Despite having no applicant proposals before them on Monday evening, the Marion Planning Board had a full agenda of ongoing projects in preparation for the Fall Special Town Meeting.
Planning Board member Norman Hills introduced the draft Master Plan discussion, citing the complete plan and its impending appearance on the Fall Special Town Meeting Warrant.
“We have submitted an article for Fall Town Meeting; it has been in the works for three years.” Hills said, adding that copies of the draft Master Plan would be available for the public to review at the police station, the Elizabeth Taber Library, the Planning Board office, the Town Clerk’s office, and online.
Board member Jennifer Francis encouraged the public to read the document so that when it comes time to vote on it, the public would be “sufficiently familiar with it so they are comfortable with all of their input….”
Francis also noted that the document has been reviewed by the Planning Board and SRPEDD and is a “heavily analyzed document.”
The public is invited to three meetings at which the Master Plan will be presented: at the regularly scheduled September 18 Planning Board meeting; on Saturday, October 14; and on Wednesday, October 18 in the Sippican School Multi-purpose room.
These meetings are designed to help the public understand the document, but the preparers are not looking for any additional input. As Francis said, “Here’s your plan. Read it and get to know it. This is not a request for input.”
Hills added, “Of course, unless there is a fatal flaw, we’d have to deal with it.”
After Town Meeting adopts the Master Plan, the residents will then develop working groups to implement the plan.
In other business, Planning Board Chairman Eileen Marum informed the board that Patrick Kelly and Zach Copland had visited the planning office in early August to request that they be able to sell pre-packaged ice cream at the Candy Pantry in Rooney’s Barber Shop on Route 6.
Kelly had been granted a special permit on July 10 to operate the candy store, and Marum consulted the Board of Health and granted permission for the pre-packaged ice cream on August 3.
Kelly and Copland returned to the planning office on August 11 to request that they be allowed to bring back to Marion the antique Good Humor truck that has been parked at the Ropewalk Plaza in Mattapoisett. Kelly said they would park it at Rooney’s Barbershop, not for the sale of ice cream, but strictly for the viewing pleasure of the public.
Marum expressed great concern over what she described as a pattern of behavior in which the parameters of the special permit were being challenged. She reminded the board of their concern they had expressed about traffic flow, parking, and loading at the site as reasons the board had not permitted the ice cream truck at the July meeting. She sent a letter to Kelly asking that he be a good neighbor and abide by the conditions of the special permit.
New board member Andrew Daniel expressed reservations about not allowing the truck to be parked, and suggested that the discussion be tabled until board member Chris Collings, who was not present this evening, could participate.
Board member Will Saltonstall questioned whether the issue was in the purview of the Planning Board if ice cream was not being sold, illustrating his point by saying, “If I found a funky architectural truck, I could park it on my property….”
Hills noted that the Marion bylaws state one can park up to two non-moving vehicles on one’s property.
Marum wondered, if the board allowed Kelly to park the truck, “Where do we draw the line?”
The board agreed that if Kelly wanted to sell ice cream from the truck, he would need to resubmit an application, but they made no definitive decision on whether the truck could return to the parking lot.
Also during the meeting, the board concluded its work on bylaw codification review, dispensing with a number of housekeeping issues, bringing the town document inline with Massachusetts General Laws.
In other business, Francis asked if the Town should consider changing the name of the Board of Selectmen to the more gender-neutral name of Selectboard. Hills said he would bring it to Town Counsel. Marum supported the idea, remarking that many other communities in the area had already incorporated this name change.
Saltonstall reminded the board that he had been charged by the previous Planning Board Chairman Robert Lane to investigate the issue of accessory dwellings. Saltonstall met with Building Commissioner Scott Shippey last week to discuss the issue. The two will work on clarifying the bylaw and then bring it to the Bylaw Codification Committee.
The issue of accessory dwellings is discussed in the draft Master Plan, in which the Planning Board is quoted as saying it is unwilling to remove the exception for use of accessory dwellings by family members. Saltonstall commented, “A lot of people [in town] feel we should keep the definition [of accessory dwellings] fairly narrow. Others feel it should be opened up a bit.”
Hills reiterated that the Town would be putting together working groups to implement the Master Plan, at which time these issues can be reviewed.
Marum raised two issues to conclude the meeting. She had attended a preconstruction conference for the Buzzards Bay Coalition’s new construction on the corner of Spring Street and Route 6. She wanted to notify the board that there was some discussion of substituting crushed clamshells for the proposed grass pavers for the surface of the driveways and parking areas at the building. A number of members expressed concern that the grass pavers were on the approved plan for the site, and the possible change would require the project to return to the Planning Board for approval. The stormwater calculations for the site would also need to be reviewed. Saltonstall felt that the idea of the clamshells for the site was being floated as a possibility, but believed that there was no need for the board to take any action unless they were formally notified by the Coalition. Hills urged the board to look at the plan of record to confirm what material was approved for the site.
The next meeting of the Marion Planning Board is scheduled for September 5 at 7:00 pm at the Sippican School, Park Street entrance.
Marion Planning Board
By Sarah French Storer