Every time I need to get maintenance done, I have to subcontract it out and this is costing the town a fortune.”

Town Administrator Richard Rainer

PORTSMOUTH — The town and the school district are discussing the possibility of sharing a facilities/maintenance director in order to align common needs and cut costs.

Town Administrator Richard Rainer told the Town Council Monday that when he and Superintendent of Schools Ana Riley were hired, they were asked to increase collaboration between the town and school district. 

A perfect opportunity to do just that has presented itself, they both say, since the schools’ facilities director of nine years, Don Davidson, is retiring in June. The town’s Department of Public Works, meanwhile, is already overburdened with road work and not enough time to focus on facilities and maintenance, the officials say.

Their plan is to put out a request for proposals (RFP) for a facilities manager that would serve both sides. The director would work out of the School Administration building but would be responsible for supervising the schools’ and town’s custodial and maintenance staff.

“This would have no effect on personnel or unions in place,” said Ms. Riley. “In no way do we have any intention of outsourcing our custodial staff.”

The cost of the director would be shared 40/60, with the school district paying the larger portion. 

Similar arrangements seem to work well in Westerly, R.I. and Manchester, N.H., according to Ms. Riley. The School Committee looked favorably on the idea after hearing from Mr. Rainer and Ms. Riley on March 8.

“Every time I need to get maintenance done, I have to subcontract it out and this is costing the town a fortune,” Mr. Rainer said at that meeting.

Ms. Riley said whether there are any real savings to be had under the collaboration won’t be known until the RFP proposals come back. Mr. Rainer, however, said he was confident that sharing services will be financially advantageous for both sides.

“There may be some upfront costs we may entail, but in the longterm it will be cheaper,” he said.

No action was taken on the proposal Monday, although most council members received the proposal with enthusiasm. “I think it’s a great start,” said Council President Keith Hamilton.

Softball field improvements

Also Monday night, the council voted unanimously to spend $10,000 to help the Portsmouth Little League softball program make needed improvements to the lower field at Glen Park.

According to Stacie MacDonald, vice president of Portsmouth Softball, the group recently learned that the field is not within regulations as mandated by Little League International because its outfield fence is not a minimum of 180 feet and a maximum of 225 feet from home plate.

The league wants to relocate the scoreboard and move the fence back an average of 17 feet to bring it into compliance with league rules. It will cost an estimated $7,940 to move the fence and another $4,560 to relocate the scoreboard, Ms. MacDonald said, noting that time is of the essence since opening day is April 23.

James Lathrop, the town’s director of finance and personnel, said the money could come from numerous capital funds accounts that have small balances that have not been used. 

Although the softball group was seeking more than $12,000, council members pointed out that any construction project on town property that exceeds $10,000 would have to go out to bid. “I’m all for this, but I’d like to do this right,” said Council Vice President James Seveney.

The league also asked the council for approval to install a batting cage along the right first base side. The cost would be paid in part by Little League International grant funds awarded last month, along with community sponsorships and fund-raising efforts, said Ms. MacDonald. The council unanimously approved the request.

Glen Farm events

The council approved several applications to use the special events fields at Glen Farm:

• Portsmouth Youth Soccer Association, for youth soccer tournaments on June 17-19, 2016. The council also approved future tournaments to be held in June of 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020. The fee is $1,700 for this year’s tournament, but the amount could change for the following years.

• UK Elite Soccer, for a summer recreation program from Aug. 1-5, 2016, for a fee of $500.

• John Tomlinson Soccer LLC, for soccer camps from April 18-21, July 18-21 and Aug. 15-18, 2016, for a fee of $200 per camp.

Licenses approved

Sitting as the Board of License Commissioners, the council took the following action:

• advertised to hold public hearings April 11 on: a request to transfer a Class BV liquor license from SDT Enterprises, LLC (doing business as Melville Grille), 1 Lagoon Way, to Those Crazy Kids, LLC (doing business as Gulf Stream Bar and Grille; and a request to transfer a Class B ancillary liquor license from NNGC Corp. (doing business as Newport National Gold Club, 325 Mitchell’s Lane, Middletown, to Newport National Golf Club, Inc. 

• approved an entertainment license for St. Barnabas Church, 1697 East Main Road, to host its annual festival and carnival from June 24-26. The board also approved a Class F daily liquor license and a victualler license (with a fee waiver) for the church festival.

• approved a victualler license, with a fee waiver, to the Portsmouth Lions Club for the Portsmouth Free Public Library’s Touch-a-Truck fund-raiser at Glen Park on May 7.

• approved a peddler license to McGrath Clambakes, Inc. for the Beast of the East rugby tournament at Glen Farm April 16-17.

• approved an annual peddler license to Kona Ice of Greenville for a mobile truck that sells shaved ice.

Appointments/resignations

The council voted unanimously to:

• reappoint Abigail K. Brown to the Conservation Commission.

• appoint Cyrus Gibson to the Design Review Board.

• elevate Kathleen Pavlakis from a second alternate to a full member of the Zoning Board of Review, and appoint Eric Raposa as a first alternate to the same board. (Council member David Gleason recused himself from both votes.)

• appoint Norbort J. Rattay as a second alternate to the Tax Assessment Board of Review.

• appoint Regina T. Shers to the Board of Canvassers.

The council accepted with regret the resignations of James Sherrod from the Zoning Board of Review and Jill Wilson from the Board of Canvassers.