By Terry Date
Staff writer
May 13, 2008 05:55 am WINDHAM — The second access road for the new Windham High School is back on track. That announcement came last night as the selectmen said they want to petition the court for permission to host a Special Town Meeting vote on the road's funding. Town Administrator Dave Sullivan will check to see if the town can host the vote concurrent with state primary voting in September or during the national election balloting in November. The vote would follow the March defeat of the proposed $1.25 million access road by a tally of 1,270-1,234. The school district petition article needed a 60 percent majority for approval. Meanwhile, drama emerged during last night's selectmen's meeting when School Board Chairman Barbara Coish took the podium. She asked the selectmen if they would let Windham High School open as planned in fall 2009 without an access road. Selectman Charlie McMahon said that decision is not up to the selectmen. State law demands that the school have a second road as a safety requirement, he said. Fire Chief Tom McPherson then explained the state Department of Education and the National Fire Protection Association require a second access road to schools for emergency vehicles. And state law requires a second road unless the local fire chief waives the requirement, he said. "I can tell you tonight I will not waive this," McPherson said. The fire chief said there is room for compromise on the kind of road but not on whether there would be a second access road. There's too much at stake with the safety of 1,000 students, staff and teachers, he said. The secondary road would be a continuation of the main entrance, off Route 111, with the secondary road connecting to Castle Hill Road. Selectmen authorized the town administrator, engineer Peter Zohdi and two members of the board to sit down with those who own land along the proposed road. The town must negotiate with at least five landowners for the road to be built, Zohdi said. The town was involved in discussions with the landowners until the project's defeat in March. The plan is for this group to come back to the selectmen with input from the landowners so the project can move cleanly ahead. "I want to get the ball rolling and get this done," Chairman Dennis Senibaldi said. Board members want to move forward as soon as possible so as to leave plenty of time for construction of the road and not delay the school's opening. Selectmen plan to walk the access road in late July before holding a public hearing on the road's layout. The hearing would likely be July 21 or 28, Sullivan said.
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