Divided over regional schools

Town administrator William Phelan acknowledged last week that he and the board of selectmen have continued to discuss meeting with Abington officials and the Massachusetts School Building Authority on school regionalization, despite a nonbinding Town Meeting vote against regionalization on Nov. 29. Some residents have complained that Town Hall is going against the wishes of the voters, but Phelan said the town is only doing the outreach requested by the building authority. Barbara Davis, chairwoman of the School Committee, declined to comment last Tuesday, saying she did not have any verified information about how Town Hall was proceeding. Matthew Donovan, a spokesman for the state agency, said that before it will participate in such a meeting, it has requested that Phelan provide letters of interest from each community’s town administrator or manager, school superintendent, and chairman or chairwoman of the Board of Selectmen and School Committee.