In opening remarks at the March 18, 2024 Select Board meeting, Town Manager John Mangiaratti announced the appointment of Detective Ana Dapkas as school resource officer (SRO), and mentioned that the Police Academy will be offered again this year. (This reporter attended last year’s Police Academy and highly recommends it.) Select Board member Dean Charter, liaison to the Acton 250 Committee, announced the availability of Acton 250 commemorative merchandise, and noted that the next speaker of the Acton 250 lecture series will be John Bell, author of The Road to Concord, at 7:00 PM, April 2, 2024 in the Town Hall Faulkner Room.
Board members announced their nominations for the Colonel Francis Faulkner Sr Exemplary Volunteer of the Year Award:
Board Chair Jim Snyder-Grant: Franny Osman, who served most recently on the Transportation Advisory Committee and the South Acton Village Advisory Group;
Dean Charter: Ellen Feinsand, Council on Aging Board and the Nursing Services Advisory Committee;
Fran Arsenault: Janet Adachi, Acton Community Housing Corporation and former Select Board member;
David Martin: Terry Maitland, Conservation Commission and Open Space Committee;
Alissa Nicol: Sampada Salunkhe, Acton Memorial Library Board of Trustees
Nominees will be recognized on May 16th at 6:00 PM in the Acton Memorial Library meeting room.
A request for a Special Town Meeting (STM) to consider zoning issues drew a small group of interested residents. A Special Town Meeting can be called by “…upon request in writing, of two hundred registered voters…” (Massachusetts General Laws, MGL T.VII ch. 39 §10). Both residents and a Board member expressed a sense that the STM was unnecessary. A proponent of the STM said that a motive for the request was to present the zoning issues to the town for consideration well in advance of the upcoming regular town meeting. A question concerning the anticipated cost of the STM was answered without an exact estimate but cost factors included mailings, police details, and town administrative costs. The legal requirements for a STM having been met, the Board – as required by law – voted unanimously to approve the STM.
The Board heard a presentation by consultants on the failing Bellows Farm Dam, which has been repeatedly inspected, and mentioned as a project in the FY2023‐FY2032 Capital Improvement Plan. The dam is in the area of the Trail Through Time (see a video tour of the trail). The question before the Board was to choose a plan of action for the dam. The Board considered multiple factors including habitat restoration, fish passage, flood control, nearby wells, historic site preservation, and relief from regulation by the Massachusetts office of dam safety. The Board discussed four options: dam repair; full removal of the dam; a partial breach; and dam lowering with a rock ramp. After much discussion the Board voted to proceed with a partial dam breach.
Financial and related business
The Board approved the issuance of $4,900,000 General Obligation Municipal Purpose Loan (a municipal bond) at a particularly favorable rate of 2.77%. The proceeds from the issue will fund a list of projects including Kelley’s corner infrastructure and dam removal.
A proposal to grant a Tax Incentive Financing (TIF) agreement to a local business, Natural Stone Wall Solutions, was presented to the Board by Mr. Kevin Kuros from the Massachusetts Office of Business Development (MOBD). Mr. Kuros presented a graphic that illustrated how a TIF provides a tax incentive for businesses to invest in projects that benefit the community. A memo from Economic Development Director Ms. Julie Pierce described details of the proposed agreement and noted that the full membership of the Economic Development Committee voted to support the TIF at their March 1, 2024 meeting; and Mr. Troy Guinther of Old Village Landscaping and Natural Stonewall Solutions presented an overview of his project. The Board voted unanimously to approve preparation of an Article to be presented to the upcoming Town Meeting in support of the TIF.
At the March 4, 2024 meeting the Board approved participation in the Massachusetts Interlocal Insurance Association (MIIA) as its health insurer; the Board approved the formal withdrawal from the Acton Health Insurance trust.
Briefly noted: the Board voted to continue the reserved parking rates for the Maple Street and Jones Field lot through June 30, 2024; and voted to approve a pilot program to change specific Maple Street parking spaces from reserved parking to daily parking. The Board continued discussions on how to present the tax impact of the upcoming override vote, and voted (with one abstention) to approve a set of budget numbers that was presented on-screen by the Town Manager.
Proclamations and Policy
- The Board approved a policy stating that an elected or appointed Town official may waive any compensation that would ordinarily be paid to that official.
- Approved a Proclamation for Arbor Day, April 26, 2024.
- Approved a Proclamation for Acton Garden Club
Tom Beals is the beat reporter covering the Select Board.
