October 21 was the night of the fall special town meetings for Marion and Mattapoisett, but that evening during the regular meeting of the Rochester Board of Selectmen, Rochester Town Administrator Suzanne Szyndlar called out an article on Mattapoisett’s warrant – a Home Rule Petition aimed at splitting the cost of a school resource officer […] Read more »
On October 17, the Special Permit application filed by Robert Kirkland, 53 Main Street, appeared to be a rather routine application for a Special Permit to build a single stall garage; however, the public hearing resulted in the Mattapoisett Zoning Board of Appeals denying the request. Kirkland’s contractor, David Cabeceiras, explained that it was not […] Read more »
Town Administrator Jay McGrail on October 16 gave the Marion Finance Committee some hope for a smooth and sensible start to the fiscal year 2020 budget season. The greatest concern for the Finance Committee has always been the timeliness of the school budgets, specifically the Old Rochester Regional school budget since, as FinCom Chairman Peter […] Read more »
Rochester Town Planner Steve Starrett alluded to a new real estate interest in the Limited Commercial District during the Rochester Planning Board meeting on October 16, forested property that was once the proposed location for a contentious solar farm plan that ultimately failed to come to fruition. Starrett told the board with some reserve that […] Read more »
On October 21, 127 Mattapoisett voters participated in the purest form of the democratic process, Town Meeting, to decide the fate of 20 Fall Special Town Meeting warrant articles. Generally speaking, a special town meeting is a time to fill in budgetary shortfalls or other spending needs not known or addressed during the spring Annual […] Read more »
Voters attending the Marion Fall Special Town Meeting on October 21 addressed 22 articles on the warrant, with three articles related to short-term rental taxes and fees resulting in the closest votes leading to three hand counts. Article 6 was to adopt the provisions of M.G.L. Chapter 64G Section 3A, to impose a six percent […] Read more »
The Old Rochester Regional School Committee and Massachusetts Superintendency Union #55 voted to hire the Massachusetts Association of School Committees (MASC) as its consultant to assist them in the search for a new school superintendent during a joint meeting on October 9. ORR School Committee Chairman Carey Humphrey said representatives from four different consulting groups […] Read more »
Marion is close to making a real promise to preserve the historic Town House with a preservation restriction currently in the works that would preserve the historical character of the Town House – the exterior, at least – into perpetuity. As a requirement for the Community Preservation Act funds allocated by Town Meeting this past […] Read more »
During the October 15 meeting of the Rochester Conservation Commission, Todd Cambra presented evidence that a perennial stream does not exist on his property. Cambra, 1098 Walnut Plain Road, via a Request for Determination of Applicability, refuted a perennial stream designation as shown on United States Geological Survey (USGS) topographic mapping. Cambra submitted photographic evidence […] Read more »
Marion Conservation Commission Chairman Jeff Doubrava explained the public hearing process on October 9 to several residents gathered with concerns over the potential impacts of a home construction and boulder embankment plan proposed at 68 West Avenue. Laura and Frank Utano’s Notice of Intent calls for the demolition a single-family house to construct a new […] Read more »