The proposed bylaw changes for the 2023 Annual Town Meeting will be trotted out to one more Marion Planning Board meeting, according to Chairman Norm Hills.
The draft summary of changes reviewed during the board’s February 21 meeting was nothing the members had not heard before, but Hills solicited questions and got some.
Board member Andrew Daniel told the board he drove around Marion, trying to cover every road, in order to gather information on the placement of signage by contractors working on private properties. Noting that public domain extends back 10 feet from the side of the road, Daniel articulated concern that contractors’ signs might not be visible if forced 20 feet in the yard.
“It’s just not where you’d put them. I don’t want it to be where the town employee is picking up these signs because they’re on the roadside of people’s homes where the contractors are working,” he said. “A lot of them, that’s the best advertisement these guys can get.”
Having brought changes to the board for the members’ review, Hills said he would have to go back and look at the unchanged bylaws to confirm the information Daniel sought.
Daniel also said he thinks removal of signs by town employees should be more specified. Some towns, he said, designate the zoning-enforcement officer. Hills said the phrase means an employee of the town’s Department of Public Works and suggested “DPW” be added to specify which employees might be removing an improperly placed sign.
Daniel wants it more specific, such as at the discretion of the DPW director, but board member Alanna Nelson agreed with Hills’ suggestion, saying any department reorganization could lead to problems with a designation too specific.
Nelson asked about Bylaw 230-6.2.d.4 on temporary banners, asking if they all must be government sponsored in order to be approved. As an example, board member Tucker Burr said that the Marion Christmas Stroll is technically put on by the town’s businesses and would fall into the category of language needing the attention Nelson sought.
Hills suggested adding “‘with the approval of the town administrator.’… It may already be in there, okay, because all this is … sections of the bylaws that are changing, not the ones that exist,” he said.
Burr said 3 square feet for a maximum sign is “really small.” He also expressed concern that language prohibiting trucks parked on properties for the purpose of circumventing the sign limits could wrongfully apply to vehicles on legitimate working deployments. Burr also suggested the bylaw stiffening requirements that people clean up after their dogs in public places is not enforceable.
Changing bylaws regarding maps, alcoholic beverages and self-storage were also discussed.
Daniel said that while he favors a nip-bottle ban, he believes the matter should fall not onto the Codification Committee but more so the Board of Health or a citizens’ petition. Hills said the bylaw change was encouraged by the former town administrator (Jay McGrail.)
Board member Eileen Marum said the nip-bottle problem has been well established among these boards and that the Town of Mattapoisett will put it before voters at its Town Meeting.
Daniel said he picks up 160 bottles in his annual cleanup effort with his son, and that Styrofoam cups are next on his radar. But he insists the matter lies outside the purview of the Codification Committee as defined by the state.
Burr called it a substance-abuse and mental-health issue. “I’m just skeptical that at a local level, it would have much impact,” he said.
Marum reemphasized her belief that such efforts typically succeed when emanating from the local level.
The board remained divided as to whether nip bottles fall into the Codification Committee’s purview.
Nelson suggested bringing the matter to other departments in town and seeing what they have to say.
Hills said the board would put off the matter until its next meeting on March 6. “For the last time,” he said.
Next up on the agenda was Marion’s Open Space Recreational Plan (MOSRP.)
“The real reason for putting this on the agenda (is) the Planning Board (and) Select Board have to send a letter of endorsement on the plan,” explained Hills, noting an informational meeting on the subject had been held recently at the Music Hall. The plan remains open for comments until February 28.
Meantime, Hills drafted a letter to which he does not anticipate significant changes. Marum offered congratulatory remarks on the committee’s letter, calling it a “sound plan that provides the opportunity to assess where Marion is, where Marion would like to go and how Marion might get there. The plan shows how to protect open spaces and recreational facilities that will enhance the attractiveness of Marion, and this was a huge and worthwhile project.”
“It was a huge project,” said Hills. “I don’t know how many times we’ve been through this and made significant changes. But there’s a tremendous amount of data in there. Appendix E’s got a tremendous amount of data in it.”
Daniel asked about the ADA (American Disabilities Act of 1990) Committee, of which he is a member. Citing $2,700,000 in state grant funding, Daniel is eager to see the town engage in what the program could yield.
Marum said a lot of people in town want to know what will become of the Wells gas station on Route 6, along with the sidewalks in town. Marum noted that conditions are poor and Daniel agreed. Marum said a person fell near Tabor Academy.
Hills noted the village parking study is at a rough-draft stage. He said 260 comments came in, invariably pointing at deteriorating sidewalks otherwise overgrown with plant life.
New items brought to the discussion table by Hills included the board’s budget, conflict-of-interest training due for completion by board members by February 28 and Citizen Partner Training Collaborative training that will be held on March 18.
The Historical Commission will resubmit its FY23 application to the Community Preservation Committee; Hills told the board he essentially changed the date and resubmitted the commission’s letter of support.
Midway through the meeting, an audio transmission problem was discussed affecting those attending live via Zoom, including board member Chris Collings and Town Planner Doug Guey-Lee.
The next meeting of the Marion Planning Board is scheduled for Monday, March 6, at 7:00 pm at the Police Station and live via Zoom.
Marion Planning Board
By Mick Colageo