The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has issued the Town of Marion a ‘mitigation’ in the amount of $33,539 for the unpermitted placement of a rock seawall formation at Sprague’s Cove years ago.
The mitigation is clearly punitive in nature and basically a fine, said Town Administrator Paul Dawson to the Board of Selectmen on January 3.
A certified letter was delivered to the Town House on December 7 alerting the Town to the decision, which Dawson said he considers rather arbitrary since over the past couple of years since the seawall first became an issue publically, the Army Corps of Engineers had appeared to support the Town’s efforts to apply after-the-fact, as instructed, to get the wall permitted.
Dawson told selectmen that he has been trying to reach a number of contacts with the USACE over the holidays, to no avail. He is hoping to either reduce the fine or get it eliminated entirely through the means of a non-monetary mitigation of sorts.
The Town has 60 days to appeal the fine.
“But it does appear that in the worst case scenario it would be a payment of $33,000 for the unpermitted sea wall,” said Dawson.
Selectman Stephen Cushing said he found the USACE’s decision “baffling,” since he was under the impression that the matter was relatively “put to bed” by now.
Resident Sherman Briggs was not about to let the selectmen simply put the matter to rest that easily, however.
Briggs would not accept the board’s assertion that the party responsible for authorizing and building the wall was unknown to the board.
“Who trucked the stones over there? Who lined them up and placed them?” Briggs demanded to know. “I really think it’s time that you people start paying attention to what’s going on in this town.”
Cushing took offense to Briggs, and Cushing’s voice increased in volume steadily as he shot back at Briggs. (Think of the scene between Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson in the film A Few Good Men).
“What are you trying to say?” said Cushing to Briggs. “Go ahead, ask the question! You’re here for a reason…”
Briggs insisted he didn’t have an ulterior motive and continued pressing the board for a name of who authorized the work in the first place.
“I’m not stupid,” said Cushing louder. “Come on, Sherman!” he dared Briggs.
“No idea,” asserted Briggs.
“Don’t play dumb with us,” said Cushing. “You don’t come in here for no reason!”
Briggs looked to Dawson to answer the question as to who built the wall and Dawson stated that he did not know.
Then who does know?
“Somebody made the decision to do it and that’s all I’m saying,” said Briggs.
After the meeting, Chairman Jody Dickerson told the press that the board would be looking into who authorized and built the wall.
“We will find out who it is,” Dickerson stated.
In other matters, also during the meeting, Shea Doonan’s proposal to establish a half-acre aquaculture site at Mittens Flats was subjected to opposition from residents and, this time, Tabor Academy, whose representatives state that the school uses Doonan’s chosen oyster farm area for sailing lessons and crew boats for rowing.
Selectmen appeared to be in support of Doonan’s application until Harbormaster Isaac Perry told the board that allowing Doonan to move forward with the permitting process with the state would represent “a big leap of faith” on behalf of the selectmen regarding the board’s faith in Doonan’s abilities as an oyster farmer without any real track record to show for himself.
“At this point, we have nothing to approve,” said Perry, pointing out that Doonan has no concrete plan for the site. “Before we give public lands, it has to be based on something…”
Other residents close to the site stated that the water was too shallow, froze in winter, and was not ideal to raise oysters, to which Doonan rebutted point by point.
In the end, though, selectmen were eager to praise Doonan for his passion and dedication, but would not provide him with that leap of faith.
“I think you’ve done a great job coming forward,” said Dickerson. “My only concern is … you don’t really have a track record like the harbormaster indicated. If you had a track record, I would support you 110 percent on this.”
Cushing commended Doonan for his efforts, but he ultimately concurred with Dickerson.
“Unfortunately … I can’t support you at this point here,” said Cushing,
Doonan, visibly upset by the selectmen’s conclusion, pleaded for the board to continue his hearing rather than close it out to give him time to establish himself with the half-acre site he recently acquired from retiring oyster farmer Catherine Brodeur. Doonan thinks that keeping the hearing open and continuing it might save him some time later should he attempt to move forward again with the project.
The board continued the hearing for June 20.
Also during the meeting, selectmen held a dog hearing over an alleged attack by a pit bull owned by Gregory Silva on another dog owned by Andrea Giokas on Rocky Knook Lane.
After hearing testimony from both sides and arguments from the two parties’ attorneys, Selectman Dickerson and Selectman Steve Gonsalves (Cushing recused himself as an abutter to Silva) deemed the dog “dangerous,” requiring Silva to forego his newly installed electric fence for the following: the dog must be manually restrained at all times; Silva must take out an
insurance policy on the dog; the dog must be contained when outside within a dog pen with four sides and a roof and floor; and when taken off the property, the dog must be leashed securely and muzzled.
The incident occurred on October 10 when Silva’s rescue pit bull “Cal” ran down the driveway into the street where he attacked Giokas’ dog, biting it twice.
Silva offered to pay for the veterinary bills and then subsequently installed an electric fence around the perimeter of his yard, but Giokas’ attorney, as well as a dog trainer testifying on behalf of Giokas, asserted that the electric fence was not suitable enough to contain the dog.
Silva maintained that Cal had never attacked another dog, nor had it ever shown aggressive behavior, saying that Cal was more skittish than aggressive. Some others from the neighborhood who commented expressed safety concerns over the number of pit bulls on Silva’s property and admitted that they avoid walking by the house whenever possible out of fear of the animals.
Silva’s live-in girlfriend referred to Cal as “a love big” and Silva testified that Cal was a loving, friendly dog that caught up in a moment of “chaos” outside the home.
The next meeting of the Marion Board of Selectmen is scheduled for January 17 at 7:00 pm at the Marion Town House.
By Jean Perry