She is okay. I see that. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] [Music]
[Music] Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the August 19th, 2025 meeting of the Cadam Select Board. Please note that this meeting is being recorded and will be available shortly hereafter for
scheduled and on demand viewing on any smartphone or tablet device. If anyone else is recording the meeting, please notify the chair. Seeing none, pursuant to Governor Healey's March 28th, 2025 signing of chapter 2 of the acts of 2025 extending
certain COVID 19 measures adopted during the state of emergency suspending certain provisions of the openly meeting lawsuits general laws chapter 38 section 20. Until June 30th, 2027, this meeting of the Chattam Select Board is being conducted in person and via remote participation. Every effort will be made
to ensure that the public can adequately access the proceedings as provided for in the order. A reminder that persons who would like to listen to this meeting while in progress may do so by calling the phone number 158-945-4410 conference ID 20386491
pound or join the meeting online via Microsoft Teams through the link in the posted agenda. While this is a live broadcast and simal cast on Cadam TV Exfinity channel 1072, despite our best efforts, we may not be
able to provide real time access. We will post a record of this meeting on the town's website as soon as possible. First item of business is to establish a quorum. Mrs. Davis, present. Mr. Dykins, present. Mr. Matters present. Mr. Smith present. And the chair is present. We have a very
busy agenda tonight, so I'm going to try to move the items expeditiously. Uh we have um first a public announcements and agenda item request. Are there any from the board? Miss Davis. Uh thank you, Mr. Chair. Um in keeping with uh our continued co uh
conversations about community sustainability and supporting year-round residences, um I'd like this board to take a look at Provincetown's model lease to locals. It's an incent it's a it's an incentive program that um has objectives uh well
basically it offers uh financial incentives to landlords to who convert short-term rentals into year- round rentals um for qualified locals. Uh some of the objectives are to support year-round residents, encourage long-term occupancies in housing, ensure
fairness and cost effectiveness, and uh it would align with some of the other communities work that's being done um on the lower cape. Okay. I heard something about that in the news this week. Um thank you. Any others um from the board? Any from the public? Public announcements or agenda
item requests? Yes. Uh Greg, let me just ask uh you stay right there, please. No one in the room. Is there anyone online? And I see none. Okay, Greg. Greg Burman, you had something. Our director of natural resources. Thank you. I respectful of your time. I
just wanted to very quickly introduce Bradford Bower. He is our new assistant conservation agent. Uh he comes to us from the Woods Hole Group where he worked on local, state, and federal permitting. Before that, he was a coastal ecology manager for the Ducks
Beach Reservation. He has a bachelor's from UNH, a master's from Unity, and has also served on his local Yarmouth conservation commission and must be a glutton for punishment because he's working for a conservation commission here in Chattam now. Uh excited to have him on board and I know he's looking
forward to getting to know the projects and people that make Chattam special. Thank you. Would welcome. Would you like to say something? uh just that I'm very happy to be here and I've had a very warm welcome from the uh Chattam community thus far. Thank you and good luck in your new
position. It's a very important position for a very important body. Thank you. Thank you. Okay, our next item on the agenda on printed agenda is a public hearing but uh I think we have some information from Eversource that we're not going to be a be doing this tonight. Marissa Jackson,
did you want to say something about this direct uh agent of right away for Eversource? Welcome. Thank you very much. Yes, we will formally withdraw and redesign the project so there is no road cut. Okay. So, we're going to withdraw this for tonight.
Yes, please. Thank you. So, that Thank you very much. That item is canceled effectively. I am going to defer uh the Chattam Wells uh report by um Mr. failing on the wells and water until after we can can take up
um um the items A through D. Um the next item is comments on the business agenda. Public comments as everyone can see on the printed agenda. Contemporaneous public comment will be
allowed on each of the items A through E. So if anyone does have comment at the present time, I will entertain it. If not, we're going to proceed with the business agenda directly. Seeing none, the first two items on the business
agenda are citizen requests from Elaine Gibbs. Um, and uh, I am going to take them together. Um, the first is item 6A, discussion of emergency communications between the town of Chattam and Eversource personal care sites and regional shelters. Uh I should add that
our clerk Steuart Smith has also made these a select board agenda requ select board member agenda request both of them. The second is a review of communication with Eversource and notifications to the public during the power outage on April 26, 2025.
And um I we have a representative from Eversource here um Mr. Philip Bert. I he has a few slides. I think what I'll do on this is ask that he make his presentation and I will ask Miss Gibbs. I think she
has some comments she wants to make. Uh and then uh the our fire chief who is our emergency management director and the d the deputy director of emergency management, Mark Heler, is also here. And um I'm hoping we can um deal with
this fairly expeditiously because we have some um items uh particularly C and D uh for which um um I have asked town council to be present. He's available only until 7:00. So uh it's important that uh we try to
get through this. Uh we'll spend as much time as needed on these two f these first two items if need be. I would suspend uh after a short period of time and then take them up after we complete C and D, but hopefully that won't be necessary. So, Miss Mr. Bert, would you
um please come forward to the one of the to the podium and um introduce yourself? Yeah, either of those is fine. Welcome, Chief Tano. Good evening. Philip Bert, uh community relations specialist with Eversource. Uh
so chief uh and uh town administrator Goldmith asked that I come out and talk a little bit this evening about um Eversource and our power um outage notification system. So I pres prepared a couple of slides. I'm just going to walk through a little bit about
Eversource as a company. This only take a few minutes really. um talk a little bit about outages um how they generally happen um and what our notification process is and how um residents can be uh made aware of uh an outage when it
happens. Um and then I think also probably talk a little bit about ongoing communication that I have with the chief um throughout throughout the year really on ongoing basis with respect to outages, storms, anything that might pop up in town. So um as the first slide indicates that we are fairly large
company. So I think a lot of people on Cape Cod think of Eversource solely as an electric company. Um but we do actually also provide um gas service throughout a lot of our territory. So we operate in New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Connecticut. Here on the Cape it is solely electric service that we provide.
um after the um gas incident in northeastern Massachusetts several years back uh that we took on a lot of Columbia gases territory. So really a lot of southeastern Mass also became uh part of our territory for gas service. Um and as you can see some of the stats
there. We do serve in the Commonwealth almost million and a half customers on the electric side. Um and we do do all of the electric service uh on the Cape and the vineyard. Nantucket is actually served uh by National Grid. So, and then you can see there's some some certainly
some combined um towns. We have many towns that have we provide both services. And there's some communities that's actually split up. You might have um National Grid providing some of the electric service in part of the town. We're providing some of the electric service in the town. And the same goes with the gas service.
So I think uh some of this stuff is kind of self-evident but when we're talking about uh storm related outages really it's like 90% of storm related outages are related to vegetation issues. So generally it's trees down trees down either on um on wires and and taking down infrastructure or just limbs
crashing down um and knocking the power out. Uh but on blue sky days, you know, a day like today, there's a series of other issues that can pop up. Um, as I came into Eversource, I didn't really I'm with I've been with Eversource now for about 18 months came from sort of
the emergency management side. So really my uh understanding of of outages with Eversource was really focused on that storm side, but having you know now living it daytoday. There is a lot of stuff that goes on that knocks the power out that you actually wouldn't really think too much about. Things that we're like really familiar with around here,
osprey, we have a lot of issues with ospreys. Um nests causing fires. uh uh you know obviously motor vehicle accidents uh even small things like rodents getting into substations and accessing equipment and causing outage some causing something to trip um and
then just in general damaged equipment uh things do break like I think again it's one of those things that I never really process too much prior to my time with Eversource but much like in your own home where things like your refrigerator breaks or your you know you need a new washing machine or whatever
electrical equipment in the system wears down and breaks And ultimately those kind of things can lead to outages. So the company's con kind of constantly in this mode of assess um maintain repair kind of keep going all the time to keep the system as fresh um and and and
operable as possible. The little sort of graphic down in the right hand corner though does provide some context. So in 2025 thus far, basically half of all outages throughout all the territory. So this isn't just the Cape, but
throughout, you know, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, um about half of all outages are are restored in under five minutes. And most of that is due to our ability to remotely switch equipment on and off. So like most people have been sitting in their home at some point have probably witnessed that thing where like the power goes
out, but then it comes right back on. you know, you have that like 30 10-second outage, maybe it's very very short or or the lights even just flicker. Typically, that's actually the system doing its job. What's actually happening there is is we have operators um in New Bedford who are constantly
monitoring the entire system um and are able to remotely turn stuff on and off and switch power back on so that that they're able to then sort of shrink the size of that initial outage. So maybe initially a limb goes down and you lose a thousand customers. Um but remotely they're able to switch stuff back on
kind of shrink that down to the smaller area as close to where that that damage happened as possible. So that's kind of what you see there. Um and generally speaking again this is systemwide so this isn't specific to Cape Cod but generally um it is uh the average break
between an interruption for somebody in their home is generally around 22 months. Um so the system is quite reliable. I think most of the time we think of, you know, obviously it doesn't really cross your mind, but only really two times it crosses your mind. One is when you see your bill. Uh, two, probably when the lights go out. Otherwise, I think most of us kind of
take it for granted. It is what it is. Um, it's kind of like, I think, dealing with your Comcast Exfinity at home. You know, most of the time it's up. You're not really thinking about it. Your Wi-Fi is working. Every once in a while, you do walk into your home and you know, why is my phone not working? Why is my computer not working? Internet's down. Um, sim similar type of thing. I think
that though the thing that I really wanted to hone in on um this evening is really just the next slide and it's really pretty simple but it's important stuff for people to know. Um for one right now the way the systems designed here we actually don't know specifically
in anybody's house whether your power is on or off. Like I think a lot of people think that when the power goes off that we know that your power is out at your home. We actually don't. So the system is not designed that way. It is actually that is a technology that is coming. Um we are rolling out advanced metering
infrastructure across the state. It's starting in the western part of the state. It'll be to the Cape in about two years. That'll totally change the game on the way a whole lot of things work with respect to the management of electricity. Um but it will allow the company to know oh this particular resident it this particular residence
does not have power right now. But that's why you constantly hear the message call in your outage. Call in your outage. you don't call in your outage. We actually specifically don't know any one particular location. Now, going back to the conversation before, if a line drops, a tree drops on a line in a particular area, um we can make a
general assumption that a chunk of an area is out and chances are most customers in that area are out. And that's why you'll see that when if you check the Eversource outage map, you might see the number kind of fluctuate. Sometimes that's that's us turning stuff off and on and that's sometimes that's more more and more customers calling in
for us to realize okay this this outage extends from you know point A to point B. We thought it was only I should have said whatever point A to C and then you know what I mean adding adding more customers into that that section. Um so you really do have to call those outages
in. Um the other thing though is when you so you can and there's a couple ways you can do that. So, you can go to our website and you can report an outage online through the through the website. Of course, I know the quick response to that as I powers out. How do you access your computer? Well, hopefully you've got, you know, you can get the app on your phone. We do have an app, you can
do the exact same thing on the app. So, hopefully your cell phone is charged up. Or if you have the old, you know, copper line into your house and you still have a landline, make the call that way. Um, you can also text the word out to that number up on the screen right there. um
it'll alert us of the outage and then you'll also be immediately kind of put into this queue of notifications about the outage. So you should get in some sense some kind of an estimated time of restoration from us. That number is going to change. You're going to get an
initial number that's probably going to be, you know, two to three hours out immediately because that's going to be like the system defaulting to a specific number. And then as technicians get on site, they'll address look at the issue, try to figure out, okay, this is a quick one for us. This is going to be back up in 25 minutes or oh no, you know, this
is a piece of equipment that's only like right now currently in New Bedford, we have to get a crew out there. This could be six to eight hours before some things are, you know, before things are back up to normal. So you'll get those um those notifications. Uh and of course you can
always as the bottom thing references there, you can always use the Eversource outage map. It is it is pretty timely. I think the updates on that are generally between 15 and 30 minutes. So you get a pretty good sense of of the numbers. Um and when there is an event going on like
I you know I I have so I cover the Cape, I cover Martha's Vineyard, I cover Plymouth. Um, I'm constantly in contact with like all the emergency managers. So, like I'm talking to the chief regularly throughout events about different parts of town that are out, different concerns uh he might have any
in any community. Um, what the concern might be, how long, you know, a particular area might be back up and running and of course really focusing in first on like our critical infrastructure, our things that are most important to have up and running first. Um, and going from there. Uh, and then the company always, of course, is kind
of like if you think of this as like a like a skeleton, the company's going to go to the area like sort of like to the the backbone first and then work its way out, um, to get power restored. Um, so with that, um, I just I guess I would just remind people there's the number to
call in your outage. Um, go to the website when you have if you have one. Um, and I'm happy to, you know, whatever field any questions or from the board or or or however we want to proceed. Um well before we take questions I I just one quick ones just want to make sure I
understood the fastest way to report an outage is through texting that uh if you go to the prior slide. So I guess it depends on whether you're faster at texting or calling. Okay. So e either either or. Okay. Yeah. Um this is a a request from resident
Elaine. I'm going to offer you the option of either I know you had some remarks either making them now. I know the chief and um possibly Mr. Heler also has some comments. Did you want to hear them first or did you want to come to the podium? It's up to you. It's about communication. Yeah. Okay. I know that. Why don't you
come forward and Justin? We'll get to you in a bit. No problem. Welcome. Yes. Thank you, Elaine Gibbs. Uh mine was specifically about communication to the public. On April 26th,
pardon me, Chadam had 400 4420 power outages. Twothirds of the town losing cable, internet, and landlines. By any standard, that's huge. The fact that it was warm and not life-threatening doesn't diminish the need for communication with the outside world for countless reasons. Based on the size of
the outage and past experience, it could have been out for days. It's happened to us before. 361 outages were reported to Evers Source by residents as soon as it occurred. Because cell towers didn't go down, we were able to use our phones to
report the outage and text each other on Facebook to find out the extent and if anyone knew how long it was going to be out. So, I believe we did our part. People know how to do that. If they've got a phone, they'll do it. A decision was apparently made by emergency management not to communicate at all
with the public. Um, it would have taken two minutes to simply post on the town website and the Facebook page that there was an outage, you knew about it, it was being worked on, and an indication of a possible time for um restoration.
I it's it's very frustrating when so many things are posted on Facebook on the town website and when twothirds of the town is out, that would probably be a good time to just send us a message. So, we know um taxpayers, this goes to a
lot of the issues we have in town. We spend $513,000 a year for information technology and a communications coordinator in salaries alone. So, I hope the next time we have a major outage, you put yourselves in the position of the public. We are the
customer and have someone inform us uh on those sites in real time. It would be very helpful. Thank you. Thank you. I know you had some other issues. Do you want to are you going to come back? Is there going to be a presentation on No, I think this is the the whole presentation. Okay. But if you wanted to address the
communication thing first, why don't we do that first? Okay. Chief, did you did either you or or Mr. Bert want to speak to the April storm and and more generally about the issue of communication? Sure. Thank you. Uh good evening board and members of the public. Um Justin
Tano, the fire chief and emergency management director. Um, I'm I'll just offer a few comments on the April 26th uh outage and then I think I'll turn that back over to to Mr. Bert to comment further. Um, the April 26th um outage
was a result of um there was a brief storm that blew through town. Um, our role in emergency management is really to focus on coordinating emergency response um especially pertaining to immediate threats to public safety. Um
during that storm there were sever there were outages throughout a good portion of town. Uh we were monitoring it. Uh Deputy Director Heler responded to the station to continue to moni monitor events. Uh we were in communication with Eversource. Um the estimated time of
restoration was was fairly brief. Um less than two hours initially. Uh weather conditions were stable. Um, we determined, um, as I'll get into in in in my remarks a little bit in in more depth in, uh, later on, um, part of our
our job is to digest information and put out information that that we feel is pertinent to threats to public safety. Um, at that for that particular outage, um, it it was determined that we didn't feel as though there were any immediate threats. Um, we were in communication,
as I mentioned, with Eversource on the restoration efforts and restoration ended up happening in less than an hour for that event. Um, it was a pretty it was a kind of a quick hitter storm that blew through. Um, and then weather conditions stabilized pretty quickly
thereafter. It was warm out. Um, so as far as uh additional communications, you know, when when there's significant storms that are forecasted are predicted, um, and we we feel as though there's there's going to be widespread outages that, uh, last a long duration,
um, especially during temperature extremes, uh, severely hot, severely cold. Um th those are kind of trigger points for us to put messages out to the to the community um and and get information to the community that there's buildings in town, public facilities, whether we designate them
officially as a personal care site or just as a facility that's open for normal operations as places that they can go to get to get warm, to cool down, to charge devices, and things of that nature. Um I'll let Mr. Bert comment a little bit further on the April 26th event.
Yeah. I mean, so I I I think relative to any of these um any one of these outages, they're all sort of handled a little bit differently with respect to um like my interactions with the at the local like emergency manager for example. So if we have a if a if a large
scale event rolls through um let's look at like July 4th. So we had this part of the Cape. We were fortunate. So I live in Brewster. Um we didn't quite have the problem. We had the upper part of the Cape, but Falmouth, Bourne, um, Plymouth, poor like Marian, that area,
they were out for like the entire all of Fourth of July. So, we had a line of thunderstorms come through when we notice that it's going to be a an extensive amount of damage across a wide area, the level and of response from us in our communication with with like our
emergency managers changes drastically, right? So generally um on a smaller situation where it's maybe one town, I I have the chief's number, he has my number, he knows to reach out, I know to reach out to him if we see something pop up. Um if I had seen on that particular day like, oh, you know, you do have a
large percentage out and I'm hearing from our operations crew that it's going to be a while, of course, I would relay that information to him and say, hey, you're looking at probably six plus hours. So, you know, so prepare for that. So, if that means if that means the chief has to go to the the direction of uh you know a local cooling center or
warming center or having something open for people to charge their cell phones, we would of course relay that information. Generally, if it's if it's something that operations is telling me, no, this is we've got crews on we've got crews on the way. It's going to be relatively quick fix or probably looking at an hour or two. I relay that
information to the chief and and I think most of the time those things are accurate and and power comes back up in a timely fashion. Um, and I think our messaging, similar to what the chief was saying, is very much along the same lines, um, as town's messaging, which is, you know, there is a level of
responsibility to the consumer um, to make sure that they're prepared going into these, you know, going into anything into whether it's a blue sky day or a storm event of being prepared, making sure always, you know, making sure your cell phone's charged up. You never know where when you're going to be someplace where you, you know, you're
like my kids, their cell phones are constantly at 5%. I'm getting notifications on my kids cell phone. your kids, you know, Gavin's cell phones 5%. That's like, okay, I'm always telling something. Keep your keep your phone charged. You know, there is a level of responsibility to that. And we we do put out that kind of messaging going into events like have your, you
know, have cash on hand, have make sure your your devices are charged, have a place to go, have, you know, have loved ones to check on. All of those messagings that you get, we do a similar thing on our end. Um, and I think we do a pretty good job working with our emergency management folks throughout our territory um, on coordinating those
messages and making sure we're getting them out together um, because we have to kind of support what goes on at the local level. So, thank you. Um, Elaine, did you have a question or two about that? Yeah, I do because I don't understand the answer. I I appreciate that all that
was going on behind the scenes, but I I and I'm not saying we needed robocalls or anything else. Number one, all our phones were charged. We could use our phones, so we did that. But we weren't getting any information. People need their phones. It doesn't have to be a matter of life and death. People have
to pick up their kids at school. People have to work from home. People have to um make doctor's appointments or cancel them or whatever. There's a million things that people need their phones for. It's just common courtesy when you when we have this whole team of
people know that there's an outage and twothirds of the town is out to simply go on Facebook. We see pictures of coyotes on the on the town of Chadam website all the time. You can just put a statement. It would have taken two minutes. We're out of power. We're working on it. It's going to be a couple
hours. No problem. Instead, we were going where are you? You know, and somebody would say Stage Harbor, West Chadam, North Chadam, River Bay. That's ridiculous. We shouldn't have to do that. Okay. So, I I'm not feeling very confident right now that I'm going to get anywhere on this. But it's we are the users.
We're the customers. We were out of power. We've lost power for 5 days at times. So, there was no way for us to know how long this was going to last. We have to make plans. So, I would just ask that if we have a power outage of
twothirds of the town that you just write a little note on Facebook and the town website. We checked those. There was nothing there. So, we didn't know because when we were looking at the maps, they were not updated. I I would just say duly noted for future reference. Okay.
Okay. Stuart, this was also yours. You had endorsed Elaine. So, did you have any comment on the communication issue? Yeah, if you if you got a minute. Um, thank you uh Elaine for bringing this forward and um it's an important issue. you know, we're we're we're in the midst
of hurricane season and uh shortly we'll be in the midst of easterly season and um we're going to get power outages and um I think part of our responsibility here is to ensure that we have good communication with the public. Um,
so if I could ask um, uh, the town manager, Jill, what is the communication like in this particular CA instance or a case like this? What is our town policy
on getting information like that out? Do we I don't know what it is. Uh, do you does it come from town hall? Does it come from emergency management? Does it come from the police? I'm not sure where it's a coord we have Sean and Neilie here our
communications manager but it's a coordinated effort if if there again first of all reporting the outage to Eversource where we're getting updates just like we would do on our personal accounts we do the same reporting on our town accounts and it's a coordinated
effort who working with the two chiefs actually um if there's a report uh that there's is an outage we monitor it. There's no there's no policy that says any outage lasting more than five minutes needs to be placed on social
media. So, um certainly can take note of that, but in this instance, the outage was less than an hour. And again, the most important thing a resident can do is report the outage to Eversource so that they get signed up for the outage reports and the status that it's
repaired. Um, if there's if that's the director of the board, you want me to direct our staff to use social media to report every outage, we're never going to get every outage. It just is a matter of our coordination
efforts with emergency management and those of us who live in town who get the reports that say that that power is expected to be restored in an hour. I'm not really sure that's something that needs to be on social media, but if that's what the board wants us to do, we can direct our manager to do it.
Well, in this particular case, and I I I share your question, uh I don't know what that threshold is. Um I I think I'm I'm not sure it's a policy statement from this board. It's I think it's an operational issue on the on your part.
Um, and whatever that whatever your instructions and guidelines are to staff, then you know that that should take place. Um, I think it wouldn't hurt to have some general guidelines on when these notifications can be made and when
they can't or when we're going to do it, when we're not, who's going to do it? I still not clear on um uh the communications position and the emergency management folks.
I like to know who I'm dealing with. You know, part of the problem with as we grow our bureaucracy here, it we can we can trip over ourselves sometimes. And um I think a valid point is you know there were twothirds of the folks that
were out of power in the community and we um they certainly didn't know how long the power was going to be out. I don't know Justin did we know at some particular point how long that power would be out on the 26. Do you remember? Um I I was actually off Cape that day
myself but I was monitoring it with staff back home. Yeah. Um, I had basically the same information that anybody from the public could get from Eversource. That estimated time of restoration was under two hours. Um, that's not what they told us, but So,
it just seems like um to me that if we could improve communications on um on when we have these types of of emergencies or quasi emergencies, I think it's I think it would be helpful probably helpful to the to the public.
Um, I don't know. I'm, you know, I've worked here and now I'm here and I still don't know who's responsible for that. Um, um, so, uh, I guess I'll I'll leave it to some other board members for questions or comments, but, um, you
know, I think it's a I think it's a learning experience. Okay. Uh, we could if we can do a better job, um, let's do it. And it seems to me that we at a minimum should have some standards and guidelines as to okay, if there's
two/3s of the public that's out of power, we're going to put out a broadcast. If it's a third, we're not. I use that as an example, but you know, it could be whatever. Um, but I think that that would be helpful. I I think it would be helpful for the public and and
everyone to know who's responsible for what. appreciate the team approach, but ultimately somebody has to be responsible for making the decision to on what information is going to go out and what information is going is not going to go out. Seems to me emergency
management should be making that decision. I don't know if that's the current arrangement. Um um you know, so anyway, those are some of my brief thoughts. Well, my my comment would be that the town manager just heard this. I think
she should and will work with her staff with the director of emergency management and develop some internal protocol that's reasonably based. I just would leave that to him. I'm I have my eye on the clock. I'm sorry, but I have a limited availability of town council for some
other matters. Um I know Elaine I did you have I know you had a couple of other items that you wanted to talk about. The other one was the bigger issue. Yeah, the personal care sites and Try and read fast. No, I that's fine. Go ahead. Go ahead. I'm sorry. And and if we need more time,
we'll we'll resume it, but I I don't know. What are you want me to do it now or? Let's do it. I I mean I can all lot another 10 minutes because we want to take public comment. It'll be under 10. Yeah. I mean in totalitis. Go ahead. I think we can all agree that the primary responsibility of local
government is public health and safety. Only government is equipped to do some things that we cannot. My request was to have an update on plans in place for the hurricane season and winter storms and have a temporary emergency warming station at the community center open overnight until dawn in the event of a
major storm and cold weather. I believe you have the local authority to do that. Mass General Laws uh chapter 44 section 31 allows municipalities to incur debt and expend funds to address emergency needs, including threats to the health and safety of persons or property. to
utilize its power, a municipality can declare a local state of emergency by a majority of the board of selectmen. Uh that article that uh 4431 defines an emergency as a disaster including but not limited to flood, drought, fire,
hurricane, earthquake, storm or other catastrophe, whether natural or otherwise, extreme cold and potential for hypothermia or other health issues would fall under this definition justifying a temporary emergency warming station. The county doesn't make a
decision as to when or even if regional shelters will open until 4 p.m. Too late for a major storm that started or imminent. We shouldn't be at the mercy of their last minute decisions. If the storm or outage is restricted to Chattam, none of the regional shelters
may open. It's not in the best interest of the Chattam Police and fire manpower and vehicles potentially needed here to drive individuals to Cape Cod seven miles away, assuming it's even open in the dead of night in a blizzard when residents are told to be prepared to
stay for a minimum of three days in a shelter. TAM residents realistically are not going to get into public transportation at night um in those weather conditions as an alternative. I am responding to what was in the packet in the four-page memo. We want to remain
in our town to be able to assess our property damage after a storm and do repairs in daylight hours. We shouldn't have to make a choice between the two. Taxpayers have spent significant money for the permanent community center generator and yet the do doors are
locked usually by 9:00 with the light and heat on. Not everyone in Chattam has the luxury of a personal generator or money for a hotel room for a family for days. Even if the town does have a partnership with area hotels who may or may not have power themselves. When we
lose power and all communication with no internet, no cell phone service, and no landlines, which has occurred countless times in Chadam. We can't communicate with anyone, even if our phones are fully charged, let alone call neighbors or 911 as we've been instructed to do.
At AT&T is notorious for cell loss. The entire purpose of establishing emergency plans in advance should be to keep the plan simple with minimal requirements, variables, and roadblocks and notify the C customers, Chattam residents uh before
we lose power. We're not going to get the memo after. I take exception to the abdication of town's responsibility lecturing us in the final paragraph in that memo. Quote, "It's essential to continue to emphasize the need for personal accountability, self-preparedness, and supporting
friends, family, and neighbors who may not be able to fully support themselves. The public should be prepared to be self-sufficient for up to 72 hours uh following an emergency event," unquote. That could mean spending three or more nights in a house with no light or heat
in sub-zero temperature. And that happened several years ago. We were out for five days. The town transferring accountability and responsibility for neighbors very survival to people who are also in danger and required to be self-sufficient for three days. I don't
think it's acceptable. That shouldn't occur under any circumstance as an actual plan in the United States or Massachusetts, let alone Chadam in 2025. Translated, it means we the residents are on our own. The personal account
accountability and self-sufficient quote sounds like a town liability disclaimer in the event of accident or injury as a result. Not everyone has full-time neighbors or friends and family in town in the dead of winter. We're not children. We're not inconsiderate. We're
not uninformed and we're not noviceses when it comes to storms as that clearly implied to me. We have to learn to be resourceful. We have had to learn to be resourceful and prepared through countless outages and do what we can in an emergency to help our neighbors. But town resources should be there if
needed. Residents expect a higher level of accountability, responsibility, and respect from the town. It's ironic that the community center, police and fire departments, town hall, DPW, the annex, the council on aging, and the harbor master's office all have generators and
heat and light that we paid for, and not one is open overnight for residents for our use in an emergency. I said it's kind of like those people in The Walking Dead, you know, we're all outside banging on the door asking you to open it. To be clear, this isn't a request for a
permanent warming station or local emergency shelter. It's a request to simply unlock the door for a temporary overnight place to go during a local potentially life-threatening declared emergency. We're not in a major metropolitan area and we're not potential vandals or criminals. So that
in terms of having a police force because that's what the cities do. And if we can be expected by the town to survive in pitch black with no heat for three or more days, we can certainly survive in a warm-heated building with light until dawn without food or a bed for less than eight hours. So, my
recommendations are gail one EMT and one police officer to the community center who was on duty anyway. Ask for a few volunteers and pay them. It can be funded by one of the town managers accounts. People can be instructed to bring their own snacks and water if you
want. You can have them sign a document releasing the town from liability if that's what you're afraid of. State and county rules have no penalties defined for opening a local temporary emergency overnight warming station during a local declared emergency. Chadam can set an
example for other towns facing the same challenges because they are. We never know when the shelters are going to open. The deadly consequences of the the camp storms in Texas should be a wake-up call to every community in the United States. local governments deflecting the
blame to their own citizens, the county or the state for the rules and regulations in place and the lack of local preparation and life-threatening situations doesn't work anymore as an excuse and should not be the status quo. The responsibility rests with each town
whose towns have different unique circumstances and needs. Chattam is an outpost often with weather and power outages that no one else on the Cape gets, which determines whether or not shelters open. We should assume we're on our own with no help coming and no reasonable
alternative. It's simple common sense to open an already heated building. We should know it in it's uh we should know it's an option if needed to so that people would know ahead of time if even one person shows up it's worth it. The financial cost is minimal particularly
in light of how much taxpayers are asked to spend on far less uh town projects. regional shelters that may not even open should not be the only option. One size doesn't fit all. And to conclude, my test of determining the right thing to do in a situation is to question how it
would look to the world if you've been asked repeatedly to simply keep one building open for refuge and refused and someone was seriously hurt or died from darkness and cold when we had a simple alternative right here in Chadam and should have known better. Multiple
layers of bureaucratic red tape should not be an excuse or get in the way of logic and doing the right thing. Thank you. Thank you. Um Chief Tabana, did you want to respond? Uh did you want to make some comments this time or Yeah, sure. I'll uh try to keep it brief. I I know there isn't for the benefit of
the public. There is an extensive memo that you prepared you and Mark Mr. Heler. It's in the file. Sure. Um yeah, in regards to the personal care sites and shelters, um the the town of Chadam, Barnesville County, uh we we follow and take the guidance
from the Commonwealth and from the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency for MIMA. They've they have a very comprehensive uh mass care and statewide shelter coordination plan. Um within that plan, the recommendation specifically for Barnstable County is
that the most preferred method of overnight sheltering is the regional approach. Um sharing resources, um consolidating areas where uh volunteers and staff can can go and do the the greatest good for the greatest
number of people is the most preferred method across the state. Um so that that's what we follow and that's where we have developed within our comprehensive emergency management plan our our local plans for personal care sites and sheltering. Just as a matter
of review, a personal care site is typically what people refer uh think of when they're when they're referring to a warming center, a cooling center, a charging center. Um it's it's designed to be temporary in nature uh predetermined hours um with closure
times. those personal care sites in fact inform the decision makers um locally and across the the county and across the state of the greater need for overnight shelters. Um so if there's not many people attending personal care sites
that in theory the decision makers make the determination there's really not a great need for overnight shelters either. Um, our sheltering and personal care site plan has not changed since the last update I provided in December of 2022. Um, that presentation is still on
our website. Um, it's not meant to be a live document. It's just was our the presentation at the time to to update what is still the majority of the board except for Mr. Smith. Um, that information is all still relevant. We have not had a a significant enough
storm since 2021 to warrant the need to open a regional shelter across all of Barnesville County. That previous storm in 2021, um the at the time Cape Cod Tech Technical High School, which is our primary uh regional shelter at this point, was not fully operational. Um
they were still under construction and finalizing construction there. Um, so at that point, Naset Regional High School was the the the primary regional shelter for this area. From Haritch to Ptown, there were fewer attendee uh residents that that showed up at the shelter than
there were uh staff and volunteers. Um, less than a dozen people showed up and that was um, you know, as Miss Gibbs mentioned, that was the storm that was three to four days that we were without power and in freezing temperatures. Um,
we're sympathetic to the needs. Um, we're sympathetic to the fact that there's folks in the community that might have a more difficult time getting out of town into another shelter. We have never left anybody behind. Um, during during severe weather events, um,
when regional shelters open, um, as my my colleague from the Barnesville County Emergency Management always, uh, refers to a shelter as a lifeboat. It's designed to help keep you alive the same way that a hospital in an emergency room is designed to help keep you alive. Um, it's not meant to be comfortable. It's
meant to give you a place to go. They have cotss for you to put your head down. Um, but an overnight shelter by definition is a place that is required to have kitchen facilities, dormatory facilities, um, accommodations for hygiene,
accommodations for pets. um we we just we simply don't have the capacity to offer that right now locally. That is our plan. Um that is that will be our plan for the foreseeable future. That does not mean we don't continue to review plans um and look at opportunities for growth in the future.
Um, but right now we haven't had a significant storm since that last plan was developed to test it against. And as I mentioned before, that is that is taking the guidance of the people that their their profession is to look at sheltering and provide training um for
for people who staff shelters and they have the guidance they that that they give us here in Barnesville County is that the regional shelter is the appropriate approach. Thank you. Uh, I was going to ask does does um your deputy have any comment on this or or does No, I I'm sorry. I I had Mark come
tonight. Um, I don't think he has any comments, but um I I brought Mark with me tonight. I I did want to introduce him. U Mark has been on staff uh with the town of Chadam for a couple decades, but I started in his new role as deputy director back in August of 2024.
Stuart, did you again this was an item you had endorsed. Did you have any comment on this particular issue? I I did. Um, okay. I'm I'm not sure that we're going to finish this in the time allotted that that I didn't realize it was going to be such a short amount of time. I know Mr.
Talerman is busy, but um Well, it seems like the shelter issue. Um I think it's something we might want Well, then I I think I'm going to suspend. I know. Um Mr. Bird, I assume you can't stay. I'm not sure this is relevant to what you We have a long
agenda item. Elaine, if you have an immediate question. I just have one. Yeah, it's a hypothetical. Okay. Okay. So, what happens if uh we lose our power because we do it and nobody else does. We lose our power and it's late at
night and it's 20 below and they determine they're not opening any shelters and people will have to stay in their house where they can get hypothermia. Would you unlock the door? to the No, no shelters. No shelters on the Cape
were open. We're out of power. There are people, a fair number of people that are in their homes in the dark. Do you know how dark a house is when there's no light? It's really dark. I do. I've I've lost my power. It's very dark and it's very dangerous and you can get hypothermia. So, my
point being if the shelters don't open because they've done that before, you know, no, we don't have enough people or we don't have this or there's there's just no need. But Chattam is out and we have a building with heat and light and our only alternative is to stay in our house. Would you unlock the door? I
can't answer that definitively right here. What I can say is that as I mentioned before, we have not left anybody behind. There have been occasions where we've brought people into the fire station. We've brought people into the police station till we can find them safe refuge. Um, as as indicated in my staff report, we have
we've we've developed partners uh partnerships with area hotels for the isolated incidents where people have situations in their home that have become unsafe. Typically, and generally speaking, um, when power goes out in the middle of the night, even if it's very cold out, if you leave your doors and
windows closed, it's going to retain heat for a portion of time. I had a lot of friends, it got down to 35 in their house. It's very Not all houses are really well insulated. It was Mr. I'm wondering I'm I I'm I'm I'm floored by this. I am absolutely floored that the idea that
I've already said you can declare a local emergency and then all that other stuff, all those rules and stuff, you don't have to have showers, you don't give them water and you you should have an EMT there on site. I I I I guess I'm shocked, but it's good it's good to know
that we will be on our own. that in this small town, we are on our own in the event that we lose power and even though the lights and heat are on in all of the public buildings. With with with all due respect, I think you're taking my statement a little bit out of context. What what I'm asking is
that if if anybody, whether it's a medical event, uh uh an unsafe situation in their property, you call 911 if you feel as though there's an emergency. And we have staff that are trained and here and professional in this town that will help you find the need the help that you
need. With that, I'm I'm going to I'm sorry. I'm talking about perfectly healthy people that need to charge their phones and just want to stay warm, not medical emergencies. And we can't call 911 if we don't have cell phones. All right. We've been at on this one for a half hour. Okay.
Okay. And I just want to ask, do are your comments long or uh Well, they they could be involved. But I think it would be helpful to have bring this up at another meeting. Hope I we needed I need more time to to to
flush out um the the shelter issue. The sheltering is an issue. It's been an issue. It's been an issue. It was discussed by the former police fire chief too. Yeah. With with similar comment. Well, I don't think this is a chief issue. No, I understand that. We've had we had
the conversation. Miss Gibbs has brought this before us previously. I'm going to ask a question. Are there any public comments on this topic tonight? These two items. I'm seeing none in the audience. Any online? I see none. I'm happy to since you would
like to have this extended to another date. I'm happy to do that. We'll do that. Thank you all. Thank you, Mr. Bird, for coming. Thank you, Elaine. Thank you, Chief. Thank you. Thank you, Deputy Heler. Appreciate that. Okay. Welcome back, Mark.
The next item on the agenda um are um two items that were requested, one by a citizen and one by um board member Smith. Um I'll read what they are. The first is
this is item 5B 5C. discuss legal issues with respect to affordable housing regarding range of action available to zoning board of appeals, the planning board and select board under Massachusetts general laws chapter 40B. This was u requested by Chadam resident
Rick Levit. This the next one uh item 5D is a discussion on policy directive for the main street and meeting house road affordable housing trust developments to provide guidance to the zoning board of appeals. This was requested by our clerk Steuart Smith. These two items are
interconnected and we will take them up together. Let me explain why they are on the agenda. Mr. Levit's item C followed several requests from him to place his alternative proposal regarding Main Street on the select board agenda, which I repeatedly declined given that
consideration of project alternatives are the province of the zoning board of appeals and not the select board. Only when he narrowed his request to consideration of the legal roles of the zoning board of appeals, the planning board and the son and the select board
in a 40B did I agree. For that agenda item, I have asked town council to give us a brief overview of the 40B process as it relates to these three boards, particularly in situations where a land disposition agreement has been approved and signed by the select board. I
believe this discussion will be instructive for everyone. Board member Smith's item D for a discussion regarding policy directive to the zoning board of appeals has been placed on the agenda pursuant to select board policy that as a general rule
requires items requested by a select board member be placed on the agenda within one month. While the chair has some limited discretion under that policy, I am not going to silence a fellow select board member, especially one who has joined us only recently and did not have the opportunity to
participate in the select board proceedings involving the Main Street and Meeting House Road projects. I view both this I view both this item and Mr. Levit's item as a discussion on process and I intend to keep it that way. Town council will also be available for
advice during item D, including discussion of the scope of the select board's existing rights and obligations under the land disposition agreement. As for public comments, this is a disc this is a discussion on process and speakers are asked to confine their
remarks to that. No comments will be accepted concerning the merits or the particulars of either the Main Street or the Meeting House Road projects, whether pro or con. Those applications are exclusively before the zoning board of appeals. Anyone wishing to make comment
on such merits or particulars are is respectfully requested to take to take them before the zoning board of appeals. They will not be heard here. Also, select board policy limits public comments to five minutes in total per
speaker and that will be enforced. The town manager will be keeping track of time. Nonetheless, in the interest of time, I would encourage speakers to confine the remarks to three minutes if possible. I am sorry if anyone might differ with these protocols, but the
select board by unanimous votes has committed itself to two land disposition agreements and these constitute contractual obligations which govern the select board's responsibility and regard to the matters currently pending before the town. Now I will begin with item C.
I will call on our town council, Mr. Talaman, and then I will ask Mr. Levit for his comments. Jay, can you give us um a brief understanding of the 40B process as it relates to the three boards in particular that Mr. Levit has
asked about? Absolutely, Dean. Um let me see if I can um encapsulate this. 40B is a um long-standing statute that has um changed a little bit over the years in the way it's been implemented. I think
starting with the basics, the concept behind 40B is to centralize all permitting in one board in order to expedite permitting of affordable housing. That board is the zoning board of appeals. So to the extent that there's any other local board that had
would have had jurisdiction over a particular project in a matter arising under a local bylaw or local process, the zoning board will step into the shoes of that board, whether it's the planning board, conservation,
health, select board, sewer, water, and they will assume their jurisdiction. So, it really is kind of one-stop shopping, at least in the general sense. That said, the select board does have a role. They have a general role and then here
with respect to these projects, they have um an additional role in that they are sponsors of these projects because they're on municipal property. I'll take those both up um in in in um uh in
series. So in terms of the select board, their role is generally confined to before the the time at which an actual application for a comprehensive permit is filed. If it was a traditional adversarial or non municipal sponsored
40B project, the select board would be notified both before submission of an application for project eligibility to a state subsidizing agency and then during that process. And they would have the opportunity to comment or to collect
comments from other boards and committees and submit them to the project eligibility um issuing agency. That process can be robust. It almost always results in an approval by the subsidizing agency. But
very often the select board can use its authority to gain certain concessions from the subsidizing agency in terms of what will be reviewed at the zoning board of appeals. In instances where the select board is a
partial sponsor of a project as it is here and as it is in other types of programs administered by the state. Then the select board has a slightly larger role in that they essentially will sign on to a development concept and in this
case sign an actual development agreement in that it involves municipal land. that gives a slightly larger role and a larger edge for the select board to have a real impact on what a project looks like and the
process that will unfold before the zoning of a board of appeals. That happened here and the select board and the affordable housing trust worked for a long time to develop concepts and submitted requests for proposals and exercised their authority to help shape
a project that they felt would be acceptable on these parcels. They did that and then they executed an agreement with the applicant after that process. And under that agreement are certain obligations that we're going to we can
get into in a little bit. But in a sense that select board role was all front-loaded. Once the subsidizing agency then issues eligibility which happened here then the project can go before the zoning board
of appeals and the zoning board of appeals more or less takes it from there. However, the 40B process does include the opportunity for any local board that might otherwise have an opinion on a project to provide
recommendations before the zoning board of appeals. That could be the select board in the normal circumstances, although the select board here frontloaded most of that stuff and then built in their recommendations into the LDAS that govern this project. The
planning board, the conservation commission, the highway department, police department, fire department, any other municipal agency that wants to chime in on this project is encouraged to do so through the 40B process. And the way they do that is to provide
either direct testimony or written comments or reports to the zoning board of appeals. And because the zoning board of appeals is wearing so many hats, they are often glad for that input from these boards, none of that is binding on the
zoning board of appeals, but it's all important information for them to consider. So in this instance, the question has been posed with respect to the planning board that might otherwise have an opportunity to re review these projects if it hadn't been for the 40B's
processes and procedures. So, if the planning board wants to comment to the zoning board of appeals, they absolutely should. They can be um supportive comments. They can suggest changes. Again, nothing binding, but
given their expertise and their usual role in town, the zoning board appreciates those comments and any other comment. Now, once the zoning board has a project, it is theirs. As I suggested at the beginning, it is theirs to
receive the uh project presentation, to receive comments from the public and other boards, to retain peer review, which is happening now. And after that peer review and all of that information is collected, while the hearing is still
open, the zoning board of appeals has authority to ask the applicant at a certain point, and this is baked into the 40B regulations as well as the guidelines administered by the state. At that point, which the zoning board is
essentially coming up to, we're about twothirds of the way through the hearing. they can suggest to an applicant, hey, we'd like to see some changes. In fact, in the process, in the one project that has already been before the zoning board for a few hearings, the
zoning board has already suggested that there might be some project changes if the applicant could live with them and the applicant has made some of those changes. If there are bigger ticket items such as the request for modifications that Mr. Levit or anyone
else might suggest, including the members of the zoning board of appeals, the zoning board of appeals will have an opportunity at that point to say to the applicant, "Hey, we'd like to see this. We'd like to see you reduce the height, reduce the number of units, increase the
height, increase the number of units, change the access around, change the landscaping around. Can you live with that?" That negotiation, that process is enshrined in 40B and it is encouraged. We're not quite there yet at a more
wholesome process, but the applicant and the zoning board will have an opportunity to weigh those things within the context of a public hearing. When they do that, if the applicant suggests that they can't do any of those changes
that the zoning board would like them to do, and if they the applicant suggests they can't do it because it would render the project unfeasible from an economic perspective or a financing perspective, then the zoning board has an opportunity to test that premise. if they are
insistent on that and that's all baked into the regulations administered by the state that apply to the zoning board under this process. Again, we're not there at this point. I know that at least in one of the projects, the the project proponent has suggested that
they have minimal ability to um take on some of the suggested changes, but we're really not at the point where we would test that process. that's all out there in front of us. I've been giving advice and counsel to the zoning board. I've given a training to them. I've attended
every hearing. I intend to uh attend every hearing. But that's the process we have before them. So with respect to item C, the the kind of um suggestion as to where are we and what are the various roles and responsibilities, that's how
it more or less shakes out. I think there's a lot still to be written about the process in this particular project. I think Mr. Levit and many other people have made comments procon or just basic suggestions on this. The zoning board is
compiling all those comments, making notes of that, and at a at a point in the process, they're going to have to draft a decision or make suggestions on whether or not this project should be approved just as it is, whether it should be denied or whether or not it
should be conditioned um in a way that uh fits with the zoning board's goals. I off I often caution towns who I represent under 40B that the track record for denying projects under 40B is not good. So we generally work on
it in on projects in a way that we can approve them with conditions that an applicant can live by. That's not to say the zoning board doesn't have the authority to deny a project. It's just that it's difficult to sustain a denial because the the burdens of proof are
flipped. Normal zoning, all of the difference goes to the zoning board of appeals. 40B zoning, all of the difference goes to the um the 40B applicant and the the bandwidth to say no to a project or to condition it into
oblivion, so to speak, is very slim. So, that's the process before us. Lot still to do. um the the zoning board and their chair are deliberately going through this process and then just starting it in the other projects. So, we have a still a lot of um runway left in front
of us on on all of that here. Thank you. I have I hope that answers that. I have two questions and I'll ask other board members if they have questions. Appropo of um a situation where an applicant is unhappy with what the zoning board has concluded, they they
can appeal to a state body. Is that correct? Is that how that works? They would appeal to Yeah. to the Housing Appeals Committee, which is an administrative agency within the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, which is the former THC.
They conduct what we would call a 30A hearing. It would be an evidentiary hearing. Again, the towns can fight there if they if they um uh but the track record is that in over 90% of
those appeals, the developer ends up in a more favorable position than the zoning board does in in that kind of battle. They are essentially an agency charged with applying the difference that's to be applied to affordable housing projects. My second question is
you talked extensively about the the role of the zoning board and also the planning board and you touched on the select board. I know that item D coming up and I'm going to turn to my colleague Mr. Smith at at one point to pursue that
but um um I guess I really wanted to since Mr. Lev did ask this question. What is the authority of the select board um visa v the zoning board of appeals in a situation such as we have
pending where an LDA has been approved having in mind that historically in connection with the two projects that are currently uh before the zoning board of appeals we had um two members of this board who when the time uh for recommendation
came uh and the decision was made by the town manager two members of of the current board supported the recommendation of the town manager and two members did not. But subsequently to that uh we were presented a land disposition agreement and uh I I can
speak for myself. I was one of the members who who did not support the town manager's recommendation but I did support the land dispos disposition agreement because I felt at that point um my responsibility was to look out for the best interests of the town once the decision had been made. So, we have a
situ that situation um in both applications. Um and I I I assume an individual member of the select board can go before the zoning board and offer his or her comments. Um I'm assuming that this from what you said that the
select board as a board could offer a communication. I'm not proposing that we we do. I am totally opposed to the select board intervening in any regulatory application for any board in this town and I get very nervous when we have the
board of health here for example and I think some of the comments uh intrude upon uh the regulatory process but that doesn't say it's not that it's illegal to do that. So if you could touch on that I would appreciate it. Yeah certainly. Let me there's a few
issues to unpack there. Um Dean the the first is that any single member acting as an individual not as in their official capacity as a select board in this in this particular project is certainly free or in any particular project is certainly free to go before
the board that is hearing the matter and express their own personal opinion. We always recommend to avoid the appearance um that they're speaking on behalf of their board that they say I'm speaking as an individual. But they no one loses that right. That's a first amendment
right and everyone has it. The board of select of selectman or the select board is in a slightly different posture in this particular matter. Normally, as you suggest, they don't lose the right to speak as a board before another permit granting authority, especially the
permit granting authority that they appoint. They might be a little shy about giving an opinion, but they're not procluded from doing so. The situation is a little different here because it it's involving municipal land and a municipal partnership, and we have a
signed agreement. under that signed agreement, the select board is bound as a body contractually to support the project as presented. Now, that doesn't mean that the the select board um can't review changes to see if it's consistent
with the project, but by and large, this this select board is contractually bound and is subject to the penalties of breaching those obligations if they were to not support the project. Now, they can sit silent um and they could speak
individually as I've suggested, but the select board here is contractually bound um to uh provide support for the project. They don't have to affirmatively do that and gush over the project at the zoning board of appeals, but they can't issue a comment without
breaching the contract. That would show a lack of support for the project. That's under the contracts that we've executed with Penrose and those are pretty typical of any LDA. We do LDAs in a lot of towns and that is a pretty typical requirement um in in these types
of contracts. Okay. Thank you. Are there any questions or comments from my fellow board members? Mr. Dykins. Yeah, thank you Mr. Chairman. Um, so, so Jay, uh, just to be really clear with respect to a discussion on policy director for the Main Street Meeting House Road affordable housing trust
developments. Jeff, can I because that's the second item and I I we're going to get into I want to be I want it to be real clear to everybody that as a select board, we don't have standing to change direction at all. We have signed an LDA
that is binding um on us. Is that a fair statement, an accurate statement, Jay? It it is a binding contract. And in that binding and in that binding contract, we are we are asked to support the initiatives that are described in
that land development agreement. There there is an obligation to support which the select board has done to date. Yes. And and if we were not to support, we would be in breach of the agreement. Um it could be construed as a breach. Correct. Thank you very much. Are there any other
comments from the board? Corey, just just to follow up taking a broader approach to this, not just a specific project. So, because obviously these these projects are, you know, we haven't seen many of these projects in town for a long time.
So, you know, this was a new big project for us. But moving forward, if we have a bigger project from a select board's perspective, our greatest window of opportunity to to weigh in is just prior to an L if LDA is
required. It is just prior. Once we before that pro point in time, we have every opportunity as a as a board committee, as a group to to weigh in. But once we've come to the conclusion to sign or not sign an LDA
committing to the LDA, signing it, endorsing it, we basically have turned over our portion or our we have stopped our kind of um review of the committee and passed it on to the next entity which was in in our case the zoning
board of appeals. Is that kind of a correct view of Well, it it Yeah, Corey, it it is a correct view. If if every single project was going to be exactly like like this project that involved municipal property and municipal cooperation on the
affordable housing side, we have other projects in towns where the select boards have an initial show of support. It might not be on municipal land, but there's an initial show of support to jumpstart a project and to help it get before the zoning board of appeals where
the select board might not be as committed as it is in a more formal LDA concept. So we there no two agreements are the same here. There was a kind of a it became part of the process a necessary part of the process to have a
slightly tighter LDA. There may be other projects in town, including affordable housing projects, that the select board wants to endorse, but they may hold a few cards back in case there are changes to the project or I've been involved in
projects where at the time the select board endorsed it, there hadn't been an investigation of say an environmental issue. So, the select board might carve out some ability to backtrack a little bit. That's not the process here. Every
agreement, every situation is a little bit different. This is pretty typical, this LDA is pretty typical of a more complex negotiation and process. But there are other shades of gray and different kinds of contracts. But if you were confronted with a similar situation
as this, almost every single developer is going to look for that municipal support through that kind of clause that we have in this LDA. All right. Thank you. Um, Shireen, did you have something? And just to reiterate, to be clear, in the LDA, it does say that the select
board will cooperate and support the Penrose project. Correct. Okay. Thank you. Um, Rick Lev, did this was your request, so you're welcome to come to the podium. And thank you, Mr. Chairman. I'm Rick Levit.
I had a very simple request and this is quite complicated but I and I think Jay you've you've answered my my question but I'm going to ask it again. Can a ZBA set valid and reasonable local need conditions
on a developer's 40B permit application for an affordable housing development that do not make the development uneconomic and do not change the number of dwelling units?
So the the answer to that is yes, but there's ramifications to that. So, a board has the authority, a zoning board has the authority to impose conditions on a project. And if they
if they do so, they usually engage in some kind of dialogue with the applicant as to whether or not it would make it in the applicant's eyes uneconomic. The applicant may disagree with that. If the zoning board imposes a slate of
conditions and one of them in particular provides grounds for the developer or causes the developer to appeal to the housing appeals committee, then the developer's first obligation, their first initial burden of proof at
that body, and it it takes a while, is to demonstrate that that condition is going to render the project uneconomic. If they're successful in that regard, then the burden switches to the zoning board to determine that well,
regardless of whether or not it renders it uneconomic, there's a valid public health safety reason for imposing that condition. Now, two comments there. The towns have um not an awesome track record in
determining that uh or in beating back an argument by a developer that a concern condition rendered it renders it uneconomic. That's because and I'm going to be a little jaded here because I represent a lot of towns that have lost
a lot of 40b cases. The math they use for determining economic uneconomic is not particularly friendly or intuitive to municipalities. The second thing that I think is
important to realize is that if a developer really is only concerned about one condition, if they're going to spend the time at the housing appeals committee appealing uh the condition that's most egregious, sometimes it's a
reduction in units. Sometimes it can be other things that cost them a lot of money. They're likely going to appeal a whole host of conditions that the zoning board imposes. When we draft 40B permits, there's 30 40 conditions and
our concern sometimes is that we lose some of the benefit of some of those other more peripheral conditions. So, a developer is largely going to go to the housing appeals committee with the attitude of in for a dime, in for a dollar when it comes to a um uh
challenging conditions imposed. So, we're always a little mindful of what we're getting into. And if if we impose 30 conditions and they're really great, we think they're really great, the developers really dissatisfied with one
of them, we have to weigh the benefit of that one versus the benefit of the other 29 conditions. So, it can be a little bit of a dance there. I know that's a roundabout way of answering your question. So, but I hope it was helpful.
Well, yes. No, it wasn't roundabout. I It's typical of an attorney, wouldn't it? So, I'm just going to reiterate what you said. The ZBA can set valid and reasonable
local need conditions, emphasizing local need conditions on a developer's 40B permit application for an affordable housing development that do not make the development uneconomic
and do not change the number of dwelling units. Is that correct? with the exception of the the last part. Certainly not changing the number of units is could be a significant factor
because that that's kind of where the rubber hits the road, the density of these projects. But there could be other types of conditions that upset the apple cart that are very costly to a developer. We most frequently see battles over
reductions in density, but that's not the only battles we see where developer suggests that the conditions are uneconomic. But your point is well taken. Yes, the zoning board does have authority and pretty broad authority to impose
conditions. I just want to reiterate the track record for defending those conditions if the developer disagrees is not awesome. It's not that we don't have some successes there. It's just that the chances of success in defending a
condition that the developers dead set against is um a difficult burden. Well, thank you very much. I appreciate your comments. I just want to note that even though the timer says five minutes, you are not subject to that that time limitation
because you are the requesttor of this item. So, if you had more questions or comments, I'd be happy to enter. No, I do have question or I do have comments uh on the item D. Okay, we we'll we'll get to that one. But I just I just want to ask one
question. My comments don't relate to the meeting house road or the or the main street. My comments about item D relate to the future policy of this board with respect
to affordable housing. Are you open to comments about that tonight or do you want Well, I depending on how you frame them, uh, yeah, when we get to that, all right, certainly I'll entertain your your comment. Um,
I before I get to Stuart's item D, um, I guess I wanted to ask to get a sense of whether I'll defer public comment till the conclusion of both or are there other, pardon me, already George Myers. Yes. Are there any Let me
just before I get to him, are there any in the room here who are going to have comments on item C? I see one. Two. I just see two. Are there any online? Just one. That's three. Okay. Um
Okay. We'll we'll take the we'll take the public comments now on item C. And um I'm gonna Carolyn Mlen first. Carolyn Mlullen, South Cadam. And yeah, I just had a question for the attorney and make sure my understanding is
accurate. Um, you did mention that like 90% of the towns fail when they appeal. Um and my understanding is that in the case of an appeal, the state would be looking at one of the big things that the state would be
looking at would be our current SHI in the last 10 15 years of progress that we've made to um increasing that SHI and specifically in our regards we're very low and we've built almost nothing. So that would be weigh heavily in their
decision probably not to support us appealing the um current proposal. Is that accurate? Caroline, would you just explain what SHI is for? Uh subsidizing subsidized housing inventory. So we're at I think 4.9% and
we've built only 10 in 12 years. Right. So they don't really look to progress that you've made in the last 10 years unless you have made enough progress to meet what we call some of the safe harbors where you make interim
progress. If you are under 10% it's just they don't even look at it really. It's just you're subject to 40b. They don't consider how much you're under. You could be at 9.9% or 1%. If you're under,
it's just a benchmark at which you're subjected to 40B and there's no further consideration of that by the housing appeals committee. You could have made fabulous progress and have a number of projects in the pipeline and with some
exceptions on some minor standards, it's not really going to be relevant. They're gonna check a box that says you're under 10% or under any of the other safe harbors and then they're going to move on to the rest of the hearing that's
before them. Okay. So, to your knowledge, anybody any town that's um that was in that 10% that maybe won an appeal, were they under the um 10% shi? I mean, we've we've won a few appeals
here and there, more on technicalities than on the merits. So, but if you're there at the Housing Appeals Committee, it's because you're under 10%. If you deny a project because and you're over 10%, then the housing appeals committee doesn't have any right
jurisdiction. So, all those projects under 10%. Yeah. All right. Thank you. That's my question. Thank you. Thank you, Caroline. Sir, are you okay? Thank you. Um, and no one else in the room, Mr. Mr. Meyers. Um, you're
online. Yes, George Myers, Venice, Florida. Uh, thank you, Mr. Chairman. Uh, I just want to clar clarify something about the uh the uh the land development agreement, I guess it's called. Um it's my
understanding from what u town council said is that the there is no positive obligation on the part of the select board to support every uh request for a waiver or every
opposition to a condition that a developer makes. Is that is that correct? don't have standing. What what I would say is the select board doesn't have to chime in at numerous points in the zoning board
process to reassert its support for the project. What the select board cannot do as a matter of contract is show any lack of support or recommend things that are not supportive of the developers design
before the zoning board of appeals. So the select board can sit idly by if they want or they could express continued support, but they cannot enter into the zoning board sphere and suggest in any
way directly or indirectly in my opinion a lack of support for the project proposed by Penrose. Okay, I understand that. So, a majority of the board could uh refuse to
uh provide any additional support to the Well, I think it's a little bit more than that, George. If a if a member in the minority of the select board chose to go individually to the board and was making comments in their official capacity, that could be
viewed as vi violative of the agreement. If they did so individually because they individually had a project, a problem with the project and stated to the zoning board, these are my individual comments and not my comments as a select board. I don't think anyone could
deprive them of that first amendment right. I understand that. That was my next question. Yeah. Thank you. Well, I have one one other and I have another question here. Yes, you have two minutes and 38 seconds.
Okay. What one of my concerns is the scope of the uh I guess it's a test of this outweighing the need for affordable housing that appears in virtually all the decisions and uh
I'm concerned that when you're dealing with a particular condition condition for example if a ZBS sets a condition for some sort of recognized local concern uh on a 40B application uh some concern that doesn't make the
project uneconomic as Mr. Levit said u it doesn't change the number of units. In fact, it can reduce the the number of buildings on the project for example. Uh it doesn't represent a complete redesign of the project. How does a developer
argue that the need for affordable housing outweighs that condition? Well, so there's a few things there. Um George the the first is that it's not the developer's burden to do that. It
would be the town's burden. The burden switches there to the town to demonstrate that the local concern that underlies the condition in an instance where it does render the project e e uneconomic. It's the town's burden to make that
demonstration and the developer is just playing defense there. But they would they could offer comments as to why that burn that bar is very high for a town and it's been eclipsed a relatively modest number of times over the 56 years
that the statute has been around. Well, you mean the bar of uneconomic? No, no, the bar for uneconomic is a different question. If the developer doesn't prove their burden that a condition renders it uneconomic, then
the town wins. period. They don't have to take the next step. It's only where the developer does demonstrate that a condition renders a project uneconomic that the town then the burden shifts to the town to then demonstrate that the um
uh the condition is necessary to secure public health and safety. Okay. So the key is uneconomic. Well, it's the key. Yes, it is a threshold determination. again handful of cases over
56 years that even come close to giving a town a leg up there. And and again I it's not because of math as we know it. There are certain presumptions that are afforded to the developers
under 40B that um make it slightly more easy for them to demonstrate that conditions render a project uneconomic. Okay. Thank you. Thank you, George. Five
minutes have expired. Yes, sir. We're talking about C now. Item C. Brian Phillips, 374 Leans Road. Um what happens if stuff comes up that the select board was not aware of while they were signing the uh land disclosure act
stuff like uh national security uh environmental things or you know public safety uh things that come up that's like new information are they then allowed to uh change their stance or support a different thing
is that Jay yeah I think under under this agreement the select boards um obligations for support are a little bit more binary. I think the select board also had an opportunity to do more due diligence than they might normally
do. There are requirements in some of these agreements that it that a project still complies with other issues of law, state codes and everything else. But assuming that they're not breaking any other laws, then the the select board
here under this particular agreement are bound to support. Again, I I've been involved as I mentioned before when um to Mr. Meadows that there are different kinds of agreements where the select board support might be more tentative
going in where we might reserve the right to withdraw that support. here it's a much more complex set of agreements that had a bigger leadup where the select board had an opportunity um to review things and so the the the
generic um show of support that's required under this agreement is pretty all uh inclusive. So even if they realize it's a bad idea for reasons they didn't know before they signed it, they still have to support it. Well, their support was limited to
doing what they've already done. What they can't do at that instance, if if something comes up that is new information that they don't like, is that they can't now go critique it. They don't have to continue to support it affirmatively before the board. But what
they're not allowed to do under the existing contracts is to go before the board and pan it and suggest that the board take action or or change the project or deny the project. That's precluded by the existing contract.
And what are the penalties for doing that? I'm not, you know, as a lawyer, I'm not going to get into potential liability or a discussion of that. That's something that I would share with the select board in executive session, but it could be significant.
Okay. Thank you. No other public comments I see. Okay. I'm going to turn to Stuart's item item D. And you had introduced this Stuart. This has to again just discussion on policy director from Main Street and Meeting House Road affordable housing trust developments to
provide guidance to the zoning board of appeals. Mr. Tom does not have any presentation on this, but he's here if we have any questions. Sure. So, um, thank you, uh, Jay for that explanation of the complicated process.
You I'm sorry, Stuart. You have to Thank you, Jay, for that explanation on the 40B uh process um and what has taken place uh and what this board has agreed to in the past. Um,
I I would like to put forward a motion for consideration, but uh I'm not interested in um breaching a contract. Uh I I've I've got those
agreements. Um they're very lengthy. I've only gotten halfway through them. Um so what I'd like to do is make the motion. I think it I think it complies or takes into consideration your concerns and then you can tell me
whether uh you know my motion um uh might uh interfere with the ZBA more than you're comfortable with. Is that okay with you? Yes. Okay.
So, I'm going to I'll I had to write this down because it's uh I know it is a some ways, you know, it's a delicate subject. Um and uh we've had some considerable change on the affordable housing trust um as a result, I think,
of these projects. Um so, uh once again, I'm the newbie, so you tell me if uh I'm out of bounds, and then we'll debate that. Uh, I move the select board vote to encourage the zoning board of appeals to consider the concerns and impacts
that the affordable housing trust housing projects proposed for Main Street uh, West Cadam and Meeting House Road in South Chattam um, and any future projects uh, on the neighborhoods and
the commu community at large. The select the select board is responsible for appointing um most all me is that the motion and then what or yeah yes it is but go ahead continue with your I assume this is argument in favor of the motion.
Yeah and yes uh the select board uh is responsible for appointing most all regulatory boards and commissions as well as advisory committees. Uh that's contained in part 33 3-2 of the town charter. Further, the select board
serves as the chief policymaking agency of the town. Bear with me, my printer broke. In this leadership role, it is essential that the select board provide input to the various boards, commissions, and
committees on various issues facing our community and the neighborhoods. This policy statement is provided for guidance and not instructional. It is vital in the in the development of
our good of of good public policy setting and the continuation of the town's housing initiatives that we as a community get these housing programs uh correct or we risk losing community
support for these future projects. So, you tell me if I've slipped off the road. Okay. Before we entertain a second, what happened to Jay? I'm sorry. I I had to switch over devices. I apologize for that.
So, Jay, you heard the motion. Um before I entertain a second, C can you um opine as to whether this is something that the select board could vote on or not? Well, the I mean the select board can
vote on whatever they want to in terms of impact to its contractual obligations given the pendency of a hearing and given the fact that the concerns raised are known concerns and I'm not putting them in a category of valuable or
invaluable concerns. I would be concerned that Penrose could view a statement to the zoning board of appeals to consider concerns as being close to the edge if not going over the
edge in terms of the obligations for support in that we have a pending project and a pending obligation even though the motion is not instructional or directive of any sort. Yeah. and and I and Stuart, in fairness,
I think the motion was well crafted and was was smartly done and and I appreciate it. My role as council in in issues like this is to heir on the side of a conservative opinion and and again I we could get into in an executive
session litigation and how it works and what the risks and liabilities are, but when there's a concern over potential liability, I'm duty bound to take kind of a a conservative stance when I'm
giving an opinion. And you know, we could lay this out, but my concern is that it would seem too clever by half if we are echoing in a way or seem to be echoing in a way concerns that veer from
the project that uh has been presented by Penrose. Okay. Thank you. Um I'm going to take the prerogative of not entertaining the motion. I know it hasn't been seconded. Um, it may the
motion uh may reflect sentiment that some of us share. Uh, but I am concerned about putting the town in legal jeopardy. So, um, I'm effectively
not not recognizing it. Um, Stuart, do you have any more comment on this? a question. I guess it's more procedural. Um, well, I think I've never seen that take. I I'm Let me Let me No, go ahead. Let me finish.
My uh my feelings about these two projects as well as a a lot of folks in the community um are not positive. And my hope was to to uh help the zoning
board uh give them support um in a way that didn't jeopardize um you know any agreements that a previous board um has had made. Um, so but
wouldn't it be more proper for me to consider uh withdrawing my proposal as opposed to you not recognizing it? If I would prefer that if that's what you're inclined to do. I don't know if anyone intended to second this. I I don't either. That's that's kind of
a different issue on the process. I'm trying to understand it because I'd never heard of that where well I I think I as chair have have a responsibility and the authority to not accept a motion if I think it presents a risk of legal jeopardy to the town and
that's the basis on which we don't have any parliamentary rules right we don't and that was I had some conversation with town council about this over the weekend and he suggested I did have this authority he's welcome to weigh in but um yeah I would prefer it if if it were
were withdrawn. I would s suggest as a reality if it were offered given what I said earlier. I mean I'm personally don't favor sending a letter to any board saying hi we're the select board signed select board. That's just where I come from philosophically even though we have the authority to do it. But
yeah and you know good people can disagree. I I don't agree I don't agree with that. We have a leadership role to play in in the town of Chadam. have the clear policy uh directives under the charter. Um so I I
I I couldn't you know I don't agree with that. Now that doesn't mean that we use that responsibility and authority more often than we should. Um but there are certain cases there are certain uh issues facing the community that um I
think it's going to be vital. This one is extremely complex. uh you know I I won't comment on how the town got themselves involved in such a process but that will come later and um uh I think that um I I I think that this is
going to um you know I hope it doesn't jeopardize uh uh future good constructive projects. This the these two aren't aren't any of them. Um so I don't agree with the uh that you have that authority. Um I I think the proper
process would be uh nobody to second it and then it wouldn't move forward. Um but saying that uh but hearing what Mr. Talaman has said um I will uh I'll I'll withdraw the motion. Thank you. Mr. Matters has something to
say. I have a question procedural question. So, I mean, I'm struggling with this because I feel by signing and endorsing the LDA that's, you know, I'm bound to moving forward. You know, my position on the projects or whatever and I I'm, you
know, but moving forward, if the ZBA for whatever reason were to directly cor uh communicate to the select board that they wish to have a comment made, where does that put us in that situation? That's a good question for Mr. Challen. Yeah. So, the ZBA initiates a
conversation back to this board for on a project. Yes. Where do where do we stand? I'll put that question to him in a second. I thank you, Stuart, for withdrawing that. I I do want to say one thing. If anyone in town wants to know where each member of this board, except for Stuart, because you weren't here at
the time, stood on these projects and which which proposal to recommend. They they can go to the video archive. I think the meeting was in January. I could be wrong. I think we expressed ourselves and um I guess I don't want to
say anything more than that. Um but Jay in response to Corey's question, do you have a a comment? If the zoning board were to ask for the opinion of or comment from the select board on any question that they're
that's in front of them. Well, well, there's the generic sense in this in this project. They're two very different things. If if this if we didn't have an LDA here, then I think the select board would be free to
comment whether asked or not asked by the zoning board of appeals. I do respect the position that you take, Dean, that suggests like, hey, we appoint this board to do their job, so we're not going to weigh in that much. But there could be processes and projects where you have a stake in it
where you're not otherwise contractually bound not to comment. So I think that in concept it's totally fine and in some instances could be actually really helpful to the zoning board of appeals if you had a vested interest in the
outcome. here. I would say if they ask you for a comment and you wanted to give a comment, I think you'd be free to provided that it doesn't run a foul of your obligations under the LDA to support the project.
Okay. Did you have something? No. Okay. Not yet. Any other comments from the board? Stuart, did you have anything further? No. Any comments from the public? Mr. Mr. Taylor. Mr. Chairman, members of the board, Seth
Taylor, Taylor Lane, the thing that has jumped out to me is we had a decision that was made by a majority of the board of selectman that we no longer have a majority of the board of select to support, but they have no choice but to support it. I would bring a question of simple common
sense before the board. Penrose is in the business of doing building developments amongst towns. They are going to not be keen on making
the town of Chadam distinctly unhappy with them over one project. I think if we trust the ZBA to bring reasonable conditions that closely mirror what our local
zoning laws allow without putting a hyper ownorous pinch on Penrose that Penrose in their own interests will try to accommodate those requests because otherwise they shoot the goose that lays
the golden eggs and the likelihood of them getting another development project in Chattam become a lot less. I think it's that simple. You're stuck. You can't do anything. Not this board's responsibility, but the last board had a
majority that put you in it. You're going to have to eat it and move on and hope that the ZBA does the responsible thing, which I trust they will. And I think Penrose is wanting to do um more more work with town. uh which clearly we're going to be in the business of
more affordable housing and they're going to be in the business of doing more developing. I don't think they're going to want to make us uh unfriendly towards them. That's all I have to say. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, Mr. Taylor. Any uh other public comment on this? Carolyn Mlullen.
Chadam, I just want to just make a general statement about uh the need for affordable housing and the support that the town's had over the years because we have had we have been building support in this town over the last five, six, seven years. We had have overwhelming
support at town meetings. We've gotten supermajority votes to support our housing initiatives. So, there is a lot of support in the town for housing. There's a a horrible need for housing in the town. That hasn't changed. We seem to lose sight of that because we're caught up on the details. And as you
know, I didn't this was not my first choice. Penrose wasn't. I wanted another developer. But that other developer had uh their buildings were 35 ft high. They had the exact same layout. We would be having these same conversations with another developer. And these conversations are the conversations that
every single town has when they do any kind of significant affordable housing. It's always density, height, and parking. That's it. It's it's just a growing pain in this process. It's not going to be as bad as everybody thinks it's going to be. The level of fear is
accelerating people's ideas of what how horrible this is going to be. It's going to be a great thing for the community. And once it's built, Carolyn, you're getting into the pros and cons of this particular But housing is a real issue and we can't lose sight of that. Okay. And we support in the town. Thank you,
Mr. Levit. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Rick Levit, Carolyn, you know, I have great respect for you. U I'm a staunch supporter of affordable housing and always have been. what's being proposed occasionally.
I'll take it back because I don't I'm not going to get into a discussion of meeting house road or main street. I look forward to a robust
extensive study by the select board to develop policy, long-term policy for affordable housing development in Chadam that we can support.
And that's probably a uh a an agenda item request, but I'll leave it up to someone on the board to make I think Miss Davis has a comment. Thank you, Rick. I appreciate that. Thank Thank you. Um in light of um Mr.
Levit's comment about a policy. I do want to remind everybody um how we got here um in the process. And I think Caroline did uh speak to the need. Um if you remember back in the early 2000s,
the comprehensive plan spoke for the importance of looking for opportunities for affordable housing and that we meet our goals. Um the 10% goals that was uh 22 years ago easily. When I came on the
board at 2018, um we started to have more robust conversations about it. Um, we've I mean the the community housing partnership was once the affordable housing uh committee and they did their due diligence in starting to do public outreach and understand uh where the
community was coming from. They there were surveys um um lots lots of activity with that group. uh this board itself in 2018 put together in 2019 put together the Chattam 365 uh task force that
looked at all the issues impacting the um the ability to live and thrive in Chattam and housing was one of the issues that came up at that. I think um I can step back to 2012, the first housing production plan. I think it went through to 2014
uh and was adopted. And then again, we took another look at um a housing needs assessment um just most recently to uh survey and to decide um you know where's the town's direction and how to inform the community and how to inform the
select board. That led to another housing production plan. And in the process of getting forward to these particular projects, we did um there was um community engagement pro uh um that happened uh for a good year and a half
uh surveys um meetings in this room, public public meetings in this room, open houses um at every step of the way. the the public has had the the opportunity and we've heard uh the opport we've heard from um the public
and we're hearing a lot of um uncertainty and and negativity about these particular two projects. I don't want to get into that. I'm getting I'm still talking about process and timeline. Um but the bottom line is the
the the public has had um opportunity to input in many different occasions leading up to our RFP process, the select board and the affordable housing trust and the LDA and the awarding. And
so we've done we have listened to the uh community and to suggest that we haven't is um is a conversation for another day I think. But uh I I'm I'm just laying out the groundwork of what I've heard, what we've done, the work we've done.
We've laid out framework along the way for the last several years. And here we are. We're going to have our first two um affordable housing projects and we should be proud of that. We are way behind other communities and we need to
uh we need to move forward. My only comment and response is that when we have situations where the affordable housing trust or the staff has put before the select board
a document that we're asked to sign that the select board be given ample opportunity to review it, discuss it, and offer edits. I'll just make that as a general comment.
The other piece to this um Dean is that we are bound by statute by the state the h the affordable housing statute and our own statute. So we are we are doing you know as a select board and affordable I'm speaking as a member of the affordable housing trust. We are doing our due diligence
and our and our obligation to the community in that. Yes. I appreciate that and I know this is the first time out for the town on this so we're learning through this process. Um, Miss Mr. Levit, I'll let you go first and then we have two other speakers and I'm hoping we can Well, I
guess there are three. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Rick Levit. U, I don't dispute what the previous speaker just said, but I do want to point out
that uh, voter dissatisfaction stems from a number of legitimate issues. have that have been ignored by the trust board. Well, Rick, I think we're getting a little beyond the agenda item. Did Did you
statement was made that the public had ample opportunity to speak out? For example, Well, I again, I think you're you're getting a little too far a field. If you have if you have something you you want the board to consider as an agenda item
request, then you can feel free to come forward and make one. Sure, we'll do that. Thank you. Thank you. Um Yes, sir. in the red sweater, I guess. Please identify yourself and uh thank you. Yeah, David Farrell.
Excuse me one second. Can you start the clock again at five mark? I can assure you I'll be under. I just want to be fair here. Go ahead. Yes, sir. David Ferrell, 2355 Main Street. Um, I'm
going to keep it to process. Um, I've looked at the dis the land disposition agreements. Um, it's disposing of land doesn't mean that you can build the skyscrapers on either of them.
Um, and as a matter of fact, I don't see um section 40B mentioned in either of those documents. Maybe it's incorporated by reference, but uh more importantly
um looking at section 4D1 um of both of these documents, I don't understand why you're tiptoeing around the possibility that Penrose is going to
have its toes stepped on. this contract and I know about contracts and you've signed it and I know about enforcable contracts but this section 4 D1 has some outs.
Remember it says approximately nine structures for the Buckley property, approximately eight structures for meeting house road with maximums.
Earlier, a year ago or so, it was referenced in the uh um affordable housing trust committee that that then presented a math problem. Um there wasn't a need to go to the
maximum. And in these clauses, it says subject to final approval by the zoning board of appeals. I'm not sure where the appeal of this
contract goes to some housing trust. I I I don't know enough about it yet. But the parties agree that the proposed plans are conceptual and that there may be some revisions
there too. Okay. Did you have something else? I'm sorry, sir. Go ahead. I was wondering if maybe town council would I think he's he might still be available at seven o'clock. Jay, did you want to respond? Uh, you know, getting a little
close to the particulars of the project, but I understand your point, sir. You're asking whether there these LDAs allow for some flexibility for the town to get out of the agreement or somehow Jay. Well, yeah. And and um thanks Dean. I
think it could be read a couple of different ways, but it doesn't change the fact that we're bound to support their project. I think in some respects Penrose could read that clause. So, first of all, you have to read all the clauses together and harmonize them. That's a rule of statutory construction.
So you would have to read it along the um along with the provision that were required to support their project. That provision could be read to say, "Hey, you got some flexibility Penrose to design." Drop. As long as they're working within those
parameters. Am I there still, Dean? Yeah, you are. Hello. You're here. Okay. So, yes. So, I what I'm what I was saying is as long as they're as long as
Penrose is working within the parameters set forth in the agreement, we're bound to support. So, I think there's a a reading of that language that is more in favor of Penrose's flexibility than ours. It als the language also suggested to me
that this matter is to be decided by the board of appeals. There's only board of appeals. Okay. Thank you. Um Brian and then Mr. Myers and then I think we've had all the public comment. Yes. After. Okay. Sure. Brian Phillips 374 Orleans Road. I guess
my issue is you guys at select board are being asked to follow the rules by a company that has been known to break the rules. Uh I got the statement and then the email chain. Uh, ah, come on. They got in trouble for preferential treatment and they had to get pulled out. They had to pull out of
Orleans for I don't know if Ryan, this is illegal or I'm in charge behavior. Sorry, Ryan. I'm in charge here. I'm not going to allow that comment, those comments. We've heard them before and they're really not germaine to the topic. I just wanted to make sure the board is aware of the inappropriate behavior of Penrose.
That's your opinion. All right. Thank you, Mr. Myers. Uh, yes. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, I had several u um policy uh issues that I wanted to talk, but I'll narrow that down to two if that's okay. Uh one of
the policy issues I think needs to be done is to set some sort of a density policy for future RFPs of the H affordable housing trust that will preclude excessive density in any kind of any future 40B project. I was uh
surprised at the July 17 ZBA meeting when Pinrose, Mr. Adams said that the town of Chadam had the goal of maximum density. I do not believe that's the goal of Chadam. Uh the the second
uh policy suggestion I would have is that uh well it wasn't clear to me how much vetting the housing trust or other town officials did on uh developers who submitted main street meeting house pro uh proposals.
uh but I think a policy of a very thorough and detailed vetting of developers apart from what they submit in their proposals is needed. And one reason for that would be that uh if that
was done, we would have discovered uh the much lower densities and uh lower uh parking ratios that were in all of Pinrose's projects. So those are the only points I wanted to make. Thank you.
Thank you. Any more comments from the public? I see none in person and none on the screen. So there's a Oh, Stuart, I'm sorry. You you had some followup. Yeah, I just had a I guess they're questions and a comment. The the um the contract land management agreement they
make um for the Buckley property, former Buckley property and Meeting House Road. Are they on the town's website? I believe they are. Yes, they're on the housing page on the town's website. Okay. And um is chapter 44 section 55C
uh there uh with the contracts? I know I'd have to look on my phone right now. Well, it's it's it you know that chapter it's the chapter that was supplied in our packet. Uh it's a cup is statute. Yes, I think I think it is.
Well, we'll put it on the website if Yeah, if we could put that and also that's one of the general laws. It is. And um I think it's important because uh uh you know I I f I think I'm fairly well informed and um I I I think
the town I think the town's people would be shocked at the contract and this uh this statute. The other thing I'd like posted on the town's website is which was in our packet is uh uh chapter 10 of the bylaws. Um, I know it may change
with the attorney general's decision here, but I think Oh, that's the um constitution of the affordable housing trust. Yeah, the 10-5 affordable housing trust fund. Uh, uh, that was yesterday was the first time I've seen this. Uh, it's an
extraordinary bylaw and I encourage people to read it and um, that is already on the website as as part of the general bylaws. I I understand that, but I think it I think it's clearer to people if it's with the contract, with the land management agreement, the statute, and the bylaw
alto together, they they'll develop a clearer picture. I know I did when it was provided in my packet that um you you begin to understand how we got here. Okay. Thank you. All right. Thank you. Okay. So, much as
uh it might shock people to hear this, I appreciate Mr. Levit and Clerk Smith bringing this forward because I think it's been educational for the entire town. Okay, I'm going to go back to an item on the agenda on wells and water
and we had deferred this is Mr. Phley's monthly report to us as water and sewer commissioners. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Rob Philly, director of public works. I will briefly
go through my monthly presentation that appearing. Okay. In the public hearing will this wasn't a public hearing. You mean so this is the water uh supply update for the month of July 2025. Chadam's wells have been pumping 10 to 20 hours
per day. The water tanks have hit the low alarm level twice uh during the month on both the 18th and the 30th. Is that uh coming in? Okay. Sorry. Training field wells five and eight. the
permanent treatment facility. Uh building construction continues to be the focus. Um the fascia and sophets are being installed. Uh roof work is ongoing. Uh translucent panels are in. Sprinkler systems about 60% complete. Uh and you can see some of the door
overhang work in the pictures. Um and some of the piping that's located down in where the uh the gak filters are located. Sorry about the format here. um Mil Pond Wells 10 and 11. Um so the
Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs wanted some additional information. We provided that. Um and we're still waiting for them to return the signed conservation restriction progress. Uh so for water sampling, uh things of
note, uh one sample on Forest Beach Road did come back positive for total caulifform. Uh it was negative for E.coli. We repeated the samples and they showed no detect. Um the good news for POS for well four um it was a 2.08 it
showed uh parts per trillion in January that's showing no detect currently and uh on the good front too with um system maintenance uh our contract with Violence. now uh we're into it for the first full year and we are piggybacking
on some of their procurement contracts and they've saved us over $50,000 to date. So that's just for uh chemicals and uh and treatment of those things of that nature. So that's been a good relationship so far. This is the 20 July 2025 compared to
July 24 pumping comparison. Uh pumping generally the same as last year. Um we weren't it's a little concerning because we weren't facing a water conservation measures last year. Um but it's been so dry uh residents are likely uh taking
matters into their own hands, so to speak, to uh to have a green lawn. So we haven't seen direct evidence of people watering more than twice a week, but um I would I would anticipate that is probably happening on some level. Rob. Yes.
Excuse me. Yes. This this seems to be the ongoing issue is, you know, I'm driving down the road and obviously, you know, the town's watering the, you know, residents are watering the streets and stuff. How are
we getting messages? I know we have like our website, we've got social media, and we've got all kinds of things. How much more can we do to get um people to comply?
It's a great question. I I I just it's beside, you know, I I I I just I don't want to go knock on my neighbor and say, "Oh, by the way, don't be washing your fence off because we have a you know, I'm not doing that to my neighbor as a select board member. If I was a person that wasn't a SLE word
member, I might go next door and and say something. But I don't feel that that's really what I should be doing. I should be trying to figure out what kind of education we can put together to get people to comply more because we this is serious stuff.
Yeah. I mean, we put reminders uh on social media. Um we have the message the sandwich boards out in town. Um, you know, it's just it's people don't want to be kind of pestered by frequent messages, so we try to time it appropriately.
Um, yeah, I wish I had a better answer. I think with our some of our AI solutions that we are looking towards, we'll be able to cross-ch checkck between who has irrigation versus who is using town water and they may not versus 2024.
Look at the 4th of July. We used 1,310,300 300 gallons fewer than we used last year on the 4th of July. On the 7th of July, I don't remember what the weather was
like. We used 1.2 million gallons fewer than last year. So, there's some conservation taking place. There is, but is it significant enough, I guess, is the question. I'll I'll show that in a later slide. So July may be very similar to July of last year, but for overall for this year,
we're about 10 million gallons less than last year. So that is that's substantial. Okay. All right. Fair enough. If I might on the 4th of July, folks are at the parade for three or four hours. You'll see the use go way up on five, fifth, and sixth, and then down again on 7th when people leave. So I kind of got
fourth of July understood, at least in my P brain. Okay. Go ahead, Rob. Uh so this is uh pumping graphs similar information. Uh it's showing uh the hot pink again is July 25 showing a little bit more consistent. You can see the
dark blue is July of last year. It's much more volatile. It's up and down quite a bit especially around the 4th of July. So there's the same information in a bar chart. It's basically just showing the the same fluctuations a little bit more consistent with the with the pink which
is July of this past year of uh last month sorry. So this just shows the monthly uh pumping uh the level of effort for each well on a daily basis. Uh the minimum pumping day we had was 1.8 million gallons. The maximum was 3.2 and as you
noted uh July 4th last year was over four million gallons. That was a very heavy day. Okay. So, we we maxed out at 3.2 million gallons. Our average was 2.6 million gallons. And again, that's without the the benefit of wells 5, 8, and 10 contributing.
Uh again, pumping graph showing the level of effort uh in a more comparison role on a bar chart. And here's the uh good news that I mentioned before. So, we're about 10 million gallons lower than last year overall. Uh, here's year-to- date pumping graph.
Nothing noteworthy there to bring up. And here's our unmetered water usage uh for July. uh significance that other known use that was um we were flushing our oxidation basin at the Morton road treatment plant that used 300,000 gallons. Uh but everything else has been
scaled back for the summer. Again, that same information in a bar chart form. Um the the green in flushing and blowoffs is the uh in April is the highest one for hydrant flushing. Now, the five-year comparison,
um, other than the 2022 anomaly, we're pretty consistent with the past three of the past four years. Uh, we're very close to average. Um, basically 81 82 million gallons uh, for the month of July. And now we get into our USGS
observation. well report. So the seasonal decline continues. Um we are online pretty close with 2022 slightly better than 2021 but you can see we're worse off for the past two years. This is Chadam which tends to be
a little bit more uh fluctuates a little bit more with uh rainfall. And then Brewster which is more of the bell weather of um water levels on Cape Cod or especially the lower Cape. Um we are substantially worse than the past uh
than three of the past four years. We're pretty close in 2022. Uh slightly worse, but you can see the last two years we're substantially lower than we should be. And here's the latest information. Um we have been elevated once again from or
downgraded, however you want to look at it. Uh we were a level one drought last year. um office of energy and environmental affairs upgraded us to a level two uh significant drought. Um I still feel that we should stay the course with two days uh a week allowing
watering two days a week. Uh hopefully with um the fall season coming with uh hurricane season and some more hopefully more regular wet weather, we'll uh slowly climb out of this drought. But it's been an ongoing issue for a number of years now. We only want those hurricanes that
are out in the ocean, but give us a little rain. Uh, any questions or comments? No, I'm just going to make a comment that the Commerce Park Lake has been dry. Yeah. For several, you know, it it's been dry. So, and that's a big tell on how much
water we've gotten. Yeah. Yeah. Until the next rainfall. Until the next rainfall. So, I keep harping on the same issue, but Mill Pond Wells 10 and 11 pumping and treatment update. you know, when we get permission for 10, are we ready to turn the spigot on and we're ready to
go? We'll have to do some flushing and test it because it hasn't been run. So, uh you know, we've run it for testing initially, but before we enter it into the public water supply, we'll have to test it and flush it. The question for Jill, I guess, uh we're waiting for the sign conservation restriction back from Energy and
Environmental Affairs. Have we reached out to them? Have our representatives reached out to them? Have we twisted arms? Have we made calls? This is taking way too long and we're in a drought and we need the water. So, can someone please call the state and loosen this restriction up and let's get this going.
We got to do this, guys. Yes. So, right, we're at a forward trajectory trajectory and I I expect that we'll get approval any day now. So, they had required some more information from us which we provided. So, I think we're in a good place. Jill.
Okay. I made personal heard the same response honestly for months. Um I think right now where we're at is is at the the the end line. I had stalked the person directly. We had many conversations. Some of the information was needed from the town which we
provided. I understand your frustration. I'm right there with you. But I am very hopeful. I think we we we are there. They do. They understand we're in a drought. They understand that. that they understand that they're holding up a drinking water well that we're in dire need of. They totally understand that.
If you would have asked me like three months ago, I'm not sure I would have been so emphatic, but today I I'm I'm very hopeful. I I have we called I mean I I'll call Hadley. We we got to we got to get this done. Anyway, I'll be quiet, but this is extremely frustrating knowing that we have dire need for water.
And Mr. chair, if I may. So, they scr scrutinized every piece of the conservation uh easement. They've even looked at they needed proof um certified proof that the select board can vote as water and sewer commissioners. So, there's a lot of little pieces that that
wasn't part of the original conservation easement that we have to follow up with and make sure they get that information. Steuart noise. The is it too late to make an agenda request? Uh no. Uh so, Blackboard Rem can do that anytime.
Um, this this conversation reminded me of conversations that I had with some folks and uh, Shireen kind of just reminded me because I I was told that there was water in the uh, you know, lake, whatever we want to call it in
Commerce Park um, a few days ago and so um, and it you're right, it hasn't rained. Um I would can we get it on the agenda at some point to get an update on that situation in Commerce Park? I know it's a private road and um you guys have
spoken about it before, but I I um I had some thoughts about about it. Okay. Yeah, we'll uh not in a month. No, that's fine. Fortunately, when uh it was um previously discussed, I was home with CO and I was reacting horribly to watching what my some of my colleagues
were saying about Commerce Park. We'll do that. Thank you. It's received. Yes. In the presentation to ESRA, they did mention the timing for doing Commerce Park. So, I it was a few years out. So, I I think you want to re maybe want to revisit that that timetable is what we're asking.
Yes. You mean the sewer project? sewer project that was already Farmers Park was in on when the whole sewer plan was presented to ESRACK. It's just it was quite a ways out. Okay. Even though we have sewer going down ostensibly down 137, etc.
So Kathy has noted Stuart's request. Uh this uh um water water report typically comes at a portion of the meeting where we do entertain any public comment. If there's any public comment, yes, Gloria,
I'm sorry I said Gloria. It's not Gloria. It is Gloria. I'm sorry. Too many Gloria isn't home. Gloria Hicks, Meeting House Road. One of the Glorious. Yeah, sorry. Um, I keep hearing and we have the same conversation every year about how dire
our water situation is. If it's that dire, then why aren't we including wells in this discussion? It is time for us to address the well situation. Water is water. I realize some of it is treated, some of it isn't. But we we don't have
that luxury anymore. I lost three wellestablished aberites two years ago. And then I'm driving by. I drove on Pawn View today and I see, you know, 1:00 in the afternoon, somebody with a gorgeous lawn with a sprinkler going up in the air. It's time to address this well
situation and including it in the water restriction because most of us don't have the luxury of having a well and it's water and and it's getting worse. Our summers now aren't two weeks of heat. They're now two months of heat. So, I would like I don't know if you want to put it on the agenda item to
bring it up. We've talked about this before, but it's a real problem. Are you making an agenda item request? Several of us have item request. Several of us have wills. Yes. All right. We'll we'll it's an agenda item request. I'll entertain it.
I'll make a decision on it. Yes. Hannah Smith. Uh Hannah Smith, North Road. Um I do agree with that too for a number of reasons. Um but that's not what I was going to say. But yeah, wells definitely need to be regulated by the town. Um but
anyway, further something else for the future. Um so this is kind of for Rob. Um a lot of people that I've talked to have been concerned over their recent water bills. Um
mine was sent um it was last read on July 7th, I believe. So it was from April 7th to July 7th. Um the new rates went into effect on July 1st. So, you have a six-day overlap there. Um, my bill was very high, was much higher than
I was expecting. When you do the math, it appears that it was charged higher than it was supposed to be. And then everyone that I've spoken to has been in the same situation. So, I'm just wondering if Rob can go over the rate structure like which because I know you
had talked about some overlap for June. Um, but it just it seems like when I've called the water department, I've gotten the answer that, you know, because the rates were supposed to be increased on July 1st
that it would apply to April, June, and July or April, May, and June. Um, but I don't understand how you can be charged a higher rate for water that you've already used. Rob,
thank you. So, I did see Hannah after one of the previous meetings and I confirmed with the um with our our billing office, you know, our um admin that um because we are a threemonth rolling uh period that
that first summer bill that hits on beginning of July is for the previous three months. So that upgrade in the water rates, the higher water rates would apply for the previous three months as well.
Well, that's what I got too. Okay. I don't know if that answers your question, but I I'm sure you're not happy about it. Well, it answers my question, but I think, you know, I think something needs to be said. I don't know if it's a you know addressing it in the future but you
know if you watch back that meeting when when it was talked about you know how far back are we going to be you know these it's it's going into effect July 1st there was the talk of some retroactivity for June but there was nothing that was
mentioned for April and May so I'm just wondering you know if the select board voted on something you know you guys voted on these rates being increased, but you were told that maybe some retroactivity for June, but then if the case ends up
being that it was also for April and May, then you know, how does that work? I just I mean not to make this you know cuz I'm definitely no lawyer but um it just doesn't really seem I don't even know if appropriate is the right word
but it doesn't really seem and I'm big on saving water and everything you know whatever but I don't think it's appropriate for people to be charged for water for a rate that they didn't even know about because this was voted on when we were
what 95% of the way through this billing cycle and now just because some you know cuz a six day difference and then you get charged that much more. It's just doesn't really seem right. I don't remember the full conversation
but I guess I will suggest that the DPW confer with town council and see if there's any legal issue there. I think I understand your point. Okay. Thank you. I don't recall it being brought up before, but yeah, we'll we will concern uh yeah, confer with
I know there was a there was a strong push coming from the water and sewer committee to get the rates in. They had special meetings. Stuart, did you have something? Sure. Uh Rob, do you recall what that maybe you already answered it, but do you recall that vote? Did did we say we
were going to go back retroactively to June, but we and then we did April and May as well? I I don't recall. I don't think it was that specific. I don't think it was either. I I think we just sort of assumed this is the first quarter whenever you're hit with the bill, you were going to get the higher rate. Yeah. I mean, I don't think it I don't
think it requires town council. I think it just requires a simple review of the tape and minutes and and so we we tried to have the rates increased uh basically around the first of the year and it just went back and forth with different committees and different so it got delayed quite a bit
and and that entire time we were losing revenue. So the the water fund was kind of bleeding itself dry in the meantime. So yeah. No, I I mean I get the whole financial the water fund bleeding dry. That's the uh the um my my concern would
be if we did say June and then we went in April and May, then we ought to have clarity on that. Look at you know rubble the tape. Did you have one other comment or I just I wasn't at that meeting. I obviously would have like I would have been curious at that point, but I
believe when I had written it down originally, it was on one of your questions, Mr. Chair. Um I think when you were trying to clarify maybe something that Mr. Meadows had said about um asking if there was going to be any
retroactivity and that's when June was brought up. Um, obviously the vote was after that, but I still think, you know, we're talking about these rates being applied assuming that it's going to the ne the next fiscal year and it just
again I mean that's primarily last fiscal year. So I hear you. I don't recall my comments about I don't dispute whatever it's whatever the tape says obviously but and not in it's not even directly to the board just in general I think as a
respect to the town. All right. So thank you all. Okay no other comments. Okay. The next item on the agenda is to consider the residential uh exemption and this was requested by it doesn't say it but it was requested by select select board
member Smith I believe. Is that correct Stuart? So, I think what we'll do, and Stuart, you can speak whenever you'd like to, but I thought maybe we'd have Dale give us a our our director of assessment. Did you want to go first or whatever you'd like?
Dale's going to give us annual uh explation of this. Yes. Of what this is and what the potential impacts then I'll turn to to you, Stuart. Okay. Um this evening my goal is to
present to you information so you can make an informed decision on the residential exemption. Um this evening I'm going to begin with what is the residential exemption. Then I'm going to move to how the residential
exemption is calculated and then some of the costs of implementation and maintenance of the residential exemption. So, in your packet, I don't know if you all have gotten a chance to look at it, but the residential exemption comes up each year at the
classification hearing. It's part of the four choices. Now, this choice for the residential exemption can be made by the board of selectmen at any time. It does not have to be during the classification hearing. It can be
held a week earlier, a week later, or after January. is not restricted of a time. It's just restricted that you note a fiscal year that you want the implementation to be or that you don't want it at all.
Now, under this with respect to each parcel of real properties class one, the residential exemption is a shift within just the residential class. It will not affect the commercial, industrial or
personal property. It will be a flat rate that everyone will receive and the person that would receive it to qualify you have to be a yearround resident of the town of Chadam based on
your income taxes statements whether it be state or federal depending on how you file. That will be part of it. Now that shift does of course increase the tax rate because we have to make up for it
in some capacity. It does not add any additional revenue to the town. There are 341 communities in the town of Mass I mean the state of Massachusetts 351
and there are sorry 351. Thank you. Um there are 21 communities who have this and listed in your packet. You will see them. There's Barnstable, West Tisbury, Nantucket, Provincetown, Mashby,
Tisbury, Oakluffs, Truro, Welley, Boston, Brookline, Malden, and Eastam is in the process. Um Dale, Orleans is in the process, too. I heard Orleans is as well. Yeah, I wasn't aware of that. Thank you.
Have they voted it or No, they're just taking it up like we are right now. Okay. So, Easttown has voted it. They just haven't decided on their percentage, just to let you know. Okay. There are several other towns on the second page that Conquer. Yep. I'm going to flip over. Yep. Sorry.
Go ahead. Yep. There's Conquered, Cambridge, Chelsea, Everett, Somerset, Somerville, Waltham, and Watertown. Now, the Department of Revenue gave a pre presentation down in East Ham down in 2019,
and they wanted there was certain subjects within the residential that came up that they wanted you to be aware of. So, they wanted you to be aware of that it can be a multi-use property, but the exemption would just apply to the
residential section of it. They wanted you to realize that you had to have your principal residence a year prior to the application as of January 1st. The taxpayer is the owner, not just the
occupant, and the principal residence has to be supported in your state or federal income tax on how you file. The exemption does not lower the property tax burden for all property owners in the residential class.
um due to the factor that you have to be year round than necessarily help out the elderly residential property owners because they might be under a trust or an LLC. Um just to let you know that there are some obstacles that they might have to
overcome and it has may have more of a tendency to hold properties and trust and LLC at that age. Now, the numbers below that I I'm going to quote to you are just examples. They're based on 2025
statistics because right now we're in the process of doing the tax rate for 2026. So for the basic and these sheets um spreadsheets that I put at the back of this packet um will give you a little
bit more detail on the breakdown. But basically for the 10% residential exemption the tax rate would go up to 363. For 25% it go up to 390. For 35%
it go up to 410. Now, if we took an example of a 1,575,000, which would be the average residential value, and we took off the percentage at 25%,
you'd have a discount of value off your property of $393,769. This would be the same on everybody's. I just want to reiterate reiterate that it's the same dollar amount for everyone. Now, this will, as stated earlier, have
to be voted on each year. You'll have to verify the percentage again each year as the select board and obviously the average residential value which it's based off of that percentage would change yearly. But for this example,
the total taxes were 5466,000. For the residential person who is year round, it would now decrease by $859 to $4,67. For the non-resident,
it would increase by $677 and that would be $6,143. Now, there is what's called a break even point and that break even point is a neutral point. From that point on, anyone, it does not matter your status
in town of year round or secondary homeowner, everyone would pay. That current value from last year was 3,750,000. Now, out of that 3,750,000, we have 573
properties that are above that in value. with 128 of those properties having a Cadam mailing address. Now, we've kind of told we've told you what the residential exemption is and
who it applies to and how it's basically calculated each year. Now, some of the things to consider are the implementation costs and the maintenance. So the implementation costs would be that we
need we currently have 88 current exemptions that we're processing with the staff that we have the first year. It would probably be around 3,000 applications that were processing each year that year. And that means we're going to need some legal counsel along
the way because we have over 2400 um LLC's and trusts and it's not always clearly stating on who has trusts beneficiary interest or a trustee clearly in each trust.
So or to identify um certain powers of that. So we're going to need some legal help. We're going to need some staffing help for the first year for the implementation. We also have left to let our no financial software know in
several months ahead that we're going to be doing this. So timing is key. We need time in order to implement this well to in order to do it right and serve it justice. So we're going to need time to
give our vendors time. We're going to need time to vet. And we've said this in prior years. We've said we're going to need you notification in January if we could execute it for the following year. But we're going to need some help in order to execute it and to maintain it.
We're still going to need a little bit of help because we have every year, every time there's a change in ownership, you don't have to apply every year, but when that property does change in ownership, um whether it be a trustee member, a
death, construction, we're going to have to look at it. And right now, we had 385 deaths last year and 163 sales. It was a quiet year for sales. So that's 548 times that we're going to have to now
look at that exemption, decide whether you know um you know we have to decide our parameters of that. So do we send out a notification letting you know that the residential exemption is out there or or the fact that you might lose it
due to the name change. Um, every town handles that differently that I looked at. Nantucket basically says that this is a privilege and if you want the exemption, you have to come to us and it's right on their front page. Other towns are more than willing to notify
you that there's a residential exemption out there, you know, and we're here to help. So, but even still, how it decides and I have a feeling that Chadam would want to decide to notify that would be quite a few more exemptions and
processes that we're looking at. Now, if we did go to implement it right away, we're probably looking at obviously because what I've previously stated, a delay in the tax bills um that can result in, as you can see in the packet with some bond ratings and and
other issues. But the residential exemption has been in I've been presenting for the last 10 years. Um, so I hope that after all that you've had a chance to see in other communities and communications that out
there that you have a good grasp of what it entails. Um, we did look at several other towns as you can see and talk to and some of their comments are in the packet. You know, you see incentive to keep or at least help to keep families here.
um expand property owners to rent a year round. Part-time residents already pay personal property tax um may hurt elderly. Uh these are all comments from other assessors with issues that they dealt with. Character
of the town will change. Um the time it takes to critically plan for its implementation is significant. the our staff. We ask that if you are that you give us time to do it right. That's what we're asking. Our board of
assessors, just to make you aware, as of last year, um they denied um their support for the residential exemption. Um they did it on several points for them. U one of those points have been I just listed that they're already paying
a personal property bill. they wanted to be fair and equitable. Um, and they didn't felt that it benefited the whole entire community. So, if John wants to add something else, John Burke, the chairman of the board of assessors is here.
He's more than welcome. And I also have Candace Cook here who's the assistant assessor. And I'm dropping everything tonight. Is there any questions? Thank you. I before we ask Mr. Burke. There are two committees here that I'm going to call on first before we go to
public comment, but I want to Does this Steuart you had did you want to say anything now? Does the board have any questions or comments of Dale? Uh, no. Um, thank you Dale. That was very comprehensive. Congratulations on your pending retirement. And if we implement this, maybe you'll stay
another year. Oh, that would do it to it. I'll I'll have a couple of questions for Dale later. But any other comments from the board? Okay. I did have a I have a question. Dale, if you could go back to the slide that uh kind of lists out the
393,775 750. I don't have control of that. What the 25% residential tax exemption that that example that you had in our package. I want to be real clear. Yep. Okay. The the the million575 is the
average assessment in town. So you take the total valuation divided by the number of units that we have and you get 1,575. and you take 25% of that number and that's the 25% residential tax exemption. Correct. That's the amount. Correct. Okay. No matter what one's property is
assessed at one, if you qualify, you'll have 393,769 less on your assessment to pay taxes on. Is that correct? That's correct. Thank you very much. And the same thing would go for 10, 25, 30, 35, or 50. That's correct. Thank you.
I'm going to ask the chair of the board of assessors if I know Mr. Tell you want to speak. We'll do that when we get public comment. M John, did you want to speak? I know the board hasn't taken a position yet this year because we haven't had the public the classification here.
Yeah, I know. I was going to call on them next. Okay. Um Mr. Spalter, the summer residence committee requested opportunity to speak. If you'd like to speak now, that would be fine. I wish my name was Gloria. It seems helpful.
Um, good evening. My name is Jeff Spalter, currently the chair of the summer residence advisory committee and I'm speaking on their half uh this evening and we appreciate the opportunity to talk with you about the residential exemption. At the Summertown meeting last Tuesday,
we shared that the SRAC position has not changed and we voted again and we also voted last week unanimously to still recommend you vote against the residential exemption implementation whenever that vote is called. We also provided to you under separate
cover our detailed position paper. So tonight I'll just share a few comments on behalf of the residents advisory committee. The town of Chadam is unique in its approach to the relationship with its summer residents. The town is proud of how inclusive it has been with summer
residents, especially going back to 1996 when the non- voting taxpayers committee was established to not only give summer residents a voice in town matters, but also establishing the SRC has a right to speak and be heard at town meeting. We
truly value this relationship and the mutual feeling of respect that has brought us all together. We suggest that adoption of the residential exemption would damage this unique relationship. It is hard to justify that two neighbors with similarly assessed valued homes would
pay different amounts of property tax if we are trying to promote a fair and inclusive environment. The residential exemption is a flawed tool. It is a blunt instrument that merely moves tax dollars between residential classes and does nothing to
move the town forward towards its goals. It is revenue neutral, but as you heard, it will bring with it additional effort and cost for the assessor, not just at implementation, but at an ongoing cost as home ownerships change and to ensure compliance.
The residential exemption may provide some tax relief to those in need. However, it might also increase taxes for some full-time residents who are in need of assistance to stay in their homes. The residential exemption will harm some full-time residents who own
multiple homes as only the primary doicile receives the exemption while now providing relief to some own homeowners who do not have hardships. We definitely want to provide support to those in need, but the residential exemption is not the way. We suggest
that existing exemptions such as for those with financial need, those who are blind or veterans be fully utilized. The residential exemption is just a flawed tool offering no precision in application. The residential exemption
uh has not been supported by the finance committee or the or the assessor and has been consistently voted down in the past by the board of assessors and the select board and even by our community at town meeting in 2021. In prior years, the tax successor
perspective was that the residential exemption would not be sufficient in impact to help new homeowners to help help new home buyers in Chadam nor keep them in their home nor keep residents in their home. A change in voting outcome
would be disappointing and hard to understand as the residential exemption and its limited impact have not changed. Chadam is a wonderful place for all to live, whether part-time or full-time. Full-time and summer residents work
together to continue to make Chadam a great place to live. Whether it's as part part of town government, supporting the arts and those in need, are keeping our local businesses and economy strong. Let's not do something that will change our special relationship.
Thank you very much. Thank you, Jeff. Um John, did you want to go now? I know. I was going to go to committees first. Did Did you want to speak for the board of assessors? I think he's covered it all. Okay. All right. Thank you. So, I'll go to
unless any there are any questions of Mr. Spalter. Okay. We'll go to public comment now. Mr. Taylor, you were first. Mr. Chairman, members of the board, thanks very much. You know, I've been a big proponent of this for a long, long time. Um, and I'm not going to Ross pero
you with numbers, but I want to point out a couple things because we're looking for a blanket of affordability in this community that has a lot of different components. This is one component.
And while we talk about fairness and the potential lack of fairness, I would like to point out that the tax bill that just went through the federal government includes an increase of the salt tax to $40,000. There is not a single multiple property
owner, second property owner or non-resident property owner that does not itemize their taxes. That means they just got a $40,000 bump to reduce their overall tax liability. That's important when you think about
how we're going to look at the totality of what comes out of people's pockets and how we're trying to get the firemen, the policemen, and the middle income people here. I have a website for you that the Department of Revenue put out. I will
give it to you if you want it. It has a calculator built in that populates with the town of Chadam. It gives you everything in current dollars. And just quickly at 20% if we went to a
20% uh resident exemption, the mill rate would go from 3.47 to 3.99.50. And the benefit for the lowest income or the lowest valued property would be
$1,000 a year. Now, I hear I heard people that are second homeowners say, "Well, $1,000 is nothing." Well, if $1,000 is nothing, then why would it be a problem for them to pay an extra $400?
Because the vast amount of wealth in this town on residential properties is held by a disproportionate number of people who aren't the residents in this town. That money that has to get made up
will be spread equitably amongst all those high value properties resulting in a lower net output for them than the net input to the lower valued properties. If we went
to 35% which is the maximum allowable under the statute right now the miller rate for Chattam would jump from 3.47 47 to $448 and everybody below $2.5 million valuation of property would get a
benefit. If you were a resident of the town of Chadam who be was fortunate enough to live in a $4.7 million property, your taxes would go up $2,000
for a nearly $5 million property. I don't think it's too much to ask for us to look at this as a realistic way to help the middle income um folks that we say we want to have in our community.
The the the uh firemen, the policemen, the people who can afford maybe an $800,000 home but but can't be buying $4.5 million homes. And I don't think if you're living in a $ four and half million dollar home in Chadam
that an extra $2,000 is going to kill you when the person who's making and living in a $600,000 house is looking at a $2,000 benefit and that's at the 35% rate. Having looked at this and gone
through all of the math, I tell you right now, I don't think bumping the the mill rate $1 from 347 to 448 and the benefit that that brings does anything to hurt
anybody as much as it does to help the people who put you in your job. The residents of the town of Chattam, that's who we serve first. That's who we're obliged to serve first. We want this to be a vibrant
community of folks who live here, contribute here, put their kids in school. God bless them if they've got kids. But if we become Provincetown, which too late accepted this, those poor buggers, they turn the lights off in uh
Columbus Day and they don't turn them back on till Memorial Day. You know, Tim Roer used to say that here in Chadam on February 1st, you could shoot a cannon down Main Street and you wouldn't hit anybody. That's not going to get any better
unless this we start to look at the total affordability thing. And all of this um affordable housing, that's not going to make jobs for the people. What are they going to be paying? All of the title eight money. and that's all
you want to have left in town, the summer folks that have a gazillion bucks and the title eight people that we put in our low-income housing. Or do you want to have a vibrant real community? Um, I apologize for my tone getting a little jacked up. This is an emotional
issue for me. It just makes sense that we would do this. And I don't see the extra staff as a big issue because yes, to get it started, it's going to take a little effort, but we're big fans of contractors in this town. And I
guarantee you that the woman who just retired in Nantucket as the assessor over there, she'd probably be happy to come over here, work for a year or 6 months or whatever it took her to kick this thing into plan. It's not that complicated. I've spoken with assessors
all over that have implemented this. It didn't it didn't bust them up. Anyway, thank you. Don't want to take any more of your time. I really hope when you look at this thing, we finally break into the reality that this will help Chadam. Thank you. Thank you, Seth. Any other public comment? Yes. Uh Hannah Smith and then
Brian Phillip. Hannah Smith, North Road. Um, I wasn't really planning on speaking on this. I've gone back and forth on it. Um, I've grown up in Chadam. I went to Chadam High School and then Monoy for the final two years. Uh, I was thinking
about it earlier today when I was reading the agenda and I genuinely don't think that anyone that I was in Chadam High School with owns a house in Chadam or even rents a house by themselves. At the very least,
maybe a couple people share one house with three or four other people they graduated with. I say this because when you go through Chadam in the winter and there's so many empty homes, you know, that's obviously a whole another conversation. Um, I have family members
that have second homes here. Um, I have friends that have second homes here. Uh, so, you know, I'm not knocking down anyone that has second, third, fourth homes here. I've worked on Main Street and some of my favorite people were summer residents. Um, but at the end of
the day to sit here and say that, you know, why would we even do this? It's, you know, it's only, you know, $1,000, say, whatever it is. For people that don't have a lot of money and are just making
ends meet, any amount of money makes a difference, whether it's $50, $100, $400, $1,000. Um, you know, I get that it's annoying because, you know, to pay differently than someone else, but I think if you
put your yourself in in other people's shoes, um, you know, in your own year round town, think about if you were in a situation where you were struggling to make ends meet, what that money would do. Um, it's not, it's always going to be a
conversation of pinning summer residents against year-round residents. And I'm not trying to make it that way, but it it's just if you have a second, third, fourth home, including if you're a year- round resident and you have multiple rental properties in town, that is a
privilege. You are privileged to be in that position. And I think if you love this town and you love the community and you love the businesses, I think you at least owe it to the people that are
working in the businesses year round in the town, making the town go round, just as you guys are that are summer residents, spending tons of money in town and buying property in town and keeping the town afloat as well. There's that in the first place. You
can't have that without people that are working year round and living in this town year round. I just I think I just I I just don't know if there's enough of a conver I don't think people are really putting themselves in someone
else's shoes. I just I wish I just wish there was some more conversation um specifically with the summer residence advisory committee. Um, I understand that, you know, the position didn't change from the previous time it was talked about, but I feel
like it's it's it's just not, you know, how much can you really care about the town? So, I hate to be blunt, but I know people that I've come to be very close
with in town that have second and third homes, and they would support this a thousand times, and that's because they know that the year-round population also contributes a major part to keeping this town going. Um, and a lot of those
people are struggling to make ends meet. So, that's all I have to say. Thank you. Um, thank you. Where's Brian Phillips? Brian Phillip. Ryan Phillips, 374 Road. People must be more way more receptive to hear Hannah speak than me speak. Um, so I guess I'd
like to echo everything she said. I grew up here. You know, this helps support the middle class. And um the summer homes, it's the summer homes and investment homes and they are a luxury and you know the year- round population is what makes this town go. Thanks.
Thank you. Any other public comment? I had a couple of questions. Gale. So, um, the split in terms of, uh, percentage of properties in Chadam owned by summer residents versus year-round
residents, is it 58% that's summer residents? Is that what No, it's currently at 56% summer residents. That's so 56% of the properties in town are owned by non season non-earound residents. Correct. And that's that's down from
what was before it was it well prior to me it's been around 60% before and now after the pandemic it's been it's dropped down it's been dropping each year a little bit more people are moving here full time in some of these other towns I mean we've got a bunch of cities I think I
can understand why a Boston or um Brook line but you know there's a lot of rental properties there investor owned own rental properties. Um, and why they
would have it to benefit the year- round residents. Um, and and looking at the towns on the Cape. So, Province Town, what do you know what the split is between? We had a conversation the other day, you and I. Yes. It's about 8020.
80. So, 80% properties in in Province Town are owned by some of residents, correct? How about how about um Barnstable? We know what And there's a lot of commercial property. Um, Barnestow, it's hard because they have several different districts, too. Um, it's really not and
they have split rates. So, let me just see what I have for them. They're 52% to 48. 52 owned by non yearround. 52. Yep. Exactly. Um,
what about the outer outer cape other outer Cape Town? Truro is at 7525. They currently have the residential exemption. Wealthfleet um they're at 63% 37%.
Um Nantucket is um 8020. Um Mashbby who let's see they I believe are 5743. Am I right on that? They're pretty close. Um and East Ham was 5545.
Okay. Um those are the ones that I have in front of me. 5545 in East Ham. Um and um under the um the home act or whatever it was called that was passed by the legislature. You were so we're a season we are a seasonable
community. So they can go up to 50%. The um instead of 35% in the statute, correct? the exemption could go up to 50%. Um, do we have any I remember reading I think it was uh well fleet there was a lot of
controversy between the summer residents and and I if I have the town right and the and the um yearrounders when that was being presented and the argument was made I believe that if you put this in it's going to keep people in town.
Yes. Do we have any evidence of in any of these communities that that has is there any evidentiary data out there that we know of? No, none of them can really state how many that it might have kept or you know had people come to the town. Um they
it's too early. Most of them said they said most people said that it might maintain it but it's not keeping or making a determining factor to move to that town. Okay, put it that way. Um one one final question regarding properties in trust
and a number of us have a properties in trust. um especially seniors. Mhm. Um so if there is an annual application process, it's just it's once once you apply once until there's a change of
ownership of or like it's under construction or there you know there's a trustee change. Some of those unfortunately we will not know about as you know. Well that's my point. So you could have a the department of revenue has said and
it's in the packet that that the trustee and the property owner has to be both the trustee and the beneficiary of the trust. Correct. Okay. And we know that there are a lot every trust is written differently. Every lawyer drafts them differently and and sometimes the word beneficiary
is not stated in the in the docu trust instrument. And in order to qualify, some of those trust instruments are going to have to be amended in order in order for to present the data, the evidence to the the assessors to qualify. Um, how do you know once you've
accepted it? How how does the assessing department know um whether um um the beneficiary has changed? We wouldn't unless it was filed at the Barnesville Registry of Deeds. and they're typically not. They typically don't show who the
benefit is. That's the tricky part. That's why some towns have amended um after adopting saying that they're going to require you to file every year because of that. Okay, those are my questions. Are there any questions from the board? Comments from the board?
Yeah, Jeff. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Um I, you know, I've been on this board, this is my fifth term. Um, I've voted for years, every single year at the tax classification hearing against uh the residential tax exemption. But this year
in my campaign, I did say I'd take a take a warm year to what's being suggested again. And I' I've got a pretty warm year going. Um, we have priced our residents out of existence in this town. And we may be 56 and 44 now,
but we're headed to 7525 or 8020. Um, and for those folks that have managed to gain a towhold of property ownership in this town, that are year round, that have children in our schools that are
trying to raise their family, the every single dime, as Hannah noted, every dollar is important to them. And I I'm I have a strong proclivity this year to support the residential tax exemption even though it's going to cause administrative um issues, engine if you
will, even though um we may have to add staff and and support, but but never before have I felt there's been such a a need um for support of our our our local residents. Um we have schools we need to support and and and we need to we need
we need kids. It's why I'm such a proponent of affordable housing and these projects that that that we have under our purview and you know divisive well the fact that the we're pricing ourselves out of local existence is already divisive in this town. I know I
know where SRA is coming from. I've supported their position for low 12 years 11 years whatever it's been. And this year I think we're going to change my mind. I think there's a compelling argument that $1,300 $1,500 really does
matter to our local residents. We have one other major comment to make. Our tax rate in this town is the deal of the century. We have arguably the lowest tax rate or one of the lowest tax rates in the Commonwealth, never mind on the cape. Even if we were to shift the
burden to non-residents, it's still a wonderful tax rate. Folks, you got a bargain. So I this year this year I think I'm I'm think I'm going to vote for the residential tax exemption. I I it's time I I'm fearful about the future
in Chadam. Any gesture, financial gesture that we can make to support our year- round folks, I think is very important. I understand the comment about blunt instrument. I get it. It's but it's an instrument. It's a tool in our toolbox that we can use to provide
some relief to our local folks who are deserving. Thank you. Can I comment on that? Yes. So, what I'd like to comment on is what I said before. Voting it in this year would not be for two years.
It would not be executed well. So, I again I'm going to recommend I totally agree. You know, totally agree. If you feel strongly about it this year, I understand. Please give us a year and vote it in for the 2020. Absolutely. Shireen did. Did you want to go first?
Who wanted to go? Someday. I'll make a motion, but I can wait. I wasn't going to make a motion. Okay. Um, thank you. It's been a long evening of with not a lot of levity. Um, I I am
so supportive of what you said, Jeff, because we sit in our privilege thinking that everybody is okay, and we know that's not true. And I um you know, I hear it from from folks um all the time
that we're you know, we we're we're building out a community based on not just the 6,000 people that live here, but we also support second homeowners infrastructure, which is a is a bigger tax burden for for us. So I mean we we
we have not like not voted for good things for this community as far as that's concerned and and you know we we are still as you said Jeff um you know have a lower tax rate um but the the
cost of of everything um and with all the social services that are going to be lost to um recent administrative stuff is is impacting and Chattam has to look at all the other communities that are
doing this. The entire elbow to the tip of of Cape Cod are we're all in the same boat. We are the outliers of the Cape. People love us. They love our communities. They love the beauty of them. They love everything. But we're the ones that struggle the most for what
what our what our year-round residents need. And if we can provide some sort of breaks or opportunities, then that's what we should be doing. That's our obligation as community members to each other. We're older. We're all older here sitting on the board. Uh Corey's might
be a tad younger than the rest of us, but when you see Brian and you see Hannah get up and speak so passionately about the realism of what it is like to be a young person in this town, we have to we have to do something. We do all kinds of services and and opportunities
and we need to continue that. Um it's very hard to live in a beautiful coastal community. It's expensive. And um having been somebody that has, you know, lived here all my life and not come from a family of wealth, but seen, you know,
have a generational background of of of watching this community grow. I've really supported a lot of things. Um but one of the things that we have to be true to is our year- round residents and what their needs are. and I'm going to support this. What I would like this
board to do, even though uh uh Delis is uh is suggesting that we wait until next year, we keep getting that sort of wait till next year, you know, give us time. I understand that the that's time, but I think this board could vote in favor by
policy that they want to support this and that will set the president that we're not going to wait till next year to do this, but we're going to get started on it now if we vote to approve. May I add to that? If you voted in for FY2026,
um you will have a delay tax bill and and a lot of problems. But if you vote it in, you can vote on it now, but vote it in for FY27. That's my proposal. Is that what you were saying? Yeah. I'm not trying to I'm not trying to screw up the financial works of Chad.
I just wanted to clarify. Yeah. Okay. Thanks. Yeah. That's that's it. Matters. Thank you, Mr. Chair. We've talked about this for years, year after year after year, and for me, it became very simple. We've
we've kind of paused at doing it, bought it doing it. I'm not sure if it's going to work. I'm not sure. Um we we implement this and we find it doesn't work. Me the mechanic allow us to to resend it down the road. So I'm of the opinion it's worth giving
it a try. I think there's been there's been outreach and and an outcry for it for years. Um, I think um I think I'm willing to to move forward and and you know for FY27 respect to staff's recommendation. Um, but I think it's
worth trying this out. Um, I have a funny feeling it's going to work out pretty well. Um, and it's worth it's worth moving forward on it. So, I'm more inclined to support it. Okay. Just please um remember too that we will be having other when you have
your tax relief. I think it's on September 30th. There will be other options for um helping people at different levels that you would want to take into consideration as far as all these factors will be coming out of the
overlay. Um if an exemption was filed late, it'll be coming out of the overlay. Some of the other new ones for the veterans will be coming out of the overlay. So something to take into consideration when you hear the new t when we September 30th for the tax
relief when you keep in mind when you do vote on the percentage so you can keep in mind so we can have all the tools as you said um and able to help the community as well. So just keep it in mind when you're reviewing all the tax
relief on the 30th as well. Did you want to offer you you're going to offer a motion and then I we'll have discussion on the motion? Sure. Um so thank you for everybody speaking. Dale,
you've been very helpful. It's very informative. The memo was very good. um you know pains me along with uh you know Jeff and Shireen have spoken to this about hearing these stories about people that
we know have to leave this community because of the cost of living here. We should be doing everything we possibly can to re keep these whether they're retired or working class keep them here in this community. Um and
um I so I I don't agree with the summer residents position. I think that um I would encourage them to rethink it and think more broadly. The uh I am for full disclosure one of the people that's going to pay more. I have an investment
property in this plural in this in this community. So I'm gonna pay more. And you know what? that's fine because I have somebody pointed out I have the privilege of having th that opportunity and um so be
it. People don't people aren't as fortunate and prices have gone through the roof and we need to do better and we can do better here. So I'm going to make a proposal. I'm going to make a motion on the residential tax exemption. I move that the select board adopt the residential tax exemption in the amount
of 30% when we set the tax rate for fiscal 27. Is there a second second I for some discussion as well um that we had the percentage that attracted me the most in Dell's uh
presentation was 35%. I agree. I'm not opposed to an amendment. Um the the you amended your motion and you amended your second. It was my second, I think. Whoever. Okay. Um
I voted against this 10 times. Yeah, me too. I really don't think I've heard anything tonight that causes me to change my view of this. I suspect at some point some municipality in this commonwealth
which invokes this, adopts this is going to be sued. Uh I don't know that there ever has been a litigation on this issue under the equal protection clause. Um and we could very well wind up as
that community if we adopt this. I think it's important to note that it does not benefit renters. What would benefit renters is more ownership housing in this town and we
have a couple of fairly modest proposals I think that are coming before the select board in that vein but we haven't done anything previously on that regard. Um, so I sense where four other members of
this board are going to go, but I I'm not going to support the motion. Any further discussion on this? I'll call the role. This is on the on the motion for 2027 to adopt the rental I'm sorry, the residential exemption uh
in the amount of 35%. Uh, Miss Davis, I. Mr. Mr. Dykins. Hi, Mr. Matters. Hi, Mr. Smith. I The chair votes no. It's 4 to1. Thank you. Thank you, Dale. You'll be here back one
more time before you retire. You'll be Yes, you will. Actually, um Candace Cook will be presenting the classification hearing. I will be here, but we'll see you then. Okay. Thank you. Um Okay. Okay. The next item on the
agenda is the um town manager monthly report. Thank you, Mr. Chair. So, the town manager report includes current items and select more follow-up as well as the monthly report from departments um July 2025.
Some of this information uh people have seen on either the main sheet or social media, but we thought it was important to present it tonight. Um, the community climate survey part two is now available from the town's energy and climate action committee. So, they would like to
hear from you and help shape Chattam's climate action future. The affordable housing public hearings continue for the developments um on Main Street. It's coming before the ZBA on Thursday, Octo
August 21st at 2 PM. And then the hearing for the ZBA hearing for the Penrose project at Meeting House Road will have its first hearing on September 4th. The Eldridge Public Library project is inching further along. Uh here's an
update that we have in the the transmitter as well as more details under the projects page uh that's created by Terry Whan. And then we wanted to remind folks that we're looking for volunteers to serve on boards and committees. We've done the
reappoint process and now we have vacancies, a total of 18 vacant member or associate seats. And if you are interested to fill out a talent bank or hover over how do I uh submit a talent bank form. There's also hard copies uh within the town manager's office. And
then as I always do, we talk about the employee years of service anniversary. We're looking at September. Uh the most longevity in September is our deputy chief Lou Malison at 19 years. Uh Joe Amara, police officer at 11 years. Diane Buyers, our animal control officer at 10
years. And then uh two firefighters, Connor Brickley, he's been here for four years. Kristen Taylor has been here for three years. Anna Milan has been the community services program and communications coordinator for two years. and Joe Fennel, our adult
supportive program director. She's been here for one year along with Becca Santos at the transfer station and Rick Spalding, our newest police officer. And then we've highlighted uh the announcements for new hires in August.
We have Zach Pereira. He lives in Yarmouth and has a really great background uh for working as a labor in our parks, grounds, and cemeteries division. And also, I think this next hire broke the internet with our Facebook page with the most likes. Uh
that's our DPW highway labor, Mark Welch. U Mark has been in Chattam for a long time. Um and a well-known u person working at various um either DPW plow and snow or through um the boatyards as well as a forklift operator. And then
we've promoted Don Richardson, our DPW highway division. He was a laborer as well. um uh sorry a heavy equipment operator and he is um now the mechanic as well. So that backwards and then um
as you know we celebrated the retirement of Brian Powers retiring after 20 years. This was I think his first week of retirement and we really hope him well. Uh we have job openings that we have here listed and some more coming in September. uh some of the positions like
the the harbor masters um boat operator and uh mechanic uh harbor master had suggested that we wait until September to do that. So that will be coming up. And then the report has other project highlights uh with the page numbers index. And then I always note the
mustsee TV from our Chattam TV productions, our social media hits um as well as our main street newsletter. And then reminding everyone to subscribe to the Smart 911 uh especially for emergency updates, road closures, fire
and water emergencies. And throughout the report, you'll see various updates for July. and I'm happy to answer any questions. Thank you, Jill. I do want to note the addition for the first time um of the usage of the charging stations at the Eldridge garage. I that's helpful to
know uh and I hope that continues um to be part of the report. Yes. Thank you. Any comments or questions for Jill? All right. Um it's been a long night. Um we started at four with interviews. Uh is there a motion? Motion to adjurnn.
Is there a second? Second. Call the role. Uh, Miss Davis. I. Mr. Dyken. Hi. Mr. Matters. Hi. Mr. Smith. I. Chair votes I. We are returned at 8:24. Good night. [Music]
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