ROCKLAND, Maine — Selectmen from the towns surrounding Rockland said they could support the closure of schools in their communities under a reorganizational plan unveiled earlier this month.
But the selectmen said they would first want to see more details about the savings and costs of the plan.
The town representatives also expressed opposition and concerns about next week’s vote on a referendum in Rockland that would begin the process of the city withdrawing from Regional School Unit 13.
The sentiments were expressed Tuesday evening during a meeting organized by the Rockland City Council at which municipal officials from the other RSU 13 communities as well school leaders were invited. Attending were selectmen from Thomaston, Owls Head, South Thomaston and Cushing.
Under a plan unveiled by RSU 13 Superintendent John McDonald on Oct. 1, the Gilford Butler School in South Thomaston and the Lura Libby School in Thomaston would close after this current school year. The proposal calls for a single high school for grades nine through 12 at Oceanside East in Rockland and a single middle school for grades six through eight at the Oceanside West building in Thomaston.
Jan Gaudio, the chairman of the South Thomaston Board of Selectmen, said he believes the town would be willing to close Gilford Butler. He said he had concerns, however, about the lack of details in the reorganizational plan.
“We need more details to see if it is affordable,” Gaudio said.
RSU 13 board member Christine Curtis said the town could support the elementary school’s closure but questioned whether there would be much savings from the move. She also questioned whether a lot of money should be invested in adding on to the Owls Head Central School. The superintendent’s plan calls for a major addition to the Owls Head school which could then accept the students from Gilford Butler, which primarily serves students from Owls Head and South Thomaston.
She suggested that Owls Head could serve students through third grade and then have fourth- and fifth-grade students attend classes in Rockland.
Thomaston Town Manager Valmore Blastow said the town could support the closure of Lura Libby if the data is provided.
“Putting out a few crumbs at a time will fail,” Blastow said.
Thomaston Board of Selectmen Chairman Greg Hamlin agreed, saying the “devil was in the details.” He said the town could use the Lura Libby School for town offices if the school district closes it.
Cushing Selectman Dan Staples said the town might be able to support the plan but more information was needed.
MacDonald said if the school board approves the concept of the reorganizational plan at its meeting next Thursday evening Nov. 5, then engineering studies would be sought to provide those details.
Rockland voters will decide Tuesday whether to begin the withdrawal process. There also is a separate ballot question on the municipal ballot to ask residents whether the city should explore other education options such as a municipal kindergarten-through-eighth-grade system with older students attending a regional high school or a municipal kindergarten-through-12th grade school system, as well as possible changes to the funding and governance structure of RSU 13.
MacDonald repeated his position Tuesday night that if the withdrawal referendum is approved, the reorganizational plan will have to be shelved. He said no bank would finance a project with so much uncertainty. The superintendent said, however, if the separate ballot question is approved that would not have the same detrimental effect.
John Spear, who is serving as interim town administrator in South Thomaston but who also was business manager for the former School Administrative District 50 for more than 20 years, said he is distressed by the withdrawal effort. He said the reorganizational plan needs to be given a chance. He also warned that if Rockland withdrew it would have to make sizeable payments to the district for its share of the schools located in Rockland.
Rockland board member Esther “Tess” Kilgour of Rockland continued to urge support for withdrawal because there have been too many unfulfilled promises with the consolidation of SADs 5 and 50 that led to the creation of RSU 13.