BREWER, Maine — Brewer voters will decide in June whether to reverse a decision they made three years ago that required the school district’s superintendent to live in town.
When residents hit the polls June 9 to consider the school budget, they also will vote on a charter amendment that would repeal the superintendent residency requirement. If approved, the ordinance would be effective July 1, allowing Brewer’s next superintendent to live in Brewer or any surrounding community while working for the schools.
City officials held a public hearing on the ordinance reversal push Tuesday night.
Brewer school committee members are in the midst of a search for the district’s next superintendent after refusing to renew Jay McIntyre’s two-year contract with the city, which expires in June.
School committee Chairman Kevin Forrest said during the hearing he has received fewer applications to fill McIntyre’s position than he hoped.
“The residency requirement has hindered our searches,” Forrest said during the hearing. The search has yielded few candidates, he continued, and several part-time administrative jobs in surrounding communities have drawn more interest than Brewer’s superintendent position.
In June 2012, Brewer voters approved a charter amendment requiring the city’s superintendent of schools to live within city limits. The vote was 579 to 454.
Former Brewer City Councilor Larry Doughty was behind that initial push. Doughty has argued it is reasonable to expect the head of Brewer schools to live in the community where he or she serves, especially with Brewer trumpeting its quality of living.
“As far as I’m concerned, [the 2012 vote] was a proper decision by voters,” Doughty said Tuesday. He said he was confident residents would reaffirm their previous vote but said voting to create then repeal an ordinance within three years made a “mockery of the charter process.”
In other business, councilors adopted Brewer’s new comprehensive plan, envisioning what the city should strive for until 2025.
One vital piece of that plan is the creation of new zoning along the waterfront to spur development and revitalization along the Penobscot River.
Follow Nick McCrea on Twitter at @nmccrea213.