At back-to-back town meetings this coming Monday, Oct. 24, in Cronin Auditorium at the Bromfield School, Harvard voters will be asked to decide the fate of nine articles on matters ranging from the purchase of 47 acres off Sherry Road for conservation land to zoning land adjacent to Hildreth House for senior housing. Other articles concern rezoning some Devens land for high-tech businesses; studying the feasibility of a town fiber-optic network; consolidating the purchase of electrical energy for town residents and businesses; and attending to some financial and organizational business.
Voters will decide these proposals at two town meetings. The first, a so-called Super Town Meeting, will convene at 7 p.m. to debate and vote on the Devens proposal, which must also be approved by a majority of voters at town meetings of Ayer and Shirley convening the same night. Harvard’s second meeting will begin at 7:30 p.m., or immediately following adjournment of the first, to deal with the other eight articles.
Warrants for the two meetings are posted at the town website (go to www.harvard.ma.us/ and follow the links there), and summarized in this week’s Press feature, “Warrants in Plain English.” You’ll find there a summary of each article, its taxpayer impact if any, and the vote required to pass it. Warrant articles requiring more explanation are examined in depth in other stories in this issue.
Additional information on the nine articles can be found at the website of the Harvard League of Women Voters, which held a public forum Monday night to hear arguments from proponents and answer questions from citizens. A summary of that forum along with supporting documents can be found at the League’s website. (Go to lwvharvard.org, click on Blog at the top of the page and then click on Super/Special Town Meeting October 24: Recap.) The meeting was taped and League spokeswoman Patti Anklam says the video will be posted soon at the League site.
Come early; childcare available
Next Monday’s town meetings will be the last for Janet Vellante in her role as town clerk; she will retire in December. She recommends that voters arrive early to have time to sign in and receive the colored card that they can hold aloft to vote for or against a motion. Voters will also receive a copy of each warrant, one for the Super Town Meeting and one for Harvard’s Special Town Meeting. Additional handouts are being prepared by proponents of the Devens rezoning, Sherry Road land purchase, electrical aggregation, and a town-owned fiber-optic network.
The language of at least one of the Special Town Meeting articles, Article 5, Hildreth Housing Overlay District, was not final at press time. The Planning Board is likely to make changes to the article following a public hearing scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 18, so voters may receive copies of the measure’s final version when they sign in.
For those with young children, the League of Women Voters has teamed up with Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) to provide babysitting during the back-to-back meetings. The students of SADD and their adviser, Bromfield school nurse Colleen Nigzus, will provide the service on site at Bromfield. For more information and to sign up go to goo.gl/XRfxMy. The organizers say that a donation to SADD is not required but would be greatly appreciated.
