In a lead-up to Mattapoisett’s May 10 Annual Town Meeting, months of board and committee meetings dissected finance reports, consultants’ studies, and departmental needs analyses, and debated at least a few controversial topics. Two Water and Sewer Department projects raised concerns during the April 29 meeting of the Mattapoisett Finance Committee.

            The members systematically reviewed each warrant article needing their comment at Town Meeting, but when they reached Article 24, Transfer of Funds for New Project Funding, a sum to be used for sewer main line improvements across the Eel Pond breach, Finance Committee member Tyler Macallister spoke strongly against spending money on a plan that would leave the line in its current location.

            “I’ll be speaking against anything other than bringing it down Route 6,” Macallister firmly assured the committee. He said that years ago, when he was a sitting selectman, the discussion had always been the importance of moving the main line from the environmentally sensitive location.

            “We were always told we were one storm away from catastrophe,” he said, painting the dire state the town would be in with a rupture of the line, which would not only impact the waterfront, but the entire community. “We’d have to use trucks to take the waste to Fairhaven.” Macallister said that a Transportation Improvement Project (TIP) is planned for Route 6, and thus the sewer line should be moved along that roadway before construction takes place.

            In a follow-up, Macallister said the Board of Selectmen during his tenure “looked at this between 2007 and 2014,” and that discussions were centered on moving the line from the beach and trestle bridge.

            The Sewer Department’s current plan would take approximately $600,000 in savings from several completed projects to pay design costs for the Eel Pond sewer line. Though no note was taken, the committee members agreed that additional study is needed before the project moves forward.

            In Article 11 covering Capital Plan Funding, both the Water and Sewer Departments would be shouldering 50 percent for design costs for a new overall departmental headquarters involving land owned by the town in the Bay Club subdivision. Each enterprise fund would pay $25,000 for a total of $50,000 for the plan. FinCom Chairman Pat Donoghue voiced her concern: “I’m troubled about moving ahead with funding on land that’s pretty valuable. We have other needs.”

            Back to the beginning of the meeting and the warrant articles.

            Article 1, Elected Officers Compensation, Town Administrator Mike Lorenco noted the overall increases were 2 percent with the exception of the town clerk, whose salary is being increased from $63,800 to $70,000 to bring the position more in line with other communities. Conversely, the salary being proposed for the highway surveyor, a position that will see a new staff member with the retirement of Barry Denham, is being decreased from $90,958 to $75,000. Lorenco said the Board of Selectmen felt a new hire would not have the level of experience that the outgoing surveyor brought to the job and thus a decrease is in order. The members voted to recommend.

            Article 2, General Operating Budget for FY22, $29,894,778, was also voted for recommendation. Article No. 3, Payment of Prior Year Bills, a sum of $25,699 was explained as part of a reconciliation with the solid-waste contractor ABC Disposal Service, Inc. Lorenco called it a “righting of the ship.”

            Article 4, Appropriation for OPEB (other post-employment benefits) in the sum of $179,100, was recommended by FinCom for a reserve fund established to help pay for benefit obligations to retiring municipal employees from various departments. From that total appropriation, $140,000 will be earmarked for the town – $10,000 for Mattapoisett’s share of ORR liability, as well as $4,100 from Sewer Retained Earnings and $25,000 from Water Retained Earnings.

            Article 5, Revolving Fund Authorization totaling $300,000 authorizing expenditure limits, was recommended. Article No. 6, Cyclical Annual Property Revaluation and Town Mapping, $36,000, was also recommended for the purpose of funding the Department of Revenue mandated cyclical revaluation of property and mapping updates.

            Article 8, Water Reserve Account, $10,000, establishes a fund for unforeseen expenses. Article No. 9 establishes the same amount with the same purpose. Both were recommended by FinCom.

            Article 11, Capital Planning Fund, $479,889 with $294,889 from free cash, $90,000 from Water Retained Earnings, and $95,000 from Sewer Retained Earnings, was recommended. The article lists the following expenditures: $42,889for local school phone upgrades; $18,500for library roof and skylight repairs; $85,000 for Highway Department sidearm mower attachment; $14,500 for Fire Department pontoons for boat; $54,000 for Long Wharf grant match; $25,000 for local schools floor tile replacements; $55,000 for a police cruiser. Water Department expenditures are well upgrades for $30,000; new building design (50-percent share) for $25,000; new truck (50-percent share) for $35,000. Sewer Department expenditures are lift station upgrades for $35,000; new building design (50-percent share) for $25,000; and new truck (50-percent share) for $35,000. All were recommended.

            Articles 13, 14, and 15, Allocation of Revenues Community Preservation Act, covers grant applications recommended by the Community Preservation Committee and the FinCom. Those requests are $35,000 from the Mattapoisett Historical Museum for repairs to the front entranceway, $20,000 for the funding of Cushing Cemetery Records from hardcopy to digital formatting, and $20,000 for the ORR Press box, also supported by funds from Marion and Rochester.

            Article 18, Meals Tax Statue, though not part of FinCom’s watch, inspired a bit of lively discussion when Donoghue wondered if the voters have received sufficient notification that a tax on meals at local venues is being proposed. Lorenco said that the new revenue generated from the tax would be 75 cents on $100 spent.

            Article 19, Town Road Improvement Plan Funding, $450,000 was recommended by the FinCom. The sum will be used to fund the 75-percent design needed to qualify for federal grant monies. It will be paid for by debt exclusion, Lorenco explained, or other funding means.

            To view the warrant in its entirety, visit Mattapoisett.net.

            On May 3, the Board of Selectmen met briefly to vote on the Town Election Warrant. It was explained that the ballot is not considered valid until the selectmen vote to accept it and sign approval as well.

            Chairman Paul Silva asked for a moment of silence in honor for Selectman John DeCosta, whose death he said was shocking, and he expressed deep sympathy for his family. DeCosta’s funeral took place earlier in the day.

            Other matters handled included the approval of yoga at Ned’s Point for up to 50 people sponsored by the Mattapoisett Wellness Center with a portion of the proceeds earmarked for Friends of Jake and a local food pantry. Classes will be held from May 29 through September 4 at 8:30 am. Also approved was the return of the Antique Car Shows on Friday night twice a month between June and Labor Day in Shipyard Park, and the Relay for Life event held in August. All events and activities held on town properties are subject to local and state pandemic guidelines. Presently the limit on gatherings is 50 people in outdoor venues until further notice.

            The next Board of Selectmen meeting will be held prior to the start of Town Meeting on Monday, May 10, at 6:00 pm in the ORR gymnasium.

Mattapoisett Board of Selectmen

Mattapoisett Finance Committee

By Marilou Newell

            Laurie Whitney-Lawrence will have to wait before she can legally use her Mendell Road property as a part-time event center.

            What began in 2013 as a $7,000 savings for her daughter’s wedding and reception evolved into a venue for other events including a fundraiser for Rochester Youth Baseball, memorial services and bridal showers.

            Whitney-Lawrence told the ZBA that by word of mouth the potential has grown to the point that the property is currently sought out by three more couples who want to get married on the 3.98-acre parcel that features a 106 by 46-foot tent and does business as Arch at the Meadow.

            In Appeal No. 1162 heard by the Rochester Zoning Board of Appeals on April 22, Whitney-Lawrence went before the board seeking a Special Permit to host private functions including receptions and showers under Chapter 20.40, Section F.6.

            The property has been owned by Whitney-Lawrence and her husband, Glenn Lawrence, of 332 Mendell Road since 1986, and it is zoned as residential/agricultural. The property has no dwellings but has seven structures, including a hangar housing two airplanes (down from five), a gazebo where the bartending service operates, and a mobile home that has been converted into a bathroom.

            Whitney-Lawrence came before the ZBA hoping that the fact so little has changed on the property would produce the minimal deliberation required before a special permit would allow her to follow through on a schedule that hopes to host a wedding on June 12.

            “Because we’re pursuing to do this a little bit more with people we have known, but now more people are coming to us,” said Whitney-Lawrence, who said she plans no more than three events per month. “Three tops is all we would ever want to do (per month)…. We’re not a traditional wedding [business].”

            Her plan is to open the property to privately planned events at 9:00 am and close no later than 10:30 pm, depending on the function. She told the ZBA that her caterers are licensed and insured.

            Rochester Fire Chief Scott Weigel spoke on the applicant’s behalf, having met last spring with the family. “They’ve done everything I’ve asked them to do,” said Weigel, who conducted a safety inspection. “I will do the same this year.”

            Nonetheless, ZBA Chair David Arancio, who serves on the board of directors of the Rochester Youth Baseball and offered to recuse himself if any ZBA member thought he should – no one did so, and Arancio stayed on – agreed with members Richard Cutler and Kirby Gilmore that the situation is so far outside the box of anything the ZBA has tackled that more information is needed in order to judge the situation with confidence.

            Planning Board Chair Arnie Johnson, who sat in on the public hearing, said he was waiting for an opportunity to discuss the matter with Town Counsel Blair Bailey, who was not able to attend.

            Parking became a concern, but Whitney-Lawrence assured the board that only on one prior occasion did traffic spill out onto the street due to overflow, and steps have been taken to ensure that does not happen again.

            It was estimated that there are 28 parking spots in the back of the property and an additional 50 spots in the front. “If it’s a large wedding, we ask them to rent bus transportation,” said Whitney-Lawrence.

            While Whitney-Lawrence said she has the support of neighbors whom she said were on the call, they did not speak.

            After lengthy deliberation, the board voted to continue the case to May 13 at 7:00 pm and will request Bailey’s attendance at the next hearing to address some of the questions posed by Johnson and ZBA members.

            In Appeal No. 1163, applicants Carl and Jennifer Achorn of Mattapoisett were issued a variance for relief under Chapter 20.40, Section D.1, for the construction of the single-family house on an undersized (1.35 acre) lot.

            The land, zoned for agricultural/residential use, was still owned at the time of the public hearing by Paul Chamberlain of Weymouth, and no buildings are on the lot at the present time.

            The Achorns wish to build a 2,200 square-foot house and a subsurface sewage disposal system within the groundwater protection zone and estimated habitat of rare wildlife. The dwelling as planned will exceed all the required setbacks.

            Abutter Nora Dupont, 182 Hartley Road, articulated concerns with wetlands and underground water. “There have been things that have happened around us and it does cause problems. It’s unpredictable,” she told the ZBA. “When we bought our house … we were told there would be no houses on that side because it was agricultural land and would always stay that way.”

            Despite Dupont’s objection, the board voted to issue the variance with the condition that the house not exceed 2,200 square feet.

            In other business, the ZBA reiterated its decision to continue reporting to the Annex building to sign case approval documents rather than use the costly DocuSign program.

            The next meeting of the Rochester ZBA is scheduled to be held on Thursday, May 13, at 7:00 pm.

Rochester Zoning Board of Appeals

By Mick Colageo

            The decline of COVID-19 cases in Marion is encouraging, reflecting the overall trend across the state as more are vaccinated and fewer are testing positive. Marion had zero positive cases of COVID-19 as of press time on May 4 when the Marion Board of Health met for a brief meeting.

            “The numbers are obviously coming down,” said Public Health Nurse Lori Desmarais.

            Marion has seen 420 confirmed cases since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.

            Sippican School has one person connected to the school in quarantine awaiting test results, with zero currently in isolation. So far, the elementary school has had 38 confirmed cases linked to staff or students at Sippican School.

            Tabor Academy is reporting zero new positive cases with zero students in quarantine or isolation. Tabor will continue to conduct weekly surveillance testing of students and staff, Desmarais stated.

            Sippican Healthcare Center has reported one new confirmed case connected to the nursing home after a long stretch of weeks without any new cases.

            In other matters, the state’s oral rabies vaccine distribution planned for this week has been delayed due to inclement weather. Desmarais said the operation to distribute the oral rabies vaccine via a low-flying helicopter should commence by the end of the current week, pending the weather forecast. The program targets wildlife such as raccoons to help stop the spread of rabies in the wild.

            Board of Health Chairman Dr. Edward Hoffer stated that several raccoons reported as “acting unusually” that were caught in Marion and euthanized all tested negative for rabies.

            Desmarais reported that her clinical hours for the Council on Aging at the Community Center have been running smoothly and picking up steam as people are beginning to show up for the weekly Wednesday 1:00-3:00 pm sessions to have their blood pressure checked and talk about their concerns.

            “People are coming back,” said Desmarais. “It’s nice to see the activities at the COA using the tents. … That has been working well.”

            Desmarais said the COA would be working with the Fire Department to conduct a “sharps drop-off” on Wednesday, May 12, from 9:00 am to noon. According to Desmarais, the Fire Department will be taking on the responsibility that the Police Department has historically managed. Desmarais said the Fire Department would facilitate more sharps drop-offs with the COA in the future.

            “Well, it sounds like things are relatively peaceful and quiet at the moment,” said Hoffer. “We will hope it stays that way.”

            The next meeting of the Marion Board of Health will be held on Tuesday, May 18, at 4:00 pm.

Marion Board of Health

By Jean Perry

If Article 38 gains voter approval at Marion’s May 10 Town Meeting, there will be a maximum time limit for approved projects to spend appropriated Community Preservation funds.

            After this year, every article fielded by the Community Preservation Committee, in addition to a dollar amount, will pitch a time limit to which the CPC will respond. The article is intended to ensure that CPC funds are spent on the town and in a timely manner.

            If the funds are not spent within the prescribed time limit, the project applicant can go back to the CPC and apply for an extension. Should they not, the funds revert to the CPC. Town Administrator Jay McGrail told the Marion Finance Committee during its April 28 Zoom meeting that in both of the towns where he had previously worked this kind of measure was already in place.

            “We do have some projects that have been sitting on the books for quite a long time, and we have no recourse to take that money back,” said McGrail.

            “Some of these projects can drift and we lose track of them, and if there’s a time limit, then it’s understood between both parties,” said FinCom member Margie Baldwin.

            The article’s success at the May 10 Town Meeting would not have retroactive effect, nor does it affect CPC articles to be presented for voter approval on May 10.

            “The reason we didn’t include the language in the articles for this year is because, if this doesn’t pass, it would jeopardize those projects moving forward,” said McGrail. “This is more about cleaning it up for the future.”

            According to FinCom Chairman Peter Winters, the bike path article will be two years old in June.

            “I think this is a good idea. I don’t think it has any financial impact other than it makes things more efficient, and we don’t have lingering projects out there from 20 years ago that people no longer need or want,” said Winters.

            Article 38 will come to Town Meeting with the voted recommendation of the Finance Committee, which made no recommendation on several other warrant articles reviewed by McGrail because they make no financial impact to the town.

            Having voted to offer either no recommendation or approval on Articles 39, 40, 41, 42 and 43 because those articles pose no financial impact on the town, the committee completed its FY22 mission.

            The next meeting of the Marion Finance Committee was not scheduled at adjournment. A special meeting was discussed between the committee, McGrail and Selectman John Waterman to examine the contractual agreement that the town has with the Old Rochester Regional School District.

            According to McGrail, ORR did not have final approval from the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) and therefore could not get the agreement onto the May 10 Town Meeting warrant.

            The primary changes proposed by ORR are changing over to a five-year rolling average assessment meant to minimize volatility faced by the tri-towns during the budget process and the establishment of a stabilization fund.

            “That’s my concern, having them in charge of debt,” said Winters. “Why would we give up our voting rights?”

            Waterman pointed out that anything that the ORR District does has to pass through all three towns. He said that, while Marion and Mattapoisett voted to support the rehabilitation of the high school track, Rochester did not.

            “In fairness to them, they do need to put in a mechanism that gives them a little more ability to do things like borrow money or invest capital without having to get all three towns to approve,” said Waterman. “I think if it’s debt, all three towns have to approve it, but then it also has to be voted on at the polls and it has to pass by a 50 percent margin so it’s hard for them to get anything done right now.”

            Waterman said that DESE has approved ORR’s proposal so DESE would have to approve any tweaks negotiated by the tri-towns so he expects any changes would take a while.

            Winters thanked McGrail and Finance Director Judy Mooney for their work in preparing information for the committee.

            McGrail said FinCom’s next meeting can be held in person, but a date will not be set until after Town Meeting and in concert with ORR.

            Editor’s note: Due to a reporting error, the above article, as it appears in the print version of The Wanderer (and the PDF of the print edition viewable at wanderer.com) incorrectly states that Article 38 stipulates a maximum two-year time limit for approved projects to spend appropriated Community Preservation funds. The time limit for any approved article will be decided by the CPC.

Marion Finance Committee

By Mick Colageo