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Date: 12/6/2022
WHATELY – About two dozen residents ventured to the town offices on Sandy Lane for the Special Town Meeting on Nov. 29. The seven articles on the agenda dealt with the distribution of monies and the creation of two new town accounts.
Article 6 asked voters to authorize a special purpose stabilization fund to receive money awarded to municipalities from opioid lawsuit settlements. The article clarified that under Massachusetts General Law as little as 25 percent of settlements could be held in the fund. In Whately, all such receipts will go into the new account.
“It’s useful when the revenue stream the town receives is restricted,” said Town Administrator Brian Domina. “It’s easier to put these into separate stabilization accounts.”
Article 7 asked voters to authorize the creation of a Cannabis Impact Fees Stabilization Fund. After legalization, cannabis retail outlets were initially required to pay 3 percent of gross receipts to the town where they were located, an effort to mitigate additional costs from heavier traffic and other increases in infrastructure wear and tear. A dedicated account should facilitate the handling of those fees, which must now be justified with documentation after recent cannabis law changes now require it.
Article 7 was adopted unanimously.
Article 1 sought authorization for spending $38,000 for window restoration at First Congregational Church Whately through a grant agreement. Donna Wiley, chair of the Historical Commission, suggested an amendment to the article that required the funds be repaid by the owner of the church if the windows see unapproved alterations during the 20-year period of the grant. The money will come from the Community Preservation Fund (CPF). The Historic Preservation Fund, a sub-account of the CPF, will provide $18,000 while the Unreserved Fund Balance, a second sub-account, will provide $20,000.
A resident raised a question about spending public funds on a private religious institution. The Supreme Judicial Court of the Commonwealth, Wiley said, ruled that public preservation funds can be spent to preserve a historical landmark if no religious iconography is paid for with the money. Domina said the town’s counsel affirmed the move is legal.
“Actually, between 15 and 55 towns have made such grants,” Wiley said.
In the event of a sale of the property, the article also gave the town the right of first refusal to buy the church. Article 1 was adopted by voters.
Article 2 involved the appropriation of $1,391 for operating expenses for the S. White Dickinson Memorial Library from existing town funds. The money will increase the hourly rate of pay for the library director to $24.83.
Article 2 passed unanimously.
Article 3 sought the transfer of $3,464 from available town funds to pay for construction administration costs for the accessibility project at the Dickinson Memorial Library. Cost overruns were encountered due to a hidden beam in the structure, extra work on the alarm and fire detection systems and two outstanding invoices from the architect on the project.
Article 3 passed unanimously.
Article 4 asked voters to authorize an increase in the Opening Graves Fee. The fee will increase from $650 to $750 after voters unanimously favored the article.
Cemetery Commissioner Neal Abraham said, “We’re bringing this forward [because] this is a fee for a service not provided by town employees.”
Article 5 required a two-thirds vote to partially fund the purchase of a hybrid police cruiser with $7,869 from the Vehicle Stabilization Fund. Market conditions boosted the dealer price for hybrid vehicles and appropriate models are more difficult to secure. Voters had no questions and unanimously authorized the spending.
The town’s business completed in under 25 minutes, the meeting was adjourned.