Peabody City Council approves appointment, budget transfers and an $8 million bond order; several ordinances adopted

The Peabody City Council on April 24 approved a slate of administrative and fiscal items, voting unanimously on key matters including an appointment to the Board of Registrars, transfers to cover snow‑removal and cemetery costs, and an $8 million bond order for a Veterans Memorial High School feasibility study.

The council confirmed Kia Chavare to the Board of Registrars by a 9‑0 roll call. Mayor Bettencourt introduced the nominee and Councilor Peach moved the appointment under suspension of the rules; the appointment runs to April 1, 2026 as read into the record.

On fiscal items, the council approved transfers to cover this past winter’s snow and ice costs: $1,065,000 for snow‑removal services and $485,000 for sand and road salt, funded from free cash (total transfer $1,550,000). Councilors said the larger transfer reflected heavier snowfall this season. The council also approved a $132,744 transfer into the cemetery capital improvement account sourced from cemetery lot sales and perpetual care receipts.

The Finance Committee reported and the council moved an amendment to the city’s compensation schedule specific to the Public Works foreman (a change described as rolling a prior stipend into base pay for the individual currently holding the position). Committee materials said the change was specific to the incumbent and was intended to be budget‑neutral; the full text of the ordinance amendment as read into the record was not fully legible in the meeting transcript.

The council adopted a bond order for $8,000,000 to fund a feasibility study for Veterans Memorial High School. Councilor Gould moved the bond order and it passed by a 9‑0 roll call vote.

Other adopted items included an ordinance adding an isolated stop sign on Page Street at Baldwin Street and several routine referrals and special‑permit hearings that were received and assigned to committees. The council also asked Police Chief Thomas Griffin to assign a minimum of one officer to each polling precinct for the municipal primary (Sept. 2, 2025), the municipal election (Nov. 4, 2025) and any early‑voting dates; the council moved to place this request on the record and it passed.

Several motions to receive items and set hearings under suspension of the rules were approved without extended debate. A motion asking the tree department to evaluate a tree at 22 Greenwood Road also passed. Most roll‑call outcomes recorded on the transcript were unanimous (9‑0).

Votes at a glance (selected): - Appointment: Kia Chavare, Board of Registrars, term to 04/01/2026 — mover: Councilor Peach; outcome: approved (9‑0). - Ordinance (compensation): Amendment to Section 18‑21 for Public Works foreman pay (stipend rolled into base pay; committee said budget‑neutral) — mover: Councilor Gould; outcome: passed by council (9‑0); text details not fully specified in transcript. - Budget transfers: Snow removal services $1,065,000; sand and road salt $485,000 (total $1,550,000) — mover: Councilor LeGould; outcome: approved (9‑0). - Budget transfer: Cemetery capital improvement $132,744 (funded from lot sales/perpetual care) — mover: Councilor LeGould; outcome: approved (9‑0). - Bond order: Veterans Memorial High School feasibility $8,000,000 — mover: Councilor Gould; outcome: approved (9‑0). - Ordinance adoption: Add isolated stop sign on Page Street at Baldwin Street — mover: Councilor Gamache; outcome: approved (9‑0). - Administrative request: Police chief to assign minimum one officer per polling precinct for 2025 municipal elections — mover: Councilor McGinn (moved into record); outcome: council request approved. - Other: tree evaluation at 22 Greenwood Road — mover: Councilor Melville; outcome: approved.

Several items were received and referred to committees for public hearings or further staff review. Where the meeting transcript did not supply full text or numeric detail, the article indicates that those specifics were not specified in the record.