Mayoral Candidate Asks Officials to Pull the Plug on ARA Bailout

Attleboro Mayoral Candidate Ronald M. Churchill is calling on Attleboro Mayor Kevin Dumas and Attleboro Redevelopment Authority (ARA) Chairperson, Judith Robbins to abandon an ARA proposal before it's too late. 

Churchill, who has put city issues under the microscope since announcing his candidacy for mayor, said the existing proposal to bail out the ARA and the financial challenges it faces with an 189-acre park with public retirement funds is “fundamentally flawed.” Churchill is calling on Dumas and Robbins to dismiss the proposal, before more time and money is wasted.

Evaluating the use of retirement funds as an option to rescue the ARA is the prudent thing to do, according to Dumas. 

"As a leader, I am charged with vetting all available options," Dumas said. "The retirement board has intelligent people representing its assets and has credible legal counsel to make decisions in the interest of the retirement fund.They invest in a myriad of investments that make its portfolio very diverse."  

Churchill, however, went on to say, "Dumas himself has described the ARA as a bankrupt organization yet he wants to gamble up to $4.2 million of City retirement funds to rescue it."

Mayor's Plan

The plan, according to Dumas, is to wait for a complete appraisal of the land at the Industrial Business Park, located at Tiffany Street and Commerce Way, and see if it is a worthwhile option. 

The ARA hired Keystone Consultants, a North Attleboro company, to perform a new appraisal, which is expected to be complete by mid August. The previous appraisal was completed by Peter Tetreault for  when the loan was secured by the former ARA members for the purchase of the land.

"Even though the ARA does not have cash on hand, it does not mean that there is no value in the Industrial Business Park property," Dumas said. "Thus, I will not stop looking at all options to aid the ARA in this endeavor.

"Evaluating options is not a waste of time or money as it is done in the best interest of the taxpayer," he added. 

If the proposal is accepted and the Industrial Business Park fails, Churchill worries that retirees and city taxpayers will be the ones left to pay for others' mistakes. 

"If the Industrial Business Park fails who will rescue the Retirement Plan–city taxpayers, that’s who," Churchill said. "This is a bad deal for the retirees as well as the city taxpayers and I strongly oppose it."

Not Allowed By Law

"In fact, under current state law this transaction is not allowed," Churchill said.

Churchill is referring to the Massachusetts Code of Regulation, which prohibits direct investments in mortgages.

Dumas dismissed the option not being allowed by law by using Churchill's extended role as Attleboro Fire Chief as an example of special legislation.  

"It was also not allowed by law for Mr. Churchill to work past the age of 65, but it required special legislation that the City presented to the State Legislature," Dumas said. "This option by the retirement would also follow the same procedure."