Tune into town politics: Fall Town Meeting approaches

Voters will soon have a say on whether to delay the police chief’s retirement, expand a downtown economic zone, purchase land for a conservation area and if it can sell the Decas School land during its Fall Town Meeting. Here’s what you need to know.

Wareham voters will gather in the Wareham High School auditorium, 7 Viking Drive at 7 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 26. 

The town uses an open town meeting format, which means that all registered voters are able to attend and vote on the proposed articles and laws. All votes only need a simple majority of over 50% to pass, with the exception of some items about zoning bylaw and town charter changes, which would require a two-thirds majority.

In addition to the town's governing boards and committees, residents can propose Town Meeting articles if they get signatures from at least 10 registered voters in Wareham.

There are 18 separate items that town meeting attendees will be voting on.

The Community Preservation Committee is asking voters to make decisions on two issues. The first relates to the proposed Lower Agawam River Conservation Project. The committee is asking the town to take $1 million from two town funds to purchase land along the Agawam River to create a conservation area.

For the second, voters will decide whether or not to take $75,000 from an affordable housing reserve fund to update the 2022-2027 Housing Production plan.

Voters will decide whether or not to let Police Chief Walter Correia, Jr. remain as police chief until he’s 70 years old. This is conditional on Correia being physically and mentally able to remain as chief. Correia is currently 63 years old.

The Sewer Commission proposed an item to declare roughly seven acres of land at the Wastewater Pollution Control Facility at 6 Tony’s Lane as “surplus land.” This would allow the town’s chief procurement officer to lease the land out for commercial, municipal or private use. Any revenue from that would go towards the town’s sewage fund.

The Community Events Committee proposed reducing the team from seven members to five members appointed by the Select Board. It will also be able to grant awards to support town events and projects.

Voters will discuss whether the town can gain custody of the former Decas Elementary School property. If this passes, the town would be able to lease or sell the land to a buyer. The Decas School has been closed since January 2022.

They will also discuss changes in dog licensing, which will now need to be completed by April 1. The law will also potentially allow service animals, instead of only seeing-eye dogs, on town beaches or marshes. To read more, go to wareham.theweektoday.com/article/changes-dog-licensing-proposed/159791. 

There is a proposal to expand Wareham Village onto four neighboring streets. As part of the urban renewal plan, it will allow for more businesses and visitors to the area. To read more, go to wareham.theweektoday.com/article/wareham-village-expansion-may-be-discussed-town-meeting/159933. 

A citizen’s petition asks the minimum parking requirements for businesses to expand to three-eighths of a mile surrounding the location.

There are seven more housekeeping items that voters will decide on relating to the town’s budget.

The first item would authorize the town government to use money from different reserve funds, including the town’s stabilization and capital stabilization funds, and to borrow money for capital improvement projects.

The second would allow the town to transfer money to reserve funds used for collective bargaining, employee benefits and economic stabilization, among other reasons.

The third would allow the town to raise money to pay unpaid bills and deficits from the previous financial year.

The fourth would allow the town to transfer money to Wareham Community Television for public, educational and governmental access programming.

The fifth would allow the town to put money reimbursed to the town for transporting homeless students to school under the McKinney Vento act toward the school district’s transportation fund.

The sixth would allow the town to transfer $105,635 to the Harbormaster’s Maintenance and Improvements Account.

The seventh would allow the town to fund collective bargaining agreements with the Wareham Police Sergeants Union and Wareham Superior Officers Union.