referendum2

Please remember that this unofficial information may contain "opinion" - About Weston WEBsite tries very hard to be objective!

How did we get to where we are? What drove the debate? There were two parallel and recurring themes - septic solution and school expansion. Seen above left is an old photo of the FRONT of WMS - voting takes place in the Old Gym, which has access around the back...next new and old at WHS and the WIS (r.)

What were we voting about all over again?
This was the original Referendum Number One Nov. 15, 2001 question (Question #2) and the original result was 2200 - 1892 in favor of a 3-4-5 school; the new Referendum question was reversed ("yes" meaning "no" and "no" meaning "yes" to construction of the new 3-4-5 school). To be a Weston Town Meeting voter you have to have had advanced courses in obfuscation.

April 22, 2003 do-over Referendum Number Two: 3450 votes cast (total includes 252 absentee ballots):
Favoring 3-4-5 school ("no" votes) = 2231 (64.7%)...31 votes more than Nov. 15, 2001 Referendum #1;
Against 3-4-5 school ("yes" votes) = 1219 (35.3%)...673 fewer than in Nov. 15, 2001 Referendum #1.

HOW WE GOT TO WHERE WE ARE:
Intermediate School open September 2005, Weston High School doubled in size, "opened" May '06

PRELUDE: Where this all began - the history (1995 through current) of sewage disposal discussion; ARCHITECTURAL HISTORY of three (3) different architect/planners' plans for Weston's school expansion HERE.

SEPTIC SOLUTION:

SELECT COMMITTEE ...Once confronted with the choice of school expansion and sewers, the Town said a loud "NO" in May 2000 - and so the "Select Committee" (with the longest title in the world) was formed;

SELECT COMMITTEE WORKBOOK:The Committee goes to work...supplied with documents by the then Town Administrator; Select Committee gets extensions, even to this day!

GENERATORS OF EFFLUENT:What is the status of septic generation in the heart of Weston? How can this problem be treated without sewers?

SEPTIC SYSTEM/SEWAGE TREATMENT LOCATION...CT D.E.P. lays down the law; upgrades needed to existing systems before any remedy can be permitted for tertiary treatment options.

SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION/EXPANSION: Unofficial minutes for School Building project (as far back as May 2000--in reverse chronological order), by "About Town"--we have not missed one Building Committee/School Building Committee meeting since the Referendum of November 15, 2001--HERE;

SCHOOL BUILDING COMMITTEE: with additional representation from Select Committee (alternatives to sewers), Board of Education facilties sub-committee, Superintendent of Schools and design critic, the Building Committee shoulders the task of administrating the early phases of work on school expansion. Together, these 11 individuals make up the "School Building Committee." As design work progresses, a Construction Management firm and an Owner's Representative come on board to administrate/supervise the November 15, 2001 Referendum work.

FLETCHER-THOMPSON: Architects of the Plan that won the Referendum of Nov. 15, 2001. Previous description of "alternatives" (no $$ here). Results of Adjourned Town Meeting machine vote that cut short planning prior to Referendum of Nov. 15, 2001 HERE... during the summer of 2001, planning for school referendum continues...big meeting at Weston Library.

DESIGN SUB-COMMITTEE...begun on December 4, 2001...design detailing now held at end of School Building Committee meetings.

Early design timeline (not current official document) HERE.

O,R& L CONCEPTS: For historical reference - the ideas of the second architect/planner:The Plan for school construction put on shelf as septic issue and "sticker shock" - high bonding cost - combine to bring the two separate issue discussions together, and bring the school improvement program to a temporary halt in February 2000. What were O,R&L's "options" for school expansion?