At the end of a business-as-usual night for the Mattapoisett Planning Board, the residents of Brandt Point Village were back seeking help as ownership was again changing for the troubled subdivision.
Gail Carlson, Dennis Dimos, and Daniel Scully, along with several other residents of the subdivision, sought guidance and assistance on May 2 after receiving a letter from Mark Marcus of Omega Financial Corporation, Cranston, Rhode Island. The letter stated that Joseph Furtado, who came onboard the project approximately a year ago as owner/developer, was stepping down as a trustee and Marcus was stepping in.
“How does that affect the development?” asked Carlson, noting that the letter begged more questions than it answered. She wondered aloud to the board if Furtado was still involved.
Chairman Tom Tucker responded, “I thought he still owned a lot of those lots in the back,” referring to Phase 2 of the subdivision.
Carlson and Dimos pointed out that there was still a punch-list of incomplete items Furtado had promised to complete on Phase 1, such as stormwater drainage, roadways, landscaping, and septic inspections.
Planning Board secretary Tammy Ferreira said that Field Engineering was still reviewing the list. Field Engineering had been retained by the town to oversee construction of Phase 1. But it remained unclear who the current residents should turn to for confirmation that work would get done or even who would complete the project.
Ferreira asked Tucker if she should send a letter to Marcus inviting him to attend an upcoming board meeting to discuss what these latest changes meant to the residents and to the town.
“We don’t know who’s coming and going,” said Dimos. “Do they need to be licensed in this state?”
Tucker said that engineering firms needed a Massachusetts license, adding, “It’s like a Ponzi scheme.”
Dimos commented, with Carlson in agreement, that they uncovered that several sub-contractors on the project had never been paid, going so far as to say that the residents had ponied up to pay for snow plowing last winter.
Things ratcheted up from there with Highway Supervisor Barry Denham saying, “We still have a problem with the roads.”
“I’ll call town counsel tomorrow,” said Tucker. “I want a cease and desist.”
Then Carlson asked where this latest change in ownership left the tri-party agreement the board had recently approved. Tucker said that would be null and void with Furtado’s departure.
A date was not set for the invitation to Marcus, but it will be advertised as part of future Planning Board public hearings.
Also on the agenda, the board approved two “Form A” applications. The first came from The Preserve at Bay Club for 27A Split Rock Lane and the second from Anne Beemer, 6 Tobey Lane.
The board members also heard a request from Michael Livingstone, and they ultimately approved his application for construction of a driveway off Mattapoisett Neck Road near the Town Landing after Denham made it clear that the driveway was leading off of an approved and accepted town road.
Todd Rodrigues, 81 County Road, received approval for an amendment to his site plan for the development of what he characterized as a “quaint cottage-like” commercial development in the town’s village business district.
Tucker assured the abutters in attendance that, due to local bylaws, commercial buildings within the village business district must maintain certain architectural features in harmony with the village and not simply be erected steel boxes.
The next meeting of the Mattapoisett Planning Board is scheduled for May 16 at 7:00 pm in the town hall conference room.
By Marilou Newell