Table of Contents
Get our free local reporting delivered straight to your inbox. No noise, no spam — just clear, independent coverage of Marblehead. Sign up for our once-a-week newsletter.
Marblehead voters approved a $15 million operating override June 9. On Wednesday, Select Board Chair Dan Fox plans to show them the first quarterly accounting under the agreement that came with it.
Fox told the Independent on Tuesday that he will give a full presentation of the quarterly report called for in the memorandum of understanding the Select Board, School Committee and Finance Committee approved before the vote. It is the 10th item on the board’s agenda for its 7 p.m. meeting at Abbot Hall, which is also available on Zoom.
Fox said the memorandum does not require a public presentation.
“I don’t have to,” he said. “I want to.”
He said he looks forward to showing Marbleheaders “what this town has been working on, and exactly how we’re using their money.”
The presentation follows two filings this month. John DiPiano filed an Open Meeting Law complaint Oct. 20, and resident Allen Waller filed a public records request dated Oct. 22.
What the agreement requires
The memorandum, dated April 7, says the town administrator and superintendent will report at least quarterly to the chairs of the Select Board, School Committee and Finance Committee on the town’s fiscal position. Public reporting on override spending in the State of the Town address begins in January 2027.
For fiscal 2027, the agreement caps the town’s draw from the override at $4,296,718, all of it for the municipal budget. The schools draw nothing until fiscal 2028.
At the board’s July 24 retreat, Town Administrator Thatcher Kezer said the October review is where both sides show they stayed within those caps. The data, format and presenters had not been settled then.
“I think it’s very important that October happens,” Select Board member Rossana Ferrante said at the time.
The review arrives during turnover in the town’s finance staff. Chief Financial Officer Aleesha Benjamin left in August for the same job in Nantucket, Massachusetts, and Kezer retires Dec. 31. The board is also scheduled Wednesday to vote on questions for applicants seeking to replace him.
Two filings
The first joint review was planned for the week of Oct. 19. A School Committee update submitted by member Henry Gwazda said it was not public.
DiPiano, who worked on Better Way Marblehead’s campaign against the override, contends in his complaint that the session should have been open. The board is scheduled to vote on the complaint Wednesday.
Fox said the sessions are not meetings subject to that law.
“There’s nothing to be discussed,” he said. “It’s just a question of putting stuff together that’s presentable in a digestible way.”
He compared it to preparing his override presentation for Town Meeting, when not every planning session was held in public. He said officials were “formatting a PowerPoint presentation.”
Waller has asked Records Access Officer Kyle Wiley for communications, including text messages, emails and phone calls, among Kezer, Fox, School Committee member Kate Schmeckpeper, Finance Committee Vice Chair Molly Teets and Superintendent John Robidoux from Oct. 12 to 26.
Waller said he wants to know where things stand and described his request as backing up DiPiano’s complaint.
“I certainly would like to see more transparency,” he said.
He said he is concerned the boards will return with decisions already made. He also said he does not believe the memorandum is binding. A footnote in the document says current boards cannot bind their successors but expresses the expectation that future boards will honor the pledge.
Where to find the numbers
Fox said his report will cover figures through the end of September. Residents can already see more, he said, on Marblehead Open Finance, reached through the “Follow the Money” link on the town website.
“In reality, my report tomorrow will be out of date compared to what people can get online,” he said.
He said residents who want more detail can contact him directly.
“I’m happy to always talk to anybody,” he said.
