Beverly may face override vote

Looming cuts in schools prompt call

Beverly has never asked voters to override Proposition 2 1/2. But with parents fuming about a proposal to close two schools and cut 61 school employees, the City Council could vote as early as tomorrow night to authorize a tax override measure.

"I feel that it is absolutely critical for the voters to have an opportunity to let their voice be heard," said Tracey Armstrong, who, along with Joan Sullivan founded Yes for Beverly, the lead Proposition 2 1/2 override advocacy organization in the city.

Annemarie Cesa, president of the School Committee, has endorsed the call to override. The City Council president, Timothy Flaherty, and Ward 3 City Councilor John Burke said they didn't know how they would vote if a special election - override vote - were held. But both councilors predicted that the council would vote tomorrow night to hold the special election. For the election to be held, five of nine councilors would have to endorse the proposal.

Mayor William F. Scanlon Jr., who also serves on the School Committee, also supports putting an override question on the ballot, but said he hadn't taken a position on the measure. "If we do an override, so be it. That would solve the problem for a year, but just that."

Talk of an override occurs as school districts throughout the state are struggling to meet mounting costs.

Armstrong and Sullivan said they were stunned after learning in late March about the district's plans to plug a $2.67 million school budget shortfall. The shortfall was caused by increased health insurance premiums, rising utility costs, and an increase of $1.6 million in special education costs.

During a School Committee meeting on March 26, Superintendent James Hayes Jr. proposed reducing most of the shortfall by trimming the city's elementary schools from six to four, redistricting students, and cutting teachers and support staff. The district has more than 700 employees.

Hayes also proposed reusing the two elementary schools he wants to shut down. Under his plan, the Cove school would become an early childhood center that would offer preschool, kindergarten, and programs for children who are autistic and have developmental disabilities. In addition, the McKeown school would become an alternative middle school and high school.

For years, Beverly has struggled to meet rising costs in its school district. Over the last six years, the city has sold former fire stations and schools to help balance its school budget. Even with these measures, it has been forced during that time to cut dozens of teachers and close a middle school.

Despite its financial problems, the city also has heavily invested in its schools over 15 years, spending $53 million on building projects at the elementary schools - including $6.7 million on the McKeown, which opened 10 years ago. In June, the city will begin a $70 million high school renovation and building project.

About 1,000 residents jammed the high school auditorium last week for a School Committee public hearing on the proposed cuts.

Many urged city officials to reconsider the plan and plug the shortfall with municipal funds.

"We feel that the city needs to stand up for families and stand up for Beverly and provide the funding we're missing," said Andrea Connor, who has two children in the school district.

But, for many, like Jerome Kyllingstad, a Proposition 2 1/2 override seemed like the only solution to the budget crisis.

"I think it's only a stopgap measure right now, but it seems like the only hope we have of countering a situation that, once done, will be impossible to reverse," he said.

Many parents, like Tim Cahill, expressed concern about increased class size if the city were to implement the plan.

With the proposed cuts, some classes in fourth and fifth grade could have as many as 30 students - up from a low of 18 in one school.