Selectmen want right to reject TA appointments
Published on October 7th, 1998
STONEHAM, MA - It is said that if you live long enough, everything will come full circle.
This appears to be the case in a Special Town Meeting article which gained a favorable action vote by the Board of Selectmen Tuesday night and is designed to grant the Board of Selectmen, by simple majority, to overrule an appointment made by the town administrator. Presently, the 4/5 vote is required for such action.
Whipple Avenue resident Darin Leahy presented the article to the board along with over 300 signatures in support of the change.
"With this article, you don't need a 4/5 vote," Leahy said. "All you need is a simple majority."
The article was met with strong opposition from Chairman Al Conti, who, although favoring such a change, said that the manner in which the change was proposed was hasty.
"One thing I think about this special act is that it should be done with great deliberation and care," he said. "(The town code) is equivalent to me... to the constitution. It should be a difficult thing to change in my mind. It shouldn't be tinkered with.
"I guess the only thing I'm against is the manner in which we're doing this."
Conti suggested that a committee be formed to look into the change.
Town Administrator Jeffrey Nutting explained that, when a town administrator was put into place in 1980, a simple majority vote by the board could usurp any of his appointments. This changed in 1986 when a 50 to 48 town meeting vote took that right away from the board altogether. In 1994, the power was restored, but a 4/5 majority vote was required to do so.
Nutting also said that, in the past four years, he has made about 70 appointments, of which only one faced opposition. The appointment of Fire Chief Lawrence Lamey in November 1997, however, drew some controversy, mostly due to his lack of residency in Stoneham. The board voted 3 to 2 in favor of rejecting this appointment, but could not secure the necessary 4/5 vote.
Selectman Cosmo Ciccarello explained that a 3/5 majority is justified and should be restored to the Board of Selectmen.
"To get three votes is not that easy," he said. "Four is outrageous."
Leahy reminded the board, as comparison, that they have the right to fire the town administrator by a simple majority vote and said that equal power in all other appointments should be granted.
Selectman Al Conti said, "When you make a subtle change in this document, the ramifications can be dramatic."
The board voted 3 to 1 for favorable action with Conti as the lone opponent. Selectman Patrick Jordan was unable to attend the meeting.
In other business, board members voted favorable action to grant added bonding authority to the town in order to up the coffers for the new police station from about $3.775 million to $4 million.
Project architect Brett Donham explained that the cost estimate has risen in the past few months and added that its five percent contingency costs could rise above the $3.775 million on which the town is allowed to borrow in bonds.
The original cost estimate, he explained, was done on a cost per foot basis. The 36-pages of construction drawing which have been in the works in recent months, Donham said, have indicated that the original figure may be low.
Police Chief Eugene Passaro said that he and other police personnel have combed through the documents and have taken out all the frills. These cuts resulted in a savings of some $120,000, Nutting said.
"We took out everything that could be taken out," Passaro said. "I don't think there could be anything else taken out without affecting the operation of the department."
He also explained that the designs would allow for future expansion at the sight if it is deemed necessary.
"We did this with an eye for the future,' Passaro said.
The board voted unanimously in favor of favorable action.
Both articles will appear on the October 26 Special Town Meeting warrant.
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