The contentious case of John and Pamela Lees’ proposal to build a house at 49 Water Street went from public hearing to action item after a July 13 public hearing of the Marion Conservation Commission failed to generate a conclusion.

            The many-times-continued public hearing to vet the applicant’s Notice of Intent for reconstruction of a single-family house, an inground swimming pool and repair of a seawall was finally closed by the commission at the Lees’ request, as delivered by representative Dave Davignon of Schneider, Davignon & Leone, Inc.

            The timing of that request did not sit well with the commissioners, who were handed a revised plan and the abutters’ reaction thereto only days before the July 13 public hearing.

            Led by Conservation Commission Chairman Jeff Doubrava, the members tabled their vote with plans to render a decision as an action item at the July 27 public meeting.

            Failure to do so at that time would empower the Lees to appeal directly to state authorities in appeal of the commission’s inaction, but the membership expressed confidence a decision is forthcoming once adequate time is taken to digest the late submissions from both the applicant and the abutters.

            Since the public hearing was closed on July 13, no further information can be considered unless it is administrative in nature and not substantial to the case.

            The July 13 public hearing was two sided, Davignon’s presentation of revised plans on the Lees’ behalf being buttressed by three professional experts. After that, abutter David Croll read from a prepared statement because their expert consultants and attorney were unable to attend on short notice.

            In summarizing the changes to the site plan, Davignon compared the utilities of the 1966 construction, which are below the flood-basement level, along with a first floor that is also noncompliant, would be replaced by a new, compliant dwelling elevated in Flood Zone AE Elevation-15. The first-floor requirement is plus 1 foot and is proposed at plus-1.25 feet.

            The new house would sit above a 35,000 cubic foot crawl space, which equates to 264,000 gallons of water.

            The boathouse will be reconstructed out of the velocity zone and shifted to the “A Zone.” The proposal includes a swimming pool with various pervious patios and a pervious driveway. Roof runoff will be directed to the recharge system located in front of the house.

            The house will cover 21.5 percent of the lot, part of a total 28.3 percent of impervious lot coverage including the boathouse.

            Revisions since the last public hearing include what Davignon described as an extensive redesign.

            “In an effort to make the neighbors happy, they’ve downsized the house, they’ve changed the design of the house including the roof and the outside look,” he said.

            The setback was extended from the abutters from the prior 20 feet to 30, and the driveway and lower-level patios were reconfigured.

            Geotechnical consultant Wayne McArdle, stormwater engineer Bruce Jacobs and coastal geologist Stan Humphries also spoke on the applicant’s behalf.

            McArdle reported on analysis of the land where the pool, deck, slopes and seawall are located. The seawall was evaluated for rotational stability.

            “Considering the height of new fill behind the wall, we produced a cross section from the new pool down to the existing seawall to demonstrate typical stresses that might be imposed on the coastal bank due to the new pool and grade changes. And we also addressed neighbors’ concerns about potential scour,” explained McArdle. “Briefly, what we found is that the site of the new building and the coastal bank are composed of a deposit commonly known as glacial till.

            “Within the Marion quadrangle, glacial till is the most widespread glacial deposit in the subsurface. It was laid down directly on the bedrock. Anybody here’s ever tried to dig a septic system knows what I’m talking about.”

            McArdle said glacial till has “excellent strength properties” and said the commercial building code allows up to 10 tons of vertical bearing pressure on glacial till. In New England, only bedrock is stronger. He said any scour (localized erosion via flooding or wave action) would not affect neighboring properties.

            “After looking at all this data, I see nothing currently proposed that would exceed the coastal bank’s capacity, cause slumping, landslides or other slope failures as defined by the Coastal Zone Manual,” said McArdle.

            Jacobs, who was brought into the project to respond to concerns raised by Scott Horsley regarding the potential impacts of mounding in the coastal bank, said that analysis indicates an annual increase in the recharge area that he considers consistent with standard stormwater-management practices. Impacts at the water table at the retaining wall he found to be 2 inches.

            Judith Rosbe, an abutter to the Lees’ land, was briefly allowed the floor to ask if the “contemporary plans” include the removal of 5 feet of soil to be replaced by more compact soil.

            McArdle answered that the amount varies throughout the site depending on what materials might be considered unsuitable to sit under the new structure, but he estimated that there are areas requiring the replacement of soils 2, 4 or even 5-feet deep, preferably with on-site material. McArdle said there may be some import such as crushed stone, but the plan is to use as much on-site material as possible.

            In reporting his analysis of floodplain management, Humphries said the neighbors’ houses sit 60 to 85 feet landward from the Lees’ project and that plans on site for vegetation will absorb what would be a “slow and incremental” movement of water landward.

            The revision to a smaller footprint ensures that no scouring will occur on the abutters’ property as a result of the house the Lees proposed, he said.

            After his analysis, Humphries concluded that the work will not destabilize the coastal bank and should be approved. Of the project-team experts hired by the Lees, Humphries said, “Their work in my opinion has been the most thorough and complete that I’ve seen on a single-family residential project in my career.”

            After more questions and answers with the commissioners, David Croll, 10 Lewis Street, spoke on behalf of the neighbors. Because the revised plan was not acquired until two days before the meeting, Croll sought to summarize the responses of the abutters’ official representatives who could not attend the meeting.

            Citing a plan that “calls for major alterations on or within 100 feet of the coastal bank,” Croll read a description placing patios, parts of the grass putting green, half of the swimming pool and site grading on top of the coastal bank, with most of the 190-foot-long, 10,000 square-foot house, garage, part of the driveway, part of the boathouse, the putting green, patio and walkway and part of the swimming pool within 100 feet.

            Croll argued that regulations require no adverse impact on the coastal bank, “not 20 percent, not 40 percent.”

            “It defies logic that none of what’s proposed will have any adverse impact, which the Wetland Act requires to be the case,” he said.

            In reading from a Coastal Zone Management manual issued by the state presumably meant to establish guidelines to reckoning with the Wetlands Protection Act, Croll noted that many of the features included in the Lees’ proposal such as pools, patios and decks are to be located as far landward as possible per the power of the local Conservation Commission.

            Croll cited Horsley’s and Robert Stevens’ April letters confirming that the proposed project will destabilize the coastal bank.

            According to Croll, the abutters’ consultants believe the project will cause a 20-47 percent increase in groundwater recharge, resulting in higher water-table conditions. He said review shows that a more landward pool and a shorter house would lessen impact.

            Croll relayed several abutters’ requests of the commission for the next hearing, including the following requirements: a redesign relocating all structures as landward as possible; plans for retaining walls, citing potential storm surge; analysis of coastal storm flowage onto abutting properties; analysis of roof runoff that the abutters’ consultants say will result in groundwater mounding raising the table by “multiple feet” during storms; hydrologic updates and proof that so-called permeable surfaces will perform; a freshwater impact assessment on the salt marsh and a redesign based on low-impact standards. Croll also said eight large trees were cut down on the site and should be restored.

            Acknowledging “major disagreements” between the abutters’ and applicants’ engineers and the difficult task for the commission, Croll asked if the commission would have its own advisor to “figure out who in these cases is correct.”

            Andrew Kendall, a direct abutter to the south of the Lees’ property, added his concern regarding stormwater flowage and echoed Croll’s request that the abutters be given a month to organize a proper response to the latest proposal.

            Conservation Commission Chairman Jeff Doubrava asked Davignon if the Lees would consider another continuance, to which Davignon answered they would not and wished within their right to request the public hearing be closed.

            The next meeting of the Marion Conservation Commission is scheduled for Wednesday, July 27, at 7:00 pm.

Marion Conservation Commission

By Mick Colageo

When an artist can command an entire gallery for a solo exhibition of their works, there is no doubt perfection has been achieved. The artist may not be able to accept that they have reached perfection in their chosen form of artistic expression, but the viewing public recognizes it immediately. Such is the case with the Marion Art Center’s newest solo exhibition of works done by Mary Ross.

            Ross’ career spans more than 60 years, years that began with Mount St. Joseph Academy in Brighton where her talent was noted and encouraged. She attended Saturday morning art classes held at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design and then was a full-time student there between 1945 and 1948.

            Family responsibilities may have briefly interfered with her pursuits as she explains in her biography, saying she cared for her mother while the rest of her family enlisted in the military. Ross found refuge and replenishment in art.

            Ross would eventually become the art director for Boston Parks and Recreation, teaching both children and adults the fine points of painting. She has been associated with the Marion Art Center for decades and has volunteered for at least that long during sidewalk art sales.

Not surprising to anyone who knows Ross, she continues to coordinate art shows that give emerging artists as well as those who have been holding brushes for years venues for exhibitions. The Marion Council on Aging has become one such location. While others in her rarified stage of life – Ross turned 95 this month – she still plans art exhibits which take about a year to fully execute.

            When speaking with the artist, whose pleasant voice has a lilt belying her age, one is transported into a world of creative imaginings. Her subject matters run the gamut, drawing from the natural world and places both near and far from Dexter Beach. There are Arabian, Asian and traditional influences that can be found in her floral, whimsical, dramatic or often dreamlike finished works.

            This solo exhibit spans decades starting in the 1960s to the 2000s. The visitor will find in the first-floor gallery mixed-media pieces, paintings and richly layered collages.

            It was while attending MassArt that Ross was introduced to the process of creating visual artworks from ripped paper. She began by using wallpapers but found the material too thick and heavy. Rice paper became her go-to medium. She explained that she began by making her own rice paper to create her visions.

            Serendipity would come into play when Ross made the acquaintance of a papermaker. Ross abandoned making her own paper. Sometime later when the papermaking crafter told Ross she was discontinuing papermaking, the two struck a deal. Ross could have the remaining paper inventory if she would create an abstract from some of the paper in exchange. Today Ross still has some of that rice paper in her supplies.

            The MAC’s second-floor gallery is an homage to both Ross and the art of collage making. These flowers, mermaids, seasides, castles, birch forests and so much more are painstaking constructed. But for Ross this form of art is forgiving.

            “With oils you can’t really change your mind,” she explained. Oils take a long time to dry and cannot be manipulated easily. Acrylics, although easier to work with, still cannot be manipulated. “With collages, I can move things around and get them exactly where I want them before I glue them down – I can change my mind,” Ross stated.

“When I was painting, I did more traditional subjects,” she shared. “With paper I can be more flexible.”

            Ross commented that she never wanted to get bored committing her time to a specific technique. “If I reached a point where I couldn’t reach the next step, I’d do something else.” Yet she has never tired of collage making and has reached and surpassed many steps in her quest to get it just right.

            Ross’ sense of color and its impact is evident, whether she is using it to make a subtle comment to a scene or a bold commanding statement. And then there are the extras. Mermaids are festooned with unruly hair that punctuates their angelic faces. They are wonderfully joyous little creations.

            And joy is the overall takeaway from this truly masterful exhibition. A retrospective of a life’s works that gives us a moment to reflect on superlative technique, inventive subject matter and at last, beauty. The Mary Ross Retrospective is on view now through August 5.

Marion Art Center

By Marilou Newell

The July 18 Mattapoisett Planning Board agenda included an informational meeting with Chris Vandenberghe of Outback Engineering, Inc. representing a Site Plan application filed by Sun Partners Solar of Newton.

            Vandenberghe outlined the scope of the project planned for 156 Acushnet Road, currently being used as agricultural land. The array is a 198-kilowatt alternative energy producer, covering approximately 200×275 square feet. Solar panels will be constructed on 10-foot-high supports that will allow the impacted area to function as both solar-energy space and agricultural, a dual-use application.

            Regarding the proposed dual-use plan, Vandenberghe said that an application has been submitted to the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources. The project hinges on their acceptance that the area of disturbance can remain in agricultural tax status. He said that preliminary discussions with the Mattapoisett Fire Department produced a request for widening of the access road currently on the property.

            Several abutters were in attendance, having been notified of the meeting. Their primary articulated concerns consisted of wanting proper screening. They were assured that screening is in the plans. It was also noted several times during the discussion that the Site Plan process will require multiple meetings and that this type of application, dual use, is a first for Mattapoisett.

            Vandenberghe requested and received the start of a peer-review process to run concurrently with the MassDOER process. He also said that failing to receive MassDOER approval would not result in abandonment of the entire proposal. The project is located in jurisdictional Mattapoisett River Valley Water District areas. A letter from MRV Chairman Vincent Furtado did not prohibit the project.

            The Site Plan review was extended until September 19.

            Also coming before the board was Rich Riccio of Field Engineering for a continuance of a Form C approval of a definitive plan submitted by Dennis Mahoney and Sons, Inc. for a proposed subdivision of land on the west side of North Street. Nine waivers pertinent to the proposed land use were granted, and discussion of stormwater management systems confirmed all issues previously considered were addressed to the board’s satisfaction.

            In the stormwater design are check-dams and a 3-foot infiltration trench. Submitted were stormwater calculations. The project was accepted.

            A Form A Approval Not Required (ANR) was granted for property located at 3 Mattapoisett Neck Road, creating easier access to abutting property. The Mattapoisett Land Trust filed the application represented by President Mike Huguenin and Bob Rogers of G.A.F. Engineering. The request was granted.

            The roadway serving Split Rock Lane at the Preserve at the Bay Club was discussed. A formal plan of action to remediate imperfections in the base coat is pending from Outback Engineering, the board stated. A peer-review consultant was declined by the developer due to cost. Next steps include Outback Engineering’s revised plans and core sample report.

            The next meeting of the Mattapoisett Planning Board is scheduled for Monday, August 1, at 7:00 pm.

Mattapoisett Planning Board

By Marilou Newell

            A cannabis retail store may soon be coming to the Rochester Crossroads mixed-use development at Routes 58 and 28.

            The design of “Megan’s Organic Market,” an established cannabis retailer, seeks to normalize the retail cannabis-buying experience with a typical, retail-store configuration, company Principal Nick Andrian explained to the Rochester Select Board members Woody Hartley, Paul Ciaburri and Brad Morse as the board reviewed a proposed Community Host Agreement between the town and the store during Monday night’s public meeting at Rochester Town Hall.

            The agreement would include the store giving the town 1 percent of its gross receipts over and above the 3 percent of revenues that the state mandates each host community of such businesses should receive.

            Andrian told the Select Board that customers will find that the open concept of the store’s design, wherein the actual product packaging is easily accessible on display, will be more comfortable than the typical atmosphere of a prescription pharmacy. Customers can pick up either a red basket signaling that they do not need customer assistance or a black basket indicating the patron does need help.

            Since the Commonwealth of Massachusetts does not allow the company’s typical placement of actual products on display, Andrian said that the Rochester store would display “dummy packaging” that customers can take to the counter to do the actual ordering.

            Andrian also noted the California-based company prides itself on “responsible stewardship.” He said that the store will place its 1 percent of receipts into a local community fund. Megan’s Organic Market plans to sponsor charitable events and do volunteer work.

            The store, he said, will be built on a free-standing lot as far away as possible from other Rochester Crossroads tenants such as the proposed child-care center. Security will be tight. Doors and windows will be alarmed. There will be security cameras inside and out.

            The entrance leads to a lobby where a receptionist and a security guard will check customers’ credentials. The HVAC system will prevent odors. The store will not carry disposable vape pens.

            After hearing the presentation, the Select Board concluded that the terms of the Community Host Agreement are “straightforward” but chose to review it further before taking a vote.

            The board also came close to approving a date for the fall Town Meeting. Town Administrator Glenn Cannon suggested October 10 or 17; Select Board member Brad Morse suggested waiting to learn the Planning Board’s timetable for proposing articles for the meeting.

            The Select Board also announced and responded to two resignations. Assistant wiring inspector George Randall has resigned; the board appointed Roger Poitras, who was once the head wiring inspector in Mattapoisett, to replace him.

            The Select Board also announced that Boards of Assessors Assessment Administrator Debra Lalli has retired. The board encourages interested applicants to send a letter of interest by mail or email to the Assessor’s office at Town Hall, 1 Constitution Way, Rochester, Massachusetts 02770.

            Cannon announced that the town will receive $23,766 from Old Colony Regional Vocational-Technical High School after the school system received a state Community Mitigation Grant that reduced its budget.

            The next meeting of the Rochester Select Board is scheduled for Monday, August 1, at 6:00 pm.

Rochester Select Board

By Michael J. DeCicco