The selectmen made quick work Monday night of the 55 articles submitted for the 2014 Town Meeting warrant, dropping two and replacing one, before closing and signing the document.
Two of the articles will, if passed, raise taxes for one year to pay for new concrete in front of the Bromfield School and to purchase a new front-end loader for DPW. Both required a two-thirds vote of the selectmen and passed 4-1, with tax-averse Selectman Ron Ricci opposed. The pair of articles must be approved by a two-thirds vote at Town Meeting and again by a simple majority at the ballot box.
Two articles that concerned the renovation of Hildreth House were dropped from the warrant, on a commitment by the board that members would support a request from the Hildreth House Improvement Committee for $20,000 to refine its latest designs for the senior center (see 2014 Annual Town Meeting Warrant Articles).
Expecting controversy
The remaining 53 articles were accepted without modification, though two are likely to be controversial when they are brought to the floor of Town Meeting (see the complete list on page 5). Among those expected to spark debate are a modification of the town’s dog bylaw (see “Chicken killers: Dangerous dogs or nuisances?” on page 9) and a proposal to bring mosquito spraying to town.
The warrant contains one citizen petition for home-rule legislation that would exempt community-owned solar arrays from property taxes, a benefit that is already enjoyed by owners of residences who install them on their own property.
After little more than an hour, the selectmen were ready to sign the final warrant, which Town Administrator Bragan hastened to print. All five members of the board were present and the vote to approve the warrant was unanimous. The meeting adjourned shortly after 8 p.m.
Vote to recommend comes next
Although the warrant is now closed, the selectmen have yet to vote on whether to recommend or not recommend those articles on which they are expected to have an opinion. That work will be done at their next meeting on Tuesday evening, March 4, when they expect to have the recommendations of the Finance Committee in hand to guide their deliberations.
Voters can expect to receive printed copies of the warrant by mail in mid-March. Town Meeting convenes on a weekday evening this year, at 7 p.m. on April 1 in Cronin Auditorium at the Bromfield School.
Follow John Osborn on Twitter @johnatthp.
