On October 27, the Mattapoisett Select Board met in a joint session with the town’s Finance Committee to close the November 14 Special Town Meeting Warrant and decide to recommend or withhold recommendation of articles.
There was little if any discussion that would lead to changes in the warrant as presented, but there would be conversation on whether or not to recommend.
Town Administrator Mike Lorenco stated that certified free cash stands at $2,200,000 as confirmed by the Massachusetts Department of Revenue, of which $60,000 is a carryover from the previous fiscal year. Sources of the free cash are: $2,196,877 in the General Fund, $329,416 from the Sewer Enterprise Fund, $797,887 from the Water Enterprise Fund, $54,263 from the Waterfront Enterprise Fund and $48,044 from the Transfer Station (Sanitary Landfill) Enterprise Fund. On that last fund noted, it is the first time in a number of years that the Transfer Station has shown any revenue, Lorenco confirmed.
With the exception of Article 8, all financial articles in the warrant have been unilaterally recommended.
Article 1 would appropriate the total sum of $125,000 from Certified Free Cash for the Town of Mattapoisett OPEB Account and $35,000 to be paid for Mattapoisett’s share of the ORR School OPEB Liability.
Article 2 would appropriate $150,000 from Certified Free Cash to be placed in the Debt Stabilization Fund.
Article 3 would appropriate $500,000 that would be placed in the Capital Stabilization Fund.
Article 4 would allow the Town to rescind all or part of previous borrowing authorizations no longer considered necessary. Those sums are: $56,000 (Clean Vessel Program Article 16, November 26, 2018); $88,426 (Emergency Generator for Senior Housing, Article 20, November 26, 2018); $1,200,000 (Bond Authorization Industrial Drive Sewer project Article 13, October 20, 2014); $125,000 (Bond for the purpose of purchasing a new ambulance (Article 8, November 27, 2017); $620,000 (Bond authorization for the purchase of Old Hammond Quarry Article 1, November 27, 2017) and $125,000 (Bond authorization for Recreation and Conservation of Pine Island Pond Watershed Article 25, May 13, 2019.)
The Special Fall Town Meeting Warrant also includes Article 5, which primarily amends budget line items from the FY23 plan for increases. Those items are: $5,000 for IT and network needs, $40,000 for town grounds and building, $35,000 for Police Department Inservice Training, $8,000 for the care of Shade Trees, $5,000 Highway Department equipment repairs, $8,000 for salaries of Natural Resources staff, Rubbish pickup $23,500, SEMASS $35,000 and Recycling $13,500. Buildings and Grounds (Parks) $20,000, along with $12,000 gasoline and diesel fuel and $100,000 for the Industrial Drive project are also listed.
One budget line-item reduction in the amount of $200,000 is listed in Article 5 for School Transportation. This expense has been moved from the town’s budget to the school department’s budget, Lorenco said.
Article 6, recommended by the Select Board but not expense related, would allow the town to close early voting on any Saturday also considered a state holiday.
Article 8, $150,000 from Certified Free Cash for renovations to the Holy Ghost Grounds, garnered the most discussion.
Finance Committee member Kevin Geraghty asked if there was a plan in place for the use of the town-owned acreage. The short answer from Lorenco was, “No.” However, Lorenco said discussions included preparing the building on the site for possible event rentals. Select Board member Jodi Bauer said that some portion of the property would be earmarked for a dog park, while others noted that since the bike path is likely to cross into the property, it would be a place of respite and comfort in the form of sanitary facilities.
Select Board member Jordan Collyer said that earlier discussions of how best to use the 7-acre site had been hindered by a lack of accessible restroom facilities and quoted saying, “Build it and they will come,” adding, “There’s a lot of opportunity there.”
The $150,000 requested in Article 8 would be used for construction supplies, Lorenco said, with labor being provided by students from Old Colony Regional Vocational-Technical High School in Rochester.
But in the absence of a fully-defined plan for the property, the Finance Committee was split with two negative and five positive votes for recommending the article as presented. The Select Board voted two for recommendation. Collyer was not present for that vote.
Finally, Article 9 asks for $337,000 from the Sewer Betterment Reserve Fund for payments of the approved FY23 budget in the amount of $2,626,999.
The Mattapoisett Fall Special Town Meeting is scheduled for Monday, November 14, at 6:30 pm at Old Rochester Regional High School.
Mattapoisett Select Board
By Marilou Newell