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The Board of Selectmen are writing a letter to the Adams-Cheshire Regional School District asking for a cost analysis on closing Cheshire or Plunkett schools.

Cheshire Officials Want Hard Data on Closing a School

By Jack GuerinoiBerkshires Staff
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CHESHIRE, Mass. —  Town officials want some hard numbers before any talk about closing Cheshire Elementary School.

Chairwoman Carol Francesconi asked that the Selectmen on Tuesday to draft a letter to the Adams-Cheshire Regional School Committee asking for a cost-benefit study of closing Cheshire Elementary School or C.T. Plunkett Elementary in Adams.

"I want a cost analysis on the differences between closing Cheshire School and Plunkett School, which none of us have seen come forth yet," she said. "I want both the pros and cons."

Last week at an Adams budget meeting, the School Committee agreed that the district has to eliminate a school to reduce expenses. That will obviously mean one of the two elementary schools; the third school in the district is Hoosac Valley High School, which also contains the middle school.

The regional school district has been struggling with its budgets for several years; last year was particularly difficult as Adams pressed for a reduced assessment and Cheshire took two tries to pass a $90,000 Proposition 2 1/2 override to fully fund its portion.

Although the committee has yet to look at the pros and cons of each elementary building, Adams officials insisted that Plunkett should be invested in so the town does get stuck with another empty building. The last time the school district consolidated, Adams took possession of the Memorial School that is still vacant.

Selectman Paul Astorino said closing Cheshire would probably send a lot of Cheshire families elsewhere.

The small rural school offers prekindergarten through Grade 5 school and has an enrollment of about 230. Plunkett has more than 400 children.

"Some Cheshire residents will not want to send their kids to Plunkett and they will school choice to Lanesborough and you will see St. Stan's [School] get a big boost," Astorino said. "It's going to cost the district, and there is a lot they should be looking at."

In other business, the town could find out next month if it will receive state funding for the removal of Kitchen Brook Dam, which is estimated to cost $542,000.

Town Administrator Mark Webber reported that he received a study from Nick Wildman, restoration specialist with Department of Ecological Restoration, detailing the removal of the West Mountain Road dam.

Cheshire has to either remove Kitchen Brook Dam, which had been used as a secondary public water source, or repair it because of wildlife concerns.

Webber said the project must go before the DER board for prioritization. He added that Wildman felt it was a good project and pledged to champion it.



That meeting would take place next month.

"They prioritize and chose projects that will be funded by the state," Webber said. "So we will know perhaps in a month if this is something that the state would consider for a project."

However, Webber said it is critical for Cheshire to get state Department of Environmental Protection approval to remove the reservoirs current status as a secondary water source.

Cheshire officials have also been discussing selling a portion of the land to the state.

Webber said he will follow up with the DEP.

The Selectmen voted to switch from an 18-month municipal electrical aggregation cycle to cycles of six and 12 months to lock in better rates.

Last week, the Selectmen locked in an 8.74 cents per kilowatt hour rate for 18 months, however, National Grid just released its summer rate of 8.024 cents.

Francesconi said she received a call from Colonial Power Group representative Mark Cappadona, who has been guiding the town through the aggregation process, urging the town to make the switch that locks it in at nearly 7 cents for six months and between 8.5 and 9 cents for 12.

The Selectmen also agreed Tuesday to place a non-binding question on the ballot to see if the town would favor going from a three-member select board to five.

Town meeting passed the citizens' petition article last year to increase the board, but the attorney general flagged the article because it would require special legislation or a charter amendment.

"I think it should go on myself, and I think we need to figure our what the general public's opinion," Francesconi said. "I think this is where we would get the most people."

Astorino agreed and felt with the master plan survey, the Selectmen will have a much better feel for what the town wants from its government.


Tags: ACRSD,   cheshire school,   dams,   

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Hoosac Valley High School to Stage 'Suessical'

CHESHIRE, Mass. — Hoosac Valley High School will showcase their rendition of "Suessical," a musical based on the tales of Dr. Seuss by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty.
 
The performances are scheduled for Friday, March 15 at 7 pm, and Saturday, March 16 at 2 pm and 7 pm. Tickets can be purchased at the door or online via the provided link. Prices are $8 for students and $10 for adults.
 
Directed by Rebecca Koczela and Amanda Watroba, the production features around 50 students participating as actors, pit band musicians, and backstage and tech crews. Notably, this year's cast includes several middle school students who have joined the high school production, marking their first experience performing on stage.
 
 
 
 
 
 
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