Clerk: Saugus needs volunteers

SAUGUS-For the first time in her 13 years as a clerk for the Board of Selectmen, Wendy Reed is worried.Over the last year the board has had to re-advertise openings on various boards or committees due to a lack of applications.”I’ve never seen it like this before,” Reed said.The Board of Selectmen is responsible for filling the seats on a number of boards and committees such as the Zoning Board of Appeals, Library Trustees, Boats and Waterways Commission, Cemetery Commission, Planning Board and the PEG Access Board, to name a few.Earlier this month ads went out seeking applications for the Board of Appeals for a full member as well as an alternate. Reed said she has received no applications nor any phone calls regarding the full member slot.The only people who have stepped forward to fill two open seats on the library board are from the two already filling them, both of whom are seeking reappointment. With everything going on at the library, Reed said she thought there would be a lot more interest.It has taken nearly a year to fill out the seven member PEG Access board, which oversees the town’s cable station.Reed said she remembers the days when an opening on almost any board always came with a flood of phone calls.”People would call just to confirm the opening,” she said. “Now no one has called to ask anything. This is the very first time that has happened. It’s just sad.”Town Manager Andrew Bisignani said he thinks the dearth of volunteers has to do in part with a litigious society.”You have to know what you’re doing now because the implications can be far-reaching,” he said. “People are afraid or don’t want that responsibility.”Serving on a committee such as the zoning board can be controversial, Bisignani said, because it sometimes deals with a person’s livelihood. Town Moderator Robert Long said it can also pit neighbor against neighbor, which can make things personal. Alternate members are used if a neighborhood issue hits too close to home, which Reed said is why it’s important that those slots are also filled on the zoning board.Both Long and Bisignani said they felt some people didn’t apply because serving on town boards can be time consuming.”People don’t want to take responsibility – there’s no pay, not even a stipend,” Bisignani said.Bisignani said he thought the town was fairly lucky in snagging the people who have volunteered.As moderator, Long has also found himself in the position of appointing committees but he has been luckier.”Usually if you make a proposal to form a committee, you’re automatically on it,” he said. “Also it’s usually a special interest – people can see the purpose.”Going back to the zoning board, Long said those members don’t often make a lot of friends.”You have to deal with everyone all across town,” he said. “It’s a tough board to serve on.”Long said it didn’t surprise him to hear that no one has stepped forward to serve on the library board.”That’s self-evident,” he said. “It’s become a politicized board. People want to know they’re being appointed based on their ability, their character and knowledge, not for political purposes.”