During a 90-minute discussion at last week's meeting of the Board of Finance, Town Director of Purchasing Twig Holland and Assistant Town Attorney Eileen Kennelly attempted to explain the events leading up to the transferring of funds from one school bonded project to another without receiving approval from the BOF. Before the commission that night was a motion held over from the last meeting, to amend the previously approved bonding appropriations by increasing the funding for the Osborn Hill project by $39,000 and decreasing the Roger Sherman school project by $39,000.
Initially the two separate bonding resolutions were authorized by the BOF to allow the two schools to purchase and install additional classroom space in the form of modulars. The approved bonding resolutions provided $1.85 million for Roger Sherman's modulars and $1.645 million for the Osborn Hill modular classrooms. Recently according to Holland the funding for the Osborn addition fell short and the BOF was asked to approve a transfer of $39,000 from the Roger Sherman project to the Osborn Hill project.
At the previous BOF meeting in early October the Board was asked to approve this transfer of funds from one school project to another and last Tuesday night's meeting was to dig further into the request. Kennelly ultimately told the Board that it was appropriate for First Selectman Ken Flatto to transfer funds from one project to another saying, "The two projects were viewed by us as a single pot, not differentiated." She went on to maintain that in her opinion it was not legally necessary for the BOF to approve the $39,000 reallocation.
Frustrated by Kennelly's statements regarding the lack of review and the comingling of funds several Finance Board members pressed the Town attorney on the merging of funds and the lack of notice to the Board. Not accepting Kennelly's explanation that the two funds were really one, Board member Mary LeClerc said, "I disagree. The Charter says you can't spend more than given. The building committee should have come back to us. It's clear in the Charter." Revealing he was appalled at what he was hearing from Kennelly, Christopher DeWitt said, "I am never going to talk about a bond resolution without bond counsel present."
During the lengthy discussion Board member Michael Tetreau noted that the issue before them was more about the process than the specific request to transfer funds. He explained that the Board approved money for two separate projects, saying, "We think it is going to be used for that. I think that is the intent of the Charter."
BOF member Thomas Flynn also expressed frustration that the Board was not part of the process saying, "What we approved is not actually what took place." Flynn said he never thought that when the BOF approved the two bonding funds that the comingling of funds would be allowed. Pointing to the motion before the body, to approve the resolution amending two bond appropriations Flynn said, "The money is spent, they got it done. According to the assistant Town attorney, they didn't need our authorization." Flynn and fellow Board member Deborah Zieff agreed that if forced to vote on the motion both would be voting no.
After some additional comments and discussion regarding the matter before them the BOF voted 5-3 to deny the $39,000 transfer request from the Roger Sherman classroom project to the Osborn Hill project.