HANSON – The October special Town Meeting ballot will include a space-saver article addressing a potential change in school transportation costs.” Town Administrator Lisa Green said.
The town will seek some guidance on the issue before its Tuesday, Aug. 29 meeting.
“We’re going to have to figure out transportation,” she said of the need to transport a student to Norfolk County Agricultural High School. “I need to fashion an article that’s going to provide that extra money. … This is going to cost the town about $54,000.”
Select Board Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett asked if Green has checked with legal counsel as to whether the agreement in question with the school in question includes busing.
“Did I not read that there was an article for out-of-district busing thoroughly being contemplated by the legislative body?” FitzGerald-Kemmett asked.
Green said she didn’t know if it would happen in time, before the beginning of the school year on Aug. 30.
“I want to bring to the board’s attention a situation that came to light today,” Green said during the Tuesday, Aug. 15 meeting. “It has to do with transportation for a student.”
“That’s a lot of money,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said. Initially hesitant to entertain the issue, she asked if it pertained to the Town Meeting warrant.
“Information was brought to my attention today regarding additional money that we’re most likely going to have to expend on transportation per student,” Green said, explaining there had been an issue pertaining to the town having to pay transportation costs for one new student from one new location to the school.
“It was brought to my attention today that the situation continues” she said. It leaves the town in a situation of having to figure out student transportation and where the money is going to come from. She said she needed time to write the article that is aimed at proving that need while she works with the town accountant to prove the need for it.
“I did make a call to DESE (the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education),” regarding what we can do regarding the situation,” Green said. She was expecting a call back from them.”
Town Accountant Eric Kinsherf said that when the numbers become known they can be entered into the agricultural line item.
“I’m curious,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said. “I’m seeing a lot of money articles in the warrant, and I’m curious as to whether you think if we have the money to pay for all of these?”
Kinsherf said he didn’t at that time, as he is in the process of closing the books. He said he would know more when he got an initial look at free cash.
“It just struck me as a lot of money for an October Town Meeting,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said to the agreement of other board members.
Maquan Street
The town has receive some good financial news recently.
Green announced that, thanks to the efforts of Hanson’s state Rep. Josh Cutler, D-Duxbury, and state Sen. Michael Brady, D-Brockton, a fiscal 2024 budget earmark of $100,000 has been received to finance a subsurface enginering work on a water pipe below the road surface – which had delayed progress on the road work being funded through the MassDOT Transportation Improvement Project (TIP) program.
The subsurface work is required because of where the pipe, which supplies water to Abington and Rockland is located. Those communities were not interested in joining Hanson in having the engineering evaluation done, Green said.
“That was huge,” she said. “So a very big thank you to our legislators for helping us obtain this money.”
“Fortunately, our legislative partners stepped in and put in for an earmark of $100,000 and the governor just signed that budget, including the $100,000,” she said.
That engineering study can provide the town the green light to move forward on the $13 million road project funded by state grants.
A $90,000 grant,provided by the Mass. One Stop for Growth program and applied for by Planner Anthoney DeFrais, has been received by the town to begin engineering work on the pedestrian improvements at the Hanson Commuter Rail station on Main Street/Route 27.
