The Boothbay-Boothbay Harbor CSD Board of Trustees was called to the mat to explain why it failed to follow a requirement regarding the procurement of loans.

Selectmen from Boothbay, Town Manager Jim Chaousis and Boothbay resident Alex Rioux attended the meeting to question Superintendent Eileen King and Trustee Chairman Chris Buchanan about the failure.

Selectmen Steve Lewis and Dale Harmon said many of their constituents were unaware of the school's intention to build new courts — and so were they. Many constituents, the selectmen said, questioned why the $393,000 loan was not put before the the voters for approval and how it was being paid for.

Chaousis questioned why the boards of selectmen weren't notified of the trustees' vote to approve King's obtaining a loan for $393,000 for the courts, as required by the Community School District's (CSD) charter.

Chaousis said he checked with Town of Boothbay attorney Sally Daggett to see if the trustees had the authority to approve the loan. They do. But, according to the charter, the trustees had to notify the boards of both Boothbay and Boothbay Harbor of their vote within eight days of its approval. This action opens the door for the possibility of appeals action by the towns/residents.

Boothbay Selectman Douglas Burnham emphasized that because of the lack of notification, the towns and residents were denied their right to appeal if they so chose.

King said the same process used in 2005 for the installation of the Honeywell heating system was used for the tennis courts. That process did not include notifying the boards or having a public hearing with the community. King added that since then, the CSD's attorneys “have suggested we notify the towns.”

“We made a mistake. Going forward we will make sure the process is inclusionary; we will have a public forum and notify the town boards of selectmen,” King said at the November 6 trustees meeting.

The superintendent said the cost for the courts was included in the current budget under debt service.

“When we were talking about doing the courts I began looking into the permits that would be required,” King said. “I calculated what it would look like and incorporated the costs into the debt service.”

Buchanan corroborated by saying the trustees included the “expected indebtedness” in the budget.

King addressed Lewis and Harmon's concerns about the seeing lack of awareness by the public of the tennis court situation.

King explained public discussion began at the trustee meetings beginning two years ago, brought to the trustees by students, community members and parents.

A fundraising group was established in 2012 (led by Chip Schwehm) for new tennis courts.

The new tennis courts will enable the Boothbay region to hold championships for the varsity teams; tennis can be added to the curriculum for school children; and, of high importance, these courts are free and open to all community members. A free court open to all no longer exists in the Boothbay region.

Burnham asked about the bid process and how many bids were received.

The CSD received two bids although 11 companies attended a pre-bid meeting on July 31, 2013. One from Boothbay's E.M. Wood Construction, Inc. for $272,500 that included everything from clearing and erosion control, blasting and excavation, drainage (a key issue affecting the condition of the courts on Route 27), catch basins, a wall, lawn and running path. Warren Construction put in a bid of $200,000 (no paving or fence) without a breakdown of the work to be included with the bid.

The trustees awarded the project to Eric Wood.

Both King and CSD School Committee Chair Larry Colcord noted these conversations were reported in Boothbay Register coverage.

“I respect the fact that it was in the BR, But honestly, everybody's very busy — is the Register an official contact to the towns? Law dictates it has to be an attested copy of the vote to the towns,” Chaousis said. “I would like to see the committee allow the community to have their appellate process. Maybe it turns into nothing, but maybe it turns into something. Then the school committee should feel obligated to mitigate the factors so the selectmen don't feel like they have to.”

Chaousis went further suggesting that, having this conversation it could be said the towns had been notified. If the towns wanted to appeal the trustees' vote, would the trustees entertain the idea?

King did not see appealing the vote as serving any purpose; the loan had already been obtained and the courts were days away from being done.

Boothbay resident Alex Rioux didn't like the message this sent to the community and students.

“We didn't follow the rules; we didn't follow the protocol, but whoops, we won't do it again isn't enough,” Rioux said. “At a time when there is low enrollment and higher taxes, even higher this year, that those should have been at the forefront of this argument.

“We're not asking for a head on a spike, but we are asking for something more than we won't do it again. I did read about the tennis courts, but I thought there would be a vote on it. There wasn't. I would appreciate it if the trustees sent a better message to the students and the community — it doesn't have to be an either or.”

The selectmen were looking for a way to begin some kind of appeals process. Rioux suggested the trustees at least agree to revising the charter. Neither outcome resulted from the meeting.

Chaousis said the appeals process could provide insight into whether “the selectmen were just hearing grumbling from a few injured souls, or is there a bunch of people who would have appealed the process.”

Buchanan said he had been hearing nothing but positive feedback.

“Moving forward the process will be different, that's all we can do,” King said.

On Nov. 7 (the day after the meeting) King received a letter from the CSD's attorneys regarding the charter and public notice. In the attorney's experience a renovation project that does not include a new school or a school addition is generally considered a minor, not major, capital cost, and did not require a referendum vote. Although each case can be “highly fact dependent” the attorney's believed the intent of the Charter provision requiring trustees to obtain approval by referendum when so required by general laws was “more than likely” directed to new school buildings and projects that included additions to exisiting schools.

Construction update

The trustees completed the rest of their agenda with Buchanan giving an update on the courts.

He said temporary lines had been put down earlier in the day and the grading and seeding had been completed earlier in the week, and Maine Fence was to finish up the high part of the fencing. this week. Buchanan expected the courts to be completed within the week.

He noted that the final coatings on the pavement would have to wait until late spring to be applied. Given the need for warm weather to apply the coatings, the courts will not be used for tennis matches this year. They will, however, be ready to be used for team practices, students and community members.

The trustees then went into executive session to discuss personnel issues.