MANCHESTER, NH – Members of the Manchester Board of School Committee (BOSC) unanimously voiced their frustration with the Manchester Board of Mayor and Aldermen’s (BMA) decision last week to not move forward with three votes that would allow the advancement of a new Beech Street Elementary School.
The three votes centered around the transfer of land across the street from the current Beech Street Elementary School in Sheridan-Emmett Park, with the city allowing the transfer of that land in exchange for the land where the current school resides for a new park.
That vote ended in a 7-7 tie, with Manchester Mayor Jay Ruais breaking the tie with a no vote, stating that further discussion was needed. Several members of the school board could not understand why more discussion was needed given discussion regarding the school given the months of discussion that has already occurred, including joint meetings with the aldermen to allow them to gain more information about the project and related items in Phase 1 of the district’s facilities plan.
There was also confusion and frustration with the fact that bonding for the school had been approved for Phase 1 by the board of aldermen last year despite the fact that the school board indicated several weeks earlier that its plan for Beech Street would likely include usage of Sheridan-Emmett Park.
“There is no excuse for what happened last Tuesday, and I am tired of people not owning up to it,” said Ward 8 school board member Jessica Spillers, who penned a letter to the editor on the matter earlier in the week.
According to Manchester School District Superintendent Dr. Jenn Chmiel, the delay on the school construction could cost taxpayers $250,000 per month and wasted work already paid for by the district’s architectural partners.
School board members voiced frustration, if not defiance, at the aldermen’s decision, feeling that individuals speaking at the last board of aldermen meeting were not representative of the city as a whole. Although it is not yet certain if the matter will return to the aldermanic board, members of the school board called on members of the public to attend the next meeting of the board of aldermen and speak on the matter.
Ruais repeatedly urged members of the school board to avoid derogatory comments toward the aldermen in the fear that it would make finding common ground and advancing the matter between them more difficult. While Ward 6 school board meember Dan Bergeron urged monthly meetings between the boards to foster communication, several members of the school board attacked the aldermen, in spite of Ruais’ words.
School board members also criticized the division and uncivil behavior on the aldermanic board, highlighting obscenities between Alderman At-Large Dan O’Neil and Ward 8 Alderman Ed Sapienza near the end of Tuesday’s meeting. Multiple school board members also felt that the lack of a new school for inner city residents would harm students that need it the most and the school would not have gotten the approval of the school board if it would harm students by permanently taking away park land.
Vice Chair Jim O’Connell said that some aldermen are opposed to any school building funding.
At-Large school board Member Peter Argeropoulos felt that the decision could undo the years of work from former Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig toward investing in schools, and thus helping make the city a place for attracting new residents and retaining current ones.
Other members such as Ward 5’s Jason Bonilla and Ward 1’s Julie Turner felt betrayed and felt that the vote went against the wishes of their constituents, stating that the matter is still open for debate.
Ward 9 school board member Bob Baines expressed frustration that the move would increase time that students would have to spend in temporary portable classrooms and that the school is just as much of an economic development project as it is an educational project, noting that the city’s business community supports the new school as proof that the city can educate a new generation to replenish their workforce.
While several members of the school board also asked for Ruais’ support as chairman to speak more forcefully on their behalf to aldermen, given his role on that board, Ruais’ stated that he refused to relitigate the issue. He noted most items coming before the aldermen this term have achieved broad consensus and it is his hope to achieve consensus whenever possible, also adding that he does not believe that those who disagree with him on any topic have ill intentions solely due to their disagreement with him.