1983-03-07 to 1983-05-16-ATM-min

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(Adjourned Session of the 1983 Annual Town Meeting - May 16, 1983.) 2 74, Article 11. Jacquelyn R. Smith filed the Report of the Planning Board under (Cont.) Article 11 and explained the highlights of the report. She stated . that the Planning Board is unanimously in favor of the transfer of Franklin School but they are concerned about the future use of the building. She said there is something to be said for simply "land banking ", i.e., holding our resources even though a future use cannot be presently identified. A majority of the Planning Board recommends a thorough investigation of the interim use of the build- ing for a ten - fifteen year period. 10:03 P.M. Mary W. Miley then asked if it could be used again as a school once it had been transferred and Selectman Chairman, James F. Crain answered that once it was off the school rolls it would be quite an expensive project to get it back as a school. He urged that it be turned over to the Board of Selectmen. 10:07 P.M. Main motion, as presented by Mr. Newman, declared adopted unanimously. 10:14 P.M. Article 7. AUTHORIZE SPECIAL LEGISLATION TO ALLOW TAX LEVY TO GO TO 2 Presented by John F. McLaughlin. (See MOTION: That the Selectmen be and they hereby are authorized to Page 272 petition the General Court for an act to permit the Town to levy for motion taxes to an amount not exceeding two and one -half percent of the as full and fair cash value of the property values of the Town without adopted) regard to Chapter 782 of the Acts of 1981 if the Selectmen deter- mine that the financial outlook for Fiscal Year 1985 requires such action. 10:15 P.M. Robert M. Hutchinson, Jr., Town Manager, stated that the Selectmen were unanimously in favor of this article. With the aid of slides, Mr. Hutchinson went through the budget forecast for the period 1984 through 1988 and he hoped that the meeting would give this article favorable action. 10:23 P.M. Paul W. Marshall moved to amend by adding a resolution at the end as follows: Be it resolved that it is the sense of Town Meeting that if the Selectmen have not determined by December 1, 1983 to petition the General Court for the authority to tax up to 2�1% of full and fair value they should take such steps as needed to place before the town by referendum the question of override on Proposition 2;�%. The intent of this referendum would be to allow the town citizens to decide if they want to tax up to 24,% of full and fair value. 10:25 P.M. Mr. Marshall spoke on his amendment and showed slides. 10:30 P.M. Mr. Marshall asked the consent of the meeting to change the last sentence of his amendment, on advice of the Town Counsel, Norman P. Cohen, and there were no objections from the meeting. The amendment now reads: Be it resolved that it is the sense of Town Meeting that if the Selectmen have not determined by December 1, 1983 to petition the General Court for the authority to tax up to 2'% of full and fair value they should take such steps as needed to place before the town a referendum question concerning an override as set forth in Chapt. 782 of the Acts of 1981. 10:34 P.M. Margery M. Battin stated that the Selectmen feel that the override belongs to town meeting and Shepard Anthony Clough that the unanimous sense of the School Committee is that the town should tax up to 2zg% of its property value. He added that the School Committee will need increased funding to run the schools. 10:43 P.M. In response to a question raised by James E. Barry, Town Counsel Norman P. Cohen said that the referendum could come at the annual or any special election. 10:45 P.M.