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Board defers Sidney’s request to use James Bean School as polling place, cites safety and operational concerns
Summary
Town of Sidney asked to use James Bean School for the June primary and November general elections; board members and administrators said in-building voting would disrupt school operations and raise safety, parking, ADA and remote-learning issues, and they deferred a final decision to the next full meeting.
Town of Sidney requested permission to use the James Bean School as a polling place for the June primary and the November general election. Administrators and several trustees cautioned that using Bean would require significant operational changes to maintain student safety and access.
Superintendent explained the logistical challenge: the Bean School’s gym and cafeteria share primary building circulation and parking, so hosting public voting on a school day would likely require the school to shift to remote learning for the affected day(s). “There’s no way to hold school while this goes on. So it would require the school to be remote both of those days,” the superintendent said.
Administrators recalled one prior use of the Bean School for voting that was arranged for an exceptionally large turnout and said the community reaction then was mixed. Trustees asked the superintendent to consult with the town clerk about alternative polling sites that meet ADA and space needs and to bring options to the next meeting. The board took no vote and did not authorize the site; they will revisit the request with fuller information from Sidney’s officials.
