Rochester’s Zoning Board of Appeals on April 27 reviewed two proposals that turned single-family houses into multifamily dwellings. The board approved a special permit for construction of an in-law apartment above a garage at 24 Mayflower Lane, but the members weren’t sure about a plan to convert a basement into a dwelling unit at 128 […] Read more »

Following an April 27 public hearing, the Marion Zoning Board of Appeals unanimously voted to approve Theodore Duncan’s special permit to knock down his house at 17A Pine Grove Lane and build a new one on the same lot. The property is zoned Residence B.             Representing Duncan, Brian Grady from G.A.F. Engineering described the […] Read more »

            Rochester’s Conservation Commission Tuesday decided the planners of the proposed construction of a new single-family home attached to an existing garage at 485 Neck Road will need to file a Notice of Intent that will allow the panel to oversee the project’s progress.             Carmelo Nicolosi of Charon Associates, representing petitioners John and Stephanie […] Read more »

            Of the 34 warrant articles up for vote at the May 12 Annual Town Meeting, the one that drew the most attention during Tuesday night’s “pre-Town Meeting” public hearing at the Music Hall was the $1,200,000 ladder truck being requested by the Marion Fire Department.             Given the floor, resident Alan Menard estimated that […] Read more »

            It was determined at the April 27 meeting of the Old Rochester Regional School Committee that up to 12 eighth graders will be allowed School Choice slots within the ORR District during the 2023-24 year. The vote will not change either the maximum of 125 School Choice students allowed in Grades 7-12 or the […] Read more »

            The Rochester Select Board met on Monday and approved and signed the warrant for the May 22 Annual Town Meeting, with one big surprise. It was by a vote of 2-1, with board member Paul Ciaburri voting against. That negative vote from Ciaburri, who was attending remotely via Zoom, resulted from discussion of one […] Read more »

“This is a momentous day for Mattapoisett,” stated Select Board Chairman Tyler Macallister on April 27. A long saga filled with real drama in the form of a pandemic and defective materials had sidelined the opening of the Shining Tide section of the Mattapoisett Bike Path, from Reservation Road to Goodspeed Island Road. Now, after […] Read more »

            A Capacity Assessment Results Toolkit (CART) was discussed by the Marion Board of Health during its April 20 public meeting.             The CART is one of many pieces of information anticipated by Marion as a member of a six-town, state-sponsored Southcoast Public Health Collaborative. Marion has used initial funds to purchase software to help […] Read more »

Rochester Fire Chief Scott Weigel liked what he saw in the Master Plan-type development presented by Cambridge-based architect Ted Galante during Tuesday’s public meeting of the Rochester Public Safety Facility Feasibility Study Committee.             “That’s pretty good, pretty much what we talked about on the Fire Department side,” said Weigel.             The last version seen […] Read more »

The April 20 Mattapoisett Zoning Board of Appeals meeting issued a Variance and Special Permit to David Halle, 23 Grand View Avenue, for the construction of a detached 28×32-foot garage but not before hearing from abutters regarding flooding issues since construction of two homes on the adjacent lots.             Representing Halle was Bob Field of […] Read more »