Mattapoisett will hold its annual Town Meeting beginning 6:30 p.m. on Monday, May 14 at Old Rochester Regional High School. This year's Town Warrant features 40 articles that range from the controversial new FEMA floodplain maps to a plan that would explore affordable housing options for senior citizens. A Special Town Meeting will also be held at 7:30 p.m. on Monday to vote on one article.

Three consecutive nights have been reserved for the meeting; however, Town Moderator Jack Eklund said, "We're hoping that we will complete Town Meeting in one night again this year as we did last year."

Town Clerk Barbara Sullivan encouraged all Mattapoisett residents to attend the meeting. "It's great to take part and see how our government works," she said.

Article 3: Appropriate for Other Post Employment Benefit Liabilities

For the third consecutive town meeting there will be a vote to set aside money in a trust fund to cover the obligations of retiree health insurance.

“We’ve been working on this very aggressively,” said Town Administrator Mike Gagne. He said the fund has increased 100 percent each year since it began.

“Granted this is the start of it, but certainly we’re making every conscious effort to meet this liability and set aside reserves,” said Gagne.

Article 8: Sick Leave Liability Reduction Funding

A new item on the Town Warrant this year, the Selectmen are sponsoring this article to address accrued sick leave which is payable when an employee retires. The Selectmen are recommending $20,000 from the Tax Levy to fund the program. The current liability is approximately $600,000, said Gagne.

“We want to start putting money towards reducing this liability at is present value versus at its highest value on the point of retirement.”

He said the funding would also benefit the town’s financial review and audit.

Article 10: Phase II Town Road Improvement Plan Funding

The Selectmen are sponsoring an article for the second year of the Five Year Road Improvement Plan.

“This is actually an exciting article,” said Gagne. “They’ll be working on roads that are on a ranked priority list.”

Like 2011, the article requests $200,000 and will be an item on the May ballot to seek the funds as a debt exclusion.

Article 14: Capital Plan Funding

The Finance Committee recommends a total of $216,300 be appropriated towards the purchase of several pieces of equipment, including a plow truck and police cruiser. The money will also be used for two CPR devices to be used in ambulances. Gagne said the “state of the art technology” could improve the chances of survival for patients in cardiac arrest.

Articles 16 through 26 relate to the Water and Sewer Department.
Article 19 is a water and sewer rate study. “It’s going to look at the full costing and analysis of what services we get and what the water rate structure should look like,” said Gagne. “This is an excellent opportunity to do good cost allocation.”

The water and sewer articles also cover a $55,000 appropriation to restore one of the town’s drinking water wells and the purchase of an auxiliary generator that would provide the department with portable power in the event of outages.

All of the money for the articles will come from funds already on reserve.

Article 30: Funding work on Center School Clock
The Community Preservation Committee, Finance Committee and Selectmen are recommending $51,500 from the Community Preservation Undesignated Fund to help pay for the repair and restoration of the Center School clock.

Repair on the historic clock Seth Thomas is already underway and should be completed in June, according to Ray Andrews who is heading up the project.

If approved, the money, along with donations from the community, will complete the project and allow it to be installed in the school.

Article 31: Funding Repairs to Cushing Cemetery Fence

The Community Preservation Fund would like to appropriate $23,471 to repair and restore the fence surrounding the historic Cushing Cemetery, the town's third oldest cemetery. Owned by a corporation, committee chair John DeCosta said this is the first time the group has proposed funding a private project. "We put a lot of thought into it," said DeCosta. "It had to be something very iconic."

The committee's research found that the fence was originally purchased by the town in the early 1900s.

Article 32: Funding Planning for Senior Citizen Housing

For the first time, the Community Preservation Committee is recommending $25,000 from the Housing Reserve to develop a plan for affordable senior citizen housing.  DeCosta said Town Administrator Mike Gagne prompted them to consider funding the plan with the hopes of eventually bringing more housing options to Mattapoisett seniors.

DeCosta said the plan will look at the housing needs seniors and "how we can keep our senior citizens in town."

Article 33: Funding Work Relative to Bike Path

The Mattapoisett Bike Path, which has faced a number of setbacks, hopes to see a  $37,000 boost from the Community Preservation Committee’s undesignated fund. DeCosta said the funding would help keep the path in the running for approximately $2 million in federal funding while also showing the town's commitment to the project. The funding would go towards engineering, design, permitting and other tasks associated with the bike path’s extension from Mattapoisett Neck Road to Depot Street.

Article 39: Zoning Bylaw Amendment

Members of FEMA and the National Flood Insurance Program met with residents in November 2011 to discuss changes to the floodplain maps and to explain issues dealing with insurance policies and premiums. The last update to FEMA maps for the area was around 1990, according to Gagne.

The amendment will designate the floodplain district as an overlay district, which will affect some building and rebuilding permits.

There are currently 750 properties in Mattapoisett with national flood insurance, valued at $45 million.

Town Moderator Jack Eklund said, “If the town rejects the new proposed maps then those 750 properties will not be eligible for flood insurance and if those properties are mortgaged their mortgages would be called into question.”

Gagne noted that the national flood insurance is much more affordable than the alternative of private insurance.

Without approval, the town would also be ineligible for FEMA assistance.

Eric Carlson of the Department for Conservation and Recreation will be on hand at Town Meeting to answer questions.