Seekonk Selectmen Prepare for Outdoor Town Meeting

Preparations are being made for the Spring Town Meeting, which will be held on Saturday, May 22 at the Seekonk High School football field. Monday’s town meeting was adjourned when several hundred town residents showed up and there weren’t enough seats due to Covid restrictions. Meeting attendees were seated in the high school’s auditorium and gymnasium but were spaced six feet apart due to social distancing requirements.

 “We had a full house,” Selectmen Chairman Justin Sullivan said Wednesday, noting an additional 150 to 200 people were waiting outside to gain entry to the high school. Sullivan acknowledged various sports events will be taking place on a Saturday, and the need to accommodate town employees and volunteers. “We have staff from TV9, we have to think about everybody that’s involved to help execute what we need to do,” Sullivan explained. “There’s a lot of thought and consideration that goes into all of this. Everybody has a stake in this. We know we’re not going to make everybody happy but we’re just trying to do the best that we can to maximize the participation level (for the meeting.”

Town Administrator Shawn Cadime wants to make sure there are the tools available for groups who need to make presentations for their warrant articles. “But we also recognize there’s a lot of factors that are really outside of our control,” Cadime added. When the meeting resumes, voters will need to decide on a $63 Million budget for the 2022 fiscal year.