect comes into direct contact with it. Sumithrin is also found in pesticide products used indoors, pet shampoos, and tick control treatments. Piperonyl butoxide serves to increase the ability of Sumithrin to kill mosquitoes.
Sumithrin and PBO decompose with exposure to light and air and are rapidly inactivated with a half-life of less than one day in the air and on plants. These compounds have proven to be highly effective in killing mosquitoes worldwide for over 20 years.
“They did not list Hanson, yet,” O’Brien said of the spraying.
Kelly announced Whitman’s positive sample for both West Nile Virus (WNV) and EEE Aug. 2.
“Obviously, right now, we want people to be cautious,” Kelly said Monday. “Use bug spray with DEET. Make sure you use that bug spray after dusk and, if you can avoid being out after dusk, that’s great, but we don’t want people to shut down their lives.”
Kelly said the Whitman Heath Department is recommending what the rest of the state is recommending.
“At this time, we’’re not telling anyone to shut down any of the fields or anything, but, obviously, that’s a conversation that we’ll have in the future,” he said.
That possibility, while not imminent, is already on the mind of W-H Athletics Director Bob Rodgers.
“I’m super-concerned about it,” said Rodgers on Monday. “Usually when things trend this way it doesn’t get better – usually the restrictions become tighter – so we are hoping that it will stay this way, but we’re preparing for the possibility that we might have to do some restrictions.”
Rodgers preparing an announcement to send home to the families of student-athletes as he spoke, reminding them that the normal precautions they would take in their everyday life: wearing repellant; wearing long sleeves and long pants; and getting rid of any standing water around the home, including birdbaths; are still important.
“We’re hoping that people will do that, but we’ll keep track of it,” he said. “I know there are schools in our league that have had a ban on any activities after sundown.”
He said Plymouth is the district within the league that he knows has made that move, and he has heard that Carver, which is outside the Patriot League, has also banned outdoor sports after sundown.
“I had a family cookout over the weekend and I made sure that everybody wore repellant and took precautions,” Rodgers said. “I think everybody, regardless of what you are doing – whether it’s high school sports or going out to the supermarket, if EEE is in the area, while the odds are very low that you will contract it, it’s something you have to take proper precautions against because it is very dangerous.”
WNV is most commonly transmitted to humans by the bite of an infected mosquito. The mosquitoes that carry this virus are common throughout the state and are found in urban as well as more rural areas. While WNV can infect people of all ages, people over the age of 50 are at higher risk for severe infection.
The 4 Ds of mosquito control are a set of precautions you can take to protect you and your family from mosquitoes:
Dress: Wear long, loose-fitting, light-colored clothing when you’re outside.
DEET: Use insect repellent that contains DEET, following the product label for application. DEET is a repellent that keeps mosquitoes away from you so they won’t bite.
Drain: Remove any standing water outside your home, including water in containers like bottles, cans, buckets, flower pots, tires, and trash containers. You should also change the water in pet dishes, bird baths, and wading pools, and remove litter, leaves, and grass clippings.
Dusk and dawn: Stay indoors during dusk and dawn when mosquitoes are most active. When risk is increased, consider rescheduling outdoor activities that occur during evening or early morning. If you are outdoors at any time and notice mosquitoes around you, take steps to avoid being bitten by moving indoors, covering up and/or wearing repellant.
The risk of mosquito borne diseases will continue until there is a hard frost that eliminates the mosquito population.
What to do:
By taking a few, common sense precautions, people can help to protect themselves and their loved ones: Avoid Mosquito Bites
- Apply Insect Repellent when you go outdoors. Use a repellent with DEET (N, N-diethyl-m-toluamide), permethrin, picaridin (KBR 3023), IR3535 or oil of lemon eucalyptus [p-methane 3, 8-diol (PMD)] according to the instructions on the product label. DEET products should not be used on infants under two months of age and should be used in concentrations of 30% or less on older children. Oil of lemon eucalyptus should not be used on children under three years of age. Permethrin products are intended for use on items such as clothing, shoes, bed nets and camping gear and should not be applied to skin.
- Clothing Can Help reduce mosquito bites. Although it may be difficult to do when it’s hot, wearing longsleeves, long pants and socks when outdoors will help keep mosquitoes away from your skin.
- Be Aware of Peak Mosquito Hours – The hours from dusk to dawn are peak biting times for many mosquitoes. When risk is increased, consider rescheduling outdoor activities that occur during evening or early morning. If you are outdoors at any time and notice mosquitoes around you, take steps to avoid being bitten by moving indoors, covering up and/or wearing repellant. Mosquito-Proof Your Home
- Drain Standing Water – Many mosquitoes lay their eggs in standing water. Limit the number of places around your home for mosquitoes to breed by either draining or getting rid of items that hold water. Check rain gutters and drains. Empty any unused flowerpots and wading pools and change water in birdbaths frequently.
- Install or Repair Screens – Some mosquitoes like to come indoors. Keep them outside by having tightlyfitting screens on all your windows and doors.
Whitman faces school panel vacancies
Whitman has another vacancy to fill among its ranks of representatives on the Whitman-Hanson Regional School Committee, in the wake of member David Forth’s resignation, announced at the Wednesday, Aug. 21 meeting.
The meeting opened with a moment of silence in honor of member Fred Small, who died July 29.
“I’ve known Fred for many, many years,” said Chair Beth Stafford before the moment of silence. “Fred and I were kind of adversaries when I was on the negotiating team for the W-H [teachers’] union and Fred would bargain against the union, so we had many good old – disagreements, shall we say, and also on the board. But we will miss Fred.
“Fred was a voice of the town of Whitman,” she continued. “Fred was a voice for the students. He was always here for them. He even came when he was ill, he would try to make the meetings. I will, personally, miss him because, the last year or so, he was calling me about once a week to update on how he was doing and how he was feeling and other issues that he might have had.”
She also said Small would be missed on the Whitman Middle School Building Committee, on which he served as chair.
“Fred was always the one to tell us what was going on [Beacon] Hill,” she added. “He was always up to date on all that news and that will, again, be missed.”
She also mentioned his service his 15 years of service to Whitman’s Capital Committee.
“Big shoes to fill,” Stafford said. “It’s unfortunate that we have to do this, but I would like to dedicate this moment of silence to Fred from all of us.”
Interested candidates for either vacancy are invited to send a letter of interest and resume to Whitman Town Administrator Mary Beth Carter at Whitman Town Hall, 54 South Avenue, Whitman, MA, by Sept. 3.
The school district is posting the vacancies with applicants given two weeks to post resumes, copies of which will be forwarded to the Whitman members of the School Committee for their review.
The Select Board requested a change from the Sept. 12 joint meeting date during which the candidates would be interviewed by both boards. The request, made by Select Board Vice Chair Dan Salvucci was in deference to a health issue of a Committee member.
“We don’t have an official date right now, but it will either be the last week in September or the first week in October,” Committee Chair Beth Stafford said. The person selected will only serve until May and must run to fill the remaining two years of Small’s term. The May ballot in Whitman will therefore have four seats to fill – two three-year terms, one two-year term and one one-year term.
Stafford then turned to Forth, saying that one of the Committee’s members wished to speak.
Forth then announced his resignation in favor of continuing his education.
“It is most appropriate at this time for the torch to be passed to the next generation of young parent-leaders, who are ready to represent our district and lend their voices and experiences to the next emerging generation,” Forth said. “I will resign as a Whitman representative to the Pre-K to 12 W-H Regional School Committee, effective Sept. 1.”
He plans to pursue higher education to expand his capacity to contribute, and answered a question once put to him by former Facilities Director Ernest Sandland, who asked what Forth had learned as a member of the School Committee.
“The voice of youth that we have had with you on here … has always been true to himself,” Stafford said.
Superintendent of Schools Jeff Szymaniak said Forth’s announcement was bittersweet for him as well.
“He’s done a really nice job on the committee, but I’m so happy for you to move into what you want to do, too,” he said. “It’s pretty cool.”
“I don’t know what your next steps are, but you will be missed,” said Committee member Dawn Byers, whom Forth had thanked for urging him to run in the first place and being such a staunch supporter.
Forth said ideology does not guide the School Committee. Personality and life experiences help guide and shape people’s views and empathy has been its greatest asset in achieving results over the past years.
“We should look beyond politics and toward a shared belief that people want an excellent education for their kids, a safe and healthy environment to live in and affordability to choose the life they wish to pursue,” he said – a community-first approach.
“One of my unique experiences growing up in our community, which has guided my decision-making over the last five years was the opportunity to live in and attend both schools in Whitman and Hanson,” Forth said. “As a teenager, when deciding whether to pull nomination papers to run for office, I asked myself, ‘What does it mean to be a leader?’”
He said those internal deliberations brought him to two conclusions.
“I decided that being a leader meant not having to be the most intelligent individual in the room but being receptive and understanding each other’s strengths and utilizing those abilities in the areas warranted when those moments are justified,” Forth read from a prepared statement. “Understanding who is the best fit for the particular situation and uplifting them to be successful in the endeavor will help us to succeed collaboratively as a community.”
Prioritizing the success of the collective over one’s individual needs is what makes a successful leader, he concluded.
His second conclusion, he said, was rooted in his days as a student at Hanson Middle School, where a teacher had already noticed – when he was 12 – that his passion was in the areas of history and politics, long before he did.
“Mrs. Blauss would pull me aside after mock debates in class, asking, ‘Have you ever thought about being a lawyer?” he said, recalling another of her lessons about Cincinnatus.
“The need to evaluate the health of the institution consistently and understanding that any institution dependent on one individual over too long in our democracy is reflective of a failure of those who have been serving it,” Forth said.
“I campaigned at the age of 19 to change our community’s culture,” he said, noting he had offered an ambitious platform of services for the district and sought to empower voices representing those affected my McKinley-Vento, foster youth and students struggling with circumstances beyond their control, understanding the lingering effects of the Great Recession and a pandemic.
Since he first ran, nine out of 10 School Committee members, four out of five Hanson Select Board and three out of five Whitman Select Board members have left office.
“We’ve had a sweeping change of represntation across our community, which is more optimistic, welcoming and supporting of the next generation of leadership,” he said. “Over the last five years, I’ve seen our community’s culture shift in a direction more reflective of our community as a whole.”
Parents have organized, used their voices and helped deliver results that will be felt in the community for generations, such as the expansion of early childhood education and the approval of the new middle school in Whitman, he concluded.
In other business, a donation to the district raised more testimonials to what Small meant to the Committee.
School Committee member Steve Bois made is annual donation of an Acer Chromebook, in Small’s memory, and asked that a letters of appreciation be sent to Small’s widow and children.
When asked if he wanted to say a few words, Bois said, “Sure, here it is,” and placed the boxed computer on the table.
“You know, I told Fred years ago, ‘Oh, good! We’re sitting opposite each other. We can kick a ball back and forth,” Bois said. “You always had to keep it light with Fred because you never knew what was coming next. He kicked my fanny just like he would anyone else’s – but then he’d have some good news for me later.”
He pointed to instances when Small was mentoring Forth, who was still a teenager when he was first elected to the committee.
“One of the proudest things I saw was him talking with David [about] various things, his willingness to help David – and I’m not singling David out …Bois said.
“No, I’m glad you’re sharing this,” Forth said.
“This was a lot on your shoulders as a teenager, turning 20 at the time,” Bois continued. “David, you’re going to continue on in many ways … and you kind of remind me a little bit of Fred. … You’ve got the questions and you know the answers. I know this is about Fred, but a torch is always passed on.”
“Over the last couple weeks I’ve had a lot of time to reflect among a lot of things pertaining to the committee, but specifically toward Fred,” Forth said, sharing some of his own personal experiences with Small that members of the community and committee colleagues might not have been privy to.
Forth recalled that he was a high school freshman with he first encountered Small via a video clip posted online about the School Committee. Later, when Forth began contacting School Committee members to advocate for his fellow students, it was Small and the Committee chair who approached him with their phone numbers, telling him if he ever needed any assistance, to give them a call.
When Forth ran for School Committee and won, Small was one of the first people to reach out to him.
“Over the last few years, of course Fred and I have had our disagreements, particularly toward budget season,” he said. “But Fred has helped me improve as a person. He’s challenged me, he’s helped me think differently, and reflecting, of course, over the last year, I got to see a different side of Fred that wasn’t reflective of the bureaucrat people have tried to project on us who serve in these elected roles.”
They spoke about cars after Forth bought his, about family and different perspectives after exchanging terse deliberations in meetings.
“He’s always been open and honest and he’s treated me with respect and decency,” Forth said in a voice thick with emotion. “Understanding that we may have different objectives or different pathways, but we have the same common goal – trying to improve our community. My experiences with Fred will long outlast my time on this committee.”
Park Ave. school, cannabis pacts reviewed
By Tracy F. Seelye, Express editor
editor@whitmanhansonexpress.com
WHITMAN – Seeking guidance with legal issues governing property uses and how they may be standing in the way of Whitman’s financial growth were the primary focus of the Select Board on Tuesday, Aug. 20.
More study was necessary after a lengthy discussion of possible alternate uses for the former Park Avenue School – and whether they might be permitted under the rather specific language of the deed gifting the property to the town, as well as direction on proceeding with the host community agreement between the town and Berkley Botanicals [See story, page 3].
Town Counsel Peter Sumner appeared before the board to discuss both issues.
The board listed several ideas, with Sumner saying the question did not need to be settled right then.
“I’m here tonight to find out what, exactly, you would like to do with the [Park Avenue School building] property, as a board, obviously, and we certainly understand that there may be need for further input,” he said.
Sumner said he was not certain he had ever been before the board on issues pertaining to the former school building, Sumner said it has “been percolating” for a while.
The former Whitman elementary school building at the corner of South Avenue and Park Avenue, sits on property acquired by the town in 1949 when it was purchased from George J.J. Clark. A provision in the deed requires the town to use the land “for school purposes only” – the exact words. The town then built the school there but has been closed since 2005-06.
In 2010, the regional School Committee voted to return the school and property back to the town because it was not needed for educational purposes at the time – and would never be needed by the district again.
“Since then, my office has looked into what the town can do with the property, given that the deed says it has to be used for school purposes only,” he said. “There is a little bit of a lack of clarity on that.”
“For school purposes only” may not mean what people think it means in property law,” Sumner said. “There is a significant question about whether it’s a deed restriction and whether the town purchased the property for fair market value or if it was a gift from the donor.”
Sumner said the town counsel’s office has decided the best course of action is to resolve that uncertainty in court “to the extent you want to do anything with the property now or in the future.”
He said it would be in the town’s interest to go to court for a declaratory judgment about what the town’s rights are and, if they don’t have a specific idea in mind for use of the propery it might make sense to wait.
He said his understanding it that the building is decrepit and can’t really be used.
“So it’s really a question of this parcel of land,” Sumner said, listing some possible options for the town to consider:
- argue the land was purchased and the “for school” language in the deed is not a restriction so the town may further dispose of the land as it sees fit; or
- identify a specific purpose for using the property – an option already discussed with the attorney general’s office in an effort to gain their assent – by identifying such a use.
While the AG’s office is not opposed to option B, they would like to hear specific ideas from town officials.
“The more like a school use it is … the AG’s office has signaled they are more likely to support that,” he said. Asked to look into the issue, Sumner said it would help to know what the Select Board had in mind.
Some ideas mentioned by board members on Aug. 20 were:
Vice Chair Dan Salvucci asked of the property could be sold with proceeds going toward the cost of the new Whitman Middle School. Sumner said signals from the AG’s office indicated they could support that.
But Chair Dr. Carl Kowalski said that, while selling the property could fund the middle school, the town would lose control over what the property is then used for.
Select Board member Shawn Kain said he is not interested in selling the property, instead advocated holding onto the property to develop it in a way that could benefit the whole community is important. He asked if cultural and recreational uses, such as an amphitheater could meet the deed requirements.
Select Board member Laura Howe asked if the property could be used for a state police K9 academy with an associated dog pound and dog park.
“We have a dog that works for the town that does an amazing job,” she said. “Animals do an unbelievable amount of work for people.”
She noted that dogs offer unconditional love, and assist deaf, blind, handicapped, elderly and depressed people. Certain breeds are also adept at smelling body chemistry clues that people with illnesses such as diabetes are on the verge of a crisis.
“We live in a very volatile world,” she said. “There’s a lot of community interest in this property.”
She also suggested a successfully run program there could bring in people from other communities.
Select Board member Justin Evans said his “moonshot” idea has always been a community center, bringing the Senior Center, recreation, veterans services all under one roof.
“But we’ve got three ongoing, major building projects, assuming Vo Tech passes in a couple of months, it’s probably not the time to ask for a $20 million community center,” he said, noting the property sits squarely in the half-mile but the town specifically left it out because the town had no interest in selling it a couple of months ago.
Largely untapped community preservation funds could be used to fund an amphitheater, parks, ball fields or something like that could be something to bring to the AG’s office as something that could be done now.
Big wheels
WHITMAN – It was the nearly of the end of the summer skate camp at Carousel Family Fun Center on Thursday, Aug. 22, as parents escorted their children to check-in for their name tags, made sure they had everything they needed for the day and made arrangements to pick them up later.
One mom approached Carousel owner Charlene Conway about her son’s being still a bit tentative on skates. A few suggestions for the mother, a check-in with the check-in table to see how things are going and then some things to drop off at the snack bar, still lay between Conway and her morning interview with this writer to outline the next program on her rink’s calendar: a Learn to Skate camp on Saturdays beginning Sept. 7. At only $10 per child per week, the program fee includes skates and is open to all ages at the rink, 1055 Auburn St., Whitman.
But first, there was a lot to say about the successful summer [see column, page 6 ] – and that included herding the young participants together for a photo.
“They’ve come a long way, from crawling on the floor,” Conway said, gesturing as the class sat doing warmup stretches before their lesson. The one-week camp ran from Aug. 19 to 23. “Tomorrow they’ll get certificates. It’s a very active place – the skating club, classes and programs.”
She said there’s been a resurgence of participation at the rink since COVID when everyone had to skate outside.
“That was good for us after being closed for two years,” she said. “And of course, Usher from the Super bowl – that was huge.”
Carousel is also having success with skaters they’ve brought up through the ranks making themselves known on the competition circuit.
Mary Osborne, who’s been skating at Carousel since she first learned to skate, was one of the 19 medalists (nine gold, nine silver and four bronze) from Carousel’s All Stars Skating Club, who competed in the USA Roller Sports National Championships in Lincoln, Neb., in July. Another All Star skater who got her start at Carousel was Laura Miller, of Brockton, who’s been skating for about eight years.
“She’s been placing at Nationals that whole entire time,” Conway said with pride.
The All Star skaters competed in a number of artistic skating disciplines: dance, figures and creative skating. Each discipline includes levels for skill (intermediate and advanced) and age range. To compete in the National Championship, skaters must first qualify at their local and regional meets.
Carousel hosted the Northeast Regional Championship meet in June – including skaters from Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont. All those who quakify, earn the chance fo compete at the National Championships. There were 15 All Star Club members who qualified at the Regionals and earned 21 medals in figures (17 gold, two silver and two bronze); 11 medals in dance (eight gold and three silver) and took home four medals in creative (one gold, two silver and one bronze).
The qualifying skaters ranged in age from 14 to 80.
“Skaters have to qualify to make the club,” Conway said. “We have a junior level and a senior level.”
There’s a program of lessons they must complete to get to the junior club, which meets for practices on Wednesday nights and the senior club practices on Sundays. Conway said there are currently about 20 members and there are close to 40 members with a nine-person teaching and coaching staff.
After a successful National Championships, skaters from the All Star Skating Club returned to Whitman with an impressive total of 19 medals (nine gold, nine silver and four bronze).
Conway said the rink’s busy times of the year coincide with the school year.
“For our competitors, that’s their season for competition,” she said. “The club meets 12 months out of the year and they still come and train when we’re not rented.”
Whitman board sets September table
WHITMAN – The table is a little crowded for the Select Board’s next meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 17, as the board encountered questions surrounding how the School Committee vacancy – which was the result of the recent passing of Fred Small – will be filled, and how to resolve budgetary roadblocks the Police Department has run into in helping the Whitman Mothers Club host a fundraising 5K in October.
The board’s interviews with candidates interested in being appointed to the School Committee were already scheduled for Sept. 12, but Select Board Vice Chair Dan Salvucci mentioned a problem that had already cropped up for that session as well.
School Committee member Steve Bois will be undergoing throat surgery on Sept. 17 and would be unable to speak at a meeting, whether an in-person or remote session, Salvucci said
“That’s one member of our School Committee that can’t be there,” Salvucci said. “Either [the meeting gets rescheduled] or he doesn’t vote, and he’s been on the School Committee for a very long time and he should have a right to voice his opinion.”
Select Board Chair Dr. Carl Kowalski said he had “a number of conversations” with School Committee Chair Beth Stafford – each of them talking with their respective administrators, Whitman Town Administrator Mary Beth Carter and Superintendent of Schools Jeff Szymaniak – a week or two ago, in which they arrived at a schedule “that seems to work” to both fill the vacancy as well as to pay proper respect to Fred Small.
“We shouldn’t be jumping on the floor to replace him,” Kowalski said. “This is going to give people time to reflect on things.”
Carter said, in announcing the schedule, that the School Committee would make their own announcement about the vacancy and the schedule at their meeting.
The town is running an ad in this week’s Express and on the town website Thursday, Aug. 22, regarding the vacancy with a deadline of Tuesday, Sept. 3 for submission of letters of interest and resumes, which should be directly to Carter via her email: mcarter@whitman-ma.gov.
She would then forward copies of the letters and resumes to the full Select Board on Wednesday, Sept. 4, as well as to Stafford, Szymaniak and the other five Whitman members of the School Committee.
A joint Select Board/School Committee meeting was planned on being posted for 6 p.m., Sept. 12 to interview the candidates seeking the vacant seat.
“How did you come up with the date of a Thursday and not a Tuesday or a Wednesday?” Salvucci asked.
Carter said it just evolved from their discussion on available dates and the timeline surrounding the call for resumes and the time needed to review them.
Salvucci again raised Bois’ surgery date.
“He knew he couldn’t be in attendance,” Salvucci said. “I just thought it was kind of unfair. When we reorganize we wait until we have a full board. It would be best if we had the full board and School Committee could be there and find the proper date.”
Kowalski asked if Salvucci knew of a better night for Bois.
“I’d have to call him,” Salvucci said. “He may just say do it.”
Board member Shawn Kain asked if Bois would be able to attend virtually.
“He won’t be able to speak,” Salvucci said.
“I agree with you, though,” said board member Laura Howe. “It shows a deeper level of respect and Fred Small did so much for this town – and Steve Bois as well.”
Salvucci volunteered to call Bois to see if there is a better date for the meeting.
Board member Justin Evans noted that a meeting date – if it were changed – would have to be one on which the candidates would be able to be available, too.
Kowalski also suggested that the interviews meeting could be pushed into October.
“I think Steve ought to be involved, here,” he said. “Why don’t we go back to the drawing board?”
Carter said that, while the ad has been placed, the resume filing deadline had been the only date specified.
The road race request was filed by Jessica Cunninghan for the Whitman Mothers Club, which is planning a 5K roadrace on Sunday, Oct 20 beginning at noon. The route planned would require shutting down the one-way portion of Whitman Avenue to allow organizers to set up for the race.
That’s where Police Chief Timothy Hanlon ran into budgetary problems that the Select Board is hoping the extra time afforded by postponing the vote to Sept. 10, can provide an opportunity to find solutions.
“Regarding road races in general, and really when they are fundraisers, the police department does make every effort – as we have over the years – to accommodate that by not charging for road closures, details and everything else,” Hanlon said. “Just the way the budget is going, it’s not going to be feasible anymore.”
He said the department is all in favor of helping out a charity, but he questioned where the $2,800 it will cost in overtime to the officers needed along the route, would come from.
“I don’t know,” he said about the answer to that question. “I don’t know how much they would actually fundraise, especially if we had to charge them for details.”
While saying the department has gone that route in the past, he left it up to the board this time. He mentioned that other charities had been able to adjust their plans or fundraising to fulfill their detail needs.
“I just found out about this one last week,” Hanlon said.
Carter mentioned that race organizers had mentioned perhaps having a smaller route for the race could require fewer officers, and asked if that was a possible alternative.
“I did adjust the route, kind of on my own,” Hanlon said. “They want to start and end near Old Colony Brewing and that’s why they want the one-way section of Whitman Ave. That, in and of itself, presents challenges.”
Hanlon said the department has used different routes over the years and the easiest one is the former Panther Prowl – which began and ended at the high school – traversing Frankin Street and South Avenue, up Winter Street.
“A 5K is a 5K,” he said. “We have to begin and end it to make sure there are five kilometers in the race.”
Even with an amended route, turning off South Avenue, back up Lake Street and then Whitman Avenue, instead of the full length of South Avenue, but that would require more officers to block off more side streets.
“Even with that, I think the bare minimum is 10 officers, coupled with the [overtime] rate on a weekend, would be $2,800,” Hanlon said.
In response to a question from Kowalski, Hanlon said he had not talked to Cunningham about the problem, so Salvucci suggested it be tabled until the board’s next meeting.
“That way the chief can talk with [the Mothers Club] and maybe they can come up with a reasonable solution,” he said.
“That would be a great idea,” Carter said. “Because you don’t usually do [thee 5Ks] in a year…”
The other issue is the challenges straining the general Police Department budget. The Police Reform Act changes requiring a full-time police academy adds to the challenge as he has to send more cadets through that academy.
“I don’t want to get up here and speak about the police budget,” he said.
Evans also mentioned that this year it’s Whitman’s turn to host the Tri-Town Veterans Day Parade and Hanlon noted that next year, the town’s 150th anniversary will also present challenges for the department.
“I don’t want to turn down the Mothers Club,” Kowalski said.
“Neither do I,” Hanlon said. “It’s just the situation we’re in.”
Kain said the board should do whatever it could to help out the Mothers Club and organizations like it.
“If we can brainstorm, either on your end, or some sort of compromise, and maybe on our end,” he said. “These are community events that bring in a lot of people for a good cause.”
Whitman sets Dec. date for SST TM
WHITMAN – A presentation to the Select Board and review of the South Shore Tech Regional Agreement amendment, slated for Tuesday, Aug. 20, has been postponed, as SST Superintendent-Director Dr. Thomas J. Hickey was unable to attend Tuesday’s meeting due to illness.
Six member towns need to approve the amendment for it to go before special town meetings by January 2025.
While the presentation has been pushed to the next Select Board meeting, now slated for Sept. 17, Town Administrator Mary Beth Carter said she did not see the harm in setting a date for a special Town Meeting on Monday, Dec 2.
“We wanted to pick a date when Tom Hickey is available as well, to speak at each special town meeting to address this issue,” she said.
The SST School Committee meeting in a special session via remote on Monday Aug. 19, approved the regional agreement amendment for forwarding to its member towns for consideration at upcoming Fall special town meetings. The purpose of the amendment is to change, to a four-year rolling average, how debt shares are calculated for member towns.
If, ratified, that change would take place starting the second year of borrowing – fiscal 2027. Shovels are anticipated to go into the ground in fiscal 2026, with construction in earnest in fiscal 2027.
“It’s really to our advantage,” Select Board Chair Dr. Carl Kowalski said Tuesday.
“Absolutely to our advantage,” Carter said. “As new towns join South Shore Tech, and other students come in and our enrollment drops because there are other schools going in, our percentage drops. If we don’t vote this, we would be locked in to a much higher percent, steady for 30 years. This is so important that we have this meeting.”
Marshfield’s recent joining of the district will mean that, once they have enough student enrollment, they will be asked to look back four years as well – getting to that point would likely take until fiscal 2033 for that town to achieve the threshold of four years with of having four years with four grades of students in the building.
“We’re trying to do calculations that allow for the arrival of students from a new community, while building something for the long haul,” Hickey said. “This means that debt formulas will no longer be fixed at the time of authorization. … It’s a pay-as-you-go model until you have enough enrollment to be apples to apples.”
If another community were to join the district in the next several years, Hickey said he envisioned the same process being recommended, and more-or-less a cut and paste job of the process through which Marshfield joined.
“For every change, there’s an explanation about why we’re doing it,” Hickey told his school committee members.
“The timing of this meeting had a lot to do with waiting for officials from the Department of Education to do their final ‘scrub-down,’” Hickey said. “With your approval tonight, the document … we are sending to the respective select boards.”
He said he was sending out via email to those boards holding Town Meetings before January, including Hanson on Oct. 7 and Scituate on Nov. 18.
“I will work with you and your respective towns to engage as these special town meetings approach,” he said, adding that he anticipates all member towns, with the possible exception of Abington, will be scheduling special town meetings between Oct. 7 and Dec. 16.
“Once six communities pass this amendment, and we get the certified results from the town clerks, we will provide [the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education] DESE this information and then they would move forward to bringing this to the commissioner,” he said. There is also a summary sheet outlining changes that just involve grammar, and which are more substantive, according to Hickey.
Since 1960, the apportionment of debt share for each member town has been fixed at the time of its approval based on the average of three previous school year enrollments, and that share has remained the same for the life of the borrowing. This proposed amendment will apportion debt shares instead on a four year rolling average based on changes to student enrollment in each town over time. The first ‘four year rolling average’ calculation will start in FY27.
Hickey provided some context to the change.
“Last year while at a public forum in Whitman talking about our MSBA building project, it was suggested that we consider a change that provided flexibility to this calculation, given that an upcoming MSBA project would lock in town shares for 30 years. The idea made sense, given that the regional agreement uses three-year averages for capital and annual enrollments for operating costs. Working with the regional school officials at DESE was extremely helpful, and while it took several months to review, I’m glad we are at this point to bring this change to our towns.”
For most of 2024 the regional planning subcommittee worked on alternate apportionment models and arrived on a four year rolling average as the best alternative. “The four-year rolling average helps to control for volatility in changes in enrollment. A dip or a spike in annual enrollment would not lead immediately to a change in debt share,” Hickey said.
The other proposed update to the agreement involves the newly admitted town of Marshfield’s calculation for debt share. When Marshfield’s language was approved in 2023, it was based on Marshfield paying an annually adjusted debt share until it had enough enrollment history to calculate a fixed debt share. “The proposed amendment makes an adjustment to Marshfield’s debt share ‘on ramp.’ Basically, Marshfield will pay a debt share based on its most recent enrollment figures until they have a comparable enrollment history to use in a four year rolling average [as with all the other towns] and this parity would occur in FY33,” Hickey said.
For the amendment to take effect, it must be approved by at least 6 of the 9 member town meetings. At this point, seven of the nine towns have scheduled town meetings for somewhere between October and December. Hanson’s special Town Meeting is Oct. 7.
“If we are able to secure at least the required 6 town meeting approvals, we will send to DESE the town clerk certifications [of the town meeting votes] so that the final step in the process can move forward, which is DESE Commissioner approval. The changes can go into effect once that final approval is in place,” Hickey said.
The district will place the proposed changes and supporting presentation material on its website, southshore.tech and will circulate materials to towns as well.
Showtime at Marshfield Fair
The Marshfield Fair is the premier event for Plymouth County 4-H members and young people from across New England. The Marshfield Fair offers open youth participation for kids ages 5-19 exhibiting livestock shows, equine events, dog shows and other agriculture opportunities. Young people play an active role participating at the fair including offering demonstrations, interacting with fairgoers, care and maintenance of the barns, and fair planning.
Youngsters learn valuable life skills through raising and showing animals including responsibility for others, public speaking, leadership, and community service. 4-H members and others also gain experience in animal science, local agriculture and volunteer experience.
The Marshfield Agricultural and Horticultural Society presents many awards for excellence in scholarship, livestock, agriculture, and country craftsmanship. Among these is the Cave Canem Challenge Cup, honoring longtime Plympton resident Rita LaPointe, volunteer leader, teacher, and friend of 4-H young people. It is awarded to the Junior or Senior 4-H dog exhibitor who earns the highest total combined score in both Marshfield Fair Dog Shows.
Hanson mulls future of LiteControl land
HANSON – A proposal from the Mass. Department of Fish & Wildlife to take control of the remaining LiteControl property at 100 Hawks Ave., outlined to the Select Board on Tuesday, Aug. 6 drew questions of cost and long-term land control.
Joan Pierce of the Mass. Dept of Fish and Wildlife outlined for the Select Board, the department’s interest in acquiring the property.
“We are concerned about what is about to happen to the town property, so I felt now is a good time to at least start the conversation and say, Fish & Game would really like to own the town property, so the whole strip along the northern part of Burrage – it’s all going to be open space,” Pierce said.
The issue would have to go before Town Meeting for any final decision.
“I’m a big fan of Burrage, I’m there every day and I think it’s a jewel,” said Select Board Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett. “I feel so lucky that we’ve got it in our little town – at least a good part of it.”
FitzGerald-Kemmett said she was initially intrigued by the concept as Pierce explained it.
But, the board had no objection to the idea of protecting the property as a wildlife management area where hunting and fishing would be allowed, but they had real concerns about the prospect of not realizing some remuneration for the property, especially in light of the nearly $500,000 already spent on a feasibility study, only to have the site rejected as a Highway Department location.
“Not to be impolite, but the money really needs to be talked about,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said.
Speaking for herself, Pierce said she was ready to recommend to the Fish & Game committee responsible for making the decision about acquiring the land, that they pay to remove the buildings on the land. A “very preliminary estimate” of more than $400,000 to take down the buildings, she said.
“We don’t want the buildings other than buildings we are actively using,” she said. “We would like to have the buildings removed and we would like to take on that responsibility if we are able to acquire the property from the town.”
That said, Pierce admitted that money is always a delicate issue, as is the question of the extent of remaining contamination at the site.
“I don’t want to talk too much about money, because that’s going to be a factor,” she said. “The problem, though, is that we are going to be paying to take down the buildings, which is a big cost.”
It’s almost equal to the assessed value of the property, Pierce said, adding that is why she is not suggesting that the land acquisition would be a windfall for the town.
FitzGerald-Kemmett said she is in no way looking at the proposal as a “windfall,” and could read between the lines to find the tear-down costs and site testing were being suggested as factors that might affect renumeration for the town.
“I can assure you that we’re not in a financial situation to make that decision,” she said. “We’re just not, I can reassure you. We’re looking at an override, we’ve got all kinds of competing demands.”
She also reminded Pierce that the May Town Meeting voted against being an MBTA Community, so much of the MBTA grant money for purchase of open space will not be available. She said it is also, as yet unseen, whether the state might claw back some of the Community Space funding for that reason.
Town Administrator Lisa Green noted, that the LiteControl property abuts to the Burrage Wildlife Management Area, a parcel of about 9.6 acres, was gifted to the town about 15 years ago with deed restrictions on what could be done with the property.
Housing, schools, hospitals, childcare facilities or other similar uses are prohibited because of groundwater or soil contamination.
“It’s been a work in progress trying to get grants or identify [funding sources] like that,” she said.
Town Meeting had voted several years ago to give the Select Board the power to lease the two large portions of the property, including the two large buildings on the parcel. She said Pierce had approached Green about the property a couple of years ago. They toured Burrage and talked about the LiteControl property. It had been “a work in progress” for Hanson as the town sought grants to fund
“She did mention that, basically, the Department of Fish and Game would be interested in acquiring a portion of that property,” Green said.
While that proposal had fallen by the wayside, Pierce did approach Green with another idea at the direction of the state – potentially acquire the entire LiteControl property from the town.
“She has prepared a letter, we have maps, and she is prepared,” Green said, adding that Pierce again reached out to Green to say the Fish & Game Dept. would be interested in acquiring a portion of the property, but State House business caused it to fall by the wayside.
That was also a concern of select Board member Ann Rein, who flat-out asked if the town has more grant options to address the property.
Green said the town has submitted the paperwork for the One-Stop Brownfields assessment cleanup, but Hanson officials are still waiting to hear what that decision might be.
FitzGerald-Kemmett noted the One-Stop grant is an MBTA Communities-related grant program. Green added that the remediation already done with $100,000 in One-Stop grant funds, Hanson would have to reimburse the state for that $100,000 from any amount over $100,000 realized from the sale of the property.
Pierce, who works out of Fish & Game’s Southeastern Massachusetts office in Buzzard’s Bay, is in the land acquisition office where she’s served for about 25 years. The office had acquired Burrage from Morton Cranberries more than 20 years ago.
“We are working with the town – I believe the Select Board is aware of this – to acquire other properties that are still owned by [the company now known as Hubbell],” Pierce said. “Hubbell had indirectly acquired LiteControl.”
The larger portion of the remaining lite control property is about 87 acres and Fish & Game is now proposing that property be split along a diagonal line and we’re hoping that the town is able to acquire – I call it the western 45 acres,” she said. Fish & Game would then acquire the 41 acres that lies right behind the town-owned portion of the former LiteControl property.
Pierce said that Fish & Game is also discussing acquiring a little 1.6 acre square of property, as well.
“Hubbell wants to get rid of the property that it owns in Massachusetts,” Pierce said. “They don’t want to own it anymore. It doesn’t do them any good.”
The company has gone through an extensive cleanup program with the state DEP – they want out,” she said.
At least for now, Hubbell is, however retaining a 7.6-acre parcel where the company is still monitoring ground water as required by DEP– but she has asked them to talk to Hanson officials again, too.
“The Hubbell property is really, really important for how we maintain the property,” Pierce said. “We want to have no conflicting uses abutting the property. This is a very valuable wildlife management area.”
Fish & Game is now doing the title search on the 87-acre property, which will be certified to both the department and the town. A title certification is also being done on the 1.38-acre parcel and an appraisal is being done on the two parts Fish & Game is acquiring.
FitzGerald-Kemmett mentioned the notion that the Highway Department might be relocated there when the property had been gifted to the town, but there were questions about whether there was still contamination on the site and whether the property was appropriate for the Highway Department so close to a wetlands, among other reasons.
“We were warned at the time that we were gifted those buildings that, if they were not inhabited quickly, their shelf life would erode rapidly,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said. She said the town has seen that kind of deterioration already taking place.
“We know the entire property hadn’t gotten a clean bill of health,” she said. “Then we ran into some questions about [whether that is] really a suitable location for a highway building.”
She noted the objections Fish & Game Department’s objections because of the potential that contamination still existed on the site.
Select Board member Joe Weeks asked why the town was even discussing the issue right now.
Pierce said her main two concerns are protecting all the property on the north end of Burrage and Fish & Game is nervous about something happening to the town land in the future.
We would like to have that nailed down, taken care of, so we don’t have to worry about it anymore,” she said.
“We’re not getting anything,” Weeks said. “Are we just giving you the land and lose control – you just get to decide what happens?”
Pierce said the property would be managed as more open space.
“You’re doing us a favor,, but then you’re offsetting that cost by telling us we’re not getting any money,” Weeks said, “So you’re not doing anything for us.”
FitzGerald-Kemmett said she would wait until all the facts are in, but she feels uncomfortable with the direction the acquisition request is taking.
“I know that people are going to be outraged if we get no money for this property,” she said.
Weeks said he’s all in favor of protecting the land.
“I need more information,” he said.
Envisioning budgetary balance
HANSON – Whatever assessment funding formula is finally agreed upon by the towns, “it is important that all parties look at it thinking, ‘We’re going to be taken care of,’” Whitman Select Board member Shawn Kain said during a meeting with the Hanson Select Board about the school assessment formula, during a Tuesday, Aug. 6 meeting with Hanson officials.
“It can’t all be going to the schools, and it can’t all be going to the town departments,” he said. “However it’s defined it needs to be obvious that it’s fair, and I think that’s a key piece.”
Any assessment formula should also be based on and responsive to current data, he noted.
Kain, who introduced himself by way of describing his efforts to bring in a financial consultant to work with Whitman to assist with financial forecasting of a number of years ago, when he served on the Finance Committee.
“Although the town was in decent shape financially, we could see that there were some big roadblocks coming ahead,” he said, noting both towns have used consultant John Madden for that work. “In many ways, he really did help us start to look in the right direction, start to think more strategically about what we do … but, obviously, with this last budget cycle, it’s pretty clear that there is a vulnerability with the formula we use to assess the schools.”
Madden had arrived at a 5-percent guideline following a number of discussions with a working group of town officials.
Kain noted that, in the ensuing years that 5-percent figure had begun to be viewed as a bit arbitrary by select boards in both towns as well as the School Committee. For all parties a strict adherence to 5 percent, without a better understanding of how it was developed, seems lacking, Kain said.
“Although we’ve made progress with strategic planning, I think developing a new formula of school assessment is appropriate,” he said, offering to share a formula he had arrived at as something to consider.
Kain is also working to be on a School Committee agenda to discuss his idea in August or September.
“We appreciate you coming and we do appreciate the ongoing effort for a partnership,” said Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett. “We certainly have been trying to be good partners – I feel we have been good partners – and we’ve got some concerns about the way things went down.”
She said she was aware the Whitman Select Board had a different result from their Town Meeting, but reminded Kain that Hanson ended up having to reduce people’s hours.
“That’s on top of the statutory method that we’re still reeling from, so the feeling of partnership is starting to wane,” she said. “I am like the eternal optimist, and even I’m starting to go like, ‘OK, maybe read the room, here.’”
She suggested that, if they focused on numbers and the facts, and not on personalities, she said she is hoping for more clarity on all sides.
Kain agreed with that position.
The objectives he shared with his own board must be transparent, he said, and the school assessment was something they felt was clearly defined and easy to understand.
“[The public should be able to] see what we are doing, from the beginning, so it’s not like things are being done behind closed doors, it’s easy to understand and it’s kind of explicit – it’s out there for everyone to see,” Kain said.
He added that the process needs to be fair for all parties.
Regarding the 5 percent, Kain said that, in leaner years, that much is viewed as being overly generous to the schools, and in years where there is more revenue, the schools look at 5 percent like it’s lacking.
The 5-percent standard needs to be seen as fair for everyone,” he said. “If we have a good amount of revenue from a particular point, in their view, 5 percent feels like it seems like an awful.”
FitzGerald-Kemmett agreed that a formula needs to be based on current data, noting the Madden report’s leaning on 5 percent might have been based on information that was “a bit stale,” but it was the data Hanson had, and it made them feel confident they could say that 5 percent is what they could afford.
Select Board member Ed Heal said that, in the beginning, a lot of them didn’t even understand the 5 percent.
“There was a 3.8 number thrown out, and a lot of us, including me, reluctantly agreed to go up to the 5 percent,” he said. “But not all of us agree with even the 5 percent.”
He said that 5 percent is still more than Hanson could afford.
FitzGerald-Kemmett noted that the fact that it wasn’t the entire school budget – just the operational assessment – that increased by 5 percent, which was also an important fact to consider, but she also stressed fairness between departments very much was a consideration.
“And we started that conversation early,” she said. “Really early.”
Town departments were given an honest projection of where town finances were and that they would have to hold the line, but they also realized the schools were facing increased costs and they were trying to be sensitive to that, too.
“What ended up really being a bummer was the fact that we were being so consistent and so clear – I mean, we shouted it from the rooftops – this was all we could afford, we don’t have any money… didn’t matter.”
While she knows Kain was not there to solve the relationship problem, FitzGerald-Kemmett said she saw two parts to the situation.
Numbers are important and a better job needs to be done with communication.
Kain agreed, saying the Whitman board felt a lot of that, as well, but he said it’s possible to develop a formula that can help people understand why the number proposed is the number that towns can afford, especially if they take an override off the table.
The towns are looking at it as a Zero-sum game, in that what they take from one department, they must take from others.
“If we want to be transparent, if we want the school assessment formula that we use to be clearly defined and … easy to understand. It’s very important for the public that they can see what we’re doing, from the beginning, and it’s not being done behind closed doors,” Kain said. “It’s out there for everybody to see. I also think it needs to be fair for all parties involved.”
Hanson Town Accountant Eric Kinsherf said he loved Kain’s proposal [see inset] because it showed promise for making the budget process easier.
“It’s simple to understand,” he said. “I have some skepticism that the schools would go along with this, but if they did, it would be great,” he said.
Kain said he does want feedback from the schools and hopes to put together a small working group to work on the budgeting details.
Select Board member Ann Rein said she wants to see some indication that the schools are willing to work with the Hanson board.
“We have to keep trying,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said.
Select Board member Joe Weeks said his conversations with other parents have revealed there is no one who does not support the schools, “but they just don’t know where their money is going.”
“They’re not seeing it,” he said.
Kain encouraged people to do research on their own.
“There’s incredible power in doing that,” he said. “The state does make it easier for people to see how [funds] are being distributed in a regional school district.”
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