Published in the March 28, 2018 edition
By DAN TOMASELLO
LYNNFIELD — The April 30 Town Meeting warrant is set.
The selectmen closed the warrant last week. It will include 22 articles. Assistant to the Administration Bob Curtin gave an overview of the warrant articles.
Four citizens’ petitions pertaining to two proposed elderly housing developments on Main Street will headline Town Meeting.
Pocahontas Way resident Ted Regnante submitted three warrant articles as part of the proposed Sagamore Spring Golf Club redevelopment project. The project, Fairways Edge at Sagamore, entails building 154 attached over-55 condominiums on 105 acres along the popular course’s eastern side.
Curtin said Article 19 seeks to amend the Lynnfield Zoning Map to rezone a 105,680-acre portion of the golf course from Residence D to Elderly Housing. Article 20 would amend the Zoning Bylaw by allowing a private golf course, clubhouse and maintenance building “as a matter of right in an Elderly Housing District.” Article 21 would increase the maximum number of units within an Elderly Housing District from 136 to 154.
Curtin said Article 22 pertains to the Wills Brook Village development. Developer Angus Bruce said the project entails building 66 over-55 townhouses at 1480 Main Street. Article 22 seeks to rezone the parcel of land located on Main Street and Janet Way from Residence RD to Elderly Housing.
Selectman Phil Crawford requested having the three articles pertaining to the redevelopment of Sagamore at the end of the warrant.
“We are going to have people specifically in the room for those three items,” said Crawford. “I think in order to get all of our business done, we should put those at the end of the night.”
“We have all of those at the end,” said Selectmen Chairman Chris Barrett. “My concern is the Sagamore Golf Course is going to be a major burden on the school system if that is not passed. I am confident Town Meeting will stay for all four (articles). I am comfortable with the placement.”
Additional TM articles
Article 1 will seek to have voters act on reports of town officials and special committees. Article 2 will choose all town officers “not required to be chosen by ballot” including three field drivers, one pound keeper and three wood measurers.
Article 3 will request Town Meeting to “fix the compensation of each of the elective officers of the town” as required by state law.
“The only boards that get paid are the selectmen and the assessors,” said Curtin.
Article 4 seeks to have the town “vote to raise and appropriate or transfer from available funds, sums of money to supplement certain accounts in the current 2018 fiscal year where balances are below projected expenditures for various reasons; or to take any other action in connection therewith.”
According to the warrant, Article 5 seeks to appropriate funds in order to pay overdue bills from a previous fiscal year by appropriating or transferring available funds. Curtin said Article 6 seeks to allocate funds “for the purpose of paying outstanding overtime differential under the dispatcher’s contract” for previous fiscal years.
“There was a misapplication in one of the clauses in that contract that was brought to our attention by the dispatchers,” said Curtin. “It’s not a lot of money.”
Curtin said Article 7 will ask voters to approve the proposed fiscal year 2019 operating budget, totaling $54,778,362. Article 8 is the proposed FY’19 capital budget, totaling 1,753,731.
Article 9 will seek to allocate $200,000 to the Stabilization Fund. Article 10 will request voters to appropriate $100,000 to the Capital Facilities Stabilization Fund.
Curtin said Article 11 pertains to amending the town’s General Bylaws in regards to the town’s revolving funds.
“New legislation was adopted at the state level,” said Curtin. “This allows us to amend our bylaws to authorize the revolving funds we have had. Town Counsel Tom Mullen worked on the language with Town Accountant Julie McCarthy.”
Curtin said Article 12 “sets the maximum expenditure in this coming fiscal year for the revolving funds.” He said the revolving funds includes money the town receives from flu shots, facility and field rentals, and trips offered by the Senior Center and Lynnfield Recreation.
Article 13 will ask voters to “appropriate a sum of money from Emergency Medical Service Enterprise receipts to pay expenses and contractual services.” Article 14 will seek to allocate funds from “Golf Enterprise receipts and/or Golf Enterprise Retained Earnings to pay expenses and contractual services required to operate the Reedy Meadow Golf Course and King Rail Golf Course.”
The selectmen plan on revisiting Article 15 because the language was not clear. Curtin noted the warrant article will seek to allocate funds in order to pay bills owed to the architect of the proposed King Rail Golf Reserve clubhouse. Voters will not be approving the clubhouse at Town Meeting.
Curtin said the Planning Board submitted Articles 15 and 16, which pertain to banning recreational marijuana dispensaries and a moratorium on pot shop establishments. While the town voted to ban recreational marijuana shops at last April’s Town Meeting, Curtin said the language was not included in the recodified Zoning Bylaw approved at the October 2017 Town Meeting. He said Article 15 pertains to permanent ban on recreational marijuana establishments. Article 16 will implement a temporary moratorium in the event the Attorney General’s Office rejects the town’s permanent ban.
“If the attorney general strikes down our permanent ban for some technical reason, our temporary moratorium will still be in place,” said Curtin.
Curtin said the Planning Board submitted Article 18. He said the article will update the town’s Zoning Map.
“This doesn’t change any zoning,” said Curtin.
