Opinion

Our view: Beverly's imperial mayor returns


Published: May 22, 2008

Unlike his colleagues in Peabody and Salem, Beverly Mayor William Scanlon does not chair his city's school committee. But it's apparent he doesn't need the title, only the power of the purse, to dictate school policy.

The secretiveness and autocratic style that have characterized previous periods of the Scanlon regency were back on display this week as he bullied the school board into accepting his school consolidation plan over one offered by Superintendent James Hayes.

"Take it or leave it," was the message Scanlon had for the school board Tuesday night, as if the $680,000 the city figures to save through increased recycling and lower trash collection costs was his and his alone to spend. And a majority of the board's members, desperate to close a projected $2.67 million deficit in the budget for next year and uncertain about the fate of a June 3 override vote, bowed to his will.

Hayes' plan, which called for the closing of two elementary schools — Cove and McKeown — was rejected by a 4-3 vote, after which Scanlon's proposal to use the $680,000 to keep Cove open was approved 5-2 with only School Committee President Annemarie Cesa and David Manzi opposed. While Scanlon has control over the bottom line, it's the school board that is supposed to be invested with the authority to determine how funds are distributed within the budget.

Scanlon's actions over the last couple of weeks — his refusal to consult with Hayes in devising a rescue plan for the schools, his accusing the superintendent in an unguarded moment of "lying through his teeth," and his insistence that the money he'd "found" in the city budget be used to keep Cove open and nothing else — has resulted in understandable outrage. Cesa, using language rarely heard in the normally happy halls of government in Beverly, termed them "incredibly frustrating and disgusting."

Whether that was his intention or not, the mayor's plan certainly made life more difficult for those supporting the $2.5 million override by placating Cove School parents to some extent. On the other hand, intentionally or not, it's also raised anew anger over the Scanlon's $100-a-year trash fee, with some saying it should be reduced or eliminated if costs have gone down.

Scanlon, who is now the longest-serving mayor in Beverly's history, has not yet said whether he will seek another term in 2009. But this episode is sadly reminiscent of some of the actions — his mishandling of the golf course management contract, for instance; or his decision, later rescinded, to put the fire chief in charge of the police department — that resulted in the two-year suspension from office meted out by voters in 2001.