Superintendent of Schools Louis J. Taris is pushing to rein in the surging volume of outside organizations utilizing school facilities during evening and weekend hours, citing mounting financial burdens on the school department.
Dr. Taris informed the school committee that dozens of local organizations currently utilize school buildings after hours, frequently without paying any rental fees. Because these groups—primarily charitable or non-profit entities such as the Boy Scouts—are granted free access, the school department is forced to absorb all utility and custodial overtime expenses. Furthermore, Taris noted that even when rental fees are collected from fee-paying organizations, the revenue is deposited directly into the town’s general reserve account rather than offsetting the operational costs incurred by the schools.
Proposed Policy Adjustments and Committee Response
Taris is currently conducting a comprehensive cost analysis of after-hours facility usage. He indicated he may soon recommend expanding the roster of groups required to pay rent and substantially increasing existing rental fees. Pending the completion of his study, Taris formally asked the school committee to implement an immediate moratorium prohibiting any new outside groups from gaining facility access. While emphasizing that he has no desire to shut out legitimate community and civic organizations, Taris stressed that the school department can no longer afford to “swallow the costs.” He also advocated for restructuring fee collection into a dedicated “revolving account,” which would directly cover custodial overtime expenses rather than flowing into the town reserve fund.
The school committee declined to enact an immediate ban on new groups until Superintendent Taris completes his formal financial assessment. Committee member Rudith Berkowitz voiced opposition to a blanket freeze, arguing that it would be inequitable to permit established organizations to continue using the facilities while arbitrarily locking out new applicants.
Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger
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