Harbormaster Horace Field said that the new launch service in Mattapoisett Harbor could be available to boaters starting as early as this weekend, June 16-17.  Field, along with Marine Advisory Board Chairman Alan Gillis met before the Board of Selectmen during their regular meeting on Tuesday, June 12.

Field also gave an update on the Taylor Aquaculture dilemma. Earlier in the year, Robert Taylor received a list of requirements in terms of markings for his aquaculture in the harbor. Field said Taylor had obtained the proper buoys for his aquaculture and they are at the correct distance away from each other. However, Field said that Taylor needs to obtain new channel markers to achieve compliance with the new regulations.

“He should change them out,” said Selectman Paul Silva.

The Marine Advisory Board made a few recommendations to the Board of Selectmen.  The first was that the Board raise the prices of stickers for dinghies in the harbor in order to pay for the recently installed racks. They also recommended that the town purchase only the amount of stickers to suit the amount of available spots in the harbor. Both of these rules, however, will not come into play until next summer.

Gillis recommended that the town coordinate a better parking system for the area around the harbor. As it stands right now, the parking is very discombobulated. Both boards agreed to implement angled parking and to also utilize the Beach Attendant on Duty to make sure people are parking in an orderly fashion.

The Marine Advisory Board also advised getting a set of solar floodlights to put around the launch area. According to Gillis, the lighting situation right now is unfit, and solar lights would be the most cost effective solution. Gagne asked Gillis to provide him with a provider so they could begin pricing out options.

In other news, Gagne gave an update on the town’s photovoltaic project. He said the project is still in the planning stages and is 3-4 months away from being ready to put out to bid. If all goes well, construction could begin in early 2013.

Gagne also is seeking interested benefactors for donations to replace the fence in Shipyard Park. He said the current fence is rotting and the town should replace it in the fall.

“It would be a very nice gift to the community of Mattapoisett,” Gagne said.

Both Pastor Amy Lignitz Harken and Earl Sylvia were appointed to the Mattapoisett Council on Aging. The Board also voted to appoint George Randall to the Agricultural Commission.

The Mattapoisett Open Space and Recreation Plan will be holding an introductory meeting on Thursday, June 21 at 6:30 pm in the Mattapoisett Library. The group is looking for recommendations on town property that residents believe should be historically preserved.

The Mattapoisett Board of Selectmen will meet again on Tuesday, July 11 at 7:00 pm in the Town Hall.

By Katy Fitzpatrick

The Rochester Planning Board is deeply entrenched in the process of working on several bylaws that pertain to home businesses, solar projects, a new village center overlay and a right to farm.

At the board’s June 12 meeting, language for all these bylaws was put under a microscope. Prior to adoption, all bylaws require public meetings and approval by Rochester residents at town meeting

With New Bedford Waterworks approaching the town to install a 25-30 acre solar farm in Northwest Rochester, the board sought to codify the town’s expectations for solar projects.

The proposed bylaw – which pertains to large scale ground and roof photovoltaic installations – includes provisions on landscaping, emergency access to the site, required traffic and accident studies, provisions for snow removal, and a plan to decommission and remove the site if it falls into disuse.

                  With the board satisfied with the work, Town Planner John Charbonneau said, “I feel like we are getting really close on this.” Board members agreed to forward the bylaw language to Town Counsel Blair Bailey for his review.

                  Additionally, the board was hard at work revising the Home Business Bylaw. After the public weighed in against the proposed home business bylaws during public hearings in April, the board is now back at the drawing board.

Board members decided to use a draft created by board member Susan Teal that discussed rules for single-family homes, accessory structures and storage spaces for use in home businesses.

That evening, the board specifically looked at setback requirements for roadside stands, which Teal proposed at 25 feet from the front properly line and 15 feet from the sideine.

“I don’t have a 25- foot long car. Twenty five feet is a long way, I’m still good with the 15 feet,” commented board member Bendrix Bailey.

Robert Francis noted that the setback could be closer, as promoting a configuration where cars need to back out could pose a safety hazard. “In line parking is better,” he said.

The board also realized that bylaws currently in the books are stricter than state rules, as they stipulate that only products grown on that particular property can be sold at a roadside stand. State rules designate 50 percent of goods as home grown, but also allow property owners to sell goods from other businesses at their roadside stands. The board agreed to investigate conforming to state rules to allow more flexibility.

The board agreed that other accessory structures 150 feet or more – which are not roadside stands – should be 40 feet from all property lines and in the rear yard. The board also agreed that many definitions in the current draft need clarification, including what constitutes a farm building versus a farm structure.

Francis said it was important to crystallize the difference between an accessory structure and farming structure, as people can use their buildings for commercial reasons without proper authorization.

“People have a way of twisting things to meet their own needs,” he said, noting that farming buildings have been used improperly for other business ventures.

The board also briefly discussed the village overlay, which will allow more mixed uses in the town center. The board agreed that buildings must be 40 feet from any adjoining property, which would encourage owners of multiple lots to seek an ANR to combine lots if they wish to construct buildings near each other.

“If you say that, it forces them to combine the lots, which is what we want,” said Chairman Arnie Johnson.

Charbonneau said that he would present a revised map of the proposed overlay, which encompasses land from the Post Office to the Women’s Club, as well as the Old Airport site, for the board. This overlay would be about 50 percent smaller than what he originally proposed, he said.

In other topics, the board spoke in favor of a right-to-farm bylaw the newly created Agricultural Commission put forward. The bylaw would protect the rights of farmers to pursue their trade, especially in the face of more residential development.

“It’s a great laissez faire bylaw. I love it,” said Bailey. The board is planning to meet with the Rochester Agricultural Commission on June 26 to flesh out the details.

By Laura Fedak Pedul

Residents of Mattapoisett Village soon will measure the day again through the chimes of the Center School Clock. At the Mattapoisett School Committee meeting on Monday, June 11, Ray Andrews reported that the installation of the renovated Seth Thomas 1898 Clock is slated for June 28 – and he proposed to ring the bells for the first time at a public debut event on the following Saturday on June 30.

The efforts to restore the clock are long running. It took more than one year for Andrews to secure the necessary funds – including $27,482 in private fundraising. The town authorized $51,500 for the clock’s restoration at last month’s annual town meeting.

“It’s the first time in 114 years that we’ll see the clock in operation,” said Andrews of the clock mechanisms, which will be viewable from the music room. The clock’s bells will ring from 7:00 am to 8:00 pm and go silent between 9:00 pm and 6:00 am. Andrews said that the Mattapoisett Congressional Church agreed to silence their carillon bells at all times except noon and 6:00 pm.

The $10,000 in funds obtained from the Community Preservation Committee will be set aside exclusively for care and maintenance of the dial face and gears, he said. The revolving fund, managed through Town Administrator Michael Gagne’s office, would ensure the clock’s upkeep, and assist with the anticipated cost to repaint the clock.

The account requires authorization at the Special Town Meeting in the fall. Andrews envisions representatives from the Select Board, Historical Commission, and School Committee overseeing access to the account.

“It’s in the school, but it’s a town responsibility to maintain it… One of most important things is take the responsibility away from school committee,” Andrews said of the clock.

As the Center School Clock will ring in the summer, the committee voted in Jim Higgins to lead the committee next year as Chairman. He is replacing Gracinda Knox, who has served for four years as Chair.  The committee also welcomed newcomer Jim Muse to the table.

Also that evening, Old Hammondtown Student Adjustment Counselor Laura Courage shared with the committee how guidance staff enhances social and emotional learning in Mattapoisett schools. The presentation aimed to inform the committee and community at large about counseling services available to all students.

“Our goal is to help students access education without social and emotional barriers,” Courage said, citing the need to treat anxiety, social skills deficits, and attention deficit disorder. “This impacts learning of all the kids in the classroom.”

She said 5 to 10 percent of children are diagnosed with anxiety disorders, which can result in children exhibiting avoidance behavior towards school. Guidance staff take a proactive approach to identify and refer children with mental health needs to the right place so counselors “get to them before they have 30 absences,” she said

Courage reported that the guidance office is taking more steps to collect data on regular day students, who use the services equally as much as Special Education students. Counseling data on special education students already is routinely collected.

“This is about the getting the word out that assistance is available.  Maybe the student is not in trouble, but there is a lot of stress in their family,” said Teresa Hamm, Director of Student Services.

In other business discussed, Superintendent Doug White is in the process of hiring for two positions in the central district administrative office. He said the search continues to replace Business Administrator Katie Isernio, and he will begin the process to locate a new Technology Director next week.

In other news:

• the committee welcomed Facilities Director Eugene Jones
• the committee approved the donations of two U.S. flags
• the committee acknowledged the retirements of  teacher Ms. Sylvester and custodian Mr. Green as well as Kristin Querim, who successfully performed the Heimlich maneuver on a student

By Laura Fedak Pedulli

On Monday, June 11, 2012, the Mattapoisett Conservation Commission held their first meeting of the month.  They heard from Doug Schneider, of Schneider and Associates, on behalf of Dean Withrow, who filed for a Notice of Intent to construct a new home on Grand View Avenue.  Since the home would be so close to sea level, Schneider is proposing constructing it on stilts, and adding fill to the lot to raise the level of the property.  The proposal caught the attention of several abutters, who attended the meeting to speak their concerns, which focused on drainage issues and whether or not it would be legal to build a home there at all.

Russell Bailey, who lives in the neighborhood, was worried that raising the grade of the land would cause rain and hurricane water to change the direction of drainage, threatening his property, as well as others.  “You’re going to do away with the natural flow of water during a hurricane,” he said.

His concerns were echoed by Leslie Henderson, who said she had “a vested interest in property at 19 Bay Road.”  In addition to the issue of flooding, she presented to the Commission with plans from 2007 that illustrated the intent to build a reservoir, catch basin, and swale on the property in question, in order to improve the water drainage of the neighborhood.  “It takes a week to two weeks for rain water to drain from my property,” Henderson said.  She also produced a notarized affidavit, co-signed by Withrow, agreeing that there would be no other development of the land except for the purposes of drainage.  “I don’t understand how we can entertain the notion of putting up another dwelling when they were supposed to build a retention pond and never did,” she said.

In light of these concerns and since the project does not yet have a file number from the DEP, the Conservation Commission voted to continue the hearing until their next meeting so they may research the history of the property in order to make a better determination later.

The Commission also welcomed back Stanley Humphries, of LEC Environmental Consultants, Inc. who, on behalf of the DaRosa family, continued to discuss their plans to install coconut fiber envelopes of sand along a coastal bank, and plant various grasses and shrubs in order to prevent erosion of an area on Goodspeed Island. While the Commission seemed to be supportive of the plan, Chairman Peter Newton said that he would prefer the people of Mattapoisett be considered before they approve the plan.  He suggested hiring a third party to determine of the project and proposed materials would be adequate for its intended purpose.

“This is not a trivial project for the town,” said Newton.  “I think that to be fair to the residents of Mattapoisett, we really need an independent review of this proposal.  If it’s going to change the landscape of Goodspeed Island, we need to know for sure.”

“They are looking at an August or September construction, so we have some time,” said Humphries, who readily agreed with the Commissions suggestion.

In other business, the Conservation Commission voted in favor of a Notice of Intent to build some small additions onto property at 20 Water Street, and voted in favor of a conservation restriction on a parcel of land near the Fairhaven town line.  The land would be designated for light public recreation, such as walking, biking, and picnics.

The next meeting of the Mattapoisett Conservation Commission will be held on Monday, June 25, 2012, at 6:30 pm at the Town Hall.

By Eric Tripoli