Resident urges Board of Finance to press schools for maintenance lists and trim boards and commissions

A resident urged the Board of Finance to press the Board of Education for greater maintenance accountability and to consider eliminating or consolidating local boards and commissions.

Joan Poe addressed the board during public audience, saying she has "budgetary concerns" and asked the board to review maintenance at schools and to require the Board of Education to provide a prioritized list of maintenance items with associated costs and schedules. Poe said playgrounds and athletic courts at Henry James are in disrepair and that maintenance work is being delayed in favor of other allocations, including special‑education spending. She suggested the Board of Education provide a list prioritized from 1 (highest) to 10 with costs and timelines so the Board of Finance can review.

Poe also said money allocated to the Culture and Recreation Commission — she cited $225,215 reported as placed in a non‑public‑school budget line — helps maintain school fields and should be included in the Board of Education's operating budget for transparency. She argued that completed capital project savings should return to the general fund rather than remain in a "non‑lapsing" Board of Education fund.

On town governance, Poe said the town has many boards and commissions (she named several), described redundant staff support costs and filing burdens, and suggested eliminating nonessential bodies to reduce costs.

Board members did not take action on Poe's comments during the meeting; the remarks were entered into the public record during the public audience portion of the agenda.