All Manchester voters are encouraged to attend the Special Town Meeting set for Monday, November 18 at the Middle-High School. Given that a larger than normal crowd may attend, early arrival, starting at 5:30 p.m., is highly recommended as the Moderator aims to start the meeting promptly at 6:30 p.m. Early arrivals will be able to view videos explaining the different 3A zoning overlay districts. The meeting will take place in the gymnasium. If more than 800 people attend, overflow will be in the auditorium with an audio video link between the two rooms
Four articles (topics) are to be voted on by registered voters “from the floor” of the meeting. Article 1 seeks voter approval to spend $250,000 in Community Preservation Funds towards the purchase of a conservation easement on land currently owned by the DeNormandie Trust near Colburn Road. The proposal includes land over the line into Gloucester as well with a total of 330 acres involved. Over 42 new acres in Manchester will be subject to a conservation restriction which has a value more than $1.2 million. As this is a real estate transaction, a 2/3rds majority vote is required.
Article 2 proposes to amend the Town’s Stormwater Management bylaw. A couple of years ago voters approved moving stormwater management from the zoning regulations to the general bylaw to capture projects that were not subject to special permits. The new general bylaw contains many technical details regarding stormwater management which are subject to updating by the EPA and the State’s Department of Environmental Protection. A new round of updates is required already and instead of asking voters to review and approve all the technical elements, the proposal before the Town is to create a simpler bylaw that requires the DPW with approval by the Select Board after a public hearing to adopt detailed regulations that comply with the latest state and federal requirements. This allows for a faster way to stay up-to date with stormwater management requirements. The Planning Board and the Conservation Commission retain their authority to review and ensure compliance for projects that come before them. As a general bylaw amendment, a simple majority vote is needed to approve the change.
In Article 3 voters are being asked to appropriate funds to pay bills from the previous fiscal year. Once the “books are closed” on the previous fiscal year in August, any subsequent late bills that come in require a 9/10ths approval by voters. Fortunately, this happens infrequently but there are a few bills related to the defense of the ZBA’s decision to deny the proposed 40B project on Upper School Street that did not get paid. Voters are being asked to approve taking funds from the Town’s “free cash” account to pay these old bills.
Finally, Article 4 deals with zoning amendments that aim to bring the Town into compliance with the MBTA 3A zoning requirements. No doubt this will be the main attraction of the night. The MBTA Task Force and the Planning Board have been working for over a year to develop a proposal that brings the Town into compliance while protecting the character of the Town. The proposed districts have been carefully chosen to minimize new growth and strong “guardrails” in the form of site plan review requirements and design
guidelines are included in the proposal.
There is a large amount of information available on the Town’s website that provides background materials, analysis, FAQ’s, maps, and the specific wording of the new zoning language. Short videos of each of the four proposed overlay districts have been posted as well. The Task Force has made a concerted effort to respond to input the public has provided during many public forums and workshops. The Task Force, the Planning Board, the Select Board and the Finance
Committee all recommend approval of the proposed new zoning.
It now is up to the voters to decide. To be sure, there are strong opinions both for and against 3A zoning. Town Meeting affords the opportunity for residents to gather together, listen to each other and cast their votes all in a civil manner that is a hallmark of democracy in action. Please plan on attending.
