HANSON – The Select Board on Tuesday, Feb. 11 voted 3-1, with Ed Heal against, to sign an MBTA Communities Action Plan as requested by the state, rather than as a signal of approval.
The Board voted to support the action plan, to bring Hanson into interim compliance with the MBTA law through July.
“Please don’t rely on the Planning Board, the Zoning Board or the Select Board only to fight this fight,” said Planning Board Chair Joe Campbell. “Your voice matters when you contact your legislator.”
Select Board Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett noted the General Court is taking public comment.
“They absolutely have to be vocal because our representatives have 10 people behind them, it means nothing,” Campbell said. “When they’ve got 5,000 people behind them, it means a lot.”
Town Planner Anthony DeFrias reminded the board where the legislation sits now.
“As a result of the [Supreme Judicial] Court actions, what’s happening now is that there are emergency guidelines in effect for 90 days,” he said. “Non-compliant towns are required to file an action plan by Feb. 13 to be in interim compliance, with a deadline of July 14 to be in full compliance.”
He met with the Select Board two weeks ago when Board members indicated they were feeling that would be the action they would accept, but no formal vote was taken, according to FitzGerald-Kemmett.
“That is not putting that on the Town Meeting warrant, that’s a separate discussion,” she reminded the board.
Since that meeting, state Rep. Ken Sweezey, R-Pembroke, has been able to connect with state officials on the two grants that had been pulled back from Hanson because it was not in compliance – one for $237,000 to clean up the Lite Control property and the other, for $70,000 was for a study of a property in the industrial park sought by the Economic Development Committee to determine the best use for it.
Because of a brownfields grant the town had been able to determine that there is contamination in one section of the land once owned by Lite Control.
“So, we’ve got answers, that’s great,” said FitzGerald-Kemmett. “The downside of that is we’ve got answers. … Now that we know there’s contamination, we have to take action.”
She said the town couldn’t hide from that responsibility because they own the property now. There’s no turning to Lite Control [or the parent company] for assistance. The $237,000 grant DeFrias sought was based on the estimate for the cleanup.
“Because we’re in this limbo-land between now and July, we would be considered as having interim compliance if we file an action plan,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said. That in turn could grease the wheels of returning the grants.
DeFrias said he has filled out the online form, but a letter from the Board is also required stating that is their full intention for the town administrator to take necessary action to bring zoning into compliance with all requirements of MGL Ch. 40A, Sec. 3A and 1760CMR 72 to a vote of the municipality’s legislative body in the timeframe required by the action plan, and to submit a district compliance application to EOHLC (Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities) no later than July 14.
“I don’t want us to lose the money,” DeFrias said, noting a concern he has. “We’ve had some developments through the Planning Board,” which had met on Monday, Feb. 10 and he had asked them if they were interested in recommending the zoning amendment, the MBTA zoning and the overlay district.
“The Planning Board made no motion, so they will not be bringing that proposal before the Select Board,” he said. “There are multiple entities that can propose a zoning bylaw, the Planning Board being one of them. The Select Board, the Zoning Board, 10 citizens, because there would be May Town Meeting, and the Regional Planning Agency.”
It would still have to go back to the Planning Board for a public hearing, because that is part of the process, according to DeFrias.
“My concern, and this came to me this afternoon, is if we’re putting forward this statement, and we’re getting money, I don’t want us to get afoul of the law,” he said. “I’m wondering if we shouldn’t ask the question of town counsel – if we put this in, and we’re not going to comply – are we, in essence, defrauding the state?”
FitzGerald-Kemmett said the Board hadn’t discussed it.
Select Board Vice Chair Ann Rein said she spoke with someone over the weekend, whose question was how far apart are officials on the issue, if the Board was to do its own zoning decisions.
“How far apart would we be from the MBTA desires?” Rein said the person asked.
“I know this is killing you,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said.
“I don’t want to comply with the MBTA,” Rein said.
Rein and FitzGerald-Kemmett were trying to get at whether the town would be considered in compliance if town officials came up with its own overlay district allowing multi-family housing where we were encouraging local development.
“Where WE say where the district is going to be,” Rein said.
FitzGerald-Kemmett suggested putting MBTA aside and thinking about what the town wants vs what they are being required to do.
“I think that’s an interesting concept.” FitzGerald-Kemmett said.
“I don’t like any of it, but what are you going to do?” Rein replied. “Whether we like it or not, things are going to develop. I just do not want anybody from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts telling us what t do.”
Planning Board Chair Joe Campbell said Hanson’s Town Planner constantly thinks of the betterment of the town solely, and DeFrias has done a wonderful job creating multiple projects, things that the town could have.
“The difference here is, halfway through his tenure, the state came in and said, ‘But we also want you to do this, not only to our town, but every town that’s affected by MBTA,’” Campbell said. “We had plenty of asks on the Planning Board side because we know the difficulties of where Our MBTA is.”
Campbell said every alternative concept they presented Hanson’s adjusted plans they were rejected.
“That’s not their interest,” he said. “They’re trying to solve a problem, I assume is to do with rideability and costs for the MBTA and they’re using this as a way to do that.”
He also stressed that the headache resulting from the plan was also dealt with by the Baker administration, which is a major waste of time for town officials.
Town Administrator Lisa Green said she would be happy to ask about what the town is being told to do, and if there is any leeway, based on Campell’s explanation.
Board member Joe Weeks said the first hurdle is determining the will of the board, in light of the fact that they have no idea what a future board is going to say.
“This has nothing to do with strategy, it’s literally what we have in front of us right now,” Weeks said.
Transitions
Town Clerk Elizabeth Sloan met with the Select Board to solidify her exit strategy as she retires at the end of her term following the May Town Election. Sloan has served as Town Clerk for 15 years and had been an assistant Town Clerk for eight years before that.
“I am retiring,” she said. “I am not pulling papers to run for my position, so whoever’s coming in is going to be brand spanking new.”
Mass. General Law outlines that the new town clerk will not start work for seven days following election, so Sloan will not be working after May 17, but she left it up to the Select Board, if they wanted her to stay on to smooth the transition. If they do, it will require a reserve funds transfer or place an article before the special Town Meeting.
“Of course, it’s up to you how long you want the transition to be,” Sloan said. “Do you just want me to stay another week, would you like me to stay a little longer? It’s up to you.”
FitzGerald-Kemmett favored a specific article in the special Town Meeting warrant for the sake of transparency.
“Since we’ve got the luxury of being able to do that, because it’s just prior to the transition, and as far as I’m concerned, I’d like to build in [a transition period] – if we get somebody right off the street, which is likely, because it has to be a resident of Hanson, and as far as I know, we haven’t got a million Beth Sloans running around,” she said, asking
Sloan for her estimation of a helpful transition period. Sloan said she favored an intensive week of training and then as much of a phase-out period as the Select Board recommends. Three days a week, a number of hours a day or whatever they think would work.
“I just want to have a retirement date, so I can say I am not longer an employee of the Town of Hanson as of this date,” Sloan said.
Green said she spoke with Town Accountant Eric Kinsherf and he said, because the town already has the money is already approved in the reserve fund, that is probably a better way to go.
“We just have to work with our Town Clerk, Ms. Sloan, and then we can put in for the line-item transfer through the Finance Committee,” Green said. The town could then seek reimbursement for the amount transferred at Town Meeting.
“Of course, we want to keep you forever, but we know people have lives and we must move on, but we thank you sincerely for everything that you’ve done,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said. “You’ve been incredibly supportive and helpful.” She warned Sloan, however, that she would not be able to escape a more formal thank you, despite the “shooting from the hip thank you” the Select Board members offered Tuesday.