Cabrera files petition for Special Town Meeting

Date: 1/3/2012

Jan. 2, 2012

By Chris Maza

Reminder Assistant Editor

EAST LONGMEADOW — Adding another twist to the drawn-out story of the proposed East Longmeadow High School athletic field lighting project, School Committee member Joseph Cabrera will bring his petition for a Special Town Meeting before the Board of Selectmen on Jan. 3.

“Joe Cabrera is presenting a petition for a Special Town Meeting in order to fund the lighting for the field with a transfer of funds from free cash,” Board of Selectmen Chair James Driscoll said.

Cabrera had originally been scheduled to present the petition at a prior meeting, but a matter of procedure forced the delay.

“He submitted the signatures improperly,” Driscoll said. “So he got a bunch more signatures so he could resubmit the petition.”

Cabrera, who also called into question the School Committee’s practices in regards to funding other aspects of the athletic field and track upgrades, has been a proponent of taking the issue of the lighting project before the town, stating that while he believes the lighting upgrade should be done, if the town wasn’t behind the project, the School Committee should not do it.

He asserted at the committee’s Oct. 24, 2011 meeting that if the children who most directly benefit from the upgrades collected the signatures and explained the need for the improvements, it is likely residents would support the project.

In addition to stating that athletes playing at the highest level of high school athletics deserve to play under the lights, Cabrera has also cited significant drops in attendance for sporting events played during the day that normally would take place at night. The low turnout, in turn, has spelled a dramatic decrease in sports-related revenue for the district.

Meanwhile, the School Committee has been exploring various funding options for the lighting.

The committee recently added the field lighting, with a potential price tag of $115,000, to the list of potential capital projects it provided to the Capital Planning Commission in anticipation of a possible Annual Town Meeting warrant article and has also looked into leasing the lighting equipment or including the lighting in a solar energy initiative presented by Driscoll.

Superintendent Gordon Smith informed the School Committee on Nov. 21, 2011 that leasing the equipment would not be possible due to interpretations of the law. Smith said that while he was under the impression that such an agreement would be legal under Chapter 30B of Massachusetts General Law, discussions with the Department of Revenue resulted in a different interpretation because the lights would become part of a permanent structure and therefore would fall under Chapter 30, Section 39M, which does not allow multi-year leases.

The same day, Driscoll, who also serves as chair of the Green Committee, presented an option that would add the field lighting to the committee’s upcoming request for proposals (RFP) for photovoltaic arrays.

Since that meeting, Driscoll told Reminder Publications that the Green Committee determined the RFP could not be finished prior to the end of the 2011 calendar year as initially hoped, but said an RFP is still being pursued.

“I know the School Committee’s concern was having the lights ready in time for fall sports and there is no danger of that not happening,” he said.

Calls to Cabrera and School Committee Chair Gregory Thompson were not returned as of press time.