“We don’t know where local revenues are going to fall or what the state budget will be,” said Town Administrator Mike Lorenco during the June 8 meeting of the Mattapoisett Board of Selectmen. Selectman Paul Silva opened the financial discussion wondering aloud if Town Meeting should be postponed at least until August to give the town time to adjust budgets prior to holding the annual meeting. Lorenco said he agreed with waiting to see where local revenues landed and with moving forward using the one-twelfth formula allowed by the state to continue conducting business until a new FY21 budget could be approved by the voters.
Governor Baker granted authority to cities and towns throughout the commonwealth to use one-twelfth of their FY20 town meeting-approved operating budgets to sustain business transactions the town needed, and pay salaries and other fixed costs. This fiscal process, although not new, became relevant to many communities trying to find safe ways to hold town meeting during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Silva asked Selectman Jordan Collyer his thoughts on whether to try and hold a town meeting sooner rather than later. Collyer responded, “I’m not sure we know how the revenues are going. If we go with one-twelfth, we can rule Town Meeting out until we have some level of comfort (regarding local and state revenues) and then we can look at budgets again.”
Silva agreed, saying, “I don’t want to cut things out of the budget if we don’t have to. By August or September we’ll have a better idea, let’s not come up with a date now.”
There was some discussion about reopening the warrant, but the board determined that if allowed to do so they were in agreement that waiting was prudent. Silva, Collyer, and Lorenco also agreed that, given the economic ramifications of the pandemic on the state’s revenue sources, financial outcomes might be dire.
Lorenco said, “We’ve already started to make a one-twelfth budget to use in place of a town meeting,” anticipating the necessity to postpone Town Meeting. He also said that he, along with town clerk Catherine Heuberger, met at Old Rochester Regional High School to talk to the facility manager Gene Jones regarding how best to prepare the auditorium for a town meeting that needed to provide distancing.
Jones shared his concern that, if the town waited and held its town meeting in either August or September, sanitation procedures would be more difficult as students would be returning to the school by then. But Silva thought the possibility of holding Town Meeting outdoors in one of the athletic fields under a tent was feasible. Heuberger supported holding Town Meeting, while students were out of the school building, but Lorenco, while appreciative of her concerns, said, “…financially I’m in favor of postponing; losses from the state will be significant.” The selectmen moved to set no date for Town Meeting at this time.
In other business, the selectmen discussed restaurant reopening plans but quickly heard from Lorenco that, while the town and Board of Health have been in discussions with local restaurants, none have provided a fully executed outdoor eating plan to date.
Lorenco said that he along with consultant Mike Gagne had discussed outdoor seating with Turks, Pandolfi’s Diner, Taste Buds, Captain and Walrus, the Inn at Shipyard Park, and Rustico. He said that, while each was in the process of figuring out how to offer outdoor dining, none had provided a plot plan that could be reviewed by the Board of Health. Lorenco said that he was hopeful that by next week all plans could be finalized and ready to implement. Silva said, “We want to do everything we can to help these businesses.” He told Lorenco, “As soon as you get those (plans), schedule a meeting so this can get done.” Lorenco said the board did not need to meet to approve the plans, prompting Silva to say, “Let’s go then as soon as they come in.”
Regarding town elections, it is all systems go for Tuesday, June 16, as Heuberger explained the plans and preparation she has been making. She said that she had participated in an election in Plymouth and was able to see “what worked and what didn’t work.” She said she would have a minimum number of poll workers, and masks would be required as well as distancing. “People can bring their own black ballpoint pen, but we’ll be cleaning pens and disinfecting throughout the day,” she stated. Absentee ballots are still available for those wishing to vote in a truly remote fashion.
Ryan Fraine came before the selectmen with a proposal for his Eagle Scout project, construction of a volleyball court at Aucoot public beach. Silva wanted to ensure that the court would not take up any available sunbathing area and that, given that contact sports are not currently allowed due to COVID-19 restrictions, there isn’t any urgency. Fraine said he was seeking permission from the board to set-up a meeting with the Conservation Commission as the first step in what will be a months-long process. Collyer asked Fraine to provide the board with a plot plan and, after meeting with ConCom, return to the board for further discussion.
On the theme of all things beaches, Lorenco said that public beaches were opening with lifeguards on June 29. He said that restrictions and beach-use guidelines are available on the town’s website and included such things as mandatory wearing of masks, distancing, no group over 10 people, no day passes in an effort to keep number of beachgoers down, and no one closer than 12-feet from the lifeguard stands.
“Lifeguards will not be enforcing distancing,” Lorenco said, but they would be charged with monitoring to ensure guidelines are being followed. “The beach house and showers will be closed,” he added, but portable toilets will be made available. No beach games will be allowed such as volleyball, and he said people should plan on “carry in – carry out” policies. Lorenco stated that seasonal beach passes can be obtained at the outdoor service windows open between 10:00 am and 2:00 pm daily at town hall. Access to the interior of town hall is by appointment only at this time, he said.
The Lions Club sought and received permission to display a banner attached to the gazebo at Shipyard Park from July 10-19 that will illustrate their service programs and membership drive.
Earlier in the meeting, the selectmen approved the application for funding from Plymouth County CARES program to overset COVID-19 expenses.
The next meeting of the Mattapoisett Board of Selectmen will be posted at mattapoisett.net when scheduled.
Mattapoisett Board of Selectmen
By Marilou Newell