Attorney cites ‘significant procedural defect’ in town meeting vote to change light plant management
/By Carol Britton Meyer
The select board this week heard from town counsel about why he believes the town meeting article that proposed changing the management structure of the light plant was flawed and prevents the board from taking further action.
voters approved the light plant management change at the spring town meeting.
Town Counsel Brian Winner was present at this week’s meeting to advise the select board on its role, “or lack thereof” with regard to the passage of Article 37 at the spring town meeting.
Town Manager Jennifer Constable earlier told both boards in separate meetings that the article – which proposed restructuring the light department governance by removing the town manager as light plant manager – is “not actionable … because town meeting can’t direct the select board” to take that action.
The wording of the article did not include provisions about filing the required special legislation at the state level to make the management change.
After a lengthy presentation about his opinion on the matter with backup materials from extensive research, Winner confirmed that in order to be actionable, town meeting would have to not only approve the article, but also “specifically authorize the select board to file special legislation” to request approval for the governance change.
“This would then authorize the state Representative to file the petition,” Winner said. “There needs to be clear intent. … This might seem like a technicality, but it’s embedded [in in the law].”
“I think there is a significant procedural defect [here], and I imagine this is the first of several conversations,” Winner said.
In response to a question from a board member, Winner explained that even if the article was in the correct form, or a future article in the right form was presented and approved by another town meeting, “the select board has the discretion as the town’s executive authority whether or not to proceed” in accordance with the town meeting vote.
An expected joint meeting with the Hull Municipal Light Board and the select board with both attorneys present at Wednesday’s meeting related to Article 37 – a citizens’ petition – was postponed to allow light plant counsel to meet with the light board prior to a joint meeting, according to Constable. She expects a joint meeting to occur in the upcoming weeks.
The meeting was for informational purposes only, and no public comment was accepted.
Select Board member Jerry Taverna took issue with not allowing the public to comment, but Chair Irwin Nesoff reminded him that the board earlier approved a public comment policy that recognizes that on some occasions, public comment may be restricted on certain agenda items.
Light board members Tom Burns, Patrick Cannon, and Jake Vaillancourt – who sponsored the town meeting article – attended the meeting.
Burns, who chairs the board, asked to make a statement and was allowed to do so by Nesoff.
The intent was to inform the select board that on a 3-2 vote at the July 17 light board meeting, the board adopted Article 37 as its official policy position in support of urging the select board to file a home-rule petition for governance change. This followed an earlier light board vote with a different outcome.
Following Winner’s comments, Taverna said he’s “looking for one paragraph from [each of the two] counsels” summarizing their legal opinions on the matter. Winner said he would “be happy to do so” after the meeting.
Winner also said he’s in communication with light plant counsel Nick Scobbo and has invited him to share his opinion with Winner.
“I would then share that information with the board,” he said.
Select board member Brian McCarthy told Winner that prior to his presentation, “I didn’t know the meaning of ‘inactionable,’ and you spelled that out tonight. The article didn’t check off all the boxes.”
Winner said he recalled that “the town moderator said the warrant article was advisory at town meeting.”
Taverna suggested that in the future, the select board allow town counsel to meet with citizen petitioners to ensure their petitions are in the right form, unrelated to the content.
Select board member Greg Grey read from a prepared statement, saying that the Article 37 petitioner “never held public forums to explain the reasons for the article and how such a change would be better for our citizens,” noting that the town meeting vote “doesn’t reflect the opinion of the more than 6,000 ratepayers.”
Town meeting voted on the article, Taverna said, “and whoever shows up and votes, that’s it.”
Grey called the citizens’ petition “a grudge match with no merit,” stating that he does “respect the petitioner.”
Taverna took issue with that remark, referring to the town’s dignity pledge.
Nesoff called a halt to the conversation, telling Taverna and Grey they could continue their discussion after the meeting if they wished to.
Nesoff told Winner that it was “important [for the board to] meet with you and have this discussion without public debate and comment so we could stay on point.”
Nesoff also noted there is a process to follow. “While the vote was three months ago, the process doesn’t happen overnight, and this meeting is part of that process,” he said.
In other business…
• The board approved changing the Surfside district pay-by-phone parking current maximum of four hours in two-hour increments to a maximum of two hours in one-hour increments in response to concerns expressed by businesses in the area and residents that a number of people are taking advantage of the four-hour maximum and then going to the beach. While this is within their rights, this practice takes parking away from customers.
The approval also authorized the Hull Police Department to determine where and how many 15-minute spaces will be allocated in this district in front of local businesses at the request of a business owner for customers who just want to do a quick errand.
A discussion about parking in general will be on an upcoming agenda.
⦁ Appointments were made after interviewing the candidates:
⦁ Rachel Terranova to fill a vacant seat on the board of assessors until the May 2026 annual town election;
⦁ Richard Hennessey was reappointed to the zoning board of appeals, alternate Ed Parsons appointed to a full seat from his current alternate role, and Rebecca Rogers to Parsons’ former alternate seat. Planning board member Abby Klieman interviewed for a seat on the ZBA Wednesday night after also being interviewed at the last meeting. At that time, the question of whether there would be a conflict of interest if she were to serve on both boards arose, but she provided substantiation this week indicating that would not be the case.
While both were considered to be qualified candidates, Nesoff said that since Klieman was already serving on a board, he likes “to bring in people with experience who are new to town [as Rogers is]. This way we will have the benefit of one being on the planning board and the other on the ZBA,” he said.
⦁ Jason Earl and Leslie Taylor to the Clean Energy Climate Action Committee
⦁ Meg Riley to a seat on the economic development committee and also to the No Place for Hate Committee
⦁ Maryellen White, a Navy veteran, to the veterans’ council.
The board also accepted the resignations of NPFH member Deb Greenstein and EDC member Irene Coombs and acknowledged a letter of resignation from Hull Redevelopment Authority member Dennis Zaia.
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