Select Board Meeting Minutes 7/13/22

Minutes of the meeting of 7/13/22

Meeting Opened at: 6pm

Select Board Members Present: Justin Makuc, Chair and Susan Cooper

Also present: Lucy Prashkar, Jake Eberwein, Mickey Jervas, Frank Cody, Don Coburn, Chris Andrews, Gerry Clarin, Kim Jeffries, Laura Rodriguez, Nadia Makuc, David Myers, Shawn Tryon, Carly Detterman, Tika Snyder

Also present remotely: Michele Miller, Frank Abbott, Tom Ryan, Jon Sylbert, Tika Snyder, Mary Makuc

6pm: Meet with Lucy Prashkar and Jake Eberwein of the 8 Town Regional School District Planning Board to discuss the summary update. Lucy noted that all the information is also available on their website. Lucy provided a history of the committee which has been active for just a little over two years and it consists of eight school committee representatives as well as members of each community. The statutory mandate was to determine the financial and educational viability of further regionalization of two school districts. The committee is a study group and has no legislative ability, the eight towns have the ultimate power to approve or deny any proposals. Lucy then went on to summarize the committee’s process and findings that led to their ultimate recommendation. The full summary report is available at www.8towns.org

Susan inquired if there was any commonality with the six that voted against: Some expressed a desire to spend more time talking about the models, more time for deliberation, concerns about how the change would impact high school students and a variety of other reasons.

The student transportation impact study is still in process and a report is not yet available. The committee is also laying the groundwork for a new regional agreement that could be presented to towns as early as the spring. Items to be considered would be assessment methodology and committee make up. The reason to vote on this in May is because the new high school to be built (which is going forward whether the regionalization is approved or not) needs to be sized appropriately for the larger population (eight towns versus three towns). If the residents want to merge and build a new high school together, the towns need to get in on the ground floor of the design and visioning of the new building to meet the MSBA (Massachusetts School Building Association) timeline for the funding that is being applied for.

Justin thought it was unfortunate to have a decision moved along more quickly than it should be just because of the poor condition of the Monument Mountain high school. Projected cost of the new building ranges from $76 - $96 million based on varying assumptions.  The committee is using $100 million as their estimate and it includes vocational classrooms and education. If the preferred model is accepted, the Board recommends that Mt Everett campus would be used for the 6^th – 8^th graders. Justin was concerned with the lack of a clear plan for the Mt Everett High School building which is fairly new and in excellent condition, and he did not want to see the building go to waste if the preferred model is carried out. , which is a building in excellent repair.The committee could see other repurposing programs offered there which could include things such as alternative education or adult education.  Susan pointed out that Berkshire Hills school district currently has two public buildings that were never repurposed, and are in fact both now derelict.

Susan pointed out that regionalization savings typically come from closing buildings or cutting staff – none of which are being proposed, where is the savings? Jake acknowledged that this is what data supports. The $1 ½ to 2.1 million in estimated savings from this proposal would come from central office functions that will be combined and redundancies eliminated. Susan pointed out that this modest savings would be offset by the capital costs, and are a tiny fraction of the operating budget.

The committee is proposing a 90/10 split between the three and five towns respectively. Furthermore, Monterey’s portion of the estimated annual debt service would be $49,460, a modest amount considering all that Monterey would be getting educationally. Monterey would still see a net savings.

Justin asked if the recommended model would terminate administrative staff from a district. Jake explained that the process should roll out in a slow enough way that attrition will occur and other positions may become available and it should play out naturally in the 3-5 years this would take to implement, but if it does not, then positions will be cut and those employees will be terminated. Jake also noted that Berkshire Hills currently has several vacancies they have been unable to fill.

Lucy explained that Select Boards will be required under statute to put it to the town voters once recommended. Each town would then have to vote yes to be a part of the agreement. It might be possible to move forward if only 7 towns voted yes, but amendments would have to be made with additional votes. If Sheffield or GB don’t want to do it, it will be dead in the water as there would not be enough students to support the model.

Public and parent involvement: Susan is concerned that holding only online meetings was not sufficient outreach to communities, taxpayers and parents. She feels that for this plan to be successful there needs to be much more outreach to ensure that the public fully understands the proposal and feels as though they have been given sufficient voice in the process. Laura Rodriguez is on the outreach committee and the committee agrees and is open to suggestions on how best to do this.

Frank Cody a member of the research team said he is 90% sure Berkshire Hills will be building a school with vocational programs and if Monterey does not approve the merger any students that would want to participate in the vocational programs would need to pay $20k per student per year. Susan said that the studies she has read said that the more successful CVTE programs in the state have more than 1500 students.

Carly Detterman said that she has a child in each district and she is excited about the idea and thinks it’s great that kids will have more opportunities. Tika Snyder asked for clarification on the school choice assessments. Tika also wanted to know if any of the other models were still a possibility or is this the only option.  School committees could start collaboration talks now without any town meeting votes.

7:45pm:

1. A motion was made to make the following FY23 appointments. The motion was seconded and unanimously approved.  Justin has not found anyone interested in the ADA Coordinator’s position.

1. Town counsel contact form and policy was tabled.
2. A motion was made to approve the Police Chief’s contract.  The motion was seconded and unanimously approved.
3. Town Administrator Items:
   1. A motion was made to approve the following internal transfers; $21.71 from snow & ice to public lighting and $1,667.50 from planning board expenses to legal.  The motion was seconded and unanimously approved.
   2. Sexual harassment draft updated policy was tabled to allow the new Human Resource Director time to review it.
   3. A motion was made to accept and sign the rigid materials contract renewal.  The motion was seconded and unanimously approved.
   4. A motion was made to appoint Tim Deming as a Transfer Station attendant. The motion was seconded and unanimously approved. The Board also briefly discussed the changes being made to the Transfer Station staffing schedule to alleviate some small issues.
   5. Treasurer contract renewal was tabled pending Treasurer review of suggested changes.
4. Select Board secretary position, resumes received – 2 resumes received – one listed Lazan, Glover as a previous job and Susan reached out to Alexandra Glover. Justin will work with Melissa to set up the interviews.
5. Review time off request policy and make up time policy with Human Resources Director tabled to next week.
6. Discuss protocol for submission of signature papers, nomination papers, and citizen petitions: Justin’s general understanding is that the Clerk or an election worker is present for an hour or two prior to the deadline for submittal. Justin will follow up with the Clerk to make sure she is posting office hours for those critical deadlines so that the public knows that their documents will be received. Susan would like to see the Clerk swear in the new Selectperson at the beginning of the first meeting. Justin does think that the practice of having a meeting the day after an election should be rethought, but agreed that a public swearing in might be a good tradition.
7. Discuss establishing Select Board office hours – Justin has been thinking about this for a while and thought this was a good a time as any to propose it.  Melissa noted that this was tried in the past with previous boards but always fizzled. The Board would like to take additional time to consider this.
8. Gerry Clarin of the Parks Commission would like financial or physical aid to maintain the ballfield. A contractor has estimated $5,000. Parents are complaining. Gerry reported that Gary O’Brien has walked away as he does not have the staff. Justin postponed further deliberations and any decisions to next meeting as it was not on the agenda for this evening. The Board needs a clear explanation of what the Parks is looking for.
9. Special Event Permit request for the Bidwell House – this was tabled to next week as the applicant is missing some of the required items.
10. Review mail & correspondence received or to be sent:
    1. Chris Blair appearance of conflict of interest disclosure
    2. Updates from Town Counsel regarding special municipal employees, volunteer labor, parking at the Town beach. Justin just received something about parking at the town beach and will forward it to the parks commission, as they are responsible for that item. The Board and the Town Administrator will review what positions are currently designated as special municipal employees and what might be included in that designation going forward.
11. Susan asked about chairs posting their own minutes.
12. A motion was made to approve the edited minutes of 7/6/22.  The motion was seconded and unanimously approved.
13. Comments & questions from the public - none

A motion was made and unanimously approved to adjourn the meeting at: 8:50pm

Submitted by:

Melissa Noe, Town Administrator

Approved by:

Monterey Select Board

cc: Website (www.montereyma.gov)

Select Board Members

Minutes Book

Town Clerk

Any documents used in the meeting are listed below and are available by request at town hall.

1. 8 Town Regional School District Planning Board Summary Update Report available at www.8towns.org
2. Town counsel contact form and policy
3. Police Chief’s contract
4. Sexual harassment draft updated policy
5. Rigid contract renewal
6. Treasurer contract renewal
7. Chris Blair appearance of conflict of interest disclosure