The Town of Marion is ready to move ahead with its advertisement to fill the fire chief position that current Marion Fire Chief Thomas Joyce will leave empty on June 30 when he retires after six years on the job.
During final discussions about the job description, advertisement, and screening process, the Marion Board of Selectmen on March 17 discarded the residency requirement for the position, a move that could possibly attract more candidates who otherwise might not apply because of factors such as housing and the uprooting of a family.
“That’s a tremendous cost,” said Chairman Jonathan Henry. “That would probably rule out a lot of people who would otherwise do it.”
Town Administrator Paul Dawson concurred, saying a residency requirement is difficult to impose and would not be in the best interest of the Town.
Selectman Jody Dickerson requested that the selectmen consider decreasing a 15-mile radius residency requirement and make it closer to five miles so a prospective chief could still be within close enough range to respond quickly to an alarm.
“Technically, you could live in Falmouth as the crow flies,” Dickerson said against the 15-mile radius. “I think five miles is pretty good,” he said, although he would favor a residency requirement.
The board also discussed changing the EMT certification requirement from the one-year time frame to a two-year time frame, with accompanying experience in emergency response services. Dickerson was concerned that certification courses are offered infrequently throughout the year, with some institutes only offering the course twice a year.
In addition, the board decided to hold preliminary candidate interviews in executive session, taking into consideration that some candidates could be inhibited from applying when the stages of interviewing are carried out in public.
Active duty or retired fire chiefs from other towns in the region not adjacent to Marion will be asked to assist in the screening process to select the most qualified applicants.
The board approved the changes, and Dawson said he would start advertising the next day.
Also during the meeting, the board approved a request for an additional sewer flow at 16 Cottage Street in the presence of the petitioner, Christian Loranger, who wishes to raze and reconstruct the existing five-bedroom apartment building into a condominium complex.
Loranger told selectmen he would rebuild, staying within the building’s original footprint and well within the Town’s Zoning Bylaws. The condos would offer two bedrooms per unit, with a total of five units.
“We have a lot of interest for those five units for people who want to downsize,” said Loranger. “It’s going to be a nice project when it’s done.”
Henry pointed out that recently, during talks with the Friends of the Council on Aging, members expressed the need for more housing in Marion that would offer seniors the option to downsize and remain in Marion.
Loranger said it has been “very hard to work with the envelope we have to work with,” with past larger-scale projects for the site opposed by abutters and neighbors. Loranger said he wants to live in Marion and raise his family there.
“I don’t want to walk around having everybody upset,” said Loranger.
Henry said he was very glad to hear that, and the vote to grant the request was unanimous.
In other matters, the Town House Building Study Committee, after the RFQ process, narrowed its choice for a firm to conduct the feasibility study for the Town House to Turowski 2 Architecture of Marion. The negotiated price of $96,000 fell well within the limit of funds allocated by Town Meeting, Dawson said.
Also, selectmen and members of the Affordable Housing Trust are waiting for the Community Preservation Commission to announce its recommendations for CPA funding articles for the Annual Town Meeting in May. Selectmen are hoping to see the CPC recommend allocating $450,000 towards the acquisition of nine additional affordable housing units at Sippican Woods – a price Dawson said could not be beat at $50,000 apiece.
“If we were to go out as a Town and hire a developer,” said Dawson, “you’d never do it for $50,000.” He said acquiring the nine units might “immunize the Town against future undesirable 40B projects.”
The $50,000 includes the lot as well as the house, and the units would be perpetually recorded as affordable housing units.
Dawson said the move would be cost effective and “really makes sense.”
In other news, the board approved a contract for Tata & Howard, Inc. to perform test well exploration at the Mary’s Pond Road well site for $96,000, well within the budget appropriated by Town Meeting.
The next meeting of the Marion Board of Selectmen has not yet been scheduled.
By Jean Perry
