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Chariho advances main campus bond and continues talks on youth football use of district fields
Summary
The committee unanimously approved the main campus bond resolution as a final legal step and discussed field-use with the Cherry Hill Cowboys; administrators and legal counsel highlighted insurance and maintenance gaps that must be resolved before regular outside use is approved.
The Chariho school committee unanimously approved the main campus bond resolution at its June 17 meeting, advancing the district’s preparations for a stage-2 application and architect selection tied to elementary and main-campus planning.
Superintendent Gina Picard described the timeline: stage 1 was approved and the Necessity for School Construction subcommittee will review architect bids and make recommendations ahead of a planned July agenda item. “Once we get the architect in place, that can officially begin our stage 2,” Picard said.
Separately, the committee heard an extended discussion about a field-use request from the Chariho Cowboys youth football organization. Administration outlined a months-long negotiation and a list of conditions proposed by the district’s insurance trust. The Cowboys’ representative, Chris Strait, said their league carries the same insurance as comparable towns and noted that other high schools in the region allow use without the same requirements.
“The big difference is that this campus is owned by this board,” attorney John Anderson told the committee, and that ownership raises distinct maintenance and liability responsibilities. Anderson said the district has been sued in the past over athletic incidents and that the trust has recommended higher umbrella insurance limits and clarity on who will repair the field in case of damage or condemnation.
Committee members and speakers raised practical concerns: the field’s current maintenance backlog, sprinkler-system upgrades and manpower shortages; district staff said the turf needs reseeding and ongoing work. Anderson said the trust’s umbrella-insurance requirement was substantially higher than what the Cowboys’ insurers proposed, creating a gap administrators must resolve before approving regular outside use.
There was no vote to change field use; the committee took the item under advisement and tabled related code-of-conduct and rules items for later consideration while asking administration to continue negotiations and to provide cost estimates and insurance clarifications.
The meeting also adjusted membership of the Necessity for School Construction subcommittee, adding members to meet state requirements as the district prepares its stage-2 submission with the architect soon to be selected.
