Meeting locations moved due to accessibility

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The Board of Education’s Jan. 9 meeting was originally set to be held at Hillside Intermediate School, but moved to Town Hall due to concerns over the handicapped-accessibility of the school. –FILE PHOTO
The Board of Education’s Jan. 9 meeting was originally set to be held at Hillside Intermediate School, but moved to Town Hall due to concerns over the handicapped-accessibility of the school. –FILE PHOTO

NAUGATUCK — Concerns over accessibility have caused the Board of Education to move two of its meeting locations.

The board’s Jan. 9 meeting, which was originally set to be held at Hillside Intermediate School, was held at Town Hall since the school isn’t handicapped-accessible.

The May 8 meeting, which was originally scheduled to be held at Salem Elementary School, will now be held at the Whittemore Library for the same reasons.

In December, school board member Diane Malone raised concerns about the schools’ lack of handicap accessibility.

Malone, who has arthritis in her knees, said the problem with Salem is that it does not have any ramps into the school, which would prevent a person in a wheelchair from attending the meeting. She also felt that the ramp to City Hill was too steep and people in wheelchairs or those who have difficulty walking would find it hard to access the school.

A recently unveiled long-term facilitates plan, which makes suggestions for the future use for schools and municipal government buildings, recommends converting Hillside and Salem into a municipal government complex to replace Town Hall.