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Date: 4/17/2023
HADLEY — With a focus on the future of the Russell School, the Hadley Select Board and Finance Committee met on April 12 to discuss potential changes to warrant articles 18 and 19 ahead of Town meeting on May 4.
Town Administrator Carolyn Brennan updated the board on the latest actions, including a meeting with the consultant on the Russell School issue and the future of both articles. Article 18 is a request for $30,000 from Community Preservation Act funds for a feasibility study while Article 19 is the request for building stabilization. The money for that work, totaling $1,236,000, would come from the CPA set aside and general funds.
Brennan indicated to the board that she expected the two articles to become combined.
“I anticipate that we will see that be merged in a sense, it would be one article, having the feasibility be the primary with the hope of the CPA approving the feasibility study,” she said.
Board members went on to discuss having a direct meeting with the Russell School Committee to clarify the language in the article before the request is made to the CPA committee. That meeting had not been scheduled as of press time.
The Russell School Committee also met on April 13 to address language used in the articles.
Chair Courtney Meyer suggested reaching out to Selectboard members on those proposed changes.
Member Dan Regish said that while the Selectboard is getting feedback about what comes after the building is stabilized, the committee has already completed a survey with feedback from residents.
“As much as they want to say, 'This is the number one question we’re getting is, what’s going to happen after the stabilization?,'” Regish said. "Where's their survey? We did a survey and surveyed all these people, and we know what the people want, that's why we're doing this."
Fellow committee member Carolyn Holstein said she gets comparable questions.
“What’s going to happen with this building, why do we want to preserve this building? People ask me that,” she said.
Regish responded said the building is an important piece of property in town.
“It is just a critical structure, it’s a critical piece of property. It deserves a little more respect, certainly more than it’s received over the past 35 years,” Regish said.
Holstein said she supports Article 19 as is, but objects to the time limitation in Article 18.
“Article 18 as long as the requirement for the feasibility study be completed beforehand is removed, it’s very difficult to get a study going within a year, or within six months, or four months,” Holstein said.
Motions were passed to support Article 19 with minor edits and Article 18 only with changes removing the time conditions requiring the feasibility study be completed before monies were distributed.
The request for funding applied to the Russell School is scheduled for discussion at the Town Meeting on May 4.
This artice has been updated to reflect additional context when Regish was quoted saying, "The number one question we’re getting is, what’s going to happen after the stabilization?" This was quoted from when he was stating what the Selectboard had heard about the project in terms of what comes next after the articles are potentially passed at Town Meeting.