Town Meeting restores funding to public library, Whip Hill Park
Published on May 7th, 2008
STONEHAM, MA - Stoneham's citizens affirmed their commitment to the town's public library and Whip Hill Park on Monday night, restoring a significant portion of funding to both institutions.
In two overwhelming shows of support, the Town Meeting assembly endorsed two warrant articles that will pipe another $205,000 into the Stoneham Public Library next year and restore $30,000 in funds to the Whip Hill budget.
According to Friends of the Stoneham Library representative Mary Boyle, Article 6 on the warrant sought to avert catastrophic reductions to the facility that would leave the library short-staffed, uncertified, and with significantly reduced hours of operation.
Both the Selectmen and the Finance Board urged the Town Meeting assembly to indefinitely postpone the matter, as the warrant article would drain dwindling reserves and potentially place Stoneham in a more precarious financial situation next year.
Town Administrator David Ragucci, who included the reduction to both Whip Hill and the library in his draft budget - which was in turn approved by the Selectmen - argued that he had no choice but to slash the facility's budget next year, given the harsh financial times.
"Once again, the Town of Stoneham is struggling financially," said the Town Administrator, advocating against Article 5, which sought to transfer funding back into the Whip Hill budget. "Decisions have to be made to use the resources available to this community in the best way you can."
"You look at the priorities in a community. The safety of you and your families is a priority. The education of your children is a priority," furthered Ragucci.
According to Library Director Mary Todd, without the $205,000 in funding, the town would lose its certification, meaning library cards would no longer be honored in neighboring communities and that books could not be loaned out from other facilities.
Todd also warned that the library's hours of operation would drop from a 51 to 30 hours per week, leaving the facility closed on Saturdays and open just one evening each week. Seven staff members would also loose their jobs.
The library veteran later guaranteed that the state's Board of Library commissioners would not issue Stoneham a waiver from minimum municipal funding requirements, should such a significant cut to the budget remain in place.
"I called the Board of Library commissioners before this meeting," said Todd. "Never has a library been given a waiver for a cut of this magnitude. We will be decertified. There is no question about it."
According to former Planning Board member Frank Federico, he considered a fully-funded library just as important as well-equipped and staffed fire, police, and school department.
Federico, who chastised town officials for not concentrating on staffing reductions at the management level, claimed that Stoneham should not be slashing jobs and employees who provide direct services to citizens.
"During a financial crisis in private business, the people who take the hit are [managers]. You don't fire the teller at the bank, because the public knows nothing is going to be done," Federico said.
"The town's Selectmen and Finance Board do have the town's best interests at heart," the former Planning Board member added. "But the effects of these activities, of laying off the people who provide the services, scares the citizenry."
Park Avenue resident Gail Medeiros also implored the Town Meeting assembly to approve the funding request, claiming that the budget cut would punish the most needy populations within Stoneham.
"I grew-up poor and the only way I had to read books, and I know it sounds cliché, was by reading [them] at the library," the Park Street resident recalled.
Article 6, which required a two-thirds vote, passed easily during the subsequent vote, with just a handful of citizens objecting to the $205,000 appropriation from the stabilization account.
Town Meeting similarly backed a proposal to transfer $30,000 back into the Whip Hill budget, ensuring that the 30-acre park and mansion will remain in Stoneham's possession.
According to Conservation Commission member Dan Towse, who also represents the Whip Hill Trust, he was blind-sided last February when the Town Administrator unveiled his FY'09 spending plan, which zero-funded the park's budget.
In subsequent negotiations with town officials, Towse agreed to split the approximate $60,000 budget, which pays the salary of Whip Hill custodian and tree warden, with the town.
However, the town administrator reportedly refused to shift that funding over to the Whip Hill budget, instead opting to keep it within the public works personnel line-items - the tree warden splits his time between Whip Hill and the DPW.
According to Towse, that refusal jeopardized Stoneham's ownership of Whip Hill, as the trust specifically requires the town to partially fund the park's budget on an annual basis.
"We have a very capable and arduous urban forester working for us at Whip Hill. There's no question about his ability," said Towse, who had no issue with the splitting of time between the public works department and Whip Hill Park.
"We feel it is very short-sighted, when you consider that the trust fund says, 'As long as the town puts up money for the budget,'" the Whip Hill representative said.
According to Ragucci, he kept the funding in the public works department in order to protect the town from a potential union dispute over the split-duties. However, the assembly was ultimately unconvinced by that argument.
"To just not be stewards of the gifts we have, it just looks so short-sighted," said Oak Street resident Carol Feke. "I think Stoneham is better than that."
Green Street resident Mike Rora, concerned about the issue being voted on before the larger budget implications were discussed, later failed in a bid to delay discussion on the topic until after town's budget article was discussed.
Town Meeting also took action on the following proposals:
•Backed a proposal to allow a non-profit agency to manage the Stoneham Senior Center
•Endorsed a routine zoning article that simply updated Stoneham's zoning map without any changes;
•Indefinitely postponed an article that sought to increase the allowed size of accessory swimming pool sheds from 130 to 250 square feet;
•Indefinitely postponed two home rule petitions that would exempt Stoneham from requirements that unions endorse a shift to the state's Group Insurance Commission (GIC);
•Denied a petition seeking to create a special Arena capital account, which would hold a portion of revenues raised through an increase in hourly ice-time rental costs;
•Approved a request to allow Stoneham to execute an agreement with state officials that will place a portion of Jerry Jingle Park back on the tax rolls;
•Rejected a proposal to petition the state legislature to remove provisions that require the town administrator to update personnel bylaws bi-annually;
•Endorsed a request to change the Annual Town Meeting starting time from 7:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.;
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