Mayor questions current format of city government

Date: 8/10/2010

Aug. 11, 2010

By G. Michael Dobbs

Managing Editor

CHICOPEE -- Mayor Michael Bissonnette answered questions from School Committee members concerning published reports that he is advocating for a smaller school committee. He made his comments during the briefing period before the school committee meeting on Aug. 4.

Bissonnette explained his remarks came out of a much broader discussion about changing key aspects of the city's government.

Bissonnette did admit he is "of two minds" concerning whether in the future the School Committee should continue being elected by the voters or become a body appointed by the mayor.

The City Council has been discussing a measure to go to a four-year term and Bissonnette supports the extension of all elected municipal terms to four years. He also believes that positions that are elected, but do not form policy -- such as the assessors -- should be made into appointed positions.

He would target 2015 as the year for some major changes due to upcoming retirements, he said. He would like to see the treasurer and collector positions combined into one job at that time.

He also believes the city could be well served by realigning the present nine wards into seven, therefore eliminating two city councilors and two school committee members.

In comparison, Boston, the state's largest school district, has a school committee of seven members who serve staggered four-year terms and are appointed by the mayor.

Changes such as he is discussing "goes back to when [Chicopee] was a very small community," Bissonnette said.

He said he "declined the idea of charter reform" because he is concerned that voters might reject a complete revamping of the charter. Instead of seeking to write a new charter, Bissonnette is having interns from Western New England College go through the charter to make stylistic changes to the language as well as suggest legal changes that would update the document.

The mayor noted the charter sets up positions that are antiquated such as the city marshal and the overseer of the poor.

He understood initial concerns about the discussion regarding decreasing the number of School Committee members.

"Of course the School Committee is opposed to it," he said. He added he wouldn't like someone advocating the elimination of the position of mayor.

None of the elements of change he is discussing is formal.

"None of this written into a proposal yet," he explained.

The School Committee will have a discussion of possible changes to its structure at its meeting on Sept. 1.