WHITMAN — The Board of Selectmen on Tuesday, Aug. 11 decided to seek a joint meeting with the School Committee and district officials on the school budget assessment issue within the Regional Agreement.

Selectman Randy LaMattina suggested the discussion in open session, as it had been discussed that way by the School Coommittee, on Thursday, Aug. 6 — as well as on Facebook. The School Committee had voted 7-3 to table the issue.

“Obviously, this is something that has drastically affected our two towns,” LaMattina said. “Over the last six or seven months now, we’ve talked about partnership.”

He said the last budget process was part of the effort to try to preserve that partnership, and he was seeking a sense of the board’s opinion on the “obvious issue” that will hang over the partnership between two towns and school district until it is properly addressed.

The issue he takes up now, LaMattina said, is that through documents uncovered by Assistant Town Administator Lisa Green over the last couple of years, and a statement from a recent Regional Agreement committee illustrates that nothing points to actual malfeasance.

“Why [the assessment issue] was never discovered? I don’t know,” he said. “The talking point has been, ‘We never knew.’ I thoroughly disagree with that statement that somebody did not know. … Unfortunately we didn’t know about this and, when I say we, I mean the towns of Whitman and Hanson.”

LaMattina noted School Committee member Fred Small asked for a third-party investigation, including the Whitman and Hanson Select Boards. He concurred, not out of a goal of seeking financial retribution, LaMattina said, but to obtain a proper explanation to the towns and accountability to the taxpayers.

“One member of the School Committee made some statements [Aug. 6] as if current sitting Selectmen had covered this up,” LaMattina said. “I think that is an aggregious statement. I think this board has been at the forefront of trying to find an answer to this.”

The School Committee on Thursday, Aug. 6 discussed the issue toward the end of a lengthy meeting centering on the school reopening plan.

Small had moved that Superintendent of Schools Jeff Szymaniak be empowered to collaborate with the two Select Boards and the District’s legal counsel and town counsels, if needed, to “contact and work with the appropriate investigative authority … in order to determine if there was any impropriety or malfeasance concerning the methodology of the Regional School’s assessment over the past several years.”

School Committee member Dawn Byers asked if he had a time period in mind, to which Small suggested perhaps 2013 forward.

“What I’m hoping to accomplish here is we would have a third party that would be looking into the assessment situation and we can finally be able to get an unbiased assessment of what had occurred, be able to decide where we go from there, and close the door and move on.”

School Committee Chairman Bob Hayes noted that, as of the Aug. 6 meeting no others had been contacted about the motion.

School Committee member Christopher Howard suggested a third party, perhaps a law firm “with nothing to do with this” be hired to look into it.

He said it should not be limited to the state and suggested it might not be the best course of action to have the state do that.

“I think it requires some additional thought,” Howard said.

Hayes suggested the motion be amended to require the boards turn over all pertinent documents to any investigators who might be looking into the issue, rather than empowering the superintendent.

“I consider our superintendent to be an unbiased third party, because whatever happened, happened before the current administration,” Small said.

School Committee member David Forth said he would not consider any party involved in the issue to be completely unbiased.

“I think we should take more time with this,” he said, suggesting another meeting in which the committee could focus on it more and obtain more documentation. He also said any decision to investigate should come as a formal vote.

School Committee member Christopher Scriven agreed with Forth and Howard, questioning the ultimate objective, which Small said was closure.

Forth, who said he has already made inquiries with the state inspector general and the Attorney General’s office about how such a probe would move forward, asked if the Committee would be able to move forward if “the people who caused the problem are continuing to be part of a future discussion, whatever that may be.”

He argued that the there has been so much focus on COVID-19 that, there hasn’t been enough time to look into the assessment issue. New member Hillary Kniffen argued that, now that a budget has been approved, it is time to move forward.

Scriven agreed that the issue can’t be passed over in the hope the issue would just go away.

“I just think the divisiveness is not going to lead to good,” she said.

School Committee member Dan Cullity said the investigation would not be about budget or which methodology was used, but about what happened along the way “either deceiving, hiding, doing whatever” in the past.

“We can’t go back and fix any of that,” Cullity said. “You have to find your history to make sure you don’t repeat it.”

Howard leaned toward a discussion in executive session before sharing the information with the public, while Forth favored an open session for that discussion.

“When we’re done, we owe it to the public to have everything transparent,” Howard said. “I just don’t know how to get everything out on the table publically without there being legal ramifications, which is our responsibility to understand.”

LaMattina on Aug. 11 called for a public meeting in which the issue is aired out and a third-party investigation is possibly authorized.

Selectman Brian Bezanson agreed, also arguing — like Small at the School Committee meeting — that both towns need closure.

“We owe it the taxpayers to find out what happened and to remedy it so it can’t happen again,” Bezanson said. “Was it a mistake? Was it incompetence and then a cover-up? Who knows?

He said an investigation by the state inspector general or other independent agency to determine why Whitman paid $4 million more than they should have.

Selectman Dan Salvucci agreed, but was concerned if they were going over the School Committee’s heads. Selectman Justin Evans expressed concern about it turning into a proxy fight, preferring to see all three boards come together in a public meeting.

“We have 10 [School Committee] officials,” said Selectmen Chairman Dr. Carl Kowalski. “It’s their issue. So I have some hesitancy to take the ball and run with it.”

He said things he would like to see, but are not likely to, are the schools admitting the error and Hanson to admit Whitman carried them all those years.

“Maybe that’s what we’re looking to get,” LaMattina said. “We’re looking to say, ‘You wronged us,’ and through that have accountability.”

That accountability can ultimately rebuild the partnership, he said.

In other business, Whitman Selectmen on Aug. 11 reviewed Lynam’s job description and the process for hiring a new Town Administrator as he prepares to retire.

If the town opts to go with a search committee, he strongly suggested the board keep it small, with two Selectmen, another town official — he recommended the treasurer-collector — the assistant superintendent of schools and a citizen at-large or two. If the board does not want to use a committee, someone is going to have to coordinate with Paradigm, the search contractor on developing candidates, Lynam said.

LaMattina said the board is strong enough to make that decision, and that is the kind of work they were elected to do. He envisioned that the company would supply the board with three-to-five candidates to interview.

“We’re the people that are dealing with it constantly, and I don’t remember being asked to be on the search committee for the superintendent,” he said. Bezanson and Salvucci agreed.

Lynam said he believes Selectmen are fully capable of making the decision without a committee, if that is the direction in which they want to go.

The board decided to have the consultant narrow the applicants to a final group of the best three-to-five for them to interview. Lynam said it could take up to the end of September. While he used October as a target date for retirement, he would consider staying on until the search is concuded.

The School Committee on Thursday, Aug. 6 unanimously approved a hybrid reopening plan “for the students who decide to come to school” in Whitman-Hanson.

The first day of school was also pushed back to Tuesday, Sept. 15. The school year has been trimmed to 170 days, with snow days becoming remote learning days.

School officials recommended a hybrid model, because there would not be adequate funding for a fully in-person model under current pandemic requirements.

Social-emotional learning is also more feasible in a hybrid plan than with remote learning alone.

“Parents, if they are not comfortable at any point, can take their students out of school and take our remote learning option,” Superintendent of Schools Dr. Jeffrey Szymaniak said.  “Whatever we put out today, we could pivot — because of an uptick locally, or an uptick in the Commonwealth of the virus.”

While the meeting was held in person at the high school library, a public audience was not possible due to continuing state limitations on crowd size at public gatherings. The public was asked to email any questions to the meeting via [email protected].

“Our reopening plan is going to take some time,” said Szymaniak, noting there is a backlog on orders for Chromebooks across the country due to delays with U.S. Customs because of some companies’ potential child labor issues.  “The overarching concept is to make sure our schools are safe for both our staff and our students.”

He said the district puts students’ physical and social-emotional health and academic well-being in the forefront.

Szymaniak presented options for remote hybrid and in-person learning options to the committee for consideration.

“Teaching and learning takes precedence over this,” he said. Procedures for the main office and transitioning to passing between classrooms in the hallways must also be developed as well as for eating and drinking water and mask breaks.

Health rooms and areas where students might have to quarantine are also being planed.

“Our classrooms are going to be very different from anything we’ve seen in the 21st Century,” Szymaniak said, noting the library tables set up in rows for the committee in a way replicated what those classrooms would look like. He kept his mask on while speaking to demonstrate what teachers must be doing when speaking in class.

The district is recommending those desks be spaced six feet apart, which permits about 15 desks per room. The state recommends three feet, but W-H school officials were not comfortable that enough space was provided between students by that distance.

Students must also be aided through the trauma of the abrupt loss of a structured learning environment since March. Enrichment programs such as after-school activities, art, music, phys ed, athletics and the like are being reviewed to determine how they can be offered or if they will be possible.

Nurse Lisa Tobin is in contact with the Mass. Department of Public Health almost daily.

Noting social media conversations about why Commissioner of Education Jeffrey C. Riley didn’t just provide a plan for schools to adopt, Szymaniak said Riley wanted superintendents and school committees to have local control over learning environments due to differing levels of COVID across the state.

“We are W-H, and we are going to do what we feel is best for the students of Whitman and Hanson,” Szymaniak said. “We’ve stolen other ideas from other districts, that’s what good teachers do, but we have put together a plan for us.”

Comprehensive plans that were due Monday, Aug. 10 are non-binding.

The four possible models were: a return without restrictions; in-person learning with new safety requirements; a hybrid model or remote learning.

The fully-person model includes new classroom configurations, safety equipment and schedule changes. The state requires all districts to develop a hybrid model in case they are not able to bring all students back to school. Alternating schedules is one possible way to accomplish this. Masks and/or face coverings, physical distancing, more attention to hand hygiene and the creation of a COVID-19 isolation space are required for in-school instruction.

Remote learning is a routine that was done since March, with important changes to how students interact with teachers. Elementary grades would work on student instruction from 8 a.m. to noon; middle school instruction from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and high school students working from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. instruction — with a maximum of seven hours of work, including homework per day. Attendance will be taken, grades will be issued and there will be more accountability than in the spring.

“The feedback we’ve received, especially with some of the older students, the later they could go, the better,” Szymaniak said. “They were more engaged in the afternoon than they were in the morning.”

In a hybrid model, two cohorts of students would be spit into Monday/Tuesday and Thursday/Friday in-person learning with Wednesdays used as a virtual instruction day in which teachers report to buildings to teach via devices. The district will be moving off the Zoom platform to Google Classroom or Google Meet.

“We are physically going to have a challenge transporting kids anyway, but trying to transport two cohorts in a day …” Szymaniak said. The first group would have to start on the bus as 6:05 a.m. and the last bus route would finish at 6:45 p.m. Students would be assigned cohort positions by family.

“We are asked to sort of do the impossible,” Assistant Superintendent George Ferro said. “Everybody we’ve talked to said, ‘This is brand new, this is different, but it can be done.’”

Ferro stressed the remote plan, meanwhile, is geared to a situation where the entire district would be forced to go to a remote plan.

“When your students are not in school on their cohorts, they will be face-to-face, there will be work that’s done, and that’s what’s pivotal about that Wednesday check-in, because you reteach to the students you’ve seen,” Ferro said. “You can pre-teach or you have the ability to work on things like social-emotional learning, you have the ability to work on things like citizenship, you have the ability to work on things kids need that they might miss in the traditional five days.”

Szymaniak said parents, teachers and administrators alike are all dealing with heightened anxiety over the new school year.

Special ed

Special Education Director Lauren Mathieson said, regardless of what plan is approved for all students, DESE is asking districts to prioritize students with the most complex needs — and try to offer up to full-time services for those students.

“While everyone was affected by being on remote [learning], there is definitely a certain population of our students that was disproportionately affected,” she said. “There are students in this district that just cannot learn on a computer screen.”

Whether because they are either still learning English or have a  learning disability, remote learning harbors obstacles for these students.

Preschool and kindergarten level special needs; learning disabled students who send the majority of their day in a sub-separate program; English language learners; and economically disadvantaged students (on a case-by-case basis) or who may be homeless are all included in the prioritized population.

Lack of internet connectivity is a concern about the last group. School officials are also planning to meet with representatives of the YMCA about potential childcare or virtual learning sites to help families who have to work.

Structures for socially distant cafeteria and gym protocols will also be included.

“The concept of movement in a school is going to be a little bit greater as the child gets older, because that is the makeup of a high school schedule,” Ferro said. “Younger grades, it’s a lot of teachers might have to move from class to class, the cohort stays — except for phys ed or the movement to the cafeteria, which is unavoidable.”

At the high school, principal Dr. Christopher Jones is working on a passing schedule to address concerns.

Facilities

Facilities Director Ernest Sandland outlined how the schools are being cleaned and prepared for the school year, no matter which plan is used.

He said that on July 22, DESE provided “roadmap to an adventure we’ve been on since the kids were out of school,” regarding health of facilities.

“We were pretty much working on those early on,” he said. Repair work on windows at Hanson’s Indian Head and Hanson Middle schools was done last October. Air movement in buildings has been a major concern for DESE.

Mask breaks for students also required designation of an area of the Indian Head playground for that. Entrance controls and isolation space in the nurses’ office at schools have also been created.

HVAC systems, however, are the “magilla we’re looking at right now,” according to Sandland. “Right now the important thing is for us to get air ventilation into those [300-plus district] classrooms.”

On Wednesday, Aug. 19 professionals will be brought in to train staff on touch points and what has to be cleaned during the day when students and staff in the building and a hygienist will test cleaning crews on how well they follow the protocols.

After all the cleaning and ventilation work is done, desks in classrooms will be reconfigured according to physical distancing requirements. Storage will have to be found for extraneous items from classrooms.

Health

Head Nurse Lisa Tobin reviewed protocols for students and staff who either become ill with COVID-19 or symptoms of it, including advising that anyone not feeling well stay home.

“The attendance police are not going to get you,” Szymaniak said.

Adjacent, but separate, rooms are being set aside for children experiencing symptoms in school so they have access to the nurse. Both towns’ boards of health have already done a walk through.

As Tobin has been shifted to a district-wide post to deal with the issues of the pandemic, a replacement, part-time nurse will be appointed at the high school to take care of preschool pupils. Two float nurses will be added to cover when another school’s nurse is absent, as well as a CNA for supervision of the medical waiting rooms

“I would rather have more than less at this point, and if we have to pull back in January, we can pull back,” Szymaniak said. “I don’t want to have a nurse’s office uncovered.”

The commissioner’s office has been concerned about what would happen when a school nurse is absent, he said.

Tobin said that, if a teacher sends a student they suspect is showing COVID symptoms to the nurses office, a nurse will be alerted and can meet the student at the door for an assessment to decide if the student will go into the medical waiting room until they are picked up by a parent.

The student will then be required to see a physician, and if tests positive, contact tracing can be done in that cohort of students. If they test negative, the student may return to school after 24 symptom-free hours. If a family opts against having their child tested, the child must stay home for a two-week quarantine.

Szymaniak said that, like the call made to change graduation plans, the plan accounts for family members potentially spreading COVID in their household and unwittingly compromising other students at the school.

Transportation

Bus drivers will wear masks and will provide adequate masks for children who get on the bus without a mask. Szymaniak also wants to put a monitor on elementary buses to monitor physical distancing.

Buses will be wiped down between runs with a complete disinfection at the end of the day.

HANSON — Voters approved the amendment to the Regional Agreement governing the assessment formula, to fall into line with the vote taken by Whitman Monday, July 27.

They also approved the Selectmen’s recommended school budget 434-83 and the budget as a whole, based on the Selectmen’s recommended budget of $11,214,177 — at Town Moderator Sean Kealy’s motion — after the assessment article passed.

The vote was checked by a hand count after a resident asserted that visitors may have voted.

The town convened its 200th annual Town Meeting — one of the few bicentennial events not cancelled by the coronavirus pandemic — on Wednesday, July 29. There were 518 residents attending.

The outdoor session was held, like Monday’s Whitman Town Meeting, at the ball fields behind Dennis M. O’Brien stadium.

Kealy led the meeting in a moment of silence to all those lost to COVID-19 as well as a round of applause for the health care workers and first responders who cared for those who contracted the virus.

In another concession to the pandemic, Kealy — instead of individual department heads reading articles they have proposed — read all articles into motion with Selectman Matt Dyer making all seconds. Some of the warrants’ more routine articles were combined into one of two consent motions to streamline the outdoor meeting before mosquitoes became a concern after dusk.

Kealy also appointed Barbara Arena as deputy town moderator to help recognize those wishing to speak in the dispersed gathering.

“We have a balanced budget,” said Selectmen Chairman Kenny Mitchell in announcing that the town’s budget would balance even if the school articles passed. “This wasn’t easy at all. This was a combination of the Board of Selectmen, our financial team, FinCom, department heads, Police, Fire, Highway [departments]. Everyone worked up until last night to get a balanced budget.”

There was $1,296,088 available in free cash; $1,311,186 in stabilization; $161,647 in school stabilization; $820,493 in water surplus; $4,205 in recreation retained earnings; and $15,585 in solid waste retained earnings.

School Committee Chairman Bob Hayes echoed Whitman Selectmen Chairman Dr. Carl Kowalski’s analogy of the “Wizard of Oz” and the need to use heads, heart and courage in deciding the school funding issue.

“Tonight we have some tough decisions to make regarding the W-H Regional School District, public education itself and our greatest assets — our children,” Hayes said, noting that Hanson has the fifth-lowest tax levy in the area and fifth-highest in spending on police and fire and lowest spending in education.

He said he had attended Whitman’s Town Meeting and wondering where Kowalski was going with his reference to the 1939 MGM adaptation of L. Frank Baum’s children’s book, “The Wizard of Oz.”

“It takes courage, ladies and gentlemen to make tough decisions, it takes brains to think things through and do what’s best for schools and taxpayers, and you need to have a heart to realize we are all in the education of children together,” Hayes said. He noted that — just as in Whitman, the Finance Committee was unanimously against the article while Selectmen had voted unanimously to recommend it to voters.

“Some people will say that we probably should have got a better deal,” he said. “This is the only deal that is on the table for both of these towns.”

Hayes said a no vote would mean Hanson could lose $570,917 and would be assessed on the statutory formula. He reminded voters that the district is already on a 1/12 budget and faced a Dec. 1 deadline before the state completely takes over the schools if a budget was not approved. The district would lose more than 40 district positions in the interim as the state made its move.

“Class sizes will get larger and difficult to manage and with COVID-19 uncertainty and the future hanging in the balance, this looks pretty bleak for the school system,” Hayes said.

He noted that the assessment formula was adapted with the Education Reform Act in 1993, but the W-H District, for some reason did not.

“Our students are the leaders of our future,” he said. “Please vote yes on this article.”

An amendment was suggested from the floor to amend the article to change wording to split calculations for the statutory assessment cost and per-pupil cost method down the middle as it has been for years, increasing Hanson’s portion by $575,000 for 2021 and a decrease for Whitman in that amount. It was argued that moving to the statutory method alone would cost Hanson an additional $1,150,000 with a corresponding savings for the town of Whitman.

Hayes said that, if the amendment had been approved, the School District and Committee would have to start over again and Whitman would have to approve any change Hanson would make. Failing that, a super town meeting would be required.

“The problem with 1/12 budget is you can’t plan for what you’re going to do for the rest of the year. You need to have a budget in place” said resident Joseph O’Sullivan, noting the concerns of the MTA on the readiness of schools to open on time because of the pandemic.

“The strength of a school system isn’t the building, it’s the teachers,” he said.

Only 1 percent of 10,000 Massachusetts teachers said their schools are fully prepared to open in September; 41 percent said their schools are somewhat prepared and 58 percent said they are not prepared. The MTA has recommended a 10-week delay in school reopening during which time educators would work to “reimagine” what school will look like with distance learning and meeting later on whether to reopen or use a hybrid.

Resident Elizabeth Welch questioned whether Hanson was footing the bill for Whitman students because of the division of student population. Kealy cut short her remarks as off-topic when she began to criticize the quality of individual teachers.

“This is a difficult issue for the town of Hanson, for sure,” said School Committee member Christopher Howard, noting that after the towns make their minimum contribution, the 60-40 split based on student population kicks in. He said Hanson’s School Committee members fought hard to protect Hanson’s interests, before the Education Reform Act proved insurmountable.

“We discovered that all roads lead to statutory,” Howard said, strongly advising against the amendment and approve the original assessment article. “But this compromise helps the town of Hanson.”

Another resident noted that Hanson pays assessments to SST under the statutory formula as one of the eight member towns.

“We’re a partner with Whitman,” said resident Kim McCoy. “The statutory method is the preferred method for the regional school districts funding their schools, the statutory method has been used for years for other partnerships in this town without uproar or problem.”

Resident Jane Durante, who disagreed with the assessment agreement, asked by the Finance Committee voted against recommending the original article.

Finance Committee Chairman Kevin Sullivan said the article cannot be supported by the operating budget.

Resident Frank Melisi, who asked why — amid the concern for budget dollars — that children were not being mentioned.

“I haven’t heard much about the kids,” he said. “Last year’s school year failed our kids, not as the fault of anyone in this school system, the teachers, School Committee or anything like that. It was for unforeseen circumstances.”

He said students do not deserve a second year of having a wasted school year.

Kealy defended his motion for the Selectmen’s budget, as did Town Counsel Kate Feodoroff.

“Town Meeting is full of tradition, for sure, and Hanson’s tradition is normally to go with Finance Committee recommendations, but that’s not necessarily a legal obligation,” she said. “As a matter of fact, the Board of Selectmen are the ones who prepare the warrant so they, under the law, have control of the warrant.”

Both the $10.4 million Finance Committee column, which did not consider the apportionment passed in Article 5, and the Selectmen’s column of figures balanced.

“If we hadn’t passed Article 5, then I would have moved the Finance Committee’s numbers,” Kealy said.

Comments from the floor objected to it as being improper.

“By all means, I’d be happy to go to Superior Court on my own behalf,” said Kealy, who stressed he does not cast votes at Town Meeting.

There was also some discussion during the special Town Meeting concerning private road improvements as residents asked why such work would be done on private roads.

Highway Director Matt Cahill said the five miles of private gravel roads are required by town bylaw to be improved twice a year in the interest of public access and safety.

WHITMAN — Before the business got under way at Whitman’s annual Town Meeting Monday, July 27, Selectmen Chairman Dr. Carl Kowalski likened the task at hand to the lesson of the classic film “The Wizard of Oz.”

The meeting, held outdoors at the JV ball fields at WHRHS due to coronavirus concerns, required the 165 attendees to wear masks and maintain proper social distance.

“It’s a difficult time in this country and in this town and in this state, and it feels like I ought to be introducing a band and this would be a summer concert,” Kowalski said of the unusual setting for the meeting.

He acknowledged that it took courage and commitment for residents to even attend the Town Meeting this year, given the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and the heat emergency conditions of the evening.

Kowalski also said the far-reaching choices to make regarding the regional school district also took the commitment of those attending.

“I have every faith that we’ll weather those storms, as we usually do, and follow the values that were so clearly described in our citizens’ survey last year,” Kowalski said.

He alluded to a statement Finance Committee member Rosemary Connolly made at last week’s meeting regarding following her head and her heart in making budgetary decisions.

“It brought to mind something that has meant a lot to me for over 20 years,” Kowalski said, recalling a reading he came across about managing change, while he was on a sabbatical in Austin, Texas.

“All life has to do with how we manage change, and the key to doing so can be found in “The Wizard of Oz.”

Kowalski recalled his aunt taking him to see the movie when he was 10 years old. He noted how the film’s black and white opening underwent change with a terrible storm into a Technicolor world where she met strange people, including the Scarecrow, Tin Man and Cowardly Lion.

“They all had qualities they were missing that they needed to find,” Kowalski said. “They didn’t think they had it inside themselves [to find those qualities]. They thought that a Wizard could give it to them.”

The film famously exposed the Wizard as a fraud hiding behind a curtain.

“They found out that they had these qualities in themselves,” Kowalski said. “We do, too. Whatever we accomplish tonight, will undoubtedly mean changes in the lives of Whitman citizens, particularly its younger ones.”

He said the meeting would talk it over, but he was convinced the Town Meeting would support the school budget request.

“We have the brains, we have the heart and we have the courage within each of us to do so,” he said. “So let’s tonight, use our heads, follow our hearts and act with courage.”

Kowalski also led the meeting in a round of applause for Town Administrator Frank Lynam, who is planning his retirement, on what may be his final Town Meeting in that office.

The School Committee on Wednesday, July 15 reviewed the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) re-opening guidelines.

“School’s about building relationships,” Superintendent of Schools Jeffrey Szymaniak said during a discussion about the start of work on the 2020-25 strategic plan. “My priority for my kids is to get them back so they feel good about school again — and then start school, and when I say start school, I mean academics.”

The plan is not precisely to “hit the ground running.”

“The opportunity, because of the pandemic, is an opportunity to rethink how we teach kids,” Szymaniak said. “Good, bad and indifferent, it’s given us an opportunity to think way outside the box, and we’ve hit some home runs and we’ve struck out on a few things, but it’s an opportunity to do some things differently.”

Szymaniak said, despite news reports about proposals elsewhere, DESE has been consistent about requiring school districts to develop three different plans for school operations in the fall. The plans are due July 31.

“We’re looking at a full opening,” Szymaniak said. “What a full opening means is yet to be determined. … I don’t know if we have the capacity in the traditional classrooms, even in the gyms and cafeterias to be able to go back full.”

If there is a budget reduction on a 1/12 budget, Szymaniak said he cannot commit to anything full time right now.

All instructional plans will also have to be bargained with the Whitman-Hanson Educational Association, with whom Szymaniak said district officials have a very good collaborative relationship. Any remote learning plans will include a memorandum of understanding on how many hours a day of active learning will be expected.

Social distancing is another concern.

DESE now recommends a social distance of six feet with a minimum of three feet apart in classrooms. That puts and average classroom at a maximum capacity of 23 pupils. If six feet apart is required it is reduced to 12 in a classroom.

“We have no classes that are running at 12 right now,” he said. “Something above 200 sections of high school classes are above 23 right now.”

He stressed school officials can look at every available space in school buildings to have classes, but “that doesn’t mean I’ll have all the teachers I need to fill those classes.”

Teachers have been asked to remove all personal property and items not school-related from classrooms.

“Think of the old 1920s classroom where all you have are rows of desks facing the teacher,” Szymaniak said about the education commissioner’s directive. “No bookshelves, no extra chairs, no extra tables. … That’s what schools going to look like, folks, based on the requirements and recommendations.”

Each school in the district has a COVID-19 building-based team looking at each school’s specific needs, Szymaniak said.

“We have to look at scenarios about how kids enter buildings, how kids get their lunch, how kids go to the bathroom, how kids wash their hands, where their lockers are going to be, if they can use lockers, if there’s transitions,” he said.

“It’s nice to hear we need toworry about the students, but we also have to worry about the staff,” said Hanson School Committee member Hilllary Kniffen, who is a teacher, noting there is not a lot of answers from DESE right now. “I don’ t see a lot of that happening.”

Kniffen also said that students could end up eating lunch in hallways under social distancing guidelines.

“I don’t know how that’s going to be beneficial to a student’s mental health, for one thing,” she said.

Hanson member Christopher Howard also cautioned against forgetting parents and their concerns.

“I am very worried, with everything that’s going on, what that will look like,” he said. “And I also look at it through the lens of an employer.”

Howard said there are a lot of employers talking about bringing people back to the office sometime after the summer, setting up what he called a “perfect storm” of educational priorities and employers’ demands on parents. He said a survey of parents — even if inconclusive — could be helpful in that area.

“This is round peg in a square hole and there’s no direction — and it’s dark outside,” Szymaniak agreed.

Assistant Superintendent George Ferro is the point person on the district-wide planning team with Szymaniak, Special Education Director Lauren Mathieson, Facilities Director Ernest Sandland, lead Nurse Lisa Tobin, teacher union representatives Kevin Kafka and Cindy McGahan, Business Director John Tuffy, Athletics Director Bob Rodgers, Elementary Cirriculum representative Jane Cox, Food Services Director Nadine Doucette, Tech Director Steve Burke, data person Kim Barnard and Karen Villaneuva is representing transportation as well as a person heading up parent and staff surveys and a School Committee member and human resources staff.

“One size does not fit all,” Whitman School Committee member Dan Cullity said of DESE guidelines, especially six-foot distancing, which he said is not doable. “Three-foot is barely going to get us to what we need to do.”

He said the district panel will be key in finding solutions to state mandates.

DESE has dedicated $292,000 to the district for technology and COVID-related expenses. State Sen. Mike Brady, D-Brockton, state Rep. Josh Cutler, D-Pembroke, and Rep. Alyson Sullivan, R-Abington, have committed $200,000 each in appropriations bills before their respective bodies.

“I don’t count those dollars until we get a check,” Szymaniak said of the bills, but noting the district already has the DESE funds in the bank.

Szymaniak also anticipates $855,000 — based on a formula of $225 per pupil — that should be coming to the district from the Plymouth County CARES grant, but it is not an appropriation, it is a reimbursement.

Szymaniak is confident the financial assistance will help the district provide a Chromebook to every student to take home if the district must go to remote learning again. He said teachers should also have a district device to use from home for instruction, as well.

South Shore school superintendents are also discussing various hybrid educational plans.

Hybrid plan options

One is a four-day-a week split-session plan for elementary students in the buildings with Fridays dedicated to virtual learning with only teachers and staff in the building. Another would have half of the elementary students in the building for a full day on Mondays and Tuesdays, the other half on Thursdays and Fridays with Wednesdays as a virtual learning day for all students. Similar plans, with different times, are being discussed for middle school students.

“The high school has a lot of flexibility in how we want to work,” Szymaniak said. “The high school schedule is going to be the toughest to operate, or it may be the easiest.”

At first the commissioner’s guidance indicated students would be expected to stay in classrooms — especially in elementary grades — including lunch, he said in response to a question from School Committee member Christopher Scriven of Whitman. That was adjusted to permit use of the cafeteria for lunch with students staying six feet apart, but he does not see how movement between classes can be avoided in the middle and high schools.

“I anticipate teachers using the outdoor absolutely as much as they can,” Szymaniak said.

He said the main challenge for any hybrid plan is transportation. Split days would require four bus runs, based on safety limits of 24 kids on a bus. The bus company has also said they do not have enough buses for that.

“I can’t afford two bus runs,” he said, noting he would likely do another parent survey on the hybrid options.

Chorus programs might also be affected by guidelines aimed at limiting the particulates into the air.

Szymaniak said the School Committee would be asked to decide which plan to use if a hybrid model is used, because setting a school schedule is one of its charges.

“The health and safety of our children and our staff should be our priority, not the economics of our district,” he said. “To say this is a daunting task — double that, and quadruple that, not having a budget,” he said. Szymaniak said he is budgeting with the assumption that the towns will support the school budget.

If there is no budget by Aug. 1, it “might take a full-time return to school absolutely off the table, and might take hybrid off the table in some respects,” as the district would be faced with staff cuts.

Szymaniak also said he is confident the commissioner of education might support a 177-day school calendar while relaxing time-on-learning requirements.

Parents also have the opportunity to choose fully remote learning at any time during the school year, which is not the same as home schooling.

While some town officials are eager to return to in-person meeting sessions of boards and commissions, others are advocating a more cautious approach.

In Whitman, Selectmen on Tuesday, July 14 voted to change the time of the annual town meeting to 6 p.m., Monday, July 27. It was originally set to begin at 7:30 p.m. on that date.

Town Administrator Frank Lynam said there were two considerations behind the recommendation — it is being held outdoors and lighting is going to be an issue.

Selectman Dan Salvucci asked if the time change would make it difficult for people coming home from work to attend.

Lynam also reported that the transition process of re-opening Town Hall — by appointment only right now — is going well.

“We talked about that with the moderator,” Lynam said. “It may provide some people with a decision as to whether or not they want to leave [work] early to make Town Meeting, but the sense was people have generally been pretty available at that time of night.”

He said concerns of the health and safety of people attending the meeting. The field will be treated that morning by Plymouth County Mosquito Control and mosquito repellant will be made available at check-in tables for people to use.

There has been evidence in the general South Shore area — if not Whitman — for both Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) and West Nile Virus, which prompted the concern.

“It doesn’t seem to make a lot of sense to let it run late into the night when that is the prime time for mosquitos,” Lynam said.

Whitman is participating in Plymouth County’s COVID program and is waiting for confirmation that $235 per student in state funding would be provided to the schools to deal with coronavirus issues.

Hanson Town Administrator John Stanbrook reported to the Board of Selectmen Tuesday, July 7 that he and Health Agent Gil Amado have discussed open meetings of town boards and committees in the Selectmen’s meeting room. Gov. Charlie Baker’s latest guidance is eight people per 1,000 square feet, but deferred the decision to the local boards of health. The Selectmen’s meeting room — at about 700 square feet — could accommodate about six people, Stanbrook said.

Amado, however, said 14 people could safely meet there. Seats would be spaced six feet apart and hand wipes and sanitizer would be made available. Meetings of more than 14 people, including public hearings would be held at Hanson Middle School.

FitzGerald-Kemmett asked how a meeting, that draws an unexpectedly large audience, would pivot. Stanbrook suggested it could possibly be taken outside but he thinks most boards and committees know what issues would likely draw large crowds and can plan accordingly.

Mitchell said he was in favor of getting back to meetings in Town Hall this week, but Dyer and FitzGerald-Kemmett urged holding it at the middle school, if possible, since the Cove opening issue could draw a crowd.

“I don’t feel comfortable being in the Selectmen’s room at this point,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said. “Even if it was just us, I’m not comfortable. I’m not going into the office. … I love you guys and love talking to you — and would love to see you all again someday soon — but I don’t want to be sitting two feet from you in a room.”

She did favor a meeting at HMS.

Town Hall is now open — by appointment only — from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Thursday. The public will be expected to answer COVID-19 related questions before entering the building and must wear masks while there as well as observing social distancing and hand-sanitizing guidelines.

“If you can’t or won’t wear a mask an employee will meet you outside to conduct business,” Stanbrook said. People are still urged to conduct as much business as possible without coming into Town Hall and no cash is being accepted during the appointment-only period.

One glitch that has been discovered is that Google searches for Town Hall do not always bring up thee correct phone number, however. Residents should call 781-293-5186 for fastest service.

Lynam recommended, meanwhile, that a previous board vote to hold a season-opening parade for Whitman Youth Soccer in August be rescinded.

“After discussing with [Fire Chief Timothy] Grenno and the Health Department, they do not feel that it would be prudent to have people gathering in a parade format,” Lynam said.

Selectmen also voted to authorize requests for reimbursement from Plymouth County for COVID-related expenditures. Lynam said Whitman Fire Department has been tracking the expenses and the town accountant is reviewing all requests for appropriateness and documentation.

“What I’m now being told is that money is coming from the COVID funds that each town in Plymouth County is eligible to receive from the $90 million that was granted to Plymouth County,” Lynam said. “I don’t believe it would negatively impact us because we were never in a position to spend the apportionment that would have been available to us based on need. We’re not cutting corners, but we’re not spending just because the money’s there.”

He said he would follow up on the situation and report back to the board.

On Tuesday, July 14, the Hanson board voted to open Cranberry Cove by a 3-2 vote depending on the quality of water and adequate staffing. Selectmen Jim Hickey and Wes Blauss voted no, based on concerns over the impact it could have on the coming school year. Selectmen voted unanimously to approve opening camping at Camp Kiwanee. The Cove could be opened within 48 hours. the board was told.

The Recreation Commission had been asked to restrict access to the cove to Hanson residents, use of a non-cash payment process, strict cleaning protocols, swimming schedules, and escorts to the exits. Water testing results and the availability of adult gatekeepers would also have an effect on opening.

Stanbrook said he continues to receive emails from people asking that Cranberry Cove be opened for swimming.

“Last week we were waiting for the [reopening] plan,” Mitchell said. “We did receive the plan, but it was after our meeting ended.” He reviewed the plan on Wednesday, July 1 and still had questions about it and met at the camp with Recreation Commission Chairman Diane Cohen and Amado on Friday, July 3.

“I’m satisfied with the plan, now that I went down there, [but] there’s one small component I’m waiting for, which I should have by [July 9],” Mitchell said. If he is satisfied with the way that concern is handled, he was willing to place it on the agenda for a vote this week. [See related story].

Blauss said he recently drove to Cranberry Cove.

“It struck me that this is what dire financial straits look like,” he said. “This is visible. There’s going to be a lot of less-visible cutting going on for the public when $1.35 million disappears from our budget. … It cannot be funded adequately, if it cannot be totally supported, the town is not going to be able to afford this no matter what the social distancing guidelines are.”

He also said there would be issued surrounding masks at the Cove.

“There are people in Hanson who will not wear a mask,” Blauss said. “There are people in Hanson who are not worried about their kids and the spread of COVID, and they’re going to show up on the beach.”

It will have ramifications beyond recreation, as well.

“The beach is going to be the place where school in the Whitman-Hanson district, does not open in September, except virtually, because there’s a surge. Because we are not being careful with our kids,” Blauss said.

The Cove has not closed for 80 years, but the impact on the school opening and the town’s need to support the Recreation Budget if it can not stay solvent, are reasons to keep it closed this year.

HANSON — The company opening a marijuana grow facility in town will be conducting another community outreach meeting on their new manufacturing component. The virtual meeting will be heavily promoted on local media beforehand, according to co-owner Ralph Greenberg.

During the Tuesday, July 7 Board of Selectmen meeting, members also addressed the Town Meeting warrant articles, including one to approve the amended W-H Regional School Agreement. They unanimously voted to include the article on the warrant as a placeholder, with the aim of including it as an open-ended discussion that could include a change in School Committee membership to five from each town.

Selectmen will discuss the article again at its Tuesday, July 21 meeting.

The Board of Selectmen on June 30, had voted to conduct a review of an amendment the host community agreement (HCA) with Impressed LLC to include a manufacturing license at 15 Commercial Way for its meeting this week. The board voted to make that approval July 7.

The Cannabis Control Commission has issued guidance about virtual meetings to allow applicants to discuss plans with the community, according to Town Counsel Kate Feodoroff. Accommodation must be made for hearing-impaired viewers and a process must be available for residents to ask questions during the meeting. Only one meeting is required and is planned in about a month.

“Their contention is it will make the business more profitable and, therefore, sustainable — the benefit to the town being that the community impact payment will increase based on their profitability,” Feodoroff said June 30 of the request by co-owners Ali and Ralph Greenberg. Profitability is based on gross sales.

Selectmen had asked the applicants to attend the meeting. While not the technical review that would take place in the permitting process, Feodoroff said Selectmen were seeking information on the general impact to the town. She prepared an amendment to the HCA in case the Selectmen wished to go that route.

Based on her work in other towns, Feodorff said cultivation and manufacturing, which are both passive uses, tend to go hand-in-hand.

Ralph Greenberg said that some of the waste would be used in the manufacturing process, reducing the amount to be disposed of.

“Candidly, the increased revenue — not only for the company, but for the town — is going to be really cool,” he said.

Selectmen Chairman Kenny Mitchell asked how long it would take to get the manufacturing license, which Ralph Greenberg estimated would take as long as the cultivation license has taken. He hopes to have that process concluded by the end of the year.

Feodoroff said the company’s engineers have their plans ready for submission to the Conservation Commission as part of a plan to square off the building.

Ali Greenberg said no equipment could be installed until after local approval and CCC licensing.

Ralph Greenberg said that, with the new cultivation process, the company will be “increasing [the] economic structure by at least 20 percent.” What had been estimated at a $10 million company could see profits of $12 to $15 million business model with a manufacturing component adding an additional 10 percent.

He said a 3 percent impact payment could be $450,000 to the town, with the first payment to the town by the summer of 2021 if not before.

The amendment could take four to five months to move through the process for local approval. The CCC can’t give final approval until all the local approvals are received.

Additional public meetings will be held on the request for a license change.

“We’ll have to do the same process again,” said Ali Greenberg. “We’ll have to do the community outreach, we’ll have to send out the notices, and, usually, with the approval from the town, we can get that done within the month.”

That process would take a few months. Feoodoroff said the CCC has offered guidance for remote community outreach meetings, allowing them to be conducted remotely. That option requires approval from selectmen and the ADA accommodation of closed captioning. The board could not vote on an outreach meeting June 30, because that aspect of the discussion was not posted.

All zoning and conservation approvals would also require public hearings.

Ralph Greenberg also responded to a question from Selectman Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett about a new extraction process prevent waste water from manufacuring process from infringing on nearby wetlands.

He said it involves “heat and pressure and ice and water,” where a lot of manufacturers use ethanol or other chemicals.

“[Chemicals] was never our business model,” he said. “Everything is going to be as organic as possible, based on CCC requirements.”

They said other businesses don’t use the technique because it dilutes the profits.

“The concern for manufacturing is almost erased with our approach,” Ali Greenberg said.

Regional Agreement Amendment

In opening the July 7 discussion on the warrant article, Mitchell said he personally was not intending to tell other selectmen how to think or how to vote.

“Is this the best solution that we wanted? No,” he said. “There were several roadblocks getting here. We didn’t like how we got here, but … this is the best possible deal that we can get right now.”

Selectman Jim Hickey initially said he would not second any motion, but later argued for placing the article for further discussion.

“I’ve stated from the beginning that I was against this,” Hickey said. “I know it is what it is, but I can’t second this motion.”

Hickey said he disagreed with the whole idea that the board would go along with an issue on which the School Committee was split 6 to 4 in Whitman’s favor.

“This is probably one of the most difficult articles that I’ve seen, at least in the three-some odd years that I’ve been on this board,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said. “I don’t like where we’re at.”

She said what could have begun as an “organic conversation” about how both towns discovered the assessment errors and each felt ripped off, and should have led to a more open dialog, became a different conversation.

“If it were a one-time agreement and we were able to go back to the table and talk about a long-term agreement, I probably would be more inclined … but there are some fundamental pieces missing to this that I think are critical to a partnership — which is an open dialog, a conversation of mutual respect and acknowledgement of what this means to each side,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said.

At the same time, FitzGerald-Kemmett reminded the board that three members of Whitman’s Board of Selectmen are also taking a risk in their efforts to find an amicable solution, too.

“There have been partners in Whitman that have stuck their neck out on this,” she said. “I want to acknowledge people on the School Committee as well, who have tried to be good partners. … Don’t we deserve to be able to have a conversation about that and see it all the way through?”

She acknowledged that her comments did not make it clear where she stands, because she feels incredibly conflicted on the issue.

Mitchell said if the warrant article, seeking $500,000 from Hanson, fails at either town meeting, Hanson could be facing a bill for the $10.9 million it would be responsible for with an immediate shift to the statutory agreement with no compromise period.

Selectman Matt Dyer also indicated he could not offer a second to the motion because, while it is financially the most responsible thing to do, he felt it was not responsible to move the article when the public has had no opportunity to give their opinion on the issue.

He said he was open to a 50/50 agreement for this year while the towns negotiated but has felt he has been unheard.

Mitchell countered that the kind of discussion Dyer spoke of is what Town Meeting is for.

“I have no faith that Whitman is going to approve this amendment, either,” said Selectman Wes Blauss.

Hickey said, while he is opposed, the board has an obligation to let the people decide.

“If we don’t vote to put this on the warrant, nobody gets to talk about it,” Hickey said. “I think we have the obligation to the people of Hanson to make sure that it gets placed so that they can talk about it.”

Selectmen in both communities approved 1/12 budgets to continue operations until July Town Meetings can vote on fiscal 2021 municipal budgets.

The effect of the fiscal situation faced by towns, partly as a result of the economic impact of coronavirus, has proven one consideration in Hanson Selectmen’s Tuesday, June 23 decision to keep Cranberry Cove closed for the summer.

Whitman Town Administrator Frank Lynam presented a July budget request of $8,495,517 to the town’s Board of Selectmen on Tuesday. That differed from an earlier request after Plymouth County Retirement increased the town’s assessment by $2,762. Selectmen approved it unanimously.

The entire budget for this year, he noted, is $39,252,492 which will be presented to voters on July 27.

“That money is all paid on the front end in July,” Lynam said. “It will be coming from money we eventually raise, the whole process involves the collection of local receipts and levy. It may well be that we will have to take revenue anticipation notes if we don’t have sufficient cash to cover that before we receive our first tax payments, which will be in July.”

In Hanson, Town Administrator John Stanbrook said Town Accountant Todd Hassett has calculated a 1/12 budget for July of $3,663,407. Hanson Selectmen also voted unanimously on the July budget.

The July budgets must be submitted to the Department of Revenue for approval from its director of accounts.

COVID concerns

On the COVID-19 front, Lynam said his biggest concern is the ability to return to normal operations as the town awaits delivery on a temperature sensor system ordered by Fire Chief Timothy Grenno. The temperatures of all people will be assessed as they entered Town Hall.

“We have not had any issues yet,” Lynam said. “I would like to return to full staff in the Town Hall, and once we have the ability to do that, I’ll ask the board to authorize returning to full staff.”

The Treasurer/Collector’s office is already fully staffed as Whitman approaches month and year-end financial deadlines. Staff is properly physically separated in the office.

Assistant Town Administrator Lisa Green reported that she has spoken to all the Washington Street restaurant owners about Selectman Randy LaMattina’s suggestion to close the town center for outdoor dining on Saturday evenings. However, Napoli Pizza was the only business expressing any interest in the idea.

“The other business owners, although they appreciate the gesture, said at this point in time, with the resources that they would have to spend to make that happen, it really just is not feasible for them at this point,” she said.

Most eateries were focusing on bringing back staff for reopening for indoor dining.

“But they all thought it was a good idea,” she said.

LaMattina said he anticipated that reaction and urged the public to have patience with businesses as they start to reopen.

No swimming

In Hanson, meanwhile Selectmen voted to reopen town fields and parks, subject to social distancing regulations, but voted 4-1 against reopening Camp Kiwanee or Cranberry Cove for swimming this summer. Selectman Matt Dyer voted to open the Cove.

Health Board Chairman Arlene Dias said Health Agent Gil Amado had issued a letter June 2 with his recommendations after meeting with Recreation Director William Boyle.

New recommendations for coastal and inland beaches were not available until June 4.

“There’s been some talk about the Cove being an enclosed space, which it is not,” Dias said. “It safely could open with distancing following the orders that were appropriate for it.”

But three of the Selectmen were concerned about the financial impact as well as public safety concerns over opening the popular beach this summer.

“My understanding as that a lot of the discussion at the Recreation Commission meeting was really — regardless of that interpretation, which I’m not saying is not important — a fundamental question of do we feel … we are able to safely open down at the Cranberry Cove?” said Selectmen Chairman Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett. Her concern was over teenage staffers being confronted by angry patrons for trying to enforce coronavirus safety regulations at the beach.

There are 10-15 people — from the same household — permitted per spot.

“Right off the bat, you’re going to have people saying they’re from the same household, where they’re actually not from the same household,” said Recreation Commission member John Zucco “And then you’ll have situations where people will be in the water … drooling in the water, spitting in the water, it’s not an ocean where the water’s coming in and out all the time, cleansing itself.”

He also foresees problems with teen lifeguards being challenged on distancing enforcement.

“This is going to go on all day,” Zucco said.

Recreation Commission Chairman Diane Cohen, meanwhile said she doubted that behavior at the Cove would be any different than it has ever been.

“Every person will be handed a copy of the regulations that are going into effect regarding social distancing,” she said. “I don’t anticipate a problem in the parking lot as well … I think the people of Hanson are mature enough and can handle it.”

She also said the pond, a spring-fed and frequently tested body of water, is not the “germ fest” Zucco’s concerns indicated.

Zucco said he restrooms will also require sign-in logs to permit contact tracing if there is an exposure from a guest at the Cove.

The bathroom would also have to be cleaned with electrostatic spraying if an exposure happened.

“You have to have proper spacing … you’ve got to eliminate touch points,” he said noting that refitting restrooms with touchless toilet flushing, sinks and hand sanitizer dispensers is expensive.

“We can open the Cove without opening the bathrooms,” Cohen countered.

Amado, however, said he has concerns about social distancing at the Cove that would argue against opening.

“I think we’re in a weird place here, where we’ve got a commission divided, we’ve got a health agent who feels it’s not in the best safety and public health concerns,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said.

Cohen also questioned the town’s liability for an accident if people trespass at the Cove.

Town Counsel Kate Feodoroff said that Hanson, to be cohesive, should also monitor its Cove parking lot and echoed Amado’s concerns about the bathrooms and who would monitor the proper cleaning of the facilities.

“There are always loopholes for everything,” she said of Cohen’s concern about liability. “This is a nationwide problem and some people are saying do it at your own risk … We’re the managers of our town and we have a responsibility to ensure that the system and the areas that we allow people to go to that are under our governance are sufficiently secure to protect them.”

Amado also pointed out that the nearby Rainbow Camp — which has operated for about 40 to 50 years — has closed for this summer for the first time.

“I will note Whitman made the very tough decision not to open up their town pool,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said. “That’s like an institution in Whitman.”

Other beach areas in Pembroke are open, Cohen argued.

Hanson Selectmen were also divided on the issue of opening the Cove.

“My personal thought is, I think we can open it,” said Selectman Matt Dyer, who has spoken with Recreation Commission members about it. “They have a plan in place. Last time that they were here, they didn’t have a plan.”

He argued that, since the board’s mantra for the past four months has been to follow the governor.

“The governor has opened up DCR parks, ponds, and swimming areas,” he said. “Camp Kiwanee is a cooling center, it’s a public health thing where heat waves kill more people than any other natural disaster, so I think we need to make sure we open this up so we have a relief area.”

Selectman Kenny Mitchell said he was fine with opening the Cove so long as social distancing was observed, but he is worried about the financial impact.

Selectman Jim Hickey opposed opening.

“In no scenario does the Cove make money,” he said. “My real concern is that COVID-19 could spread from Cranberry Cove being open.”

Selectman Wes Blauss agreed on the fiscal concerns, but also expressed dismay that a Recreation Commission member told a friend of his that the Board of Selectmen is “out to get” the Recreation Commission.

“That is so not true,” he said. “We’re trying to look out for the best interests of the town and whether we split our vote, like the Recreation Commission just has … the parking lot is as big a problem as the beach … you’re going to need the lifeguards, then we’re going to need someone whose basically washing down the bathroom after every use. It just goes on and on.”

Cohen said she understood the challenges facing the town and applauded Selectmen’s diligence in trying to make the right decision.

“I thank you for listening,” she said.

WHITMAN — Town officials are looking into a weekly block-off of the streets in Whitman Center to help downtown eateries whose businesses have been impacted by coronavirus safety closedown, as the reopening phases begin.

Hanson, meanwhile, has fewer restaurants that need or have the safe location to provide outdoor dining, some town officials said during their Tuesday, June 9 meeting.

“Obviously, a lot of our restaurants have been severely affected by this,” said Selectman Randy LaMattina at Whitman’s June 9 meeting, and suggested having Assistant Town Administrator Lisa Green look into perhaps closing the center down one day a week to permit restaurants in that area to expand outdoors a bit within the governor’s guidelines.

Board members were enthusiastic about the idea.

“Randy, you hit a home run on that one,” said Selectmen Chairman Dr. Carl Kowalski.

“This could turn into something very positive and maybe keep going even after everything has gone back to whatever normal will be,” said Selectman Brian Bezanson. “This could maybe change the downtown area for the positive.”

Green noted that it has been in the news that some other towns have done that.

“It’s worked out very well,” she said.

“Let’s get that ball rolling,” Kowalski said.

The discussion followed approval of a Common Victualler’s license for Old Colony Brewing, as well as a request to expand the business for outdoor seating at its location, 605 Bedford St.

Co-owner Dennis Nash joined the board’s virtual meeting June 9 to outline his plan, which includes three parking spaces on the side of the building where owner Richard Rosen has granted permission for the business to place outdoor seating, if approved.

“I sent a list of the safety protocols that we would put in place to open, with a maximum number of 24 people there — probably more like 16 at a time — with reservations and 45-minute intervals,” Nash said. A 15-minute cleaning would take place between reservations.

Nash said the plan was devised according to recommendations in Gov. Charlie Baker’s June 1 order as well as a consultation with Health Inspector Alexis Andrews.

“In order to offer outside service, he must also offer food, and that’s the reason for the application for the Common Victualler [license],” said Town Administrator Frank Lynam.

A dozen other licensees were also approved, according to Gov. Baker’s June 1 order, at the request of Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission Executive Director Ralph Sacramone.

Lynam said the intent is to allow a quick response to other business owners seeking to do that while boards may be meeting infrequently.

Selectman Justin Evans asked if Old Colony Brewing was the only business seeking the permit that does not already serve food.

“You have to serve food and it has to be prepared on the premises,” Lynam said. “It can’t be a snack truck driving in.”

Any other establishment that, like Old Colony Brewing does not already have a Common Victualler license for serving food, must also come in — as Nash did — to apply for that license.

Selectman Dan Salvucci asked if handicapped accessibility laws would be relaxed for businesses eyeing sidewalk space for outdoor seating.

“No,” Lynam said. “ADA is a federal law. There has to be sufficient room for the public to travel [through], and most of these are not going to be sidewalk. They’re going to be parking lot or side aisle-like locations.”

Hanson’s Health Board Chairman Arlene Dias and Town Counsel Kate Feodoroff met via video conference June 9 to discuss the outdoor dining provisions for Hanson.

“At this point, it looks like the biggest impact we’re going to have is Phase 2 Part 2, which I am assuming is going to be the 29th,” Dias said. “I don’t think we have a lot of restaurants that have the capacity to do outside seating.”

The Hitching Post on Route 58 and The Meadow Brook on Route 27 already have or are planning outdoor seating, but Mo’s Place also has picnic tables roped off in the front parking lot along Route 27 for the breakfast/lunch eatery’s customers. Connie’s, located in Indian Head Plaza on Route 27 has indicated to FitzGerald-Kemmett that they have always offered outdoor seating.

Dias said more businesses will open and, while “it’s not fast enough for some people” she has to make sure the town’s number of COVID-19 cases does not go up from too many people congregating.

“I would think, as a board, we’d want to support our local restaurants by pushing the envelope a little because, for this particular phase, where they’ve had their dining rooms shut down, some have continued to do take-out throughout the pandemic, but some have not,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said. “Now we’re at a juncture where we’re able to support these small businesses.”

She asked Feodoroff what kind of power the board has to try to get local restaurants back on their feet.

Feodoroff said Gov. Baker’s order is broad and there is legislation pending to create flexibility where towns were given none.

Zoning issues can crop up when business use part of the parking area for outdoor dining, which can be waived through a streamlined application process without triggering public hearings normally triggered under the Ch. 40-A zoning act. Liquor licenses normally carry similar application requirements.

She said Board of Selectmen policies would have to be enacted to govern the situation, governing hours and ensuring the ADA requirements are not violated.

Feodoroff said the liquor accommodations can last into November when the governor would likely rescind his order. Once a policy is created a single individual can be assigned to approve outdoor dining plans, but the liquor controls are more involved.

She also stressed, as Lynam had, that outdoor dining at bars require on-premise food preparations. For businesses opting to put up a tent in the event of rain, the tents must be open on at least two sides, or it defeats the purpose of outdoor dining.

Restaurants selling liquor have to follow ABCC regulations for patio spaces to ensure customer safety as they dine in what is normally a parking lot.

Building Inspector Robert Curran suggested requiring a site plan filed with the Selectmen who should be accommodating in scheduling meetings. The police chief would be involved in the event there were any safety concerns.

Blauss moved that Town Administrator John Stanbrook be named to facilitate outdoor dining permits according to state regulations.