Phelan letter on Marshall vote rankles mayor

LYNN – Mayor Judith Flanagan Kennedy and City Council President Timothy Phelan aren’t seeing eye to eye about a pending city decision to push a voter referendum on the proposed Marshall Middle School project from July 30 to the Sept. 17 preliminary election.The mayor’s race rivals support building a new Marshall on Brookline Street, but a letter from Phelan asking the School Committee to move on scheduling the referendum caught Kennedy by surprise. She is not aware of previous communications between former mayors and presidents.”It’s never happened to the best of my knowledge. It wasn’t necessary,” Kennedy said.Addressed to Kennedy, the letter stated that “?apparently time is of the essence” when it comes to scheduling the referendum.”As Chairman, would you have the School Committee formally notify the Council of its plan on this issue as soon as possible,” he wrote.Phelan said the letter “is intended to ask for specific information and find out the desire and intent of the School Committee.””The council needs direction from the committee. We have to work together,” Phelan said.That’s exactly what the committee has been doing with the council, said School Committee member Donna Coppola, who credited Kennedy and Superintendent Catherine Latham with keeping committee members updated on the Marshall project timeline.”She’s done a wonderful job keeping us apprised. It’s not something he needed to weigh in on,” Coppola said.But Ward 3 City Councilor Darren Cyr is not so sure and praised Phelan for writing the committee.”It’s fortunate he stepped in. Tim wants the public to be fully aware that all elected officials are on board with this. It’s extremely important the voters recognize the urgency of this,” Cyr said.Slated to cost almost $90 million, a new Marshall – the first public school slated to be built by the city since 1997 – is eligible for an 80 percent state reimbursement.Subject to a School Committee vote scheduled for Thursday and council approval, voters will be asked when they go to the polls on Sept. 17 to vote “yes” or “no” on the following language: “Shall the city incur $90 million in debt contingent on 80 percent reimbursement for eligible costs for a new Marshall Middle School.”Kennedy on Tuesday said it makes sense to hold the referendum on preliminary election day because it saves the city on costs it would have shouldered if a referendum had been scheduled for July 30.Latham referred to the July 30 referendum date at the May 9 committee meeting, but committee member John Ford called the July date “tentative” and Ward 6 Councilor Peter Capano said that date did not give city officials time to urge voters to approve the Marshall vote.A vote in favor of Marshall funding still gives the city enough time to plan and build the project with a September 2016 opening date for the new school in mind, said project consultant Lynn Stapleton.Although they favor building a new Marshall, Kennedy and Phelan are potentially at odds over another city issue.Kennedy doesn’t like the proposed site planning review ordinance now before the council and said Northeastern University urban policy expert Barry Bluestone warned city officials that the “number of hurdles” businesses are required to clear in order to build in the city represent development impediments.”Site plan review presents another hurdle,” she said.Phelan on Tuesday said the ordinance needs review and discussion.”Let’s bring in business leaders, hear what they have to say and get it done right,” he said.Originally scheduled for a council public hearing on April 23, the ordinance was readvertised for a Tuesday public hearing before Phelan asked fellow councilors by letter Tuesday to take “no action” at this time on the ordinance.The ordinance establishes the Planning Board as the review committee charged with soliciting comments from nearly a dozen different city agencies about all projects proposed for construction in the city, except for one and two-family homes.Inspec