By CHRIS LINDAHL
Daily Hampshire Gazette
SOUTHAMPTON — Despite arguments by officials about the need for a new public safety complex, Town Meeting voters Tuesday night failed to advance the proposed $10.8 million combined police and fire station.
The measure did not secure the necessary two-thirds majority vote, with 95 votes in favor and 62 against.
Voters approved a $16.43 million operating budget for fiscal 2016.
The meeting at the William E. Norris School was attended by around 250 people, or less than 6 percent of the town’s 4,339 registered voters. That number declined as the evening progressed.
Town Meeting continues Wednesday at 7 p.m. at the Norris school.
Town officials tried to convince the legislative body to approve a debt exclusion override for the public safety complex, making the case that the cost of construction and interest rates will continue to rise while the need for a new emergency facility has never been more dire. The project would have raised the tax rate by slightly more than $1 per $1,000 of assessed property value over 20 years.
“I would start off by inviting anyone in this room, any taxpayers, to come to the fire station or the police station and see for themselves the deplorable conditions we’re working in,” Police Chief David G. Silvernail told the gathering.
He cited a mice infestation, sand blowing through cracks in the windows, a rotting roof and brick falling off the walls as some of the structural problems of the police station constructed in 1904.
“It’s a challenging building to work in,” Fire Chief John C. Workman said. He said firefighters have very little room to move around the fire station, which was built in 1863 as a schoolhouse.
Some voters raised questions about the cost of maintenance of the proposed building.
Michael Rosenburg, chairman of the Finance Committee, said it could not recommend the debt exclusion without concrete estimates on the cost of maintaining the 23,000-square-foot structure.
“Will we be up here in 2017, 2018 asking for more 2½ overrides, more debt exclusions to cover the costs?” he asked.
Another article that proved to be controversial was a $135,000 Proposition 2½ override to fund a second shift at the fire station.
“It’s a proposal that matches similar towns, such as Granby, both in budget and extent of coverage,” Workman said. He added that the shift would cut emergency response time by up to 7 minutes by having firefighters responding to calls directly from the station more often.
The measure was met with vocal opposition by one of Workman’s senior firefighters.
“This is an unneeded expense,” Lt. Mark Theroux said. “I would say that with better management, the shifts could be covered at night and it’s just not needed. I think the public has not been educated on all of the facts and facets of this article.”
Theroux then made a motion to table the proposal, which was voted down.
After three residents asked Workman to clarify the benefits of adding the second shift, the measure was approved by 112 votes to 59.
William E. Norris School officials had initially requested a $120,000 Proposition 2½ override to help avoid teacher layoffs after the school’s budget was level-funded from the current year.
That number was reduced to $80,000 after a motion by Southampton School Committee member John Fitzpatrick to transfer $40,000 from the vocational school tuition budget to the Norris school budget was approved by majority vote.
The Finance Committee had recommended funding vocational tuition based on the number of students who have said they would attend a vocational high school, amounting to $939,058.
Fitzpatrick suggested that taking away $40,000 from the tuition line item was still conservative, as each year about 10 percent of students who had previously signed up for vocational school do not attend one. The town is reimbursed that money, and voters must reappropriate it at a special Town Meeting in the fall.
Last year the $75,000 reimbursement was allocated to the Norris school.
The $80,000 override was advanced by majority vote.
A $63,000 Proposition 2½ override to pay for an additional police officer, retaining current staffing levels, was advanced by majority vote.
A $198,875 debt exclusion to pay for a fuel station and generator for the Highway Department was advanced by majority vote.
All of the overrides and debt exclusions that were advanced at Town Meeting must also be approved by a majority vote at a special town election in order to go into effect.
Voters also advanced a measure to change the treasurer/collector from an elected position to an appointed one. That proposal will be finalized if approved by a majority vote at a special town election.
Chris Lindahl can be reached at [email protected].
