Departmental budgets were brought before the Rochester Finance Committee on Monday night, and all were voted for approval except the Police budget, which will be addressed with more complete information when the committee next meets in joint session with the Select Board on April 25.

            The committee approved the school budget without debate. So did Marion but not Mattapoisett, a matter still in process.

            The Rochester school budgets review came to the Finance Committee with one change to show the academic student resource package of $33,358 on the Town Meeting warrant as part of Rochester Memorial School budget of $6,637,794. The academic student resource package had been voted under Capital, but being more operational, it was decided to make it a two-year purchase at $33,358 per year.

            FinCom approved the Rochester Memorial School FY23 budget of $6,637,794, Old Rochester Regional School District’s FY23 operating budget of $5,165,848 and town contributions to the respective FY23 budgets of $1,488,292 to Old Colony and $289,698 to Bristol Agricultural High School.

            The RMS and ORR school committees have certified their budgets.

            ORR’s operating budget includes $144,000 in capital for the high school’s $421,000 track rehab project. The three Tri-Towns will contribute based on a five-year student-enrollment formula with Marion paying 29.67 percent, Mattapoisett 36.34 percent and Rochester 34.08 percent.

            Suzanne Szyndlar, attending Monday night’s meeting for the first time in Rochester’s newly created and temporary position of assistant town administrator (to new Town Administrator Glenn Cannon, who was also present) clarified that ORR’s new capital stabilization fund is meant to address small capital needs rather than large ones and that it will take a long time to fund.

            “It is a concern, we don’t want this setting a precedent,” Szyndlar said of the project, calling it an assessment. “If they’re going to do any big renovations, they have to talk about it (with town officials.)”

            The capital stabilization fund will be passed if two out of three towns vote for it at their respective town meetings.

            The Old Colony FY23 budget reflects an increase of 20 Rochester students over FY22.

            In some cases, the committee had to vote to rescind prior approvals due to adjustments that have since been made to departmental budgets.

            The Assessors’ prior FY23 budget of $214,047 was rescinded from a vote taken in February. The committee then voted to approve a new FY23 budget of $214,270.

            Board of Assessors Chairperson Jana Cavanaugh told the Finance Committee the department wants to put $15,000 on the Town Meeting warrant to establish a fund that would be earmarked for future contracted work. Cavanaugh said FY24 will not require the same expense.

            “It’s only because this is a certification year, and we have a huge amount of work to do. I don’t think we could complete it without this money,” she said. “I don’t know if we need the 15, I hope we don’t. … This is necessary.”

            Rochester has a new principal assessor whom Cavanaugh explained would need the assistance mostly for commercial work, some personal property. Current vendor rates are estimated to be over $40 per hour.

            Fincom voted to recommend the $15,000 warrant article for the Assessors to use PK Consulting. Member David Arancio abstained from the vote.

            Highway Surveyor Jeff Eldridge took questions on his FY23 budget of $612,811, a 5 percent increase due mainly to asphalt and equipment repairs.

            Finance Committee Chairman Kris Stoltenberg said that 5 percent “is legitimate,” while Arancio, the chairman of the town’s Capital Planning Committee, said Rochester needs to consider funding the capital improvement stabilization fund in a greater amount so the committee can work on a three to five-year scope.

            “The money’s cheap right now, in a couple of years it’s not going to be cheap, not that money is cheap,” Eldridge.

            Debt service is dropping off, according to Szyndlar, noting that debt is approximately $60,000 this year and next.

            Rochester spent $140,000 for snow removal this year, an increase of the $124,000 spent last year.

            While talking about town vehicles, Eldridge said, “The price of used equipment is through the roof.” Equipment repairs are estimated at $40,000. Eldridge indicated that most parts purchased this year are almost double in price from last year. That goes for oil as well.

            The committee voted to approve an FY23 budget of $140,000 for snow removal and also voted to rescind its prior approval of $75,400 as the FY23 gasoline budget in favor of a new vote that raised that cap to $85,400.

            A new FY23 Town Hall budget figure of $476,733 reflects the inclusion of $20,000 for the hire of two, part-time Old Colony Regional Vocational-Technical High School students to assist Facilities Director Andrew Daniel with projects around town. They will earn minimum wage.

            “Other towns are doing it, Andrew looked into it, and it’s very successful,” said Szyndlar, who said she had run the idea by Town Counsel Blair Bailey.

            Rochester has renovation work ongoing in several municipal locations.

            FinCom voted to approve the 3 percent increase to non-union, employee salaries in Rochester (costs the town $20,000 per percentile.) There will also be an article on the warrant to add a five-year step increase as the town attempts to remain competitive.

            Fincom member Tony Ruocco said the membership should be prepared to explain the increase relative to a percentile higher as well as lower.

            The March 1 vote to support a $369,628 Fire Department budget for FY23 was rescinded by the committee in favor of a new vote to support a $372,128 budget that reflects the addition of a $2,500 stipend for Fire Chief Scott Weigel to assume the duties of Rochester’s Emergency Management director.

            Select Board member Paul Ciaburri, who has been volunteering in that role, is stepping down from the job effective July 1.

            FinCom voted its approval of a $14,135 FY23 budget to continue to support the operationally defunct Marion and Rochester Regional Health District, which only continues to exist to pay Karen Walega’s ongoing health insurance and pension benefits. Walega now works exclusively as a 15-hour-per-week health agent for Rochester.

            Arancio also abstained from the committee’s vote to recommend the Council On Aging’s FY23 budget of $319,236. The COA’s program assistant job, heretofore paid out of a donation fund, is moving to the town budget because the donation was a one-time gift and the job is a perpetual role, thus an $11,337 increase.

            The next meeting of the Rochester Finance Committee is scheduled for Monday, April 25, at 6:00 pm.

Rochester Finance Committee

By Mick Colageo

            The Rochester Planning Board used several minutes of Tuesday night’s public meeting to discuss the progress of the Plumb Corner Village housing development where it concerns its March 17 request for the town’s judgment of “substantial completion” so Units 1, 2, 21, 22 and 43 can become occupied.

            Based on engineer Ken Motta’s peer-review letter, septic inspection occurred on Tuesday, and other necessary work was scheduled for completion on Wednesday.

            According to Planning Board Chairman Arnie Johnson, Motta suggested that the board should condition the letter to the building inspector the developer’s submission of the spacing plan before conveyance of the units requested is authorized.

            According to Johnson, Phases 2 and 3 of the project cannot start per the agreement until Phase 1 is 100 percent completed with the exception of topcoat paving. Phase 1 includes the community center, landscaping, basins, etc. “I think they’re finally catching on that the project has a lot of eyes on it,” he said.

            “I noticed that they gave us the schedule that we asked for,” said board member Ben Bailey.

            Johnson said he was lacking the Plumb Corner narrative from the ZBA decision on parking spaces and any kiosks planned for the parking lot.

            A construction schedule came in Tuesday, according to Town Planner Nancy Durfee, who also noted that Plumb Corner Village developers are due to pay the town $6,000 toward its peer-review account.

            The board voted to approve John Hall’s Approval Not Required (ANR) application seeking to create a second lot on 66 acres of woodland and upland property located at 453 Snipatuit Road.

            Durfee told the board that she has gotten her grant-writing applications out of the way and can now write a presentation to Select Board and Planning Board regarding the MBTA project that is due by the end of May.

            Ben Bailey told the board that a MBTA representative was disrespectful to the town in the past and recommended consulting with Town Counsel Blair Bailey in upcoming meetings. Johnson, also put off by MBTA representation in the past, advised Durfee to put her time into local rather than state issues.

            The Planning Board reviewed the draft decision approving the solar array approved for Renewable Energy LLC at 109 Neck Road and recommended only minor tweaks. Applicant Henry Quimet sought clarification on the groundwater-protection permit; Johnson explained that there are two permits requiring separate votes. The vote will take place at the board’s next meeting after Town Counsel Blair Bailey has reviewed the decision. The board reviewed the draft decision and made only minor tweaks.

            The board members signed the Matthew Fernandes ANR decision.

            Industrial Tower and Wireless LLC’s site-plan review application proposing the construction of a 190-foot, monopole design cell-phone tower at 0 High Street was continued to April 12. The matter was on the March 22 agenda by mistake.

            In other business, the board approved payment of three invoices to Field Engineering: $2,750 for peer-review consulting for the Plumb Corner Village project, $2,000 for peer review of the solar project at 109 Neck Road and $375 for the solar project on Old Middleborough Road.

            Durfee announced that the town has hired Dawn DeMaggio as the board’s new administrator. Dawn DeMaggio, who is the wife of Planning Board member John DeMaggio, is scheduled to start on March 30.

            Durfee also told the board that an evaluation of her computer led to advice that it needs to be replaced for lack of operating capacity.

            The next meeting of the Rochester Planning Board is scheduled for Tuesday, April 12, at 7:00 pm.

Rochester Planning Board

By Mick Colageo

On March 21 the Mattapoisett Planning Board voted to establish a committee of seven to nine people to evaluate the current solar bylaw draft or start from scratch. Two Planning Board members and Administrator of Assessing Kathleen Costello, along with others yet to be named, will spearhead this latest effort to bring a new solar bylaw to the voters, possibly in the fall.

            Also on March 21, the board held a public hearing on the proposed solar bylaw draft that could have been dubbed a “lame duck.” During the previous Planning Board meeting held on March 9, public input and questions raised by the town’s assessing office regarding the drafted solar bylaw found the document lacking in clarity and possibly risking future revenue growth. Desirous of additional public input, the Planning Board decided to go forward with a planned March 21 public hearing on the topic.

            Once again in attendance was Russell Chase, a resident who had concerns that the drafted bylaw language would be too restrictive for those property owners wishing to construct small (less than 17,000 square feet) arrays for personal use. He also noted it might limit farmers’ abilities to subsidize their earnings. He further considered clauses mandating the planting of pollinator mixes as unnecessary and costly, a $2,000 permit too costly, and the need for monitoring of planted areas onerous.

            Planning Board member Janice Robbins, who has led the way for a local solar bylaw, responded that planting areas where native plants had been removed during construction is necessary. “We have to balance the needs of solar and natural habitats,” she said, adding that most homeowners would be entitled to install residential systems but wondered “where is the cut-off” between small and medium installations.

            Speaking on behalf of the town was attorney Matthew Thomas who, along with Costello, was instrumental in Mattapoisett’s Home Rule Petition (July 2020) that granted the town authority to negotiate P.I.L.O.T. programs that allow solar developers to pay a fixed fee over the life of an array in lieu of taxes. Costello’s position has been that these programs have been successful in securing new revenue for the town; Mattapoisett is more than 90-percent dependent on real estate property taxes with very little in the way of commercial venues.

            Thomas stated, “I advise you to proceed with caution.” While he agreed that a solar bylaw is necessary to “protect the health and safety of the public,” Thomas said that pending decision(s) from the Supreme Judicial Court regarding zoning versus site-plan reviews could find the town defending its solar bylaw in court.

            “You need a bylaw especially during decommissioning – there is a need,” Thomas said. But while noting that the current draft would not be moving forward to the Spring Town Meeting, he suggested the board, “wait for the SJC decision so you don’t run afoul … then you can craft a bylaw for the safety of Mattapoisett.”

            In a follow-up with Costello, she said that state solar regulations take into consideration kilowatt hours versus square footage of array sites and that it would be important for all regulating agencies including the town to be “speaking the same language.”

            Thomas also favored a bylaw based on kilowatts versus acreage. “We are going to need solar … we need to see how that fits in neighborhoods. It’s a hot topic, but solar can be good for passive reuse of some lands,” he concluded.

            Speaking for the Mattapoisett Land Trust, Michael Huguenin brought up the issue of inspecting solar arrays post construction to ensure conditions imposed on the site are being upheld by the developer and operator. He also expressed concern that recent FEMA updates to flood-zone mapping did not take into consideration Category 3 and 4 hurricanes. He urged the Planning Board to consider restriction of solar arrays both medium and large being installed in flood zones. Huguenin pointed to the construction of the Bowman Road array as an example of where not to grant solar permits. Robbins noted that the recently permitted Randall Lane LLC array is at least in one location in a hurricane-impact area.

            Huguenin then asked, “Have you seen any reports?” Part of the permitting process for Bowman Road was a condition that the owner/operators give an annual written report on the functioning and maintenance of various systems such as drainage. “And they should be signed and stamped by a civil engineer,” he said.

            “We are concerned about ongoing operation over 20 years,” Huguenin stated. “What happens if they just stop, who maintains the drainage and vegetation? What recourse does the town have?” Continuing in this vein, Huguenin pointedly asked the board, “Have you asked for reports?” Robbins responded that there was not any administrative help for the board at the present time with Chairman Tom Tucker saying, “We are volunteers.”

            The establishment of a committee will be revisited at the next meeting of the Planning Board.

            In other business, the Park Lane Extension Definitive Subdivision Plan Form C owned by Andre Rieksts, Scott Atkinson and Margo Wilson-Atkinson received an extension until April 4, at which time the property owners will have the required authority from the Select Board to complete Park Lane from its current public termination into a private roadway.

            The board also approved the release of one lot located in the Eldridge Estates subdivision planned by Scott Snow.

            The next meeting of the Mattapoisett Planning Board is scheduled for Monday, April 4, at 7:00 pm.

Mattapoisett Planning Board

By Marilou Newell