Coming together

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To the Editor:

In response to the no vote for the proposed Tisbury School, a joint meeting of the Tisbury School Committee, Tisbury School building committee, planning board, finance committee, and the board of selectman was held in the Tisbury School gym last Monday.

One might have thought it was town meeting, with as many as 100 dedicated and concerned citizens in attendance. The meeting was called to seek input from all in determining the next step on the path toward addressing the needs of the overcrowded, outdated (in terms of functioning in today’s educational model), and struggling school building. The question was asked, “What did we take away from such a close vote?” Much was debated, and many opinions expressed, sometimes more heatedly and with less respect for one another than we should allow ourselves.

The answers I heard from the voters in the gym and throughout the community were, yes, we need a new school; no, we do not need a new school but we need to do something with the old school. Others asked to build a new school at another location, and convert the old school into a multiuse building for town hall, police, and offices. Many expressed concerns over the tax rate and the environmental impact of any large project. In summary, all of these are planning issues or the lack thereof. This is not a criticism of the planning board, as there is meaningful work taking place every meeting, and these problems cannot and will not be solved by one governing entity. What the voters are asking from us is greater cooperation and coordination between all departments, boards, and committees.

This is not easy, as the majority of town government policy is developed by well-meaning volunteers who have day jobs and multiple commitments. Nonetheless, we must increase our efforts to open doors between our varied boards and committees, seek open and honest dialogue, accept and offer criticism with humility and grace as we move forward managing the challenges of our town. I look forward to this effort with all my colleagues, and you, the residents of Tisbury.

Harold Chapdelaine
Tisbury School Building Committee
Tisbury Historical Commission
William Street Historic District Commission