On Monday, the Marion Planning Board held their first meeting following the Town Election. Voted upon by residents were three candidates for three open spots on the board, thus making the race uncontested.
Ryan Burke was re-elected to his seat; Sean Sweeney won a seat following his appointment to finish the term of the late W. Dale Jones; and Ann Morgan won the seat previously held by Eileen Marum, who decided not to run for re-election.
Chair Andrew Daniel began the meeting by congratulating the new faces. Then, he moved to the board’s reorganization. The positions of chair, vice chair, secretary, and various representatives to other town bodies.
The chair position saw a humorous turn of events. Jon Henry nominated Alanna Nelson, who nominated Sweeney, who himself nominated Daniel. Tucker Burr seconded the nomination of Nelson, but Nelson stated she would rather hold a different representative position. And, thus, after some discussion, it was down to Sweeney or Daniel. In a 4-3 vote, Sweeney was made chair of the Planning Board.
Next, Morgan was voted as vice chair with a unanimous vote. Burr was then quickly made secretary with another unanimous vote.
After appointments and reorganization, there was a Pre-Submission Conference for Uncle Jon’s Coffee. Will Salstonstall and Dave Davignon represented the owners, the Pope family, and the business plans. Currently, the business is renting on Front Street but seeks to buy the old and dilapidated building at 413 Wareham Road (Route 6). Saltonstall explained the building would be restored and modernized, with the new site “becoming the primary cooking hub for the other Uncle Jon’s stores,” he explained.
The board explained there would need to be various assessments, traffic studies, environmental studies, and a major site-plan review. However, the board waved the requirement for an environmental assessment, a section of utility and drainage standards, and the traffic study with unanimous votes.
The next meeting of the Marion Planning Board is scheduled for Monday, June 15 at 7:00 pm in the Marion Police Station’s conference room.
Marion Planning Board
By Sam Bishop