The Academies are now cashing in on their unique legal status. See today’s article in the Norwich Bull. What do you think they are selling to the foreign students?
“Under the boarding school option, NFA would be responsible for arranging housing, which could include students living with families in the community or school-owned houses or dorms.”
The Academy has recruited 38 Chinese students (check that: 50 foreign student including some from European countries). My understanding is that these students pay about $40,000 in tuition to come to school at the Academy. No doubt the presence of international students should enrich the social and intellectual environment at the Academy. The Academy was offering approximately $1000 per month to local residents who took in Chinese students. It appears now that the Academy wants to use these nearby houses as dormatories. This particular house is located on the northeast corner of the intersection of Old Hall Road and Route 169.
January 19, 2012 Regular Meeting Minutes
PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION
Section X. CONTINUED UNFINISHED BUSINESS (moved in agenda order)
c. #SP579-08-09m Woodstock Academy Student Housing issue – Boarding house at 599 Route 169
Richard Baron, fire marshal has issued a report dated January 5, 2012 that states the maximum student occupant load for the building would be 15 and there are other requirements of smoke and heat detectors, fire alarms, required lighting, outside stairs going to the second floor. There is a small apartment and there needs to be a door installed so the house parent would be separated.
Terry Bellman, building official has also provided a letter which states that currently the building code only allows a maximum of six students on the first floor of the building, because the apartment on the second floor has a tenant which constitutes a mixed use and therefore requires fire separation. Once the tenant vacates the premises, there will be modifications required to meet the building code and then additional students, a maximum of 15 for the entire building, will be allowed at that time. Zoning regulations do not contain a definition for student housing and there isn’t really a category for this type of permit. Fortin would like to discuss this at the subcommittee meeting.
This use may not be permitted under PZC regulations. There is discussion on how this student housing might fit it into the regulations and how to move forward in a way that makes sense. It is recommended that the Woodstock Academy propose a text amendment.
Joseph Campbell of Woodstock Academy and Attorney Cotnoir are present to answer questions. Attorney Cotnoir is working with WA to create this text amendment and it will be submitted at the next regular meeting. It was decided that a Notice of Violation, which is the first step in the process, should be issued to Woodstock Academy letting them know that there is a violation.
The time frame between a Notice of Violation and the next step in the process should allow WA enough time to get this text amendment and a subsequent application submitted for consideration. Mr. Campbell stated for the record that there are six students living at this address currently. There are nine new boarding students expected for the new semester, but they will be living with local families. The third house that was purchased for student use by WA is currently empty, according to Campbell, and will remain that way until this is
resolved. [At least two of these houses are on the hill. Admin]
Thank you to Baron and Bellman for your work in flagging violations that never should have happened.
I think what is important about this issue isn’t that the Academy is buying up houses in the Historic District. That’s expected and will continue. What I take away is that PZC will continue to do all they can to support the school to the exclusion of other work. They won’t fine the Academy or remove students from unsafe housing — they will however, go forward in lock step with the WA toward solution and do this as quickly as possible.
Yet, in another case of gross lack of planning or applied knowledge by both PZC and WA – apparently, regulations for housing students are needed and the school didn’t bother to renovate properly for their newly expanded business venture for which they’re bringing in 1.5 million dollars (if you trust rumor).
Over the past 10 years, hard working and well-informed citizen groups went before PZC in a respectful manner to request that the commission support efforts to ensure the good preservation of Woodstock’s historic villages. The groups were either ignored or told that PZC was “too busy” and needed to work on other issues. To date, work on the POCD due in 2010 is still delayed but — PZC will jump to the aid of the Academy digging them out of their mess while charging them to write the regs that work best (for them). Maybe I’m wrong but I think this is the work of PZC NOT the Academy.
At this point, I’m pretty tired of hearing PZC leadership claim lack of bias by the commission.
I say no text change for the Academy.When will people have enough of W.A. try to change things to their benefit? I dont think its fair for them to boarding students when the town gets a horrible contract that as I understand is locked in for 20 years and they can pass capital expenditures on to a tuition increase,so woodstock can pay more tuition to benefit the boarding program?I guess the houses they bought will also be tax exempt.The town looses again.
No where did I hear the chairman of the PZC or the Academy mention the people already living in the historic district and what they might think of lowering their property values and turning this into a boarding village.
On WINY’s talk show last week, some of WA management explained that they are taking in the boarding students to help cover the costs of running WA while the actual enrollment by the sending towns decrease. I did not hear if there was a number of students that WA needs to maintain their current offerings.
While I love the old homes on the HILL, one thing that I could not find in my on-line searches was the actual boundaries of the historical district. So part of the question is if the homes that WA is purchasing are in or out of the Historical District.
I dont think W.A. Cares about the people on the hill,or property values.This could be Woodstocks version of William&Mary College at the high school level.Maybe if they didnt expand the football program and the sports complex for less students, they wouldnt have to recruit boarders to make up the difference.They will never tell the whole story.But some of us are smart enough to read between the lines even if we didnt go to the education factory.
Ron, the homes are in the historic district.
Maybe now the Academy can pay to have the sidewalks fixed in the historic district.
If they did the cost would be passed on taxpayers in a tuition increase.And would be done the cheapest bid.The hill people dont want the kids walking infront of their houses anyway because they throw garbage on the ground just like at school except no one walks behind them on the road to pick up after them.
Wouldn’t it be better if they just bought houses down Child Dome Road?
Similar situation is Choate Rosemary Hall in Wallingford. If you own a house near the school they want to buy it.. They have turned the whole surrounding neighborhood into a dorm area.
The Academy ownes a piece of property on child hill rd.I dont think people want a neighborhood dorm area.
Anon, are you referring to the dorm on the corner of 169 and Child Hill Road? The kids don’t pass any houses walking from the Academy to there, so how is it the dorm’s fault for litter at people’s houses? Or IS there any and people just need yet another thing to blame the Academy/teenagers for?
A Student:
I wouldn’t let it bother you. There have always been bitter people who blame kids for everything. Fortunately most people in the town are happy with our young people, who do a lot of volunteering for the community by the way.
Funny how some think they represent the “hill people”, you can guarantee the Academy and the students will be there a long time after they have left.
I think we are lucky to have such a vibrant youth community in our town…
Boo hoo to the Academy bashers they have been belly aching for years.
Like when people move next to an airport and complain about the noise or a farm and whine about the smell….
“oh my god there are young people littering”
“get off my lawn”!!!!!
It’s part of life…
Db
A student, I live on the Hill and I am sorry for complaints made about students. This is embarrassing. I’ve always had a hard time about this but people are all different. What’s important is that you or anyone else doesn’t characterize a whole neighborhood by one or two complainers.
Db, if you spend any time thinking about the big picture represented by the Academy’s relationship to the town — you’ll know that it’s pretty complicated. I hope that what you predict will come true – in that the Academy will be here a long time after we’re gone. I hope that because it will ensure that this incredible part of NE CT will be preserved for future generations. But, I also add that everything I’ve watched about this school’s administration does not forecast a successful future. I’m still trying to wrap my mind around the fact that a private business in education ignores local zoning and places foreign (or any students for that matter) in housing that is not up to code. Imagine what might happen when one student decides to smoke something in bed at night or puts a synthetic piece of fabric over a halogen bulb? How fast does a very old wooden frame house burn up? How many students can the Academy afford to lose?
What no one will know or care about is how it feels to have one’s own property completely tied up and at the mercy of an institution that doesn’t engender trust, confidence, or wisdom. So, Db — until you’ve walked in our shoes, best not to comment.thanks.
When the kids used to park at the Inn they left a mess along the roadside.My comment was in reguards to WA fixing the sidewalk.The church where kids park have complained several times to the school about trash in the lot and woods.You could blame kids from other high schools driving to woodstock to litter,but I doubt it.
Woodstocker – Get a clue about who owns the property and how real towns put in public walk ways (aka sidewalks) before you try and ask WA to pay for that! The town/state has the right of way and is the one entity that would have the authority to put in sidewalks. Also if that was done, the owners of the property would have to take responsibility to make sure the walks where cleared of snow, etc…
Marylou – You did not answer my question about where and what defines the historical district on the hill’s boundaries.
As the the safety of putting students into a house that is already allowed to house a family – the issue would be changing the title of what the house is called because Zoning can not tell a family how many it can have within a house except if the limits of the sanitary (read septic) – example Single family dwelling vs Boarding house. So we are down the the changing of the name/nature of the house at that address and thus the need to conform to the building requirements for a structure that is now called a boarding house vs a single family dwelling. Also one has to remember that variances can be obtained…
Does Woodstock have any zoning regulations for a maximum number of unrelated people living in a house? Mansfield does because of the obvious situation they have with UCONN in their town.
Ron,
The water is murky about the boundries of the Hx Dx. Different groups in town claim different boundaries. The Hx Dx Commission is the best place to go to get the info you want regarding this topic. It’s tough to explain thru prose. They will show you a map.
The PZC minutes did a good job in lining out the code re: boarding school housing from those of private homes. As to variances – yeah. I’m sure PZC will give any variance the school wants. However, will this be in the best interest for protecting the safety of children? Is this how Pomfret School or Rectory manages the housing of foreign students?
I think a couple hundred upperclassmen (with the bad eggs mixed in and plenty of peer pressure/mob mentality) walking to the Inn to their cars is a very different situation than a dozen (or less) kids walking to their home down the street. Chances are they’ll have more respect for their surroundings considering they come here voluntarily from across the world and allegedly pay about $40k a year to come here.
Marylou:
With all due respect the school has been there longer than you have. What’s wrong with teachers and students living near by in a campus type of environment?
As long as codes and safety rules are followed.
Pomfret School, Hyde School and Rectory School just to name a few seemed to have pulled it off..OK? All on the same “historic 169″
So the real issue seems to be that a bunch of snobs have bought homes near a school and now seemed miffed that the kids dare walk by
their homes.
I am sure if the school started offering top dollar for houses “on the hill” there would be a rush to cash out/in.
For what it’s worth I also live in this town and I am also allowed to have an opinion on this blog so your “best not to comment” remark is wasted on me.
I for one enjoy seeing a vibrant community filled with young people…even better that they are from all over the world.
Perhaps West Palm beach or Boca Raton would be better suited for such like minded people.
Ron, I do understand the sidwalk issue. Sounds like you are unaware that sidewalks already exist on Woodstock Hill. I am writing about the sidewalks that already exist on Woodstock Hill, Route 169 Academy Road, Child Hill Road, ect. They are in terrible conditions and would enhance the area…maybe with some tasteful lighting would give the area a more modern village appearance. There are also many grants out there to pay for this type of project via the state and/or Fenderal grants. I understand how people in town are afraid of change.
Db, I apologize for my “best not to comment,” comment. It’s hard to take emotion out of my posts when the topic so personally affects one’s life.
Db, You take what a few people have written and turn us all in to snobs but you are not considering how you’d feel if you were under similar circumstances. These are homes. Where we go for privacy and comfort. We have no control over what the Academy does or how it does it and I feel as if we are being intentionally driven out. I don’t want to leave my home. My garden and library are here. My grand children’s toys and my dogs’ territory is here. How would you feel if it were you and your family? We (husband and I) want to live in a residential neighborhood not an institutional one. We know we got caught (against our will) in a change-over and that change-over isn’t necessarily bad but the jury is out on how it will settle. It’s been convenient to label people on the hill as snobs because then it’s OK to drive down their property values because, afterall, we deserve it. How would you feel if this was happening to you? I have and will continue to question how the management of the school operates and comes to decisions that affect the whole town — especially in education at the lower grades. Apparently the power in town is fine with the seeming fact that the future of the Academy will define the town’s future. No one in these posts expressed animosity towards kids or the quality of education given at the school.
Property rights are all well and good until one neighbor upsets the applecart for a bunch of other neighbors. I can assure you that no one would want to go through this and that most of us couldn’t have known what was ahead when we purchased these properties. We (hubby and I) stupidly thought that the HxDx Ordinance would protect us from having a future sub-division next door. I can’t tell you how much we’d like to have a sub-division next door . . instead. Everyone turns in to a NIMBY quickly when property is threatened. Take the issue of Cell Towers for example.
I’m well aware that the school was here before me/us and I’ve stated I hope it does well so it is here well after us. Although I can’t speak for anyone else, I’ve lived here long enough to know how deeply residents of the HxDx care about preservation. You’d have to — old houses are costly and hard to maintain. My recent critical focus is on absence of building code status for students in student housing. I’ve watched the Academy subvert or side-step normal operational regs for issues (like sewering) for years but now they place kids in jeopardy. At some point, this must stop. I just hope it doesn’t take an injury or death before that happens.
Marylou,
If it makes you feel any better, I was at a social function in town maybe a month or so ago. …(see Newcomer’s new article. Admin).
Build a BRAND NEW, centrally-located, GREEN high school with its own parking, water, sewer and GREEN (solar, wind, geothermal) power-production and buffer it from residential areas with green spaces (gardens, trees, biological environments for education) and make it a long-term, community initiative, a combination of public-use recreational and educational activities (like a normal high school that receives public tax funding). There are probably millions of federal dollars in green energy and construction GRANTS available for this type of rural community educational-facility project that will simultaneously help local businesses and GREEN-education efforts.
The Academy can still be whatever it’s trying to be, (some sort of 1890′s-era boarding school?) as long as it receives no public funding, otherwise … it’s not really a “private” school, is it? Why is the entire community tied to the millstone of antiquated-thinking Academy supporters?
After reading the article in the Norwich Bulletin it seem to me W.A.that buying houses to board will save student programs.The school also has money in one breath and has none the next.They already own several houses in the hill area.They own the white house on the right of the sports complex entrance,the red house next to the teachers parking lot and a small lot on the same side of child hill,the white house north on the church where the kids park and 599 rt. 169.the paper says they are working on purchasing 500 rt. 169.It does look like W.A. Is attempting the largest land holder in the hill area.That coukd be disturbing to all since thier intentions are never fully disclosed to the public..
I’m curious to know what the tax status of these homes WA purchased will be? Will they now be removed from the tax roll, since WA is a not for profit educational institution? If so, what is the trade off to the town? How will the town be compensated for loss of tax revenue? Reduced tuition?
These are my personal thoughts and are in no way meant to represent the opinion/position of the Woodstock Board of Finance)
How about payment in lieu of the tax that would have been due?
I dont know the tax status but the house at the sports complex and the white house on child hill are occupied by private renters.
I asked the question I posted here on the Cafe (#25) at last night’s BOF meeting and the consensus is that once the real estate transactions involving these new homes is complete, those properties would be eligible to be removed from the town’s tax rolls and would be treated like any other educational property, for example, the Hyde School. In my personal opinion it would be a great gesture of good will if the WA BOT were to offer some type of tuition credit or other payment. With home values now depreciating after our reval, and the economy being what it still is..losing even just the tax from two homes is not a good thing for the town. I would have to research the property records, but I’d venture a guess(based on my own property tax) that the lost revenue could easily pay anywhere from 3/4 to a whole tuition at the Academy.
These are my personal thoughts and are in no way meant to represent the opinion or position of the Woodstock Board of Finance.
I need to correct my previous posts..there has been only one purchase. The other two homes that will (or are) being used to house boarders, are rented. However, my concern regarding tax exemption stands!
These are my personal thoughts and opinions and are meant in no way to represent the opinion or position of the Woodstock Board of Finance.
Oh get off the Academy. Hyde School is building, building, building. They also charge the Middle and Elementary school for use of the Auditorium whenever there is a music type of recital/concert. Last I checked, the “rental” fee was in upwards of $1,200.00 a POP ($350.00 alone in “administrative fees” to Hyde). They pay nothing in lieu of taxes.
The PTO covers these costs………
Dear Pod:
The Hyde School is not purchasing property and removing it from the tax rolls. It is developing on ground that is within its campus, that was already tax exempt. You fail to see the point my friend.
So really what is the point?
An institution operating within the law, developing growth has starved the town and the BOF of a few thousand dollars of which would be pissed away on a mini mart (highway garage), a stealth rescue craft or maybe even a new town hall on a brown field. I think it is you that fails to see the point my friend.
So George, what ARE you are saying, about any not-for-profit that buys property, and removes it from the tax rolls? No church or school should make any purchases?
I personally think HYDE, and the FAIR (especially the Fair) should make payments in lieu of taxes. This is done all over the state, and is usually negotiated by the entity’s administration and Town Hall.
George, google “payment in lieu of taxes” (PILOT), to gain an understanding of how this works, why it’s done, and who is doing it.
Of course the Fair should pay more, but that’s a for profit carnival pretending to be something else that it used to be, and is another issue.
The issue with WA is that they are using money they got from taxpayers to buy property and take it off the tax rolls.
If it was truly a private school, like Pomfret School, they could pursue whatever business plan they liked and I would say god bless. But they are not, and the money used to to buy those houses is essentially the money that could be used to support SPICE in K-8.
So this purchase of local houses and the money trail with WA and the sending towns is what seems to be at the center of most of the posts.
I will again raise the question: How do the sending towns get any equal leverage with WA about the money that is being spent and on what? WA has been and will continue to be a regional HS, and they are controlling what they spend and where. (BTW: For the most part I think they have done a great job of keeping the costs down – but this is at the expense of the lower grades in Woodstock!) Their latest contract is for a 10 year period. Anyone who understands financing will get a good picture that WA needs to show banks and other loaners that they have a solid income base (10 years based on the latest contracts they want signed). Please remember that when WA did their last major expansion they had to get the sending towns to guarantee that they would send the students to WA for 20 years.
The sending towns need to be on the same contract schedule so that they can negotiate as a single entity with WA and not be dictated to with the contracts.
All of the moves that WA has been doing is to ensure that they have a solid income to handle the needed expansion for the school. Most people need to look at Killingly and now Putnam with school buildings needing to be replaced/updated and the costs of that.
I am not flip-flopping; I just want the sending towns that will be in effect paying for the majority of the expansion to have a say in what gets done (Prioritization of the requirements list). The way the current WA BOT is setup there is very little the sending towns can do/say/change based on the voting blocks, but the sending towns are paying the vast majority of the money!
I agree with doubtful.WA or the town could have bought Hyde.They didnt buy the whole thing so if they want to charge us,owell.Maybe WA. Should have built a bigger auditorium instead of a football field. That would have been a win win for the town.Atleast with the highway and Fire Depts,you know what the plan is.Maintain the roads and save your ass in an emergency.
Pod,
We are not talking about just any not for profit, but a not for profit that does business with the town and charges tuition. I do not begrudge the trustees of the Academy for finding creative ways to offset the loss of students. All I asked in my previous post is whether the purchase of homes will remove them from the tax roll, which I found out that it will. Then I raised the question as to where is the benefit to the town..we lose the tax..do we get any kind of compensation for that? Will the extra students and the income help offset our tuition hikes? I would be happy with some gesture in that regard. It’s all about fair play. I have voted in favor of everything that has come before the BOF regarding the WA, such as fronting the money for the sewer extension. I have even donated personal time over the past several years speaking to the science classes at the Academy..I am by no means an adversary of WA. It boils down to being fair..period! As to the Woodstock Fair..you raise a good point. I agree. It would be nice to see some profit stream to the town. That ranks in the same category as my question about WA purchasing homes.
P,S, I’ll look into the payment in lieu of taxes..thanks.
These are my personal thoughts and opinions and are meant in no way to represent the opinion or position of the Woodstock Board of Finance.
There hasn’t been any mention about the upcoming Meet and Greet or the Community Forum with the BOE. It is unfortunate that the only discussion during the Community Forum allowed is finances. As a parent, I would like to discuss certain programs the school offers, like Character Counts. Members of the BOE should act like role models for the programs they support. Or is this a case of Do what I say, not what I do.
It has come to my attention that a certain duly elected BOE member does not display the character that the board promotes. How can one place trust in an elected BOE member that has an affair with a married woman whose husband is serving our country in Iraq? Now to find
out that he is living with this woman and he is not even divorced yet. Wow! Is this the kind of morals and ethics we want to instill in our children? The RTC really picked a winner when they supported this canidate. Yet we elected him. I am looking forward to the upcomimg BOE events. Sometimes the tough questions needs to be asked. As a parent, I question his ability to make good judgements on behalf of my children while sitting on the BOE. This individual needs to be accountable for his actions. After all, Character Counts or so I thought.
A Parent:
You are using the internet to excoriate a local official for all the world to see and remember.
Am I to assume that you wish to expose all transgressions by all elected officials for everyone to read about?
Most everyone I know has made bad decisions at some point in their life. Is it really necessary to expose the personal life of every elected official? Perhaps you want to move on to embarrassing your neighbors next?
To be honest, I don’t know who you are trying to humiliate, and I don’t want to know.
I would encourage you to engage elected officials on relevant issues, or should everyone who speaks at a public meeting be forced to relive all the stupid things they’ve done before they speak?
I attended the BOE’s community forum today and heard Mr. Campbell from WA address the tax roll issue. The BOT has elected to keep the homes on the tax rolls, at least for the time being. Thank you to the WA BOT for this gesture. It is a win win for the town and the Academy. I realize this could be changed down the road, but at least for now it it a gesture of good will to the community.
These are my personal thoughts and opinions and are meant in no way to represent the opinion or position of the Woodstock Board of Finance.
George,
This question about taxes on existing residential housing units that the Academy has bought and/or plans to buy for off-campus student housing was asked Thursday evening by the PZC at its meeting. To the Academy’s credit, Headmaster Caron stated on the record that the Academy would still pay taxes on such properties it buys (this is a different situation than properties it leases since the property owner pays taxes). The PZC has raised this tax revenue issue as not just an item specific to the Academy, but as a general issue for the entire town regarding educational facilities purchasing residential houses, mindful of the potential impact that it can have on the tax base.
Regarding PILOT, the MFATF reviewed this item. It can be difficult to require non-profit entities to pay voluntary payments in lieu of taxes, but as has happened in many communities, not just in CT, reasonable agreements can be reached between a host community and non-profits. One does need to be careful about tagging all non-profits since that can adversely affect their work (such as the small non-profits in town that won’t be able to afford such payments). However, small non-profits may not use much public resources provided by the town, which is not always the case for large non-profits.
Jeff
The above represent my own personal comments and do not in any manner reflect official statements or positions of the PZC.
Thats good they will pay taxes.
Quite telling about character when “a Parent” hides behind a screen name and will besmirch someone’s reputation and character on a public forum.
Perhaps a exposé on your life and your decisions might be in order?
Start by looking in the mirror…
I am not an overly religious man but this seems to apply…
“He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone”
Db
Thanks for the information Jeff! I agree that non profits are so varied that you can’t have a rule that would apply to all of them. I guess it boils down to whether their activities have an impact on the services the town must provide, and in my question, it was the impact on our revenue stream. I worked for a not for profit many years ago that elected to keep the property it owned on the tax rolls and we knew we always had the right to rescind our agreement, but we never did. We felt it was in our best interests to support the community that supported us.
These are my personal thoughts and opinions and are meant in no way to represent the opinion or position of the Woodstock Board of Finance.
Thanks George for thinking of this issue and brining it up to the BOF and for your hard work on the BOF. I am glad that the PZC likewise brought it up. Land use does have an affect on taxes, municipal expenditures and the local economy, even though state statutes do not authorize the PZC to base a decision for a proposed land use on monetary matters. Still, the PZC, comprised of local elected officials who do indeed live in town, can bring up such concerns for discussion.
There are many small and large businesses (for profit or at least having a goal to make a profit) that recognize they are part of the community in which they are based and provide donations, services, resources, etc… beyond their required obligations to pay taxes. The same can be seen with many non-profit organizations. Although a community does not want to drive away non-profit groups, there nevertheless can be a meaningful and friendly discussion about this whole topic (such as what occurred during MFTAF meetings). There should be a bilateral recognition of what benefits a non-profit provides to the community and what public benefits/services the community provides to the non-profit, especially if such public services (paid for by public tax dollars) are large.
I am not singling out the Academy. I do give credit where credit is due and the Academy’s Board of Trustees and Headmaster Caron do deserve credit in this case for recognizing the current economic downturn and agreeing to keep the residential house that the Academy purchased on the tax rolls, albeit without a defined length of time or permanency.
Jeff
The above represent my own personal comments and do not in any manner reflect official statements or positions of the PZC.
Lest we get too oooey-gooey in this run between McCoy and Gorden — the gesture (at this point, it is only a gesture) extended by the Academy — which is, they will pay property taxes on recently purchased, quite down-at-the-heel house(s) . . (BTW, Does anyone really know how many they’ve purchased to date or where they are?) . . No? well, doesn’t matter. Their offer is far from beneficent. Really, very far from.
The school masterfully threw out another slobber-sucked, sun-bleached Bone while the sleepy electorate choose not to notice. And they won’t notice until it affects THEM.
By then, naturally, it will be too late.
“slobber-sucked, sun-bleached Bone” – wonderful description.
I have to admit I agree with Harry. “Slobber-sucked, sun-bleached bone” is a good one Marylou!! (I’ll send you some tissues to wipe up the ooey gooey stuff Jeff and I left behind). I know it wasn’t what you wanted to see, but I’ll take the slobbery bone as a starting point. You have to start somewhere. Today a bone that everyone else has chewed. Tomorrow a bone with some meat. Eventually we will get the steak.
These are my personal thoughts and opinions and are meant in no way to represent the opinion or position of the Woodstock Board of Finance.
The other sending towns do not have a “proposition”, so they have more leeway with their budgets. Nevertheless, wouldn’t their boards of education be interested in having some bargaining power with the Academy.
A cafe contributor has suggested that were all of the sending towns to be on the same contract schedule, their negotiating ability with the Academy would increase.
Has the Woodstock BOE ever considered making any overtures to the other boards of education?
George, I’m almost certain I won’t live long enuf to see that day
But, you go guy!
I’ll be cheering you on from the great hereafter . .
Harry:
Perhaps the real issue is that sending towns need to have an alternative before they negotiate.
For the sake of argument, let’s suppose that Woodstock, Pomfret, or Brooklyn (or even all of them) decides to play hardball and not renew under WA’s proposed terms. Then what do they do?
Could Killingly H.S. be an alternative for Brooklyn? Could Putnam H.S. be an alternative for Pomfret?
Eastford and Woodstock are probably stuck.
JK,
Is that what Woodstock is in effect doing by not signing the contract? The question will be if some of the new BOE folks start to understand this negotiation point. Also our BOE needs to get together with the other sending town’s BOE’s and make sure they get the long term picture?
Some of the other town’s BOE look at their alternatives and see that WA is one of the best values available.
Yes Ron, but to some extent WA is making itself one of the best values available at the expense of Woodstock’s K-8 grades because our peculiar setup lets them do that. And that is a big problem.
Killingly is an alternative for Brooklyn. However, it is actually more expensive than WA.
Putnam is also, I believe, and alternative for Pomfret students. I’m inclined to believe that Pomfret voters wold not support abandoning WA in favor of Putnam HS.