The Halifax Board of Selectmen met on Monday, November 9 for one of their extra meetings they’ve been holding each week since the onset of the pandemic. Board of Health agent Bob Valery told the selectmen that Halifax continues to be in the yellow for COVID risk level. Valery said that he visited all local food establishments and hair salons the previous week to place notifications regarding mask guidance in their windows, remind them about the new hours of operation, and ask if they need any assistance with anything COVID related. Both Fire Chief Jason Viveiros and Police Chief Joao Chaves were in attendance but neither had a specific COVID related update.

Town Administrator Charlie Seelig said internal policies outlining action steps should a town employee test positive for coronavirus needed to be updated. Seelig said there was considerable confusion with department heads and employees regarding what individuals, including close contacts, should be doing. Seelig acknowledged that back in June when the policies were initially drafted, there wasn’t enough thought given to the effect a positive case would have on other employees. The new draft of the policy that Seelig shared with the selectmen and Chiefs will include a flow chart with instructions for how employees should proceed.

Andrews asked if someone can work from home if they test positive but are asymptomatic. Seelig said he could make that change as currently employees testing positive were being asked to take leave.

If employees exposed to the infected individual elect not to get tested and remain asymptomatic, 14 days would need to elapse before that individual could return to work. Should a close contact elect to get tested, they would need to produce a negative test at least 3 days after the date patient zero tested positive before returning to work. If an exposed employee is deemed essential and they have not tested positive, then the employee can return to work at the discretion of the department head. Chaves asked who is responsible for paying for the tests and Seelig told him an individual’s health insurance.

Seelig also asked the Board’s approval to update the mask policy to indicate that everyone has to wear a mask in municipal buildings at all times even when the building is closed. Exceptions will only be made for eating and drinking or where documentation of medical exemption is provided.

DEP Municipal Assistance Coordinator Todd Koep is meeting with representatives virtually from Halifax, East Bridgewater, and Holbrook about a potential regionalization of recycling processing services. The processing would take place after the recycling was collected. “The idea is if we can team together, because our individual contracts are ending in June, we might be able to bargain a better price from one outfit with having all three towns combined,” Seelig explained.

The selectmen approved a few more requests before adjourning. The first was for a socially distant wedding on the town green on Saturday, November 21. The second was to approve the town allocating $445.15 of their CARES Act funds to South Shore Regional Technical High School to account for the share of Halifax students attending the school.

November 10 Meeting

As has become customary at the Halifax selectmen meetings, the selectmen had a number of recycling abatements to deal with at their Tuesday, November 10 meeting. Regarding the requested recycling abatements Selectmen Tom Millias said, “Unless you be consistent, you have nothing.” The Board has been of the mind to deny nearly all such requests.

Resident Ryan Scott had an appointment with the selectmen to discuss one of these denials. Millias stressed his distaste for dealing with recycling abatements saying he dislikes them even more than dog hearings. Scott’s request was denied because his abatement was stamped October 2 instead of October 1. “Our only issue is trying to be consistent,” Millias said to Scott. Selectman Troy Garron called Scott’s case “unique” and said, “My motto is to try to be fair, firm, and consistent.” The selectmen agreed to speak with the appropriate parties at town hall about the possibility that the wrong date was stamped.

Another case came before the Board for a house that has been abandoned for 15 years. Millias said, “we’ve given abatements for abandoned houses before.” Selectman Gordon Andrews said he would take the opposite approach and pointed out that as of late they hadn’t been issuing abatements to anyone. In the end the selectmen voted to deny with Millias adding “with regret.”

“This whole thing is getting somewhat dysfunctional, so we have to come up with a new plan or at least handle it differently… there’s so much controversy and so many issues surrounding it, that it’s becoming ridiculously time consuming,” Millias said. Seelig suggested, “Do we say to the residents… to make sure the recycling center is open when they need it, do we pay the property tax rather than the recycling fee?”  Seelig said that doing so would eliminate the need for abatements.

All members were present for the Thursday, October 1 meeting of the Halifax Planning Board. The first order of business was an appointment with Larry MacDonald who was requesting a site plan review waiver. MacDonald, who said that much of Halifax’s takeout option is limited to pizza, said he plans to operate a food truck called “Local Larry’s Tacos.” MacDonald said that the 24’ by 8’ trailer will be located in a parking lot on 546 Plymouth St. MacDonald plans to operate the business, which will not be a permanent setup, three days a week.  He said that weekday hours would likely include lunch until dinner and weekend hours would include breakfast and lunch. The food truck will operate strictly as a takeout business and will not include outdoor seating of any kind.

MacDonald who is a resident of the town and has his ServSafe Certification said, “I’m just trying to give the town something new, you know… I noticed the town didn’t have tacos in it.”  The general consensus from the Planning Board was that they were okay with allowing a waiver though they did request paperwork showing name, address, and a permit from the Board of Health. They agreed to meet with MacDonald again at their next meeting after they’ve had a chance to review his submissions.

The second appointment of the evening was with Joe Webby of Webby Engineering. Webby was there to propose the creation of two new lots on 279 Wood St. Webby said there is currently a dwelling on Lot 3 and the hope is to create Lots 1 and 2. The Board voted to approve the request.

The Board also discussed whether to require that the meeting minutes are written verbatim or if that requirement should be limited to hearings. The Board agreed to continue handling the minutes as they have always done in a more generic manner while they would like to see public hearings written verbatim.

Board member Alan Dias brought up the two articles pertaining to the Planning Board that were on the warrant at town meeting. Article 48 which pertained to the multi-family bylaw was passed over by the selectmen. Article 49 was approved at town meeting and changed the current zoning for marijuana establishments from industrial to industrial business. The Planning Board had previously voted 3-1 against the zoning change but was overruled by the vote at town meeting. Dias told his fellow board members that they could potentially be looking at site plans for marijuana establishments. He said they currently have no fee structure or process for inspections. Dias said that he wasn’t sure it was necessary to change the by-law but did feel that the Board should put a policy in place that would allow for things such as follow-up inspections to check on things like change of use.

Member Gordon R. Andrews pointed out that there is oversight in the form of the Building Department. Dias said that the Building Department doesn’t have annual inspections and also said that they are currently overwhelmed with responsibilities.

The Board also discussed the Complete Streets Program. The Highway Surveyor was contacted to find out which areas had the greatest need for improvement. Steve Hayward identified the intersections at Plymouth St. and Pine St. and Holmes St. and Oak St. as being problematic. The Board agreed that many accidents have occurred at those intersections in the last few years. They also mentioned the success of the blinking red light on the end of Walnut St.

There was a continuance of the Halifax town meeting held on the evening of Tuesday, Sept. 22 at the Halifax Elementary School. Back on Sept. 12, the Halifax Town Meeting had begun but needed to be recessed due to quorum being questioned several hours into the meeting as well as time constraints. As was the case in the previous meeting, residents were divided between the gym and the all-purpose room to ensure proper social distancing. While quorum had been reduced to 75 for Tuesday’s meeting, 110 voters were counted initially.

Article to Fund Part-Time School Resource Officer

With the exception of those articles grouped together into consent agendas, articles were voted upon using a lottery system. One of the more controversial articles of the night was Article 26 which asked for $36,000 to fund Halifax’s portion of a part-time school resource officer at Silver Lake Regional Middle School. The same article appeared on the warrant last year and was voted down. Since Plympton voted in favor of supporting their share of the officer, a part time school resource officer served the middle school for a limited number of hours this past year. Kingston fully funds the full-time school resource officer at the high school.

Melinda Tarsi spoke on behalf of the Finance Committee, who was not recommending the article.  Tarsi said that as was the case last year, the Finance Committee’s objection to the article is not the concept of the school resource officer but rather the mechanism for funding the officer. “We don’t want to establish the precedent that any department can propose the addition of new personnel through an article brought to town meeting,” Tarsi explained. She said the committee also took issue with it having to be a Kingston officer and said she would like to see it more equitably distributed between the three towns.

Halifax Selectman and Chair of the Halifax School Committee Gordon Andrews spoke on the article explaining that under the current law, the position would have to be filled with a Kingston officer due to the school’s location. He also advised the gathered residents that, in his opinion, funding the officer through an article outside of the operating budget gave the town greater control over the position. In addition, he explained that funding the position through an article at town meeting would actually save the town money versus funding it as part of the school’s budget.

A resident questioned if the counselors at the school couldn’t fulfill the same need attempting to be filled by the school resource officer. Andrews told him that due to the nature of the issues that are being brought up in executive session, they would best be handled by law enforcement. Selectman Tom Millias shared his opinion saying, “There is no contest, we need a school resource officer… my problem has always been how it’s being funded… the problem is we can’t get a resource officer unless we do it this way and at the end of the day, we need a resource officer.” The article passed with a vote of 72-41.

Article to Grade Private and Unaccepted Roads

Article 28, which was brought forth by a resident who was not present at town meeting, was for $11,000 to grade all the unpaved roads in Halifax including private and unaccepted ones. The Finance Committee, who didn’t initially recommend it, said that after receiving the dollar amount, they were now in support of the article.

The article generated considerable discourse among those present. Amy Troup asked, “Shouldn’t we be spending money on the roads that the towns are actually responsible for before we take care of the roads that are private?” Troup went on to request a list of the specific roads that were to be worked on as a result of the proposed article. Town Administrator Charlie Seelig said they did not have a list like that with them.

Highway Surveyor Steve Hayward said that 22 of the 26 unpaved roads in town are already maintained twice a year. According to Seelig, the town’s bylaws allow for limited repairs such as grading to be made to private roads including unpaved ones. This article would include all unpaved roads.

Resident Jeff Bolger said, “It just seems to me instead of this hodge podge, hit or miss road repair that this town constantly goes through and in many cases it’s the squeaky wheel that gets taken care of, that we ought to have some master plan where there’s priorities drawn on what roads need to be taken care of.” Seelig replied that the Highway Department is working with an engineering firm on a Smart Streets program that includes a complete assessment of all of the roads in town. “The Highway Department is well aware of the idea of getting a Master Plan for the roads in town,” Seelig said. The town almost unanimously voted down the article. They did, however, approve the $150,000 requested by the Highway Surveyor for maintenance to town roads.

Proposition to Change Marijuana Zoning

Article 49, which sought to change the current zoning for marijuana establishments from industrial to industrial business, generated considerable debate amongst meeting goers. The article was not recommended by the Finance committee. Bob Maker, who proposed the article, said, “From everything that I’ve been hearing, we need money coming into this town… if we open up a dispensary in town we can get 3 percent of all sales… it just seems like a no brainer that we pass this today.” Someone pointed out that the business zones are also usually residential and such dispensaries, etc. are not allowed within 500 ft. of property lines or schools and other areas where children gather.

Selectman Andrews took a turn at the microphone saying, “I would ask that the town would vote in favor of this.” In the end, the town voted in favor of the zoning change with a required two-thirds vote of 83-23.

Article to Recodify Town’s Bylaws

Article 30, which was brought forth by the Finance Committee, also proved controversial. The article was for $65,000 to pay for a complete revision of the town’s zoning bylaws. Troup once again approached the microphone saying, “I don’t think that the town asked for our bylaws to be changed.” Tarsi said that the Finance Committee was proposing the revision in response to being asked to make recommendations on amendments to various bylaws. Tarsi said that rather than making changes in little bits, the committee felt that it would be better to do a complete recodification. She said they wanted to hire counsel to do that since it would be too big of an ask to place on elected and volunteer committees. The article passed after a recount was had with a vote of 64-41.

Police and Fire Articles

There were a number of articles voted on that pertained to either the police or fire departments. Article 22, which was moved by Selectman Troy Garron, was for $14,000 to buy a 2014 Harley Davidson that the Police Department has been leasing for $325 a month. Police Chief Joao Chaves spoke to the article telling residents that at the time of purchasing, the bike only had 18,000 miles on it and was like new. Up to this point, much of the leasing has been paid for through grant money. Tarsi said that while the Finance Committee is not against the idea of the motorcycle, they would prefer to see another year of leasing to bring down the cost of the bike. Chaves explained, however, that there would only be $2,000 of grant money available this coming year.

Chaves told the assembled residents that the motorcycle has been used for parades and traffic enforcement. He said it allows the police to efficiently respond to congested areas where it might be difficult for a cruiser to access. He also said that the motorcycle was used in assisting Brockton and Wareham during protests there. He said that should Halifax need to they can request up to 45 motorcycle officers for any event at no cost to the town. The article passed.

A number of other articles pertaining to the Police Department were also passed. Article 20 was for $100,000 to purchase and equip two police vehicles, Article 21 was for $20,000 to purchase or upgrade all existing cruiser radios to make them digitally compatible, and Article 23 was for $5,000 to purchase bullet resistant vests. Article 11 was for $4,386 to fund the collective bargaining agreement between the police chief and the town of Halifax. “This was negotiated in good faith and if anyone knows the chief they know that he’s done a great job in town here and he’s one of the lowest paid chiefs in the area; we’re just trying to bring him up to par,” Garron explained. The article passed with unanimous support.

Article 12, which was recommended by the Finance Committee, was for $2,000 to fund the bargaining agreement between Fire Chief Jason Viveiros and the town. “I think that everybody here would agree that Fire Chief Viveiros does a great job and this was the agreement that we came to with him,” Andrews explained. The article passed with unanimous support. Also passing was Article 7 for $10,440 to fund the provisions of the collective bargaining agreement between the town and the local firefighters. The Finance Committee recommended the article which represented a 1.6 percent increase on the firefighters’ annual salaries.

Article 19 was for $600,000 to purchase and equip a fire engine for the Fire Department. Viveiros explained that it would be replacing a 25-year-old engine and said that if passed, the department wouldn’t need to ask for another vehicle for at least 10 years. Of the current engine, he said, “it most recently failed a pump test and is prone to unexpected breakdowns.” The article passed.

Several articles pertaining to improvements were passed. Article 39 moved $15,000 from undesignated funds for repairs on the landfill cap on Hemlock Lane. Article 29 was for $27,800 for the installation of crosswalk devices at Plymouth St. and Holmes St., Lydon Ln. and Monponsett St., and Plymouth St., and Hemlock Ln. Council on Aging (COA) Director Susan Lawless spoke to Article 18 which requested a transfer of $4,100 for a new copier for the COA. An article for $13,000 for insulation and a vapor barrier in the old section of the town barn also passed.

Other notable articles that passed Tuesday evening included Article 51 which proposed taxation to any solar powered device that generates greater than 0.1 megawatts of electricity. Millias said that it wouldn’t affect anyone’s rooftop solar installation. Article 32 was for $3500 to support the South Shore Women’s Resource Center in order to help prevent domestic violence. Article 31 was for $3500 to support South Coastal Counties Legal Services which provides legal services to elders and low-income families and their children.

The Plympton Board of Selectmen met on Monday, September 21. The first order of business was to address a memo that was received from the Board of Health regarding limitations on indoor in-person meetings. The memo reiterated the March 2020 order that addressed the issue as well as the third revised memo that stipulated an 8-person limit within the confines of 1,000 sq ft with a maximum limit of 25 persons in any space. The latest memo stated that the Board of Health has decided to discontinue in-person meetings on town owned properties.

Selectman John Traynor said that he was concerned that the restriction on in-person meetings would have a negative impact on the ability of the Council on Aging (COA) Board to meet as many members don’t have the necessary access to technology to attend virtually. At ten people, the Board would need to be reduced in order to continue to meet – something Traynor doesn’t want to do. Traynor said that the COA did meet last Monday. While he said the time in the meeting room itself went well, he did note that the time before and after the meeting in the lobby “left a lot to be desired.”

The Director of Elder Services, Joy Marble recently resigned requiring that an interim strategy be developed while the town searches for another director.  Town Administrator Elizabeth Dennehy asked the selectmen how quickly they would like to see the position filled. While Selectman Chair Mark Russo said as soon as possible, Traynor said he felt that it might be beneficial to wait a bit to figure out the situation. Traynor also shared that the COA Board plans to take more of an active role in the management of the Council on Aging. While the director won’t be back, both the administrative assistant and driver will be returning. The selectmen agreed that the first step in their search for a new director will be developing a job description. Dennehy said she felt it best to keep the description somewhat broad and mission based.

As part of a new initiative to invite a different chair or department head to each Board of Selectmen’s meeting, Treasurer/Collector Colleen Morin attended Monday’s meeting to provide an update. Morin said that there have been some issues with unemployment. Some at the townhouse had received fraudulent reports that they hadn’t filed. Morin said that she enlisted help from Representative Kathleen LaNatra in order to get through to those in the unemployment department. “She has done a great job helping me and getting me into contact with someone there,” Morin explained.

Morin told the Board that while a hold has been placed on foreclosures during the pandemic, fourteen properties are going into tax title. Of those, ten of the properties are considered to have low land value as they are valued at approximately $22,000 or less. Of the other four, one of the property owners is interested in donating the land to the town. Morin said the property abuts the Harry Jason Park. The current owner was previously unaware they had inherited the land and would rather donate it than pay taxes on it.

Dennehy provided a brief update on the schools as no one from the school committee could attend due to their meeting running concurrently with the Board of Selectmen. Dennehy said that school was back in session and told the Board the Fire Chief and the schools’ Director of Business Services Christine Healy have been working together to improve upon the process for making submissions for CARES Act funding. The current round of CARES Act funding and reimbursement closes at the end of September.

Per usual, the selectmen ended their meeting with their rants and raves. Selectman Christine Joy said, “My rave would be for Liz and John and the COA Board who have stepped up at this time to make sure we are continuing to meet the needs of our seniors in town.” While initially opting to pass on a rave, Russo said that he actually did have one. He spoke about an academician of writing who reminds students of the latin root of the word essay when assigning such work. At its root, the word essay means to make an attempt or endeavor. Russo pointed out that in times of struggle it might be best to focus less on the outcome and more on simply trying. “I appreciate the degree to which we all continue to try,” Russo said. He continued, “May we all continue to do so and may the outcomes be good along the way.”