On May 2, the Mattapoisett Finance Committee began its town meeting warrant article review, but only after Chairman Pat Donoghue questioned her most recent water bill.

            Donoghue said that she did not recall Water and Sewer Superintendent Henri Renauld ever discussing an increase in water rates when he met with the committee during previous months; however, upon receiving her water bill, she noticed an increase.

            “They changed the tiers so now the lowest level will get about an 8-percent increase,” Donoghue surmised. She said she ran the numbers and said, “I’m a little concerned. … It’s messed up my understanding of how they intend to pay for their projects.”

            According to Donoghue’s projections, those households falling into the higher tiers will see an increase of about 3.5 percent, while those in the mid-range would see an increase of 6 percent.

            Gagne said he’d ask Renauld to come to the committee’s next meeting to discuss the matter.

            A notice mailed to consumers with the April statements notes, in part:

            “For each tier, the fees remain the same; however, the first 1,250cf of water is billed at $7.04 100/cf. when previously the first 2000cf of water consumed was billed at $7.04/100cf. For 1,251 to 3,250cf of water consumed the current rate is $9.18 100/cf … [versus] … 2,000 to 4,000cf billed at $9.18 100/cf. Water consumed above 3,251cf is billed at the current rate of $10.63 100/cf – when in the past all water consumed above 4,000/cf was billed at $10.63 100/cf.”

            The committee also discussed the possible new revenue stream that a marijuana cultivation facility might generate if amendments to zoning bylaws pass Town Meeting.

            A citizen’s petition is on the warrant asking voters to approve changes to the current restrictions that do not allow the cultivation of marijuana for adult recreational use. The amendments, simply put, will allow not only the placement of a cultivation facility in the Limited Industry Zone located on Industrial Drive, but also that a portion of the marijuana crop could be supplied to adult-use sales establishments outside Mattapoisett.

            A five-year community compact agreement would include the estimated sum of $200,000 paid to the town per year, which Gagne said would represented “new growth.”

            A public hearing on proposed zoning bylaw amendments is scheduled for Wednesday, May 8, at 7:00 pm at Old Hammondtown Elementary School.

            Another bylaw change for voters to consider involves the expansion of lot coverage on parcels located in the Industrial Zone that, if passed, would allow a 70 percent lot coverage for those parcels, but only if the parcel is connected to the municipal sewer system.

            To support the lot coverage expansion and make it viable, voters will also be asked to approve $35,000 from Sewer Retained Earnings to connect the whole of the Limited Industrial District to the public sewer system. Individual costs associated with parcels connecting to the system will be the responsibility of the private property owners, Gagne said.

            Presently there is a sewer terminus located on the north side of the Bay Club property, which had been placed there for future Industrial Zone expansion.

            Revenue projections are still pending for the FY20 budget.

            A copy of the warrant may be viewed at www.mattapoisett.net.

            The next meeting of the Mattapoisett Finance Committee is scheduled for May 7 at 7:00 pm at the Town Hall.

Mattapoisett Finance Committee

By Marilou Newell

            If you’re a resident from one of the towns belonging to the Carver, Marion, Wareham Regional Refuse Disposal District (CMWRRDD) – or any other town for that matter – and you have been sneaking into any one of the District’s three transfer stations without a sticker or with prohibited materials, prepare to change your ways. The District is about to crack the whip on the abuse of CMW transfer stations, and the District’s board is considering a number of measures of making transfer station users pay their fair share.

            During the April 24 meeting, CMWRRDD Executive Director Jeffrey Osuch said new signs would soon be posted at each of the transfer stations – Marion on Benson Brook Road, Wareham on Route 28, and the Rochester convenience site – advising residents that unless they have a sticker on their vehicle they will not be allowed to enter the facility. Period.

            District staff began with the Benson Brook transfer station by more closely observing and documenting who enters and enforcing the restrictions on allowable materials.

            Still, the tonnage that SEMASS receives from the District is up.

            “The irony is that Benson Brook (tonnage) is down, and I’ve been told somewhat because everyone is coming in and being checked and that may be a contributing factor as to why,” said Osuch.

            The District has been collecting data on the number of vehicles at each site and how many cars enter on days when the sites are open, and Osuch recommended that the board approve purchasing security technology that would read license plate numbers and match them to those entered into the system of users who have paid for their stickers.

            For weeks Osuch has been visiting transfer stations all along eastern Massachusetts and Cape Cod assessing which systems are effective and which ones the District should consider implementing.

            A camera system is especially needed at the Wareham Route 28 site, Osuch said.

            “It’s never been enforced,” said Osuch. “People have gone in there on the honor system.”

            As the December 31, 2020 expiration of the District’s SEMASS contract approaches, Osuch emphasized that the bulk of the District’s revenue will eventually rely on sticker sales, as SEMASS will no longer be reimbursing the District for essentially all of its operating costs come the contract’s expiration.

            “If you’re going to run the District and you’re not getting money from SEMASS, then you’re going to need an income,” said Osuch. “Some [residents] have been abiding by the rules, and some people have gotten along by bending the rules.”

            Sticker fees at this time have been minimal – $50 in Carver and $25 for residents 65 and over; $55 in Wareham for a transfer station/beach combo sticker, $40 and $20 age 65+ for transfer station only; and just $10 in Marion for a resident privilege sticker for the transfer stations and beach parking – which is why, come the end of the year, residents might be in for a sticker shock of sorts.

            A sticker in Barnstable costs $250, Osuch said. It’s $180 in Dennis, $160 in Yarmouth, $125 in Orleans, and $120 in Chatham.

            The District transfer station sticker fees, Osuch said, have also always been collected by each individual town, which keeps that revenue and only pays a yearly bill to the District, regardless of additional revenue towns collect in sticker fees.

            “Sticker fees are needed to offset operating expenses,” said Osuch. “The bulk of the money is going to be in the stickers. … Once SEMASS is gone, you have to make a decision [on] how you want to generate revenue.”

            Osuch also wants to investigate an expansion of the Wareham station because the District will not be able to afford keeping more than one transfer station in operation. The board approved allowing Osuch to hire a wetlands specialist to delineate wetlands at the site.

            “To me, you have to look at all the options,” said Osuch, including technology that some board members seemed hesitant to embrace. “People are clever,” he continued. “Every other day at Benson Brook you’ll see a guy with a pick-up [truck] drive in. He drives up; he backs up; he’s got black bags … a tire, or something else….”

            Not only would cameras be effective, Osuch said, it could also reduce the number of staff needed at the transfer stations.

            “We’ve got to start thinking very seriously about where we’re going and what we’re going to do,” said Osuch. “But realistically over the next two, three months, we’re going to have to do some inroads.”

            In other business, the board picked June 1 to hold a Hazardous Waste Day between the hours of 9:00 am – 12:00 pm at the Route 28 Wareham transfer station, and tentatively at a second location as well. Residents will receive specific information from their respective towns.

            The District has begun trading in scrap metal for a profit, collecting roughly $1,000 just this last month.

            “We’ve gone from collecting zero money,” said Cushing, “… to just about $2,000 already,” Osuch finished the sentence.

            Questions pertaining to the CMWRRDD can be directed to the executive director, Jeffrey Osuch, via email at CMWRRDD@gmail.com.

            The next meeting of the Carver, Marion, Wareham Regional Refuse Disposal District is tentatively scheduled for May 29 at 5:00 pm at the Wareham Town Hall.

Carver, Marion, Wareham Regional Refuse Disposal District

By Jean Perry