2019-07-15 Joint BOS and PB-min - Laserfiche WebLink

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Page 1 of 2 Joint Meeting Board of Selectmen and Planning Board July 15, 2019 A Joint Meeting of the Board of Selectmen and the Planning Board was held on Tuesday, July 15, 2019 at 7:00 p.m. in Estabrook Hall of the Cary Memorial Building, 1605 Massachusetts Avenue. Present for the Board of Selectmen (BOS): Mr. Lucente, Chair; Mr. Pato; Ms. Barry; Ms. Hai; and Mr. Sandeen as well as Mr. Malloy, Town Manager; Ms. Axtell, Assistant Town Manager and Ms. Katzenback, Executive Clerk. Present for the Planning Board (PB) were Mr. Canale, Chair; Mr. Creech; Mr. Hornig; Ms. Johnson; Mr. Peters and Mr. Leone, Planning Board Alternate. Also present: Jeffrey Nutting, Facilitator; Ms. Kowalski, Assistant Town Manager for Development. Discussion on Planning Board and Department Mr. Nutting facilitated a discussion between the Board of Selectmen and the Planning Board on the subject of the Planning Board and the Planning Department, in light of the transitions in the Planning Department, and the options of identifying and addressing any issues. Mr. Nutting introduced himself and explained his role is to ensure this is an efficient and effective meeting. Mr. Lucente explained that at the May 20, 2019 Board of Selectmen meeting the Town Manager informed the Selectmen the Planning Director had resigned and this was the third Planning Director to resign in the past year and has raised concerns regarding the operation of the Planning Department. Mr. Lucente said two meetings were held with the Chairs and Vice Chairs of the Board of Selectmen and Planning Board which included Mr. Malloy and Ms. Kowalski. Current staffing challenges in the Planning Department and status of ongoing projects in the community were discussed. During these meetings it was agreed that some change may be necessary in order to recruit and that additional Joint meetings with the Board of Selectmen would be needed to help move certain projects forward. Mr. Lucente stated that Mr. Malloy and Ms. Kowalski decided to hire a part-time interim planning consultant to work administratively to help projects move along the Planning Department’s current workload while the search is performed for a permanent replacement for the Planning Director is underway. Mr. Lucente said that the Board of Selectmen felt this Joint meeting would be helpful to be able to talk candidly, develop potential options and work collaboratively towards a solution. Mr. Canale, stated that while the Planning Board is not a direct supervisor of the Planning Director, he felt there was a good relationship between the Planning Board and the Planning Department. Additionally, he said there have been some controversial projects and felt the Selectmen have not stayed constant with their position. He also stated he was not aware of any dissatisfaction from the previous Planning Directors. Mr. Canale said he feels there is a lack of