Saugus Town Meeting cleans house

SAUGUS – Town Meeting members cleared its seven-article warrant in less than an hour Monday, okaying the teachers’ raise, public safety overtime and the possibility of leasing Kasabuski Arena.Meeting members voted to borrow $400,000 to continue the town wide sewer rehabilitation project, fund the teachers’ contract at $330,000, library salaries at $20,000 and dispatcher overtime at $22,000 with no discussion. The body also agreed to fund a $47,000 rolling command center for the Police Department using a surplus in rubbish disposal account without question, despite shooting down the idea last month.Finance Committee Chairman Robert Palleschi said his committee approved at least two articles it previously nixed based largely on the six-month review.”Some articles we tabled pending the six-month review,” he said, “though some people probably wished we had just voted them, we thought it was the prudent thing to do.”Palleschi said the result of the review is he felt the town’s financial situation was not quite as dire as it could have been. That, he added, resulted in the committee supporting articles it had previously passed on.Article 5 did generate a little discussion despite the Finance Committee’s support. The article asked meeting members to fund Fire and Police department overtime and additional dispatcher overtime at a total of $349,000. The funding mechanism would be the savings the town is estimated to realize from its employees joining the state’s healthcare plan.Town Meeting member Peter Manoogian wondered what would happen, however, if the town didn’t realize the projected $371,062 in savings.Town Manager Andrew Bisignani said he felt relatively confident in the projected number. If the savings proved lower he admitted he’d be back at Town Meeting looking for a secondary funding source or to cut spending.Meeting members accepted the explanation and approved the article unanimously.The bulk of the evening’s debate centered solely on the request to seek special legislation to extend the Kasabuski Arena lease with an eye on subletting the rink.Bisignani made it clear that granting permission to extend the lease does not commit the town to actually leasing the rink.”It provides an option,” he said.If the town does not clear the $650,000 deficit the rink is carrying the Department of Revenue has said it won’t be able to set a 2009 tax rate. Bisignani’s plan is to lease the rink with the caveat that the taker pay off the deficit as part of the deal.While Town Meeting members sought an explanation as to where the deficit came from Bisignani said he felt it was neither the time nor place to hold such a discussion.Manoogian asked for an amendment that would have any lease deal posted on the town Web site, analyzed and approved by the Board of Selectmen with input from the public.The article passed 38-1.The final article, a zoning issue for the Salt Marsh Nursery was referred back to the Planning Board because it lacked a recommendation from the Planning Board.