Two Selectboard Races
At Brookfield Town Meeting

By Sandy Vondrasek Cooch

Brookfield has a bumper crop of selectboard candidates this year, and voters will weigh in on two contested races in all-day balloting Town Meeting Day.

Brookfield’s Town Meeting begins next Tuesday, 10 a.m., at the Brookfield Elementary School, with the school meeting after lunch.

In 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Australian balloting, also at the school, voters will be asked to:

• Select town and school officers;

• Vote on an elementary school budget of $1.3 million, down 4.1% from last year; and

• Vote on two school-related money articles, one to place $20,000 in a school bus replacement fund, and the other to place $40,429 in a building maintenance fund.

The selectboard contests feature incumbent-versus-challenger races.

Mike McPhetres, who has just finished one full term as selectman, and Sidney Cushing are both seeking a three-year term.

John Benson, who was appointed this summer to fill until Town Meeting the vacancy created when Bill Johnson moved out of town, is now seeking voter approval to fill the balance of the term. Challenging him for the one-year position is Justin Poulin.

Roads, Again

Road conditions, which have been a big topic at recent selectboard meetings, will also be on the Town Meeting agenda, Selectboard Chair Jeff Kimmel said this week.

The board’s proposed budget includes an big increase for sand and gravel, from $28,000 this year to $70,500. The increase is partly because the town’s own pit is "playing out," forcing the town to start buying its material commercially. Another reason is that upgrade of Class 2 roads will be a big focus of the coming year, Kimmel said.

The proposed general and highway budget is $728,000, up 2.1% from the current year budget. The increase in gravel costs is mostly offset by cuts in other line items, including a $22,000 drop in paving costs, now that Brookfield’s section of the Chelsea Mountain Road is done.

Another savings will be found in the reappraisal line item, which was budgeted at $37,500 this year. With the reappraisal nearing completion, this year the request is zeroed out for next year.

To jumpstart the Class 2 road work, the board has also warned a separate article, seeking an additional $20,000. The board anticipates that the state will ante in another $80,000, Kimmel said.

Another special article seeks approval to purchase a truck for up to $125,000, to be paid over four years.

Kimmel this week put in a plug for the town-sponsored rabies clinic, which will be March 10 at the school. Also, he noted, Town Clerk Jane Woodruff will be available to register dogs at Town Meeting, but not during the meeting itself.

School Meeting

Kristin J. Husher is seeking an open seat on the school board; Mike Fiorillo, the current member, is not seeking reëlection.

School Board Chair Linda Runnion noted in her report, that the 4.1% reduction in the schoool budget was a response to declining enrollments.

A number of school repairs are needed, and the board is again asking voters to set aside money in a building fund. Just over half of the requested $40,429 would come from a 2005-06 surplus.

Residents are urged to stay for a report from the facilities review committee, following the annual school meeting. The committee’s prioritized list for school repairs will be discussed.

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