Schools

Neylan Announces Cut to Crossing Guard Reduction, Declines to Reveal Number

Councilwoman says public safety committee reduced the number from the original 18-20.

The amount of crossing guards laid off will be smaller than the originally projected 18-20.

Councilwoman Joann Neylan made the announcement during last week's Town Council meeting that the public safety committee that she chairs has reduced the number, but she declined to comment on the new number of layoffs. She said the committee is still in the process of determining the final plan.

"We will be coming to a conclusion in the next few weeks in how many will be reduced," she said.

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The crossing guard count in Westfield was reduced as part of the town's budget process for the year. Councilman Mark Ciarrocca, the budget committee chairman, said earlier this year that 18-20 of the town's 57 crossing guards would likely be cut based on the budget. The cut came after town officials announced that non-tax revenues in the budget dropped.

After the budget was adopted in June, Ciarrocca announced that Neylan's public safety committee would be responsible for determining the final number of cuts based on the final budget numbers. The final Council meeting on the budget included a partisan debate between Republican Council members and Democratic activist Jim Baker on the crossing guard cuts.

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