BOS Ratifies Town Manager's New Three-Year Contract

by Inanna Arthen
At an open public meeting immediately following deliberations in Executive Session on Tuesday, February 21, the Board of Selectmen announced that they had ratified a new three-year contract for Town Manager Justin Sultzbach with a salary of $162,500 for Fiscal Year 2024.

Mr. Sultzbach explained to the Courier that the negotiations were based on "market value" of typical salaries for qualified staff in similar positions in this area, and also in comparison to what former Town Manager Keith Hickey was paid in his third year working for Winchendon. The town would have paid some $24,000 additional over the past three years had Mr. Hickey remained as Town Manager with his anticipated contracted salary, Mr. Sultzbach said.

The new contract includes five weeks of vacation time and a $50 per month stipend for life insurance. In FY25 Mr. Sultzbach's salary will increase to $170,000, plus a cost of living adjustment. The third year of the contract is to be negotiated. The $7,500 difference in Mr. Sultzbach's salary for FY24 is earmarked for salary increases for Town Hall staff.

Mr. Sultzbach affirmed that both he and the Board are completely committed to fiscal responsibility. Mr. Sultzbach has brought financial benefits to the town far in excess of his pay. He stated that during the past three years, he has personally brought in $1,538,659 in grant monies for the town, which is some nine times the amount of his new salary. He also has kept the momentum going on the 4 Summer Drive property which will be the new Bull Spit taproom and brewery, scoring $200,000 from Mass Development for site remediation and clean-up.

Also under Mr. Sultzbach's purview has been the Hillview property, on Rte 140/Gardner Road next to Mylec. It is being divided into four industrial parcels with a very large cannibis growing facility slated to be constructed on one of them, while the Winchendon Revelopment Authority retains ownership of the other three parcels for future use. The cannabis facility developers are covering the costs of putting in a new access road and utilities on that site.

The position of Director of Planning and Development has been vacant since the departure of Tracey Murphy. Much of the planning and development work has been moved to the Town Manager's office. Mr. Sultzbach told the Courier that the plan is to return the $90,000 budgeted salary for that position to the general budget. Some of it will cover a salary increase for Planning and Land Use Coordinator and Acting Planning Department Head Nicole Roberts, whose position will be made permanent, and some will cover Mr. Sultzbach's salary increase.

In a phone conversation with the Courier, Board of Selectmen Chair Audrey LaBrie expanded on the situation faced by the town and the Board.

"Some of the positions that we've been trying to fill at Town Hall, we've found that the salary range that we're looking to pay doesn't even barely touch the bottom of what other towns are able to pay," Ms. LaBrie said, giving the just-filled Town Accountant position as an example. "In talking with Tony Roselli, our auditor, in one of the meetings he said, 'You know, there's 251 cities and towns in Massachusetts, and then maybe 200 or under 200, certified municipal accountants and everybody's vying for the same pot.' So we've noticed over the last year that salaries are increasing with the economy."

Ms. LaBrie said that, as usual with negotiations, the Board made an offer to Mr. Sultzbach, and he came back with a counter-offer which was less than Ms. LaBrie expected. The Board also agreed to add a third year to the contract.

Ms. LaBrie stated that the Board had to make a hard decision. "My perspective on it, and I've always said this coming from my corporate America background. You've got to spend money to make money," she said. "I don't mean to sound dismissive. We recognize that the demographics of Winchendon are unique. We do have so many on fixed incomes. It's a real catch-22." The town has to keep moving forward for the long-term good of the town and its residents. The Board did research and looked at salaries in comparable towns, and found that the salary requested by Mr. Sultzbach is "not an unrealistic salary" and is in line with the current market.

Ms. LaBrie reiterated some of Mr. Sultzbach's achievements in the past three years, saying he built a good case for his salary increase. "I feel that Justin is doing a great job," Ms. LaBrie said.

Winchendon CAC Updates Town Boards on Programs, Community Needs

by Inanna Arthen
At the quad-board meeting on Monday, February 13, Miranda Jennings, Director of the Winchendon Community Action Committee (CAC) and Shaina Cunningham, Program Manager for the CAC, gave a presentation to the Board of Selectmen, Finance Committee, Capital Planning Committee and Community Preservation Act Exploratory Committee about the needs being addressed by the CAC and its current programs.

Ms. Jennings explained that she and Ms. Cunningham had begun their positions less than a year ago, in May of 2022. Prior to that, Ms. Jennings had served as the Interim Director following the retirement of previous CAC Director Jennifer Sibley. "We have taken the reins on work that many people have been doing before us," Ms. Jennings said. "So I want to recognize the previous directors and all the volunteers that have been doing this work long before we were here."

Launching into the presentation, Ms. Jennings said, "We just wanted to give you a snapshot of what we do, who we're serving, why we're doing it and how it all happens. So right now, we have a database that we get for free through MIT, and we're able to do a better job of tracking who we're serving." Currently, 425 households are signed up as CAC clients who can access services, a total of 1,058 persons, approximately 10 percent of the town's population. 40 percent of the CAC's clients receive Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments. 80 percent of the CAC's clients receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits (formerly called "food stamps"). All of these programs have strict income limits for eligibility.

Clients are sorted into demographic groups by age, race, ethnicity and other categories, "to make sure we're really serving everybody and not missing a group that could be in need," Ms. Jennings said.

"Why is this work important? I think all of us know why this is needed in our town," Ms. Jennings said, pointing out a "Massachusetts Food As Medicine" map that shows Winchendon in the highest tier of chronic disease incidence statewide, often linked to chronic nutritional deficiencies, poverty and other issues. "We are a food pantry, so we are directly addressing a lot of the nutrition issues, but we are also addressing poverty," Ms. Jennings said. "We have a substantial amount of children, especially young children, living in poverty in our community. A great number of students that are high needs and a lot of financial issues that are facing residents."

According to the statistics displayed, 12.3 percent of Winchendon residents have household incomes below the federal poverty line (the statewide average is 10.5 percent). (This is roughly one out of every 8 persons in town.) 18.8 percent of children under 18, and a staggering 40.1 percent of children under age 5, live in households with incomes below the federal poverty line. 57 percent of students in the Winchendon schools are classfied as high-needs (the statewide average is 46 percent). 13 percent of Winchendon residents are "unbanked or underbanked."

Board of Selectmen Chair Audrey LaBrie asked what "unbanked or underbanked" means. Ms. Jennings explained that these are residents who don't have bank accounts for any of a number of reasons--they can't get accounts, they may not trust banks, and so on.

"Our goal isn't just to give people a fish," Ms. Jennings said. "We want to work to teach people to fish and then also understand why maybe there are no fish in our pond--look at what's really happening upstream. So move residents from crisis all the way to stability." CAC programs are designed to interact with this "big picture" in mind, not just address individual issues piecemeal.

Ms. Cunningham then took up the microphone to describe the CAC's programs. The CAC food bank distributed 124,183 pounds of food last year, a dollar value of over $230,000. (That's 62 tons of food, averaging more than 117 pounds per client.) Food is distributed as fresh produce, a weekly "pantry" and a monthly "shelf" allotment. Over $30,000 per year goes to fund emergency shelter, heating, electricity, rent, mortgage, and school supplies. The CAC partners with Making Opportunity Count (MOC) in Fitchburg to bring heating assistance to Winchendon residents. The GFA Federal Credit Union partners with the CAC for the Back to School backpack program.

More than 20 persons experiencing homelessness in Winchendon benefited from the Haven of Hope program in 2022. Clients can use laundry facilities and a shower in the CAC building, use the CAC as an address for applications, access the Internet and use phones. "We do a lot of case management and wraparound services," Ms. Cunningham said, assisting the clients in finding longer-term solutions and resources.

Through a partnership with Fidelity Bank, the CAC offers "Tasty Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday" demonstrations in which foodstuffs in the food bank are used to cook a healthy meal that clients can prepare at home.

The CAC also hosts the Love 'n Local Farm Stand, which is open to all Winchendon residents. Selling locally grown produce, the Farm Stand is qualified for the Healthy Incentives Program (HIP), by which SNAP recipients get double credit for purchasing fresh produce. The Farm Stand also accepts credit cards and cash payments. "It supports local farmers, so it provides 71 cents per dollar compared to the 15 cents per dollar that they would get if they were selling through a big box store. So it benefits our local farmers. It benefits our community and our economy. The proceeds benefit goes to the CAC programs and it helps everyone's health in the local economy," Ms. Cunningham said.

The "economic empowerment hub" of the CAC is the Fresh Start Program. "We begin meeting with our members and clients and setting short term and long term goals with them for financial stability and overall well-being, so we're transitioning out of that emergency services and really moving towards sustainability," Ms. Cunningham said. "We want to help people help themselves through financial coaching, life coaching. We have access to numerous trainings, a matching funds program or revolving fund that we've begun and other wraparound service support to make sure, even if it's something that we don't offer, that warm handoff, through creating a community resource guide and developing those connections with other organizations in our community or that serve our community."

The CAC is working to "close the SNAP gap" by helping people who are eligible for SNAP benefits to apply for them.

Ms. Jennings continued the presentation, talking about the CAC's Youth Empowerment programs. The CAC partners with Mount Wachusett Community College, HEAL Winchendon and the Youth Changemakers for its youth initiatives. They also partner with Toy Town Elementary and Murdock Middle School for programs to help students build skills in civic engagement, communication, interpersonal skills and other life skills. The ALL program students are learning to prepare food and help run the Sunshine Café. "What we've heard from the teachers and administrators there is that there aren't a lot of life skills development programs for students in the ALL program. So we're trying to provide a space for that," Ms. Jennings said. The youth-run Sunshine Café has just opened in the CAC and will be open on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

"And finally, most upstream, we recognize that no matter how hard people might work, some of the systems in place are just going to provide barriers for people. So we need to, as an organization, look at ourselves and say what can we do better to reduce barriers. So we're working to evaluate our policies and practices to see how we can be more inclusive and equitable. We're working with the town to do that as well," Ms. Jennings said. A grant for the Community Health Inclusion Index or CHII will fund residents and youth with disabilities who will evaluate accessibility issues in town and recommend changes to policies and the physical environment.

"Most importantly, none of this happens without our community and I think this is what's so great about Winchendon, is when you ask anybody about why they love Winchendon it's because of the people, that we all come together in times of need," Ms. Jennings said. "The CAC runs 80 percent on volunteer work. We have no full time staff at the CAC. We have an incredible Board, [of whom] some people are here tonight. And we have volunteers, many of you who are here, that make it happen. Every day we have at least five people volunteering six, eight hours a day to make this happen. So I just can't thank all of our volunteers enough and everybody who's been there to make this happen."

Ms. Jennings pointed out that there has been a huge increase in need over the past two years. COVID created a big spike in 2020, then numbers dropped in 2021, but they are now back up, from 200 to 450 families. "Every day we've had new families coming in that have never come to the CAC before or who are new to town," Ms. Jennings said.

The CAC's funding comes from grants, a $25,000 stipend from the town budget, and a very large amount of in-kind donations, primarily food donations. Only 20 percent of the CAC budget is spent on overhead, including utilities and staff salaries. "If we don't raise the funds for it, then we can't do it," Ms. Jennings said. Upcoming fundraisers to benefit the CAC include the "Winchenstock" concert headlined by local band The BIG RanDom, which this year will be held at the amphitheater in the Winchendon Community Park on August 12.

Selectman Barbara Anderson asked if the CAC only serves Winchendon residents. Ms. Jennings explained that most of the clients are Winchendon residents, but they do serve a few from Royalston and Templeton. Gardner has its own CAC, but clients might come to Winchendon for a service that their local CAC doesn't offer such as classes or trainings. "The emergency funding and those funds are just designated for Winchendon residents," she said.

The Winchendon CAC is located at 273 Central Street. It is closed Monday, Saturday and Sunday, and open on Tuesday 11:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m., Wednesday 11:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m., Thursday 8:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. and Friday 8:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. The phone number is 978-297-1667, and it may be contacted by email at info@winchendon-cac.org

Follow the Winchendon CAC on Facebook: www.facebook.com/winchendoncac
The CAC website: www.winchendon-cac.org/

New Land Trust Partnership Begins to Protect Lake Monomonac Forestland

Aerial View of Lake Monomonac
Photo by Terry Holland

WINCHENDON - Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust and North County Land Trust (NCLT) have joined forces with local residents to protect 200+ acres of forest at the southern reaches of Lake Monomonac. The distinctive 700-acre lake is formed as the Millers River flows south from the hills of New Hampshire's Wapack Range to a series of colonial-era dams in Winchendon, MA.

The construction of over 200 camp lots overlooking the lake had been proposed at one point, which would have dramatically impacted the water quality and scenic beauty of the lake. Conserving this land also helps secure the watershed of both the lake and White's Mill Pond which then flow into Whitney Pond and the Millers River.

"We're all connected by water and the forested land that it flows through, and by working together we can protect both, said Emma Ellsworth, Mount Grace Executive Director, "Watershed boundaries are created by mountains, valleys or ridges and rarely fall neatly within city or state lines. This makes the partnerships among our different organizations essential for the conservation of these important regions."

Mount Grace and NCLT are working in collaboration with the Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game, a local private conservation buyer, town administrators, both the Winchendon Springs Lake Association and the Monomonac Lake Property Owners Association, and many concerned Winchendon and New Hampshire residents. The ultimate goal is to create a new 200+ acre conservation area equipped with trails for the benefit of the greater Winchendon community.

"This is a multi-faceted project that requires the cooperation, understanding and effort from the whole community," said NCLT Executive Director Anna Wilkins, "Of course, Winchendon is a great place for a project like that. NCLT is pleased to partner with Mount Grace to pool our expertise and resources to help lead this land conservation project with the greater Winchendon community."

Conserving this land would link the Winchendon Springs Wildlife Management Area to hundreds of acres of forest conserved by the Town of Winchendon. Parts of this landscape are considered crucial habitat by Massachusetts' Natural Heritage & Endangered Species Program, so this larger connectivity ensures that species can migrate through diverse habitats to provide greater resilience to climate change.

Renee Tambling, Treasurer for the Winchendon Springs Lake Association and year-round resident is excited about the project saying, "This is going to be great for our community, our lakes, and our river. Not only will we benefit from keeping the land natural now, but it will be that way for future generations. It doesn't get any better than that."

Lifelong Winchendon resident Marie Urquhart also spoke favorably of the project and partnership: "How fortunate we are to have Mount Grace and NCLT working collaboratively to protect Lake Monomonac and many acres of forested land around it! Much of my time as a child growing up in Winchendon was spent enjoying these resources, swimming, sailing, hiking, and camping to name a few. I have come to realize over the years how important it is to be a steward for the land. This will take a group effort by many individuals as well as organizations to do this work. Getting involved now will provide great benefit for the future of our region."

Mount Grace's Leigh Youngblood Conservation Opportunity Fund was utilized for initial costs, but the permanent conservation of these forested hills, vernal pools, wetlands and river channel on the south end of Lake Monomonac will require broad community support. Mount Grace and NCLT are unified on the goal of ensuring the land is open for recreation and continues to provide critical wildlife habitat for the Millers River headwaters.

Clark Sharks Make a Splash at Eastern MA District Championships

by Julie Whittemore
The Clark Sharks swim team recently competed at the Eastern Massachusetts District Championships. This year we had 20 swimmers qualify. The highest number of qualifiers in many years. There was a lot of hard work leading to some great swims. All Clark Sharks have put in a lot of time and dedication to their sport this season!

Some stand out achievements go to the 6 swimmers who finished in the top 6 of their age group. Madison Dufour places 4th in the 13/14 500 freestyle. Isabelle Dumas placed 3rd in the 13/14 200 Individual Medley, 3rd in the 13/14 100 Backstroke and the 13/14 200 Backstroke. Kaia Kaloustian placed 5th in the 9/10 100 free. Owen Moury Placed 3rd in the 9/10 100 Individual Medley, 3rd in the 9/10 50 Butterfly, and 3rd in the 9/10 50 Backstroke. Alise Sulin placed 2nd place in the 13/14 200 freestyle, 5th in the 13/14 50 Freestyle and 6th in the 13/14 100 Freestyle.

Lastly, I would like to mention Payton Davis. This 9/10 swimmer had a great meet. She had a strong swim in the 9/10 50 Backstroke to finish in 5th place, but the shining swim of the day was her 9/10 100 Freestyle event. She took 6 seconds off her record time of 1:16.59 to get a 1:10.21 and come in 1st Place.

With Districts in the rearview, the team is working to be ready for our next two meets. Mid Region Swim Championships on March 4th, here at the Clark and New England YMCA Championships held March 18th-19th at WPI in Worcester. Go Clark Sharks!

Julie Whittemore is the Aquatics and Safety Director and Head Swim Coach at the Wendell P. Clark Memorial YMCA, located at 155 Central St., Winchendon.

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