Selectmen, school committee work on reimbursement agreement
By Ken Powers Contributing Writer
Northborough/Southborough - The seasons have changed in Northborough and Southborough - winter having morphed into spring, which has made way for summer, and in a couple of weeks fall will arrive - but the disagreement between the two towns regarding the reimbursement of state funds being received as a result of the addition and renovation project at Algonquin Regional High School (ARHS) has not.

The boards of selectmen for the two towns, along with the Northborough-Southborough Regional School Committee, met Aug. 27 to try to work out the disagreement. The towns and their selectmen, however, remain at odds on how to distribute the money.

Southborough would like to see a 50-50 split of the more than $8.5 million in state funding, citing a regional agreement that has existed between the towns with regard to the high school since 2000.

Northborough, however, citing a formula developed by Massachusetts General Law Chapter 70B, which takes into consideration the number of students enrolled at ARHS from each town, believes it should receive about $1.5 million more than Southborough.

Last winter the Northborough Southborough Regional School Committee and thensuperintendent Rosemary Joseph petitioned the state Department of Education for advice but the state didn't side with either point of view, opting instead to send it back and have the towns work it out.

Southborough Selectman Bill Boland contends that the state's refusal to endorse Northborough's position supports his belief that the project began under the regional agreement and that it is bound by that.

"The fact remains, despite everything else you hear about this," Boland said, "that this project was approved under the regional agreement and not under Chapter 70B."

Jason Perreault, vice chair of the Northborough Financial Planning Committee, disagreed with that assessment, saying that Massachusetts General Laws and Chapter 70B takes precedence over the regional agreement.

Paul Gaff ney, chair of the school committee said the lack of a definitive state response lends credence to the belief that ambiguity exists.

Northborough resident Jim Casella, a former member of the town's Financial Planning Committee, urged Gaffney and the school committee to decide on one of the options before them.

"It behooves you people to get off the so-called pot and make a decision and let the chips fall where they may," Casella said.

Gaffney responded to Casella by saying that the "committee is steadfastly dedicated to avoiding litigation." Gaff ney added that he thought by choosing one plan over another it would lead to that.

Southborough Selectman Sal Giorlandino endorsed Gaff ney's belief that the towns and the school committee should avoid, if possible, litigation.

Both boards of selectmen as well as the Northborough Southborough Regional School Committee agreed to meet again Monday Oct. 1, with Gaff ney urging both boards to begin to think about forming negotiating committees that would be charged with attempting to find viable solutions that would be agreeable to both sides.