Warrant takes shape two months before town meeting
By Caitlyn Kelleher JOURNAL REPORTER

Selectmen knocked a number of items off a proposed warrant at their meeting on Monday, March 5.

Selectmen removed articles that they did not believe they could support for financial reasons and articles they did not understand. But they left in a number of issues they wanted to gain voters' opinions on, including a separate article to fund a school resource officer at John R. Briggs Elementary and whether to adopt a state law that would let fees be changed without town meeting approval.

Town Administrator Kevin Paicos is proposing funding the time a police officer spends at Briggs through a separate warrant article instead of the police budget.

Paicos and Police Chief Loring Barrett both would prefer to use the money it costs to cover shifts for the time the officer spends in the school.

So voters will have to decide whether to include funds to cover the extra hours for the school resource officer.

Selectman Jonathan Dennehy warned this was a political hot button issue during former Police Chief Roy "Skip" Bourque's tenure.

Selectmen also placed a warrant article allowing town employees who issue licenses and permits to set their own fees. Approval would permit the town to adopt a state law, which removes the fee-setting authority from town meeting.

Paicos said this was an easier way to keep fees more up to date. He thought Ashburnham was one of only 10 towns in the state that still set fees through town meeting.

Selectmen also debated whether this was the right time to include an article to create a feasibility study on for the senior center. Gagnon said they should wait because then a committee could be formed to look into the VMS Building as a senior center and a community center.

"If you don't put this article on here you're going to have a bunch of angry seniors," Paicos said.

The dams

Selectmen were slightly concerned about an article to fund a state-mandated safety review of the dams in town. Town meeting voters are going to be asked to appropriate money for this review.

Selectmen questioned why the state thought certain dams were "life-threatening" if they break and others were not. They also wanted to know where the state thought Nipmuck Dam was, because no one is familiar with it.

Dennehy said he would like to see the warrant article changed to require the state to pay some of the cost of their mandate.

"I know we really can't do it legally, but it could put pressure on the state," he said.

Land use

Residents will also face a number of zoning articles left on the warrant by selectmen. The Planning Board requested articles focusing on "in-law" apartments, industrial zoning, site plan review procedures and lot size in the center of town.

Selectmen removed an article requested by the Low-Impact Development Committee and an article requested by the Affordable Housing Committee.

Dennehy strongly opposed a bylaw that would have allowed the Affordable Housing Committee to set up a trust fund that they would administer.

"I don't know where the money is going to come from," he said.

Gagnon said before he would support putting this bylaw on the warrant he would want to see bylaws for the trust fund and would need more of an explanation.

The selectmen met with each of these committees at their March 14 meeting and determined that these articles may be reconsidered in the fall. The committees will work more closely with the selectmen and other town officials to help increase understanding of the issues.