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Date: 11/18/2021
EAST LONGMEADOW – Outgoing East Longmeadow Town Manager Mary McNally agreed to extend the period before her resignation from Dec. 3 to Jan. 3, 2022. At the Town Council meeting on Nov. 9, Town Council President Michael Kane told his colleagues that McNally, who is resigning due to the alleged abusive behavior of one councilor, wants the council to enforce a charter provision that requires councilors to give the town manager and department heads five days’ notice on any information they will be asking about in a council meeting.
“Adherence to this rule is meant to professionalize the conduct and demeanor that has been demonstrated, or not been demonstrated, in the past toward me and to the department heads in general,” McNally told the council. She went on to say it prevents “attacks” from anyone seeking to put the town manager on insecure footing. “It’s no fun to do your best and then have somebody effectively lie in wait for the camera to go on and think that they’ve got you in a gotcha moment.”
Kane said that he would enforce the rule. He said McNally staying until January will allow the town to avoid an interim manager and the ad for a full-time manager has already gone out.
Councilor Connor O’Shea told Kane he was concerned that January would not provide enough time to find someone to fill the position. While he acknowledged the cost of hiring a search firm, he said it would add transparency to the process.
Council member Marilyn Richards agreed. She said a search firm would take the politics out of the search since the council wouldn’t be involved.
Human Resources Manager Joan Iwanicki opined that it was beneficial to conduct a local search before a national one, which is what search firms provide. She offered any tools and resources she could provide for the search.
A letter from two residents was read into the public record that called on the council to publicly address the issues behind McNally’s impending departure. The residents said that the information provided to date had been “wholly inadequate.”
Kane said, “The majority of our council support and help our manager on a day-to-day basis, we feel, without overstepping our boundaries. Mary’s leaving for one reason and one reason only.” McNally stated in her resignation letter in October that she was leaving because of abusive behavior by one sitting councilor.
Kane went on to explain, “Disciplinary action can be very difficult when it comes to our own council. We’re very limited with what we can do.” The only two recourses for removal of a councilor are resignation or a citizen’s recall. However, he stated the council would be adopting a code of conduct for councilors.
Richards read language that she proposed be added to the code of conduct, “At no time shall a councilor or councilors engage in confrontational discussions with a town manager/department head regarding information that has not been submitted in writing to the town manager.” She said that she had seen this behavior twice and that it was the reason behind McNally’s resignation.
Richards spoke about the resources and time being taken up by the controversy around McNally’s resignation. She shared that a Freedom of Information Act request had been submitted for emails and text messages containing the words “O’Connor,” “Tom,” “resignation” or “behavior” from herself, McNally, Kane, Councilor Kathleen Hill and Clerk of the Council Jeanne Quaglietti. She said the work to accommodate the request was costing the town money. She also noted Councilor Thomas O’Connor, who was not at the Nov. 9 meeting, had filed an Open Meeting Law violation against the council.
“We really need to get past this,” Richards said, adding that there were many important matters before the council.
Tax Classification
The Board of Assessors (BOA) met jointly with the council to present options for the tax classification. “Overall, residential values went up 6 percent,” said BOA Chair Martin Grudgen. He gave an example of a house assessed for between $200,00 and $300,000 that sold for $385,000. “That’s how the housing market has been,” he said.
“The good news is we’re projected for a lower tax rate,” Grudgen said.
Director of Assessing Diane Bishop crunched the numbers for the council. The fiscal year 2021 tax levy was $46.1 million. There has been $530,000 in new tax growth for the year and the 2.5 percent levy allows for an additional $1.1 million in spending. With $283,000 in debt exclusions added into the equation, the town’s new levy limit is $48.1 million. That is the maximum budget that can be appropriated, although Bishop noted the actual budget will be more conservative than that, which saves taxpayers money.
The council was given an option of a single tax rate, which it has historically used, or shifting the burden to commercial, industrial and personal property (CIP) owners. Bishop said a single tax classification would yield a rate of $20.34 per $1,000 of assessed property value. This is a drop from the current rate of $21.06. The average homeowner will see an increase of just $153 and the average commercial or industrial property owner will see a decrease of $503.
Were the town to shift the tax burden to CIP properties by the full 50 percent allowed by law, the residential rate would drop to $18.28 and CPI would increase to $30.51/ per $1,000 of value. While residential property owners would save about $644 on their tax bill, CIP property owners would pay and additional $8,063 on average.
The council voted unanimously to accept the single tax rate without shifting the tax burden between classifications or between groups within the classifications. Councilor Don Anderson noted, “East Longmeadow has historically been pro-business tax-wise.”
In other financial news, Finance Director/Town Accountant Stephen Lonergan informed the council that the town’s free cash stands at $5 million and the town has spent 24 percent of its budget, keeping in line with the end of the first quarter of the budget year. Lonergan said the health of the town’s finances was a “testament” to McNally’s leadership.
Manager’s Report
In McNally’s town manager’s report, she said the Eastern Hampden Veterans District was still waiting on paperwork from the state that would allow Veterans Service Officer Michelle Barrett to access Veterans Administration claim processing software. McNally said she has been “advocating” for the access since Labor Day and recently spoke to state Rep. Angelo Puppolo who is helping to expedite the process.
The council approved a five-year contract with Casella Waste Management for the town’s solid waste hauling.
The police station feasibility study came back with estimates of $4.7 million to renovate the building and $8.8 for new construction.
Benefits Coordinator Corrine Tranghese has submitted her resignation. After conducting an exit interview, McNally said part of the reason Tranghese is leaving is because of the “upheaval that has occurred throughout her tenure. Several human resource directors have come and gone and there have been gaps in filling the position.
Director of Planning and Community Development Bethany Yeo is also leaving the town’s employ. She will be changing careers and going into nursing, McNally said. Yeo was recently nominated for an industry award for her work as director in East Longmeadow.