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Lanesborough Sets Debt Exclusion Vote For High School Project
By Andy McKeever, iBerkshires Staff
01:53AM / Wednesday, January 27, 2016
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The Board of Selectmen set the vote for March 15.

LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — Voters will decide the fate of the Mount Greylock building project at the ballot on March 15.
 
Despite being urged to hold the debt exclusion vote on March 1 in conjunction with the presidential primary, the Board of Selectmen Monday opted in a 2-1 vote to hold a completely separate election just for the building project.
 
Selectman Robert Ericson voted to hold the vote on March 1 but was outvoted by Chairman John Goerlach and Selectman Henry Sayers.
 
Prior to the ballot vote, the Board of Selectmen will also hold a special town meeting on Feb. 23, which is expected to have only non-binding votes on the project. The goal of the meeting will be to share information regarding the project.
 
"Anything we'd do that night would be non-binding," Town Manager Paul Sieloff said.
 
The Mount Greylock Regional School Committee approved the plans for the project on Jan. 14. and now both towns have to approve debt exclusions, which places the bond outside of Proposition 2 1/2 provisions. 
 
The project has a price tag of $64.8 million with the Massachusetts School Building Authority picking up 59.68 percent of costs deemed eligible in the program. Lanesborough is estimated to pay about 32 percent of the district's share of $31.5 to $35.3 million over the course of a 27 or 28-year bond. The current estimates say Lanesborough property taxpayers will see a jump in the tax rate between $1.61 to $1.81 per $1,000 or value. 
 
Williamstown is voting on the building project on March 1 and despite many members of the public urging Lanesborough to do the same, the Board of Selectmen opted to hold a separate election on March 15. 
 
"I don't see a particular benefit putting it off for two weeks," resident Curtis Asch said. 
 
Last month the Selectmen were concerned voters would be confused because at the time they thought voters would need to check in, vote, and check out two separate times. However, Town Clerk Ruth Knysh said on Monday that the voters would be check in and out for both elections at once and given two separate ballots to fill out. 
 
"You get two ballots at once. You don't have to go through a second time," Knysh said.
 
Nonetheless, the board members said they wanted to keep the two separate. Holding a second election is estimated to cost the town and additional $1,000 or so.
 
"It'd give people more time to research after town meeting," Sayers said.
 
Between the additional time and avoiding any confusion with the presidential election, Sayers opted for March 15. Goerlach didn't provide a reason for why he wanted the vote on March 15. 
 
Ericson was the sole member of the board who wanted to hold the election on March 1. Ericson believes the presidential primary will drive more people to the polls and that holding a special town meeting and two elections in a short period of time could lead to "voter fatigue." 
 
"The more things you have on the agenda, the more people come out," Ericson said.
 
Mount Greylock School Committee member Steve Miller asked the board to reconsider three times, while others shook their heads in disbelieve, and even Mary Reilly, who was watching the meeting on television drove down to Town Hall to express her disapproval of choosing a second election date. But the board refused to reconsider. 
 
The part-renovation and part-new build project has been a long time in the making.
 
A building committee had been operating but in 2009 the locker room ceiling collapsed. The subcommittee stopped working on a new project and the MSBA helped fund emergency repairs for both the ceiling and to replace boilers.
 
In 2011, after the repairs were completed, the building committee reformed and started the process of looking at a school replacement project again. In 2011, 2012, and 2013, the School Committee submitted statement of interests to join the MSBA program. The statement of interests outlines a number of problems with the 1960 and 1968 building ranging from energy efficiency to noise levels to health concerns.
 
 
In 2014, both towns overwhelmingly supported paying for a feasibility study, which crafted the plans for the project. In 2015, the exact project was picked and the building committee settled on cost estimates that they feel will be more than enough for the project so the likelihood is it will be under budget.
 
The MSBA will vote on its reimbursement figures on Wednesday.
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