(NOTE: This change would NOT go into effect in time for the Massachusetts Presidential Primary on Tuesday, March 1. Such a change would require a vote of the Wilmington Board of Selectmen and written notification from the Wilmington Town Clerk’s Office to all voters.)
WILMINGTON, MA — Town Manager Jeff Hull, Superintendent of Schools Mary DeLai, and Town Clerk Sharon George are supporting a proposal to have all of Wilmington vote at a centralized polling location — the Wilmington High School Gymnasium.
Currently, Precincts 1 and 2 vote at the Boutwell Early Childhood Center, Precincts 3 and 4 vote at the Wildwood Early Childhood Center, and Precincts 5 and 6 vote at the Wilmington Town Hall.
Why Change Polling Locations?
The new plan would alleviate safety and security concerns shared by staff at the Boutwell and Wildwood. At the Boutwell, for example, voters often exit into a hallway adjacent to classrooms. At the Wildwood, for example, residents and students share a restroom.
“It’s unfortunate that we have to be concerned, but given incidents in schools across the country, we have an obligation to use heightened cautionary measures to protect students,” says Superintendent Mary DeLai.
When voting takes place at the Boutwell and Wildwood, it also forces schools to violate the School Committee’s Life Threatening Food Allergy Policy and “allergy safe” classroom guidelines, as students eat their lunches at their desk.
“These guidelines prohibit lunch from being served in the classroom,” says DeLai. “In the lunchroom, we have have peanut free tables to appropriately prohibit students with life threatening food allergies and there are strict protocols in place around cleaning tables, with other protective measures taken.”
By consolidating polling locations, Wilmington would also see long-term savings with the need for fewer election workers.
Voting Logistics At Wilmington High
The high school is closed on Town Elections, which are held on Saturdays.
The high school, and the rest of the school district, would hold professional development days on regular November election days, which tend to have high turnouts. Students would have the day off.
For state and presidential primary elections, the high school would remain open. Voters would park in the Staff Parking Lot. (Staff and student would park in the Student Parking Lot.) Voters would enter through the Performing Arts Center entrance and proceed past the interior auditorium entrance to the gym. Stanchions and other dividers would create a physical segregation between students and voters during student lunches. Several police officers would be on detail.
School Committee Split On The Proposal
At their meeting last week, the Wilmington School Committee voted, 4-2, to support the proposal, with Peggy Kane, Steve Bjork, Ginny Bonish and Julie Broussard voting in favor, and Manny Mulas and Kathleen Carroll voting against. Member MJ Byrnes was absent from the meeting.
Several members expressed various levels of concern with the plan.
Mulas and Carroll were concerned with longer wait times for voters, along with an increase in traffic in the area. Mulas wanted additional information before casting his vote.
Broussard questioned whether there’d be any “wear and tear” to the new gym. DeLai responded that the matting used for graduation would be utilized on election days.
Bonish questioned the feasibility of fitting the students and staff in the same parking lot. DeLai responded it was possible and, worse case scenario, juniors would be asked to not drive to school on that particular day.
Kane expressed concern that elderly voters would have much farther to walk at the High School. DeLai noted that all residents could take advantage of early voting, which would take place at Town Hall.
Attention Wildwood & Boutwell Parents!
The Wilmington School Committee did unanimously, agree, however, on closing the Wildwood and Boutwell Early Childhood Centers on Tuesday, March 1, 2016 during the Presidential Primary. The new polling location plan would not be implemented before then. Teachers will come in for professional development, but Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten students will have the day off. The day WILL not be made up at the end of the year.
Next Steps
Town Manager Jeff Hull will present the polling location consolidation proposal to the Board of Selectmen at an upcoming meeting.
Pending their approval, Town Clerk Sharon George would then notify all registered Wilmington voters via mail well in advance of the change.
Your Thoughts?
Do you like the idea of having all of Wilmington vote at the High School? Let me know by commenting below, tweeting to Wilmington Apple, writing on Wilmington Apple’s Facebook page, or emailing wilmingtonapple@gmail.com.
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