Residents and others who have loved ones buried in Marion crowded into the Town House’s Annex meeting room on Tuesday night to air their concerns about proposed changes to the town’s Cemetery Rules, Regulations and fees during a public hearing before the Marion Select Board.
Citing altogether new regulations and changes to most of the 20 existing regulations, Select Board Chairman Toby Burr went through them in order, asking for public response while commissioners Margie Baldwin, Helen Hills and Paul St. Don fielded those responses.
The result was an emotionally charged, public hearing that lasted over 90 minutes of the roughly 2½-hour meeting.
When the Number 14 regulation stipulating that plantings be limited to the front side of the gravestone and not at its side or behind except for military markers, resident Sarah Briggs referenced a “derogatory” comment made to her father (Sherman Briggs) about how her late mother had handled the gravesite and said she was disgusted with the comment and heartbroken that a regulation was being proposed that would prohibit her from placing a garden flag honoring her mother’s pastime.
Commissioner Helen Hills said she looked at the site and said it looks fine and has no egregious problems but just needs to push back more to the stone.
Similarly, April Nye discussed her family plot and her 90-year-old mother-in-law, who lives for the caretaking of the gravesite including the placement of a little fire truck.
“The changes seem to be of a personal nature of what some of you would want to see aesthetically,” said Nye. “A grandmother has toys at the site of her grandson. I think a lot of things are subjective to committee members that should not be imposed on us. … I would hate to see this pushed forward.”
Select Board member Randy Parker clarified early on that no vote would be taken on this night, but that message got lost amidst a long line of impassioned stories and arguments.
Town Administrator Geoff Gorman listed debated issues on a pair of grease boards that were full of blue ink by the time the hearing was suspended and continued.
Baldwin, who has served as chair of the volunteer Cemetery Commission for 18 years, opened by stating a personal apology for prior comments on the matter that were considered insensitive to residents.
She clarified that most of the proposed regulations are not new, that she is a participant among the bereaved in town and willing to listen to any complaints. Baldwin stressed that “decisions are carefully deliberated between the seven of us and not taken lightly.”
At the crux of the complaints were proposed regulations on plantings and decoration around gravestones that several residents consider subjective and unfair.
A proposal for a regulation against picnics at the cemetery drew the attention of Mattapoisett resident Carly Lavin, who says she likes to bring her children to the cemetery where they learn to celebrate the lives of their loved ones.
Residents Bill Washburn and Pat DaCosta both questioned how the town could police the cemeteries, to which Baldwin replied that is not the intention of the proposals or even a reasonable possibility. Washburn thinks 18 inches is more reasonable than 12 inches for a perimeter, and he made a pitch for 4-foot-high shepherd’s hooks.
Another longtime Marion resident, Joe Zora, articulated his frustration with the proposed regulations, stating that they infringe on people’s rights to grieve on their own terms.
Later, Marion resident Andrew Kuhl would reference state law in pointing out that the proposed regulations are not enforceable simply because the removal of anything from a gravesite is illegal and subject to imprisonment.
At the same time, Kuhl applauded the commission’s effort and suggested collaborating on refinement of the proposals so that the commission and the DPW can achieve its goals without encroaching on the rights of the cemetery goers.
The Department of Public Works is responsible for mowing the cemeteries, and going outside of the 12-inch perimeter with stones and objects, including deteriorating, plastic flowers results in difficult conditions in the cemeteries, according to the DPW and the commission.
Brian Dunn said he went to the cemetery on Christmas Eve after dusk and has also gone early to watch the sunrise. Helen Hills noted that the vandalism at the cemetery happens at night.
The public hearing was closed with a plan to formulate a revised set of regulations and fees, but the Select Board has yet to decide whether or not there will be another public hearing prior to the board’s vote.
The Marion Fire Department has endured a flurry of personnel changes as outlined by Fire Chief Brian Jackvony during his 6:00 pm appointment with the board.
Assistant Chief Allen Denham is moving on to Senior Reserve status. The town will still lean on Denham’s expertise, and he will work on special projects. Joel Waters, captain of Engine 1 with 10 years on force, has been promoted to assistant chief. Captain Christopher Nye retires with four decades of service with the Marion Fire Department, and Lieutenant Charlie Bradley, with over three decades of service, has also resigned.
Jackvony offered public thanks and went on to announce the promotions of Lieutenant Adam Novacek and Josh Bardy. New recruit Dalton Ryan is leaving the department for personal reasons.
Jackvony said the department has successfully met its goal to recruit 20 members over four years; the retention rate over that span is 70%, as many find full-time jobs in other fire departments.
Amidst manpower challenges, the department received an improvement grant of $105,000 used for personal protective equipment, videos and public relations. Over 60% of recruits come from outside the community.
Other grant awards to Marion include a brush truck from FEMA valued at $300,000 (bid opening on March 23), a 2022 grant for 25 new apparatus units (town share $9,500 or 10%), 5,000 psi compressors; $15,498 for wearable gear, a 50/50 DCR grant requiring $2,500 from the town.
The ladder truck has been delayed to September, but Marion is locked into a contract, sparing the town $50,000 (4.5%) in inflation-related costs.
The Community EMS Program saw 111 home visits last year, and there is a professional-development conference later this month and a training on March 4 at the Cushman Community Center.
The ISO (public protection classification review) is Marion’s first in 10 years and involves data collection, documentation training, data on structure fires and losses. The total number of runs in 2023 included 1,009 medical calls.
The department’s expanding radio-box system connects Tabor Academy directly and takes third parties out of the equation.
In his Town Administrators Report, Gorman said that excavation at the Maritime Center has begun, that the foundation will be poured by the end of the week, that wood framing will commence by March 14 with watertight enclosure by the end of April.
Bid documents for the new DPW operations building construction are due March 28, at which point the town will have a full understanding of budgetary requirements.
Gorman reported that Marion has endured double its winter rainfall from 2021, but the town’s catch basins are working and clear. He encouraged anyone who witnesses flooding to contact the DPW and stressed that the purpose of the stormwater system is to remove water from the roads only.
The town has also received a nonmonetary Cybersecurity Grant for network assessments and free training estimated to be worth $50,000.
In Action Items, the Select Board approved Police Chief Richard Nighelli’s request to appoint Sommor Cardoso to full-time officer. The board also delegated Nighelli the responsibility to assign police details for all 2024 elections and approved early voting by mail and in person for all local elections (May 17.)
The board signed and executed the Bill of Sale for the Water Main Infrastructure for 50 Oakdale Avenue. The board rejected a request for a Water/Sewer Abatement at 12 Emils Way. The board approved new streetlights at Quails Crossing and Partridge Place.
The board approved two Water/Sewer commitments of $1,425.67 (quarterly billing December 14, 2023) and $478.38 (final readings January 22.)
In a public hearing, the board approved the transfer of an off-premises All Alcohol License from Spirits to MDM Wine5 LLC, dba Vinodivino at 154 Front Street. The boutique wine shop, self-described as high end with four existing stores in Boston, Newton, Needham and Brookline, hopes to open in mid-April.
The next meeting of the Marion Select Board is scheduled for Wednesday, February 21, at 6:00 pm at the Annex building of the Town House facing Main Street.
Marion Select Board
By Mick Colageo