SAUGUS — Town Meeting is set to consider a proposal that would rename the Ballard School “Ballard Gardens,” the latest step in the winding path forward for the long-shuttered school property.
It will also consider another proposal that would allow any of its 50 members to put forward a non-binding resolution.
Both articles were submitted by Precinct 10 Town Meeting member Peter Manoogian and officially entered into the warrant last week by the Board of Selectmen. The warrant will close April4, and Annual Town Meeting is slated for May 1.
Manoogian, reached by phone Monday, said he would host a forum for Town Meeting members at the Saugus Public Library when the entire warrant is unveiled and that he will explain the pair of articles he submitted there. He declined to elaborate further, saying he would do so at the forum.
The Ballard School, shuttered in 2017 after the school department stopped hosting early childhood programming at the Richard Street site, would formally be renamed under Manoogian’s proposal, and Town Meeting in doing so would support tearing down the vacant building. Manoogian served as a member of the Ballard School Reuse Committee, which was tasked with identifying potential uses for the property, and found that neighbors and non-neighbors alike preferred public uses for the school property. With that knowledge in hand, Manoogian worked with Town Manager Scott Crabtree’s office to craft the Ballard Gardens proposal.
Ballard Gardens would be a passive, non-recreational green space that would have topographical landscaping, walkways, plantings, and benches, according to Manoogian. Parts of the property may be reserved for a dog walk area and a community garden.
The article put forward for the May warrant says “Town Meeting by its vote, supports the concept of demolishing the existing building, site preparation, repurposing where appropriate, elements and materials that can be incorporated into a passive green space.”
Under the terms of the article all planning, site decisions, and procurement are within Crabtree’s purview, and the article instructs him to seek input from the Saugus Tree Committee, Saugus Garden Club, and members of the general public. The article dictates that any appropriation necessary for construction on the site must be adopted by a vote of Town Meeting.
The other article put forward seeks to amend the town’s bylaws to add a section that would “permit any Town Meeting member to propose a non-binding resolution for consideration by the Town Meeting.” The proposed bylaw stipulates that members may submit a written or electronic notice to the Town Clerk that includes the proposed language no less than 48 hours before the Town Meeting.
The bylaw directs the clerk’s office to then notify the Town Meeting moderator of the resolution, and to forward it to Town Meeting members.
Resolutions authorized under Manoogian’s proposal will not appropriate funds, propose zoning or general by-law changes, or have any effect on the operations of town government.
“Non-binding resolutions authorized pursuant to this bylaw shall be considered statements of opinion,” the article says.
Under Manoogian’s proposal, resolutions would have to garner a majority vote of the quorum to be adopted.
Manoogian had previously sponsored an article concerning citizens’ right to speak, which was inserted into the warrant last month.
