By Gretchen Webster

WESTPORT — The answer is still no.

Despite spending several hours traversing Wakeman Park, the schools superintendent, police chief and Parks and Recreation Department director were unable to devise a scenario to allow dog walkers and others to use the property during school hours that would not pose potential security risks to nearby schools.

Police Chief Foti Koskinas and Supt. of Schools Thomas Scarice on Wednesday told the Board of Selectwomen that, despite seeking a way to grant leeway to a recently enacted policy banning outsiders on school grounds during class hours, they weren’t able to do so.

“We listened to you — we took in all the input,” and spent several hours studying how it could be split, Koskinas said, referencing the selectwomen’s request last month re-examine the policy as it applies to the town property off Cross Highway.

“Due to the layout, lack of fencing and the layout of the sidewalks, we were not able to find a way on how we would split the fields,” the police chief said. “We still do not see how we can efficiently and with adequate security and supervision, open up some of the fields” to community use during school hours.

The officials made the effort, he said, walking the property, scanning maps and other materials after several complaints were lodged against the new policy that allows only teachers, students and invited guests on all school properties during schools hours.

At the selectwomen’s April meeting, several members of the public, mostly dog walkers, spoke against the ban as it pertains to the Wakeman property, which abuts Staples High School athletic fields. The policy, however, does not apply to nearby Wakeman Town Farm.

Others said that it would not be fair to allow access to the Wakeman property during school hours when the Westport Community Gardens at the Long Lots Elementary School campus are closed off to outsiders — including gardeners — during school hours.

And several parents had spoken in support of the policy, arguing that student and teacher safety is paramount.

Despite voting to adopt the school-grounds security policy in April, the selectwomen asked for more study of the Wakeman property after hearing the complaints, and passed a sense-of-the-meeting resolution to review the rules at a later meeting.

But Wednesday, they agreed with Kosknias and Scarice that the policy should be enforced universally on all school properties.

Koskinas said there had been security incidents in the past that forced the superintended to consider prohibiting outsiders on school grounds. And, as he said at the earlier meeting, it is the same policy that every area school district already has enacted.

Selectwoman Candice Savin, a former Board of Education chair, asked why the Board of Education had not discussed or voted on the policy in public. It was discussed by the board only in executive session, Scarce said.

“I still think it’s weird that the Board of Education didn’t vote on this,” Savin said. 

However, it was important to accept the chief’s recommendation, she added. “Safety of the kids is our top priority.”

On Wednesday, no public comments on the issue were accepted since the policy had already been voted on in April and was listed on the meeting agenda for the board’s “discussion only.”

Freelance writer Gretchen Webster, a Fairfield County journalist for many years, was editor of the Fairfield Minuteman and has taught journalism at New York and Southern Connecticut State universities.