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District looks to school bus monitors

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Bus transportation has been an issue since this summer, with school buses now at capacity students, drivers and parents feeling stressed, Superintendent of Schools Jeff Szymaniak reported during the Wednesday, Oct. 12 meeting of the School Committee.

Szymaniak announced at the meeting that monitors are being added to the district’s “high-impact” buses. He also said he has already had a couple of people volunteer.

“In COVID times we advertised for monitors [but] got no hits,” he said. “This would really be to oversee and assist the bus drivers in maintaining some control over the buses.”

The aim was to have them on board early this week.

The state requires 75 percent capacity on buses to qualify for regional transportation reimbursement, which further complicates the matter. Not every bus needs to be at 75 percent capacity.

A Hanson mother had given an extensive and detailed report during the public comment period about the emotional toll on her children of noisy, crowded buses that are stressing out drivers as well as students.

“Our buses are at capacity in Whitman and we’re a little lighter in Hanson, due to the fact that you have a wider space [in Hanson],” Szymaniak said, noting that initially meant, since Hanson buses had fewer students on them, Transportation Director Karen Villanueva crunched the numbers and Hanson ended up losing four of its 12 buses, he said.

Whitman’s area is about 5 square miles, while Hanson’s is about 15.6 square miles.

“It seems to be an issue at the elementary level with noise,” Szymaniak said. “I think putting more kids on a bus – and we seat them at capacity, which used to be two in a seat. It’s [now] three in a seat by law, by what we can do.”

Assistant Superintendent George Ferro said the goal is to use existing school district staff as monitors.

“It’s people the students recognize – whether it’s paraprofessionals, people who work in the lunch system, whether it’s a teacher or two – our goal is to encourage our staff and to work with out staff so that they can keep those positive relationships, hopefully, going or establish positive relationships so we can get kids home safe and go from there,” Ferro said.

Szymaniak said the district will continue to look at numbers in an effort to make more adjustments. 

“Hanson has been affected much more greatly than the town of Whitman,” he said. “These were the numbers we had when we presented our budget … and I absolutely will provide information to the finance committees.”

Whitman Finance Committee member Rosemary Connolly had made a specific request for that information during the meeting’s public forum.

“You did say that Hanson is more impacted, but they are both at capacity, so basically Whitman has consistently been impacted and Hanson is just beginning to feel the same impact … I think is a better way to describe it,” Connolly replied. “We probably should have had the fix of somebody on the bus before.”

Szymaniak thanked Connolly and fellow Whitman Finance Committee member Kathleen Ottina for bringing the bus capacity issue to the district’s attention.

School Committee member Dawn Byers said spreadsheet information available last year showed capacity problems.

“There are elementary schools in the district last year and the year before and the year before … with the same complaints – loud buses, bus drivers pulling over,” she said, indicating her children has similar complaints 10 years ago. “It’s consistently been that way for Whitman schools. … Something has to be fixed.”

She said the average ridership for Indian Head Schools 12 buses had been an average of 38 students and she asked about any savings. Conley School, with a similar number of students has eight buses serving the school.

Szymaniak said there was a $55,000 savings overall by moving tiers of bus routes, which is where distance traveled enters the equation.

“If that’s the past, now that we know what we need to do going forward, I’m hopeful that your solution of monitors on the buses will provide kids a safe and comfortable ride,” Committee member Fred Small said, addressing Szymaniak, who said he would like to put monitors on every bus.

“Right now, we’re going to hit the high-impact buses we’re having issues with,” Szymaniak said.

Chair Christopher Howard noted that there appears to be a “host of problems:” size of towns, bus routes were changed, post-pandemic concerns – “a whole bunch of moving parts to this issue.”

“You have to have an opportunity to manage and figure it out, but at the same time, I’m not sure I’m excited or comfortable about waiting until a November meeting to address the issue, ” he said to Szymaniak, asking what he saw as the next step and how he wanted to proceed. “This seems to be an issue that’s been here since the beginning of school.”
Szymaniak said the monitors are a solution he can control. 

“I can’t control the reimbursables, I can’t control the routes right now,” he said.

He said he has heard from elementary-level educators that it’s taking time for children to learn to resocialize following the pandemic and more kids on a bus raises the noise and anxiety level.

Szymaniak said he would need the time until the November meeting to work the problem and Howard encouraged people with questions to email them to the superintendent.

Hanson School Committee member Hillary Kniffen suggested another short-term aid would be to communicate with families how they should be helping adjust their children’s behavior on the bus.

Ferro also gave the annual MCAS report. While scores had been higher pre-pandemic, he said trends are now heading upward again, based on a three-year overview of scores.

“The state has basically said COVID is over,” he said. “They said you now have accountability status once again beginning this year for those schools that will get it. … This is the baseline year.”

There were no exams in 2020 because of COVID and, in the last two years there was a dip in reading scores, but math is already improving. The district is also conducting a curriculum analysis to identify strengths and areas where improvement is needed.

“We are still behind [standards] but we are making gains,” Ferro said.

Hanson ZBA posts tabled again

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HANSON — The Board of Selectmen on Tuesday, Oct. 11 tabled the appointments of a Zoning Board of Appeals member and associate member. A meeting will be held Tuesday, Oct. 25 to again take up the matter.

William Cushing and Charles White were re-applying, or applying for the post of member for a three-year term. Christopher Costello and Joshua Pratti were applying, or reapplying for the post of associate member for a three-year term.

White withdrew his application the next day.

Despite being admonished at the outset by Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett — on the advice of town counsel — not to mention “the I-word,” as she later in the meeting described the term “investigation,” it was nonetheless invoked nearly two dozen times by various participants in the 21:30-minute discussion. Town Administrator Lisa Green said the probe has been completed.

Select Board member Jim Hickey made the motion to table the appointments following discussions with White and Cushing.

“We were all set to go last Friday, when we thought there was a [ZBA] meeting tonight,” he said. “There wasn’t, so I’d like a few days, or possibly a week, depending on when the Zoning Board has their next meeting to look at this report.”

FitzGerald-Kemmett countered that while the board would read the report quickly, they would not do so as if they “had a gun to their heads” and say they would make the decision within a week. A ZBA meeting was scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 18, but chair Kevin Perkins said they should have the necessary three people.

“I want to be able to look through [the report],” Select Board member Joe weeks said, advocating for waiting until Oct. 25 “I want to make sure everybody gets a fair shake.”

For the parameters of the meeting, in addition, the investigation would not be an issue.

“We will not be discussing, or answering any questions regarding the ongoing ZBA investigation,” she said. “We will not be rehashing the events of our Sept. 27 meeting. Our legal counsel has advised us that we able to proceed with filling these vacancies tonight as we see fit.”

As the Select Board is the appointing authority, it is the board’s decision who will fill the vacancies, “and nobody else’s decision,” she stressed.

FitzGerald-Kemmett, admonishing would-be speakers that profanity or inappropriate behavior disrespectful of the board would not be tolerated, noting that those in violation would be asked to leave and, if they refused, the police would be summoned.

White, who was recently appointed to the Cemetery Commission, said he was interested in the full-time position as a way to become more involved in the town. A retired Weymouth firefighter and 20-year resident of Hanson, White worked as the fire prevention and training officer, explaining that the work made him familiar with building codes. While he knows “a little bit of zoning,” he admitted his knowledge is not extensive, but said he has also worked as an environmental engineer and is familiar with MGL 21E and state contingency plans. He said he didn’t know whether he knows anyone now serving on the ZBA.

Hickey said he has ethics disclosures from the other members, whether or not they are applying, but he hadn’t received one from White.

White said he was not aware of the requirement, but he was happy to do it.

Cushing, who had resigned, along with Pratti, on Sept. 27, when the board balked at approving another temporary appointment until town counsel had offered guidance, is a developer and builder — a fact he has always been open about.

“I always thought that would be an attribute to add to the town of Hanson because it’s important to understand the Zoning Board rules and regulation,” he said. “The think I think is hard with zoning is the people who try to learn it without any background in it.”

Cushing has served on the ZBA since 2015, starting as an alternate member, becoming a permanent one about six years ago. He has a bachelor’s degree in management and finance from Curry College and is in the real estate business, specializing in permitting and zoning.

Despite the caution against raising the topic, Cushing asked if the ZBA investigation was complete. FitzGerald-Kemmett repeated the admonition and asked if he had any other questions.

“I think the citizens should know,” he persisted. “Is the investigation complete, yet?”

“Not to the best of my knowledge,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said.

“Beyond that, I’m sure you’re aware that I’m more than qualified for the position,” he said, suggesting that White had a relationship with Select Board members Ann Rein and Ed Heal, saying he had seen “pictures of him on their election campaign.” 

He compared that to “the biggest misconception” with the ZBA is that “some of us happen to be in the same industry and that might be misconstrued.

He then said he was not sure if the position for which he was applying should be filled until the investigation is complete, saying he felt the presumption was guilty until proven innocent with him.

“I was pretty clear at the beginning that we’re not talking about that,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said.

“It’s important,” Cushing retorted.

“The reason we’re here tonight is that [Kevin] Perkins emphasized that you guys are in peril of not having a quorum,” she said.

Cushing then argued that, if a permanent seat was not filled that night, two associate members should be appointed to help with the quorum problem.

FitzGerald-Kemmett explained that was not posted on the agenda for the meeting.

“You’ve already made your mind up, I can’t convince you of anything,” he charged.

17:25

Gourd-geous day in the pumpkin patch

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Volunteers Casey Coots and Gail Clement, above, quality check some of the nearly 1600 pumpkins for sale at Whitman First Congregational Church, 519 Washington St. last weekend. Sophia Coletti, right, hoists a hefty pumpkin. Pumpkins are available from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday to Friday and from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday and Sunday.  Proceeds help the church’s mission and operating programs as well as Pumpkin Patch USA mission programs. See more photos, page 6.

Photos by Carol Livingstone

Whitman eyes complete streets project

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WHITMAN – The Select Board on Tuesday, Oct. 11, heard a program proposal aimed at making South Avenue a “more vibrant, welcoming location.”

That balance would be ironed out through dialog with the community, town officials and MassDOT. 

Jim Fitzgerald and Benny Hung of Environmental Partners, as well as members of the DPW Commissioners, appeared before the board to provide an overview of the Connecting Communities proposal and the MassDOT Transportation Investment Program (TIP) and a potential project on South Avenue.

“What could the vision be?” Fitzgerald asked. “That depends on the town and where things balance out.” But, he stressed, the program allows communities to use existing opportunities to achieve continuous complete strees improvements while improving safety and green space making and promoting economic vitality.

Fitzgerald is the director of transportation at Environmental Partners, in Quincy.

The TIP program funds larger-scale roadway projects, which would be manages by MassDOT. The only cost incurred by a town is for project design, according to Commission Chair Kevin Cleary.

He said the commissioners could get Environmental Partners going on the MassDOT application process and the commission would keep the Select Board updates as the approval process starts.

“Over the last few years, the DPW Commissioners and Highway Superintendent Bruce Martin have been working with Environmental Partners trying to find as many open sources for roadway/sidewalk work,”  Cleary said. There has been some success in obtaining a couple of Complete Streets grants.

Select Board Chair Randy LaMattina asked how much the design costs might be, which Fitzgerald put at, on average, it could be about 14 percent of the total cost, warning that the figure was a “very rough mumber.”

Interim Town Administrator Frank Lynam asked what a total cost estimate for the plan illustration Environmental Partners presented might be.

“With construction costs right now a little all over the place, it’s a tough one,” Fitzgerald said, putting it at possibly $10 million.

The first step for any community would be an online application at which time the state DOT investigates to see it a proposal passes the “smell test” for viability.

“Based on the merits of this project, we would anticipate it would,” Fitzgerald said. “It ticks off a lot of boxes – and the fact that Whitman has not requested a lot of funds in the past, also.”

He suggested the town tackle the 25 percent of it – the design phase – first, and having MassDOT involved early in the process is also important to make sure they are aligned with their expectations.

The width of South Avenue could also work in the town’s favor, as it offers room to address the design aims.

The lengthy application process means any project – encompassing an approximately one-mile stretch of South Avenue from Commercial to Plymouth streets, would take four to five years to complete.

“We took a look at the corridor and identified a series of opportunities that really lends itself nicely for something like a TIP project,” Fitzgerald said, noting that the Commuter Rail station on South Avenue is an asset to the community. “We also looked at connectivity to things like bike and pedestrian [traffic], with Colebrook Boulevard connecting northerly to Essex [Street] and Memorial Field.”

The entire South Avenue corridor, and its current width, were also examined regarding multimodal transportation and how it could be “more comfortable” for bikes and pedestrians as well as safer for motorists in key locations, according to Fitzgerald. Residential neighborhoods along the roadway and their proximity to things like the Commuter Rail station were also studied within both a seven-minute and three-minute walk to the station. Similar radii were studied around Duval Elementary School. The redevelopment or revitalization of businesses now located on South Avenue has also been done and the opportunites within complete streets.

“Studies have proven that complete streets have many benefits, including safety and promoting bike and pedestrian use, but also for the economic vitality of locations,” he said.

Traffic safety studies have also shown that the area nearest the Commuter Rail tracks have seen the highest number of crashes – and rates within the top 5 percent of all crashes statewide. The intersection of South Avenue with Franklin and Pleasant streets is ranked within the top 10 among crashes causing injury statewide.

“It’s [also] a very odd configuration,” Fitzgerald said. “Given the development in the area, the configuration of the roads have morphed over the years. Instead of one intersection, it’s really three, which can make it pretty challenging or confusing when it comes to motorists traveling through it, especially if they’re not familiar with the location.”

It also has long pedestrian crossings – ranging from 60 to 100 feet – and have ADA compliance issues. Crossings in the Raynor Avenue area also have the same problem for pedestrians with movement issues.

Work to narrow pedestrian crossings would also provide greenscapes and ease drainage in the areas.

Traffic speeds would also be addressed to establish a well-balanced design.

The TIP program of federal funds, which Whitman has not proposed in recent years, would “address a lot of the issues we’re looking at along South Avenue.

Select Board member Justin Evans noted his board had recently asked the DPW to look into a Section 40R overlay in the Commuter Rail area, asking if this project would impact that. Fitzgerald said he does not believe it would.

“But it does make it more attractive,” LaMattina said, to Fitzgerald’s agreement.

“There are so many things going for this project,” he said. “It can only be a feather in the cap to have this sort of redevelopment.”

LaMattina said he grew up in the area and was told by an older resident at the time, “Oh, you live on that side of the tracks.”

“I think any development down there would be fantastic,” he said. “It opens up the other things we’re trying to do.”

MBTA train fire snarls traffic

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HANSON – It was a slow commute either by road or rail through Hanson Friday evening as an MBTA Commuter Rail train 055 broke down at the Route 27 crossing of the 1100 block of Main Street, blocking traffic for about three hours.

MBTA announcements in South Station indicated that train 055 had been terminated in Hanson “due to fire department activity,” according to published reports.

No injuries were reported and there is no official information about the potential cause of the damage. No additional information about the cause of the fire was available from Keolis this week.

According to the Hanson Fire Department, firefighters were called to the scene for a fire in the engine compartment aboard the train at 4:52 p.m.

“The train was evacuated as a precaution and crews investigated a smoke condition in the cab,” according to a statement on the department’s Facebook page. “Fire crews quickly found and isolated a piece of electrical equipment that had caught fire. The electrical equipment was removed and the incident was isolated.”

Fire officials emphasized that no water or extinguishing agents were needed and passengers were not in danger at any time.

Keolis representatives, MBTA Transit Police and Hanson Police were on scene, clearing just after 7 p.m.

Main Street in Hanson (Route 27) was blocked during the incident.

Train 058 on the Kingston Line was delayed by nearly two and a half hours between South Station and Hanson. Trains were making flag stops so riders were told to make themselves visible on the platform, WATD radio reported that evening. 

Regional Agreement panel reps named

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Select boards in both Whitman and Hanson came to independent agreement on the number of members they wished to see — and whom to appoint — to the next Regional Agreement Subcommittee during their respective meetings on Tuesday, Oct. 11.

The School Committee was scheduled to discuss the matter again Wednesday, Oct. 12, and perhaps finalize the panel. The School Committee’s preference was for six voting members — two of their members (School Committee Chair Christopher Howard and Vice Chair Christopher Scriven), two selectmen and the two town administrators. 

The original non-voting contingent was two citizens at-large, two finance committee members, the superintendent and assistant superintendent of schools.

“We wanted to keep it nimble,” Howard said, noting that dialog and consensus are also the aims.

“We’re trying to move this forward, and I think a  smaller committee does that,” Whitman Select Board Chair Randy LaMattina said.

The towns preferred four voting members, with the administrators serving in a non-voting capacity.

“That makes sense to me,” said Whitman Selectman Dr. Carl Kowalski of the four-person panel representing the two towns and their regional schools. “That’s sort of equal representation and it’s a smaller group.”

Hanson Selectmen did not want to include town administrators as voting members, largely because they are town employees.

The Whitman board said they could accept the administrators serving as non-voting members, as they are analogous to the position of superintendent of school. The towns also agreed to send one member to the subcommittee, although Hanson expressed a preference for two. 

Hanson voted to appoint Jim Hickey to the subcommittee, and Whitman voted to name Justin Evans to it. Hanson Select Board member Joe Weeks had also indicated a willingness to serve, but said his schedule limits his availability to Mondays.

“I find it a little odd to have the town administrators as a voting member since they are employees,” Hanson Select Board Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett said. “I definitely could see them being an advisory member — they definitely have to be part of the conversation.”

She preferred the smaller, more streamlined, four voting members approach.

Whitman Town Administrator Frank Lynam agreed.

“From my perspecitive, the town administrator represents the interests of the Board of Selectmen,” he said. “With a member of the Board of Selectmen there, I think it becomes less important for the TA to have a vote because the decisions that are made are going to be made after they’re presented to the individual boards.”

As long as it does not affect the ability of the group to move and for administrators to be heard over their concerns, it wouldn’t matter to him if it was a voting or non-voting role.

Whitman Selectmen Vice Chair Dan Salvucci argued that one member from each select board should be enough, because they would be able to report back to their boards.

Select Board members from both towns said residents would be encouraged to attend meetings and let their opinions be known.

School Committee Chair Christopher Howard attended both board’s meetings Tuesday night to get a sense of their preferences after his committee formed the regional agreement panel last month. 

“I wanted to get a little more feedback before we go fully forward and talk about timing,” Howard told the Hanson board.

Hickey said he thought the Hanson board had expressed their preference for two Selectmen on the committee. Select Board member Ann Rein expressed concern that Green was a Pembroke resident — saying that all parties should be residents of either town. She withdrew her concern when it was pointed out that Green is a Whitman resident.

Green said that as a Hanson town employee living in Whitman, she would most likely recuse herself from any votes because of that conflict.

“We took feedback from both boards and we tried to get … a fairly small contingent of voting members,” Howard said, noting any decisions must be approved by DESE, then back to the select boards and both town meetings. “I’d rather kind of all be on the same page before we start.”

Howard said he would favor removing the citizen at-large non-voting member.

“I would encourage anyone that’s a resident of Hanson or Whitman that wants to participate, to come to the meeting,” he said. “There’s no difference to me between a posted, public meeting where anyone can participate or having a non-voting citizen at-large member.”

He also wants to get the work started and was concerned the selection of citizen at-large members could slow things down.

FitzGerald-Kemmett also asked if a mediator was considered in case disagreements surfaced and to help avoid tie votes some board members were concerned about.

“I think it’s hard because of some of the lines that have been drawn and past actions for people to be able to get to that place on our own,” she said.

“I think it’s going to be more difficult than people think, and there are some issues that really are contentious,” Whitman Select Board member Shawn Kain said, arguing for two select board members from each town. Having two members could help determine a middle ground where agreements might be reached, he said.

Evans noted that monetary issues were a main sticking point that the last regional agreement panel worked out, and this committee could move on to other issues. 

Whitman CPC gets down to business

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WHITMAN — After approving participation in the Community Preservation Act at this year’s Town Meeting, residents might ask, “What’s next?”

The received some answers recently as the Whitman Preservation Committee on Tuesday, Sept. 20 held an informational meeting on the Community Preservation Act, approved in 2000 and adopted by Whitman at this year’s annual Town Meeting.

“On the one hand, our job is to, obviously, look at these applications and make recommendations at Town Meeting about the use of Community  Preservation funds, but I also think this is a good opportunity to find out what the community wants,”  Chair Ryan Tressel said. “I’m very excited about the possibilities that this act and this law brings to Whitman and the ability that we’ll have to hopefully fund some really terrific projects to help preserve our community.”

The law requires such an informational session and review of the way the board is set up.

Five of the nine members are from town committees, as required by the state law – Elaine Bergeron of the Historical Commission, Jake Dodge of the Conservation Commission, Brandon Griffin of the Planning Board, Michelle LaMattina of the Recreation commission and Patricia McKay of the Housing Authority. At-large citizens on the commission are Tressel, Vice Chair John Goldrosen, Melissa Lothrop and Richard Rosen.

“Part of the purpose of this meeting … is to inform the people of Whitman about the CPA (Community Preservation Act), especially because our application for CPA projects has been released and is on the town website,” Tressel said. The review also covered what is and is not allowed and the application process.

The CPA was inspired by a Nantucket group that created a system for buying up open-space land for preservation, which interested a lot of other communities around the state that wanted to do the same thing.

Projects must fall under any of four categories: Open space; Historic Preservation; Recreation and Affordable housing.

The program is funded by a 1-percent surcharge on real estate property taxes for both residential and business properties which goes into a CPA fund. Of those funds, 10 percent has to go toward each of the open space, housing and historic preservation categories each year, matched by the state. Town Meeting can vote to invest more, but the 10 percent is required. Five percent of funds may be retained for administrative expenses.

“This year, the [state] match was 35 percent, but it varies every year,” Tressel said. Much of the variation depands on revenue raised by the state.

“The law is very complex and there’s no governing body on the law in this state,” he said. “It’s not run by or overseen by anything, so a lot of the restrictions that are put on community preservation projects have come from courts as citizens in various towns have raised lawsuits against certain community preservation projects, so it is a little tricky to get through them.”

For example, Town Meeting can approve measures to acquire, create or preserve open space, but funds cannot be used to support, rehabilitate or restore open space. Applicants will, therefore be asked about additional funding sources for projects.

Likewise, while historic places can be acquired or preseerved, but not created or supported. CPC funds cannot support recreation spaces, either, but can be created, acquired, rehabilitated, restored and preserved. Housing has the least amount of restrictions on it.

“We will be giving recommendations to Town Meeting and Town Meeting will appropriate the money,” Tressel said. “We are not a body that will oversee these projects.”

Applicants and relevant town committees will be charged with oversight.

Looking to the procedures of other towns, Whitman has set up a two-step application process: pre-application outlining project basics and a timeline, advancing to the application process if projects are deemed allowable under state law. Sponsoring parties and estimated costs and the amount sought from the CPC would also be covered in the pre-application process.

“We felt the two-step [application] made the most sense from our end [and applicants’],” he said.

WHRHS inducts 10 to Hall of Fame

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HINGHAM — Ten Whitman-Hanson alumni scholar athletes were inducted into the school’s Athletic Hall of Fame during a dinner ceremony at the South Shore Country Club on Sunday, Oct. 9.

From a champion wrestler who returned to coach his sport, to a three-sport athlete who went on to lead cross country and track teams — as well as fellow soldiers after graduating West Point, to a member of the women’s soccer U.S. National Team, to an NFL career, these are among embodiments of excellence representing the high school in the world.

According to the program for the event, there were more than 50 nominations for induction.

“We know there are many more student-atlethes and coaches who are also deserving,” the program stated. With the next induction planned for October 2024, Athletic Director Bob Rodgers hopes to identify and welcome another group of worthy candidates.

To nominate an athlete or coach, visit whathletics.com, where the criteria for nominations is also included.

All the Hall of Fame members inducted this year, and all future inductees will be prominently displayed on banners in the athletics foyer and in the stadium as on the digital video board in the gym.

This years inductees are:

Student atletes

Tom Lynch, Class of 1973

Kevin Broderick, Class of 1988

Tim O’Brien, Class of 1991

Liz Hassan, Class of 2001

Kristie Mewis, Class of 2009

Samantha Coletti, Class of 2016

Coaches

Bob Teahan, Football/Athletic Director

Bob Gay, Wrestling/Principal

Teams

2001 Super Bowl Champion Football Team

2011 State Champion Girls Crosss Country 

Hanson Town Meeting postponed

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HANSON — The town budgets $7,000 a year in advertising and printing costs to hold it’s two town meetings — including the special Town Meeting scheduled Monday, Oct. 3 — but as the session fell 13 short of the required forum of 100, they’ll have to reuse some of those materials and try again. 

The quorum deficit meant only 87 people in a town of about 10,150 attended.

They are now out of pocket $350 for the attendance of Town Counsel Kate Feodoroff for two hours, during which she didn’t get to say anything. The town also paid for printing the warrant and several booklets of supporting materials, including a 26-page booklet on “Our Commitment to the Community” by La Flora LLC regarding the warrant article for Impressed LLC’s proposal for a cannabis delivery aspect to its business at 15 Commercial Way.

“We continue to be challenged by the fact that folks aren’t as engaged as we would hope they would be,” Select Board Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett said Tuesday morning. “I think that’s a problem for us and it’s a problem for the town because we want to make sure, when we have town meeting, we have elections, that we have a good cross-section of everybody so the results are reflective of who we’ve got in town. It’s definitely a nut we need to crack.”

The warrant and supporting materials won’t need reprinting, but a new cover for the warrant, bearing the new date will be necessary, according to Green.

“The town needs the Town Meeting to be able to conduct business,” said Town Administrator Lisa Green on Tuesday morning. “That includes funding of bills and a number of different things that we cannot move forward without Town Meeting approval.”

FitzGerald-Kemmett said the Select Board asked them if there were any budget items that could not wait until May and the transfer station was at the top of the list.

“They only got one half of their budget, so if we don’t meet again, they will have operated a whole year on half of their budget,” she said. “We don’t want that to happen. That would effectively close the transfer station down.”

The Town Meeting has been rescheduled for 7:30 p.m., at the Hanson Middle School, Wednesday, Nov. 9, but that date brings concerns of its own, according to Green, noting the Tuesday, Nov. 8 state election requires Town Clerk Elizabeth Sloan and her Assistant Clerk Jean Kelley to have paperwork completed about the election result.

“It’s very disappointing,” Sloan said. “Especially because they [now] want to have it the day after the election. That’s a 20-hour day and then trying to prepare for a Town Meeting.”

Sloan said it was the first time in her career that she saw a town meeting unable to conduct business because of a failure to meet the quorum requirements.

 “What complicates it a little bit more is that this [the rescheduled Town Meeting] is the day after the election,” Green said. “We may be limited – Town Clerk has other obligations and requirements mandated by the state with her reporting and follow-up work – so we will be without our town clerk, most likely. Someone else will have to take up those responsibilities.”

Sloan’s office typically puts in at least a 20-hour day on a state-wide or national election.

“There’s a lot we need to shuffle,” she said. “There’s a lot of work and costs involved in a Town Meeting.”

The preferred date of Wednesday, Nov. 16, suggested by Town Moderator Sean Kealy, however, ran into a clash with parent-teacher conferences in the district’s schools already-scheduled for that week.

School Committee member Hillary Kniffen also said that committee is already slated to meet Nov. 16.

“That’s not going to work,” Kealy said, asking for objections to Nov. 9. Hearing none, the Select Board voted to set that date for the “Town Meeting 2.0.”

“It’s unfortunate,” Kealy said after the session adjourned. “We’ve got to get more people to come out.”

He said a controversial article is usually enough to get people to come to Town Meeting.

“But, then again, you never know what that controversial article is going to be,” he said. “We just put the town business on [the warrant] and hope that people come out.”

Where the warrant articles that went without action Monday night are concerned, keeping the transfer station open and functioning until the May 2023 Town Meeting depends on budget votes in October.

“This is the type of government that the town residents want, and they need to understand that we need Town Meeting to be able to conduct business,” she said. 

Green also expressed dismay at the absence of members of the Zoning Board of Appeals and several Town Hall employees.

“There were some there,” she said. “[But] no on from the ZBA was there. Not one.”

She was also surprised that the owners of cannabis firm, Impressed LLC, was not there.

“It’s a little concerning,” Select Board member Joe Weeks said Monday night. “I understand people are busy and a lot of things are happening, but there are important issues that we’re trying to push forward.”

He pointed to by-law reviews, zoning and budgetary issues — the latter involving raises — as well as investment in the capital plans just get stalled when a Town Meeting can’t get down to work. The cannabis article, which he said “could have a very positive impact on the budget” also went without action that night.

“There’s a lot of important reasons why we want to try to have people come out here,” Weeks said. “You try to balance that with school starting up and everything going on in people’s lives, but it’s real tax dollars, it’s real capital investments, it’s real policy change — really important things.”

Weeks expressed pride in the work the town was able to conduct at the last town meeting without raising taxes.

“We can’t continue that if we don’t have a quorum,” he said. He also pointed to the coming of snow season, stressing that the funds for plowing contracts have to be approved at Town Meeting.

“I’m very disappointed,” said Select Board member Ed Heal noting it was the first time a failure to reach quorum halted the work at hand. “It feels like you have a firework going off and it’s the duds — you’re waiting and hoping that it’s going to be going off.”

Heal said he wasn’t certain if it was the lack of controversial articles that failed to being people in, which he said was also a good thing.

“Hopefully, they’ll be able to m

Cushing, Pratti resign Hanson ZBA

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HANSON — ZBA members William Cushing and Joshua Pratti effectively resigned on Tuesday, Sept. 27, as they declined to accept another temporary reappointment by the Select Board as the investigation into ZBA — spurred a citizens’ petition passed at Town Meeting — drags on and the board did not advance a motion to re-appoint the two to another full term.

Cushing said the Select Board should consider the non-reappointment his resignation. Pratti said he, too, would refuse to accept a temporary reappointment.

Select Board member Jim Hickey, whose motion to reappoint both men to a full term failed, resigned from his role as liaison to the Zoning Board of Appeals because his motions on the situation had been repeatedly ignored and he felt one of the other members would be better suited for the role.

The Select Board then voted to accept all three resignations.

“I appreciate the effort and the time that you have both put in, but we really are in a position where we are trying to do what’s in the best interests of the town,” Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett said, expressing regret at the resignation. “We got a very strong read from town meeting and the citizens’ petition begging us to look into this, so I don’t see, as an elected board, how we could possibly do anything other than what we’ve been compelled to do.”

Cushing said he appreciated the position the Select Board is in and asked to see the final report when the investigation is complete. Pratti also indicated his willingness to be reappointed, if the Select Board was agreeable, after the investigation concludes.

“At that point in time, if you’d like to re-evaluate, I’d love to be reappointed,” Cushing said. Between now and then he said he would rather step aside.

Town Administrator Lisa Green said and email from Hull Town Counsel Jim Lampke on Aug. 25, indicated he is awaiting material the Building Department and Board of Health as requested. At that news, FitzGerald-Kemmett suggested the board could repeat its one-month appointment vote. Lampke was appointed to investigate the issue last November.

“We don’t want to give the impression that we’re trying to rush the investigation, or just the impression that we may have flawed it because we tried to rush it,” said Green. “We can’t take that chance.”

FitzGerald-Kemmett asked Green to press Lampke for a date when they could expect his findings. Green said on Monday, Oct. 3 that Lampke is hopeful that a final draft report will be submitted to the Select Board this week and the subject should be on the agenda for the Tuesday, Oct. 11 meeting.

ZBA member Kevin Perkins had been ejected from the meeting before the discussion — which had followed a heated dog hearing — really got started for what FitzGerald-Kemmett described as abusive language.

She had noted that the last time the appointments had come before the board there was a suggestion from town counsel that Cushing and Pratti be reappointed for only a month because the investigation into the ZBA should be first completed, which has still has not been done.

 “If we appoint for the full term then we have to have a hearing for Mr. Cushing and Mr. Pratti,” she said.

FitzGerald-Kemmett reminded the public that the Select Board had not unilaterally decided to conduct an investigation into the ZBA, that was the subject of a citizens’ petition warrant article presented and approved at Town Meeting. There were 167 votes in favor of the investigation.

“Although I am disheartened at how long it’s taken, I think that generally the board has been of the opinion that we want to be thorough in this investigation,” she said. “We don’t want to close the investigation and not have Mr. Lampke feel as though he hasn’t done his due diligence.”

She did say she had the opinion that, about the time Green received his email that a decision was imminent, possibly only a couple of weeks away, but she asked Green to contact him to get a definitive update.

Hickey said he had been texting Perkins about ZBA issues, who gave a similar estimate of the time needed to complete the investigation.

“Two weeks is up and it’s still not done,” Hickey said.

Cushing said the reappointment was for three months approved on June 30, not one.

FitzGerald-Kemmett accepted that correction.

“This was supposed to be done in June,” Cushing said of the investigation. “This has been almost a year now.”

While he said he understands that the Select Board is doing what’s in the best interests of Hanson residents, Cushing said that, at the same time, if there is cause ZBA members should be removed, but they should not arbitrarily decide against re-appointing them because the investigation is incomplete.

“I think that you’ve had more than enough time,” he said. 

Cushing advocated for his and Pratti’s reappointment, understanding that if the investigation determines there is cause, they could be removed.

“I don’t want a temporary reappointment,” he said. “I either want a full term and then be removed, or don’t reappoint me at all.”

Pratti also said he would not accept a temporary appointment.

“It sounds to me like not reappointing is more allowing you guys some latitude to not reappoint us if you don’t like what you hear, not necessarily with any malfeasance found with any of the board [members],”  Pratti said.

FitzGerald-Kemmett said factors contributing to any decision against reappointment would not have to rise to the level of malfeasance. If sufficient concerns arose with Select Board members to where  they might not feel comfortable reinstating them, that would be enough to warrant such action.

Pratti said he doesn’t see why non-reappointment or temporary reappointment are even options.

“We’re going to clog up an agenda regardless,” he said.

“I tend to think if we pay town counsel to give us an opinion, we ought to take town counsel’s opinion, FitzGerald-Kemmett replied, noting she did not feel she should act as an attorney and second-guess their reasoning.

Hickey said he argued for reappointment to full terms three months ago because the investigation was not complete. He advocated going through a hearing process, if necessary, when the investigation was complete and improprieties were discovered, but no one had seconded his motion.

FitzGerald-Kemmett said she did not offer a second because the motions went against town counsel’s advice. She also said she thinks a decision is immanent.

“My feeling is that we have a duty to the citizens of the town, who asked to have this investigated, and asked for us to be prudent in what we’re doing,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said. “Although I feel bad that it’s taken this long, there isn’t much that the five of us can do about how long it’s taken.”

She said Lampke has been hired to do a job and he has to do the job he’s been paid to do.

“I don’t feel comfortable appointing both them for the full term,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said.

Cushing, meanwhile pointed out that the delay was affecting the ZBA’s work.

“We just missed a meeting tonight because we don’t want to open meetings unless,” he said. “I don’t know if I’m going to be here.”

There was a ZBA meeting scheduled for that night, he said.

“They’re waiting upstairs,” Pratti said.

Without them there would be no quorum for that meeting. Cushing added.

Hickey noted that if they board is working on something and they resign or are removed, all the work that’s been done has to start over again, and Cushing added it could also result in legal action regarding such a case.

Hickey then moved that both men be reappointed for their full terms and, again, it’s not going to be seconded. It was not.

“For me, it’s hard because I’m incredibly frustrated with how long this has been going on,” said Select Board member Joe Weeks. “I feel we are in a position right now … I have no idea what’s going on with this investigation. I have no idea why it’s taking so long.”

But, he added, as maddening as the situation is, the town is already committed to the process and he hopes it can see it through.

He also lauded Cushing and Pratti for their cooperation.

 For that reason, Weeks said he would like to see more pressure brought to conclude the investigation, but lacking more information he supported incremental appointments until the investigation is done.