Arena lease terms should be finished soon
Published on January 23rd, 2008
STONEHAM, MA - Town Administrator David Ragucci anticipates that an advisory group will hammer out the terms for any long-term Arena lease within the next 10 days.
According to Ragucci, he has instructed an ad hoc committee to issue a recommendation to his office on the potential rink lease by the first week of February.
The study committee, which reportedly includes a Selectman, Arena Manager Lou Chiulli, and Open Space and Recreation member Maureen Houghton, was formed by the Town Administrator after the Selectmen authorized him last month to explore a lease option.
"We've met once and we're going to be meeting with the Stoneham Youth Hockey group on Sunday night," said Ragucci, who has also scheduled another gathering for next week. "We've got to move one way or the other on what we want to do down there but the first of February."
"I don't know what they are," admitted the Town Administrator, when asked what types of issues, other than increased costs, might draw opposition from Arena user groups. "But a lot is going to have to depend on how comfortable they are with this."
The Town Administrator, who sought permission from the Selectmen to solicit proposals from private management firms last December, broached the topic less than three months after a similar plan was rejected by the board.
In arguing in favor of the arrangement, Ragucci claimed that Stoneham could not afford to maintain the facility over the long-term and that the town could make more money off of the deal than it does now.
Based upon Ragucci's proposal, the ad hoc group will recommend a series of provisions and restrictions to be included in any request-for-proposal process. The intent is to shed opposition to the lease deal, which has largely come from rink users who worry that a for-profit firm will jack-up rates at the facililty, by protecting the groups from steep cost increases.
The Town Administrator plans to solicit bids for the management of the rink in mid-February, and hopes to secure a deal with a firm for at least 25 years. Town officials would then present the lease agreement to citizens, who must endore the deal, during this May's Annual Town Meeting.
"From what I understand, we would give it to them for their input, but I don't believe you need a formal vote from the Selectmen to put it out," said Ragucci, when asked if he would seek the board's approval of the RFP provisions.
"If we're going out to lease, we should be able to answer every conceivable quesiton about the lease that taxpayers may have. That's the goal here," furthered the Town Administrator, explaining why he plans to choose a management firm before getting Town Meeting approval.
Long a source of controversy, the idea of permitting a private firm to manage the skating facility has been rejected three times in recent years. In 2003, then Town Administrator David Berry selected Facilities Management Corporation (FMC) to take over the rink's operations.
In a move that was largely attributed to his later forced departure from the corner office, Berry defied the Selectmen by choosing the firm over local non-profit hockey group Stoneham Youth Hockey (SHS).
However, shortly thereafter, long-time Arena and SHS proponent Charles Houghton found a way to block that lease, as any long-term deal in excess of one year must be endorsed by Town Meeting.
In 2005, Selectman Charles Smith again solicited Town Meeting members to permit the long-term lease of the Arena, but the proposal was shot down on the floor for the second time.
Then last September, Selectman Paul Rotondi again pitched the idea, but was overruled by his counterparts in a 4 to 1 vote in a meeting that was packed with SHS, figure skating club, and high school hockey team supporters.
"I think there's a realization that the town can't continue to operate the rink efficiently," said Rotondi, of the lack of any significant public outcry about the lease proposal this time around. "What this committee will address are those points that were brought up by [traditional opponents]."
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