Coming before the Mattapoisett Conservation Commission on April 22 were representatives from CLE Engineering, Susan Nilson and Jeremy Packard, with a request to amend an Order of Conditions filed by the Town of Mattapoisett for the construction of Phase 1b of the pedestrian path, aka, the bike path.

                        During the long design phases which were monitored and directed by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) as well as being primarily funded by same, one of the specification requirements was for the construction of an anchored sheet pile retaining wall along Goodspeed Island Road that would have run for 650-linear feet along the coastal bank. Further discussions with the engineering team from MassDOT found a solution vastly more appealing to the property owners whose view from their residences would have been a solid black metal retaining wall.

                        Nilson explained that MassDOT ultimately accepted the construction of a fence that would not only be visually less assaultive, but would provide protection to those using the path along Goodspeed Island Road.

                        The requested modifications would also allow for the construction of a gravel roadway versus a paved roadway. The changes were as follows: separation of vehicles and path users from a 4.8-foot wide paved median to 5-foot wide gravel median and a combined 14-foot paved width acting as a shared roadway for both path users and vehicles.

                        The fencing modification now means that the area will have a regulation guardrail nestled behind a wooden fence, making it less obtrusive. Abutters who were in attendance voiced their collective relief that they would no longer be confronted with a black steel wall.

                        There was discussion regarding the possibility of additional plantings along the coastal bank in those areas that will be disturbed by the fence installation, but Nilson said those ideas were premature and not part of the contractor’s estimate. Future plantings were not totally out of the question, however, she conjured.

                        The request was approved with Chairman Mike King saying the commission was pleased with the modifications.

                        The commission was not in lockstep, however, when it came to the proposed fee schedule they had been tasked with developing.

                        The Board of Selectmen, Finance Committee, and Town Administrator Michael Gagne have asked town departments that provide services to property owners to look at established fee structures for possible increases, or where no fee currently exists to come up with a plan for offsetting operating costs.

                        Conservation Agent Elizabeth Leidlhold studied fee schedules from surrounding towns and provided the commission with a proposal. She said, in doing so, she found that fees would still fall short of covering the secretary’s salary. She estimated that if fees had been in place for FY19, they would have contributed only about $14,000, far short of the $49,000 spent on one employee’s salary.

                        Immediately, Commissioner Chapman Dickerson expressed dissent. When asked to review the draft fee schedule and make recommendations he said, “We have too many fees in town already.” He suggested that if fees were imposed on permits where currently there aren’t any, people would be “asking for forgiveness” versus applying for permission. “If we are raising fees or getting rid of conservation … get rid of conservation!”

                        King explained, “We have a responsibility to offset the cost of operating; otherwise, it has to come out of the general fund.” 

                        The proposed fees include site inspection reports, $50; Requests for Determination of Applicability, $50 on existing-single family homes and $100 for all other requests other than wetland delineation confirmation (as well as the $100 wetlands fee shared with the state); wetland delineation confirmation of single-family house lots, $75 and $150 for commercial/subdivision; Notice of Intent would have five categories, depending on the complexity of the filing, ranging from category 1 at $100 to category 5 at $400; requests for extensions to Orders of Conditions, residential $75 and commercial/subdivision $200; Certificates of Compliance, residential $75 and commercial/subdivision $200; requests for Amendments to Orders of Conditions, residential $75 and commercial/subdivision $200.

                        The proposed passed with Dickerson voting “nay.”

                        In other business, the commission approved an enforcement order against 56 North Land Trust. Previously, the commission had been alerted to work taking place in wetlands at property located at 12 North Street. King read a letter from the trust acknowledging the enforcement order, stating that it was working with Prime Engineering to bring the work into compliance.

                        Leidhold also said that, regarding Brandt Point Village and observations there, trash was thickly accumulating across undeveloped portions of the subdivision and that turtle tunnels were incomplete. She had been in contact with Al Loomis of McKenzie Engineering. She said that he planned on conveying the commission’s concerns to the developer, Marc Marcus of Omega Financial. 

                        Requests for Determination of Applicability filings receiving Negative determinations were issued to Jeffrey Hayward, 18 Nashawena Road, for a deck extension; Mary Flaherty, 4 Woodland Avenue, for a shed replacement; and Derek Tavares, 3 Nantucket Drive, for fencing and the installation of an above-ground pool.

                        An Amended Order of Conditions was issued to Daniel Eilertsen, 20 Water Street, for the installation of pilings along an existing pier and beach nourishment.

                        The next meeting of the Mattapoisett Conservation Commission is scheduled for May 15 at 6:30 pm in the town hall conference room.

Mattapoisett Conservation Commission

By Marilou Newell

            The Rochester Board of Selectmen voted on April 22 to recommend a Town Meeting article to approve borrowing $2 million to upgrade the athletic complex at Old Rochester Regional High School, but the Finance Committee refrained from making any recommendation at all.

            It is customary for the selectmen and the Finance Committee to inform voters whether each group recommends or does not recommend adoption of the article, and these recommendations are printed in the town meeting warrant.

            Article 19 would allow the ORR School District to borrow $2 million to pay the cost of the design and construction of artificial turf for the main field, renovate the running track, and make lighting system upgrades to the auditorium.

            The proposed $2 million project is a scaled down version of the original $5 million total renovation proposal. The Old Rochester Regional School Committee voted last month to prioritize the list of repairs into phases as a result of a series of conversations it had with the tri-towns.

            The article must first pass at Town Meeting on May 20, and then Rochester would hold a special election to see if voters will approve a debt exclusion to cover Rochester’s roughly one-third share of the project.

            All three of the tri-towns must pass the article at their town meetings and then subsequently on the ballot in order for the project to receive the funding and move ahead. Although Rochester has already held its annual election, Marion’s and Mattapoisett’s are not until after their annual town meetings, on May 17 and May 21, respectively.

            Also during the meeting, selectmen and the FinCom both recommended adoption of the $22,086,913 fiscal year 2020 town budget, Article 4, and quickly ran through each of the 24 articles with Town Moderator Kirby Gilmore while making recommendations only on articles that involve money expenditures.

            Selectmen and the Finance Committee agreed on most of their recommendations, but differed in opinion on Article 10 submitted by the Board of Assessors.

            Article 10 requests $10,000 to fund certain Mass Department of Revenue mandates, as the article states, mandates currently carried out by Principal Assessor Chuck Shea. In anticipation of his imminent retirement, the Board of Assessors wished to start saving money now so it can outsource specific duties related to tax recertification.

            According to Assessor Diana Knapp, the five-year recertification will not affect the town financially until fiscal year 2022. 

            “It’s hard to say,” said Knapp in response to the question, “Would payroll expenses go down, then?”

            “That was the question that caused it to not be funded last year,” commented Selectman Brad Morse.

            The Board of Assessors proposed a similar article last year, which selectmen chose to exclude from the town meeting warrant entirely.

            The Board of Selectmen voted to recommend adopting the article this year, but the Finance Committee’s vote was to not recommend adoption of the article.

            Selectmen and FinCom also voted not to recommend Article 24, a citizen’s petition asking for $20,000 to support the Old Rochester Athletic Booster Club, Inc. “in their services to Old Rochester Regional High School.”

            No one seated at the table could tell exactly what the money request was for. Town Counsel Blair Bailey offered some explanation as best he could, saying it might possibly be for a handicap accessible ramp somewhere at ORR, but had no specific information.

            “We don’t have anything official. I don’t think we should guess,” said Selectman Greenwood “Woody” Hartley. “I did ask the School Committee what they knew about this … and [the committee] had no other information.”

            Neither group made recommendations for Article 12 because it does not include the spending of money, but the selectmen agreed that Veterans Agent Barry Denham should prepare answers to the likely questions that will be asked on the Town Meeting floor.

            The article stems from recent changed in Mass General Law that would allow municipalities to waive the property taxes for Gold Star parents and guardians of soldiers who died as a result of injuries sustained during active duty.

            The waived property taxes as of January 1, 2020 would not, however, be reimbursed by the state.

            “How much money could that represent?” Hartley asked.

            “We’ll have the answers,” said Morse, as a Veterans Council member.

            The other money-related articles recommended for adoption by both the selectmen and the FinCom: Article 2, elected officials salaries; Article 3, classification and compensation plan personnel bylaw amendment; Article 6, $300 for shellfish planting in Marion; Article 7 to expend Chapter 90 funds; Article 8 to transfer $15,000 into the OPEB (other post employment benefits) fund; Article 9, capital planning projects totaling $98,703 broken down as follows: $28,650 for extrication tools for the Fire Department, $48,000 for a standby generator for the Highway Department barn and fire station 3, $30,773 for a Go Math! three-year digital contract at Rochester Memorial School, and $4,280 for new public use computers at the Plumb Library; Article 20 to transfer $100,000 into the Capital Improvements Fund; Article 21 to transfer $50,000 into the Road Improvements Stabilization Fund; Article 22 to transfer $100,000 into the School Assessment Stabilization Fund; and Article 23 to transfer $100,000 into the Town’s general Stabilization Fund.

            The other non-finance related articles appearing on the warrant are as follows: Article 1 to accept the annual reports of Town officers and committees; Article 5 to cap the spending limits of various revolving funds within each fiscal year; Article 11 to join a municipal electricity aggregation; Article 13 to extend the veterans’ property tax exemption to veterans whose property has been conveyed to a trust; Article 14 to impose a 3 percent municipal tax on the sales of adult-use recreational cannabis; Article 15 to adopt the Cranberry Highway Smart Growth Overlay District bylaw amendment; Article 16 to amend the current Medical Marijuana bylaw to include the siting of recreational marijuana establishments; Article 17 to adopt an updated Old Colony regional agreement; and Article 18 to allow a ballot question to change the town clerk position from an elected position to an appointed position.

            The 2019 Annual Town Meeting is May 20 at 7:00 pm in the Rochester Memorial School cafetorium.

            In other business, the board approved four liquor licenses for the Rochester Country Fair Committee, including one for a new fundraiser on July 13, “Bands, BBQ, and Beer.” This year beer will be sold at the Rochester Country Fair, and consumption will not be limited to a cordoned off “beer garden” as it was last year. The Rochester Country Fair is scheduled for August 8 – 11. The board approved the licenses pending final approval from the police chief.

            The Board of Selectmen and the Planning Board will hold a public forum on Wednesday, May 8, at 7:00 pm inside Fellowship Hall at the First Congregational Church of Rochester to answer questions about the Cranberry Highway residential project and the results of the financial impact study.

            David Hughes was appointed to the Old Colony Regional Vocational Technical High School Committee.

            The next meeting of the Rochester Board of Selectmen is scheduled for May 6 at 6:00 pm at the Rochester Town Hall.

Rochester Board of Selectmen

By Jean Perry