With appointed School Committee in its sights, Charter Review Commission formed

PAWTUCKET - It's finally here, a Pawtucket Charter Review Commission charged with overhauling a City Charter first approved by voters in November of 1952.

Mayor James Doyle announced during an introductory meeting on Monday the makeup of an 11-member commission he has appointed and will ask to review all aspects of the charter, most notably whether the Pawtucket School Committee should be an appointed body instead of an elected one.

Members of the Charter Review Commission, as appointed by Doyle and introduced to City Council members, department heads and members of the public on Monday, are:

* Carlos G. Spinola, of 139 Sayles Ave.

* Margaret-Mary Hovarth, of 74 Varnum Ave.

* Loretta P. McKittrick, of 614 East Ave.

* Joel Terrell, of 249 Taft St.

* Aime Brissette, of 80 Dickens St.

* Ann McCarthy, of 15 Belgrade Ave.

* Miriam R. Plitt, of 44 Cooke St.

* John E. Sawyer, of 44 Clyde St.

* Christopher A. Butler, of 28 Potter St.

* Jean Babiec, of 293 Prospect St.

* Alan Tavares, of 137 Pinecrest Drive.

The idea for a Pawtucket Charter Review Commission was born earlier this year out of City Council members' concern over what they see as continued irresponsible spending of Pawtucket's elected School Committee, according to Doyle.

"First and foremost will be the idea of an appointed School Committee," he told The Breeze on Monday. "That's the number one item."

Other proposals, like creating four-year terms for elected officials or perhaps changing the way certain city departments operate, could also be part of the review that the Charter Review Commission undertakes, said Doyle, but there's no mistaking that the question of an appointed School Committee must be first in order of priority.

"At this point we have a group of people with no obligation to raise the money but have the ability to spend the money, and that's where it goes awry," he told The Breeze in September.

The Pawtucket City Charter has been reviewed and modified four times in the 57 years since it was first written and approved. It was last reviewed 11 years ago, according to Doyle.

The modern-day Charter Review Commission will:

* Review the city's current charter;

* Determine what updates they believe should be made;

* And then make recommendations to the City Council sometime in 2010, in plenty of time to put the question of whether to create an appointed School Committee before voters on next November's ballot. Other measures could also need City Council approval.