Council Kills Casella Contract Amendment

Ken O’Brien

By a vote of 7 to 2 the Southbridge Town Council voted down a proposed amendment to the contract with Casella.

I have listened with interest to the debate regarding this amendment.

After listening to tonight’s discussion I have come to the conclusion that the Council has made a serious mistake. 

Fire Department Union Seeks Audit

Ken O’Brien

Overlooked by many in the recent turmoil over the proposed restructure of Southbridge Middle/High School and the search for a new Town Manager has been a developing crisis in the Southbridge Fire Department.

The situation was highlighted at the recent regular meeting of the Town Council as the result of an appearance by union President Derek Lamica.

Appearing before the Council during citizen’s forum, Mr. Lamica inquired about launching a department audit similar to that performed on the Police Department in 2013.

The Restructure Question – And The Cost

Ken O’Brien

At Wednesday night’s meeting of the EHS subcommittee the vote was taken to adjourn thus recommending the budget approved at the prior meeting. The entire video of Wednesday's meeting is provided in the post below.

However, near the end of the meeting Town Manager Paicos addressed the issue of the proposed restructuring of the Middle/High School. In slightly more than two minutes he summarized the underlying logic of the proposal and the associated costs of that action.

Moriarty Comments On School Budget

Other Officials Speak Out in Telegram Article

Town Council Chairman Shaun Moriarty has commented on the proposed School  budget on his
FaceBook page.

"Not only do I question whether it would be appropriate to provide such an increase to a school district that has been mired in perpetual transitions, practically in every key leadership position, for a number of years now.

"The assertion that we should be adding money to exceed what was there for a recent high-water mark in 2012 is interesting, but flawed. What was student performance in 2012? Were on the right path three years ago? This current School Committee, I imagine, would say we were not in a good place in 2012 ... just as we are not in a good place right now. According to the DESE profile of our school district, the percentage of the per pupil expenditure being used for "administration" has climbed each of the last three years recorded (though, admittedly, data from 2014 is not made available there as yet). 

Town Manager's FY 2016 Budget Proposal