Anova School Lease of Beebe School Finalized

The Melrose School Committee unanimously approved Tuesday night the Anova School, a grassroots private school for gifted and talented students, leasing a portion of the Beebe School next school year for $25,000 and also for providing 25 hours of professional development for Melrose teachers — but not before a rehashing of Superintendent's Joe Casey's ethics disclosure regarding the school angered at least one committee member.

The Anova School will use almost the entire first floor of the Beebe School with the exception of a kindergarten classroom used by Education Stations, the Melrose Public Schools' after-school program, School Business Manager Greg Zammuto told the committee.

The Beebe School has been vacant since last summer, when the school district decided not to renew the Melrose YMCA's $225,000 lease after former YMCA employee James Conner — who worked as the coordinator for the YMCA's after-school program at the Beebe School — was indicted and arraigned on 20 criminal charges including child rape.

Zammuto told the committee that it has cost the district $50,000 to maintain the vacant Beebe School over the past school year and that no other potential lessees expressed an interest in the building. He said the lease agreement is similar to the previous agreement with the YMCA in terms of insurance and utilities.

"My goal was to get as much rent as we could," Zammuto said. "I tried to get more, but again (Anova officials) came back to say no ... they said they could only afford $25,000."

Instead of additional rent, Anova officials agreed to increase professional development time offered to Melrose Public Schools teachers from 20 hours to 25.

School Committee Don Constantine acknowledged that the district would prefer to receive more rent for the building, but that there is no other alternative other than letting the school remain vacant.

"(The Beebe School) just lies there fallow," Constantine said. "This idea is planting a seed and seeing if it'll grow. I also say it's time for us to start thinking not only about this year's lease, but next year's. I'm still concerned about long-term use of that facility. If this isn't long-term, we better start looking at what is a good long-term use."

Committee Chairwoman Margaret Driscoll said that having the building occupied is preferable for the neighborhood, potentially reducing vandalism at the school, and could bring more customers to the rest of the Melrose business community. Committee member Carrie Kourkoumelis added on another positive note that she "heard through the grapevine" that parents of Anova students were now considering purchasing homes in Melrose.

With regard to long-term use, committee member Christine Casatelli raised the possibility of Anova becoming an 'innovation school' within the Melrose Public School district, which could bring more grant money to the district. Innovation schools are a concept established in the state education bill that passed in January and allow the creation of in-district public schools that essentially operate independently of the district: setting their own curriculum, schedule and calendar; not having to follow school district policies; and bypassing collective bargaining agreements through waivers or exemptions from the local teacher contract.

Committee member J.D. LaRock noted that the Revere School Committee Tuesday night approved the state's first innovation school, providing a nearby example for the committee to observe and consider.

Attorney's appearance, not on agenda, riles committee members and public

The appearance of city special counsel David Lucas before the committee earlier in the evening to further clarify Superintendent Joe Casey's recent disclosure of a conflict of interest with the Anova School — and the School Committee's decision to accept the disclosure and allow Casey to continuing negotiating the Anova lease — caught at least two committee members by surprise, because his appearance was not listed on the committee's agenda for the evening.

When Casey learned that his sister was pursuing employment at Anova School, he requested a verbal opinion from the state Ethics Commission, which told Casey that his involvement would constitute a conflict of interest according to state law, Lucas said after Driscoll asked him to step forward, state his affiliation with the city and asked if he had any clarification regarding the ethics decision.

In a written opinion dated May 4, however, the Ethics Commission told Melrose City Solicitor Rob Van Campen — who sought the written opinion on behalf of Casey — that the state ethics law allows public employees' continued involvement in cases that constitute a conflict of interest, as long as that employee files a public disclosure with his or her appointing authority and that appointing authority then decides to allow the employees' continued involvement. State Ethics Commission opinions are kept confidential unless the employee who sought the opinion chooses to disclose it.

Casey filed his public disclosure with the School Committee, who voted earlier this month to allow Casey to continue negotiations with Anova School officials for a lease at the Beebe School, Lucas said.

"That's what key here: you (the School Committee) have every right to look at this and say 'I don't approve' or 'there's nothing wrong with that,'" Lucas said, adding that he sought to clarify the perception that Casey continuing to negotiate the lease is illegal under the state ethics law. "That's not the case at all. A conflict can arise in many different situations and this is one of them. It would be illegal to not file a disclosure and continue lease negotiations. By filing the disclosure, it puts the matter before the public and allows (the School Committee) to act as entitled by law."

LaRock asked Lucas who asked him to appear before the committee at that night's meeting. Lucas responded that he was asked by Van Campen, who could not attend the meeting.

LaRock then said that he was "perplexed and a little angry" about Lucas' unannounced appearance to discuss a matter that he believed had already been settled. He added that while he has concerns about the perception of a conflict of interest — LaRock abstained from the vote earlier this month allowing Casey to continue negotiations — he has "no concern" about Casey's ethics or the committee voting, as allowed by the state ethics law, to allow the negotiations to continue.

"I'm upset because, once again, your appearance was not at all reflected on the agenda for tonight," he said in a restrained but firm voice to Lucas and the other committee members. " This has the aspect of a charade to me ... I'm sorry, I don't mean to fly off the handle, but we have to think more carefully about the situations and discussions we set up in this meeting, putting our colleagues in situations that are uncomfortable, upsetting and do nothing more than to re-litigate matters to create an impression of something — I don't know what. I don't disagree with your (Lucas') conclusions of law, just what's going on here right now. Inappropriate."

The state's Open Meeting Law requires that "except in an emergency," notice of government meetings should be filed with the city clerk and posted at least 48 hours in advance of the meeting.

Kourkoumelis also stated that she had "no idea" Lucas would be present at the meeting and made a motion that the committee adopt a policy of not making changes to the agenda within 48 hours of the meeting unless there is a "dire emergency.

"As in this case, at virtually every meeting now, things are presented at the last minute," she said. Kourkoumelis' motion was unanimously tabled by the committee until members can review the Open Meeting Law and committee policies.

During the public comment session at the end of the meeting, Campbell Kaynor, Kourkoumelis' husband, clarified his earlier remarks when he said the state ethics law makes it "clear" that Casey's negotiations with Anova officials over the Beebe School lease were illegal.

"(Casey) did the right thing by bringing it to the committee, you (the School Committee) did the right by waiving that," Kaynor said. "My point was that it could have been done staying well within the law and I particularly did not like the words of one committee member who called it finger pointing... you (the committee) did the right thing — but you can do it the right way."