Fall Town Meeting Decision Time
This year's Annual Fall Town Meeting will feature a number of decisions by voters that will have some major impacts to several areas of Groton.
Certainly the most visible will be the request for voter approval of a Concept Plan for 128 Main Street, site of the former Groton Inn. The Concept Plan will ask for approval to re-develop the Groton Inn site with a three-story 24-room inn with a 50-seat restaurant. The proposal also calls for the construction of up to 30 long and short-term rental cottages as well as a fitness area and caretaker's residence on the property. The proposed square footage of the building's footprints would be 30,024 sq. ft. with a total gross footprint equal to approximately 51,208 sq. ft. The property is served by town sewer and town water. The Concept Plan article requires a two-thirds majority vote to pass.
There are four articles regarding the future of the historic Squannacook Hall, once home to the Fire Department in West Groton, the Senior Center and Boy Scouts, that will also ask voters to approve a Concept Plan to convert the building into four rental units; to approve the sale of the building; and the rezoning from Public Use (P) to Residential-Agricultural (RA). All three of these articles require a two-thirds majority vote.
A fourth article seeks approval of $30,000 to replace the septic system at Squannacook requires approval by a majority vote. Selectman Chairman Peter Cunningham said, "We have an attractive offer but we need a septic system." Colleague Josh Degen pointed out that the property would go onto the tax rolls and would cover the cost of the septic installation in a few years.
The Lost Lake area, where two serious house fires occurred several months apart, came under scrutiny of Town Manager Mark Haddad, Police Chief Donald Palma, Fire Chief Joe Bosselait and some residents of the Lake area. They looked at ways to provide better and stronger fire protection to residents of the densely populated area. The fire protection deficiencies have been identified in the Lost Lake Fire Protection Study Committee report.
As a result of their work, there are three areas for voter action. The first article will ask to appropriate funds to design and bid on a water main extension - a12-inch iron water pipe that would run 2,700 linear feet on Lost Lake Drive to Pine Trail. The second article seeks funds to bid a water main extension on Boston Road for Summit Drive and Lakeside Drive; and the third article seeks funds for the design of two underground fire cisterns and one "dry" fire hydrant on Knops Pond from the bridge to the island on Island Pond Drive.
Concept Plan Approval removed from voters
The Planning Board is sponsoring an article on Fall Town Meeting warrant that would remove voter approval that is now required by a two-third majority at a Town Meeting and place the decisions solely with the Planning Board. The Planning Board believes that the "Concept Plan process is on dubious legal footing in light of recent court decisions and could be vulnerable to appeal."
Planners want to codify the special permit into the Zoning Bylaw. Currently all professional office, retail and restaurants are allowed "by right" in the Zoning Bylaw. This means that voters would no longer approve of professional offices, retail and/or restaurants and that this would be handled only by the Planning Board through their Special Permit process.
Selectman Anna Eliot, a former, long-term member of the Planning Board, said she felt that this, "makes it more onerous for businesses...There has been no problem to this point. The Planning Board meetings are not televised so businesses are not aware of what the Planning Board is proposing to do."
Monday Sept 16, 7:30 p.m. there will be a joint Finance Committee/Board of Selectmen public hearing on the presentation of Annual Fall Town Meeting warrant. The meeting will be held in the first floor meeting room in the Town Hall.
