The Plympton Board of Selectmen met virtually on Monday, Sept. 26. Christine Joy was not in attendance.
The Board approved early voting hours for the November election. Town Administrator Liz Dennehy went over the Board of Selectmen sponsored articles for the Special Town Meeting on November 30. Two of those articles are for acquisition of the Turkey Swamp parcel. Another is for the Fire Chief age restriction cap extension. It is currently capped at age 65 and the town is looking to petition the State to extend it to age 70 for Plympton’s Chief. Another is a simple Wage and Personnel bylaw which was described by Dennehy as “minor housekeeping.”
Yet another was for a temporary solar moratorium through July 1, 2023. “For all of the existing ground mounted solar projects, all of those were grandfathered in under the old bylaw,” Town Properties Committee Chair Jon Wilhelmsen said. Dennehy said that there were no problems with existing projects, but rather the amount and frequency of the projects has led to the desire for a temporary moratorium on them. Selectman John Traynor said he would like an opportunity to evaluate the environmental impact of these projects.
Dennehy said the application she submitted for a Community Compact grant for just over $25,000 for technical assistance in developing an emergency preparedness plan was approved. She said they would not be eligible for funding of the updating of the Capital Improvement Plan. She said they may want to consider an article at town meeting in May to create a five-year Capital Improvement Plan.
The Selectmen ended with their rants and raves. “For Liz and the late in the week report she sends sort of giving background on agenda items… it really is tremendously helpful to have that information and have the weekend to think about and digest that,” Russo said. Traynor said he was approached by a CASA member who put him in touch with someone who was trying to find space for youth cheerleading. He said he reached out to Colleen Thompson and the church will now be hosting them for 8 sessions.