Templeton annual town election, May 7, 2007.

Question 2. Shall the Town of Templeton accept sections 3 to 7, inclusive of Chapter 44B of the General Laws, as proposed by a petition signed by at least five percent of the registered voters of this town, a summary of which appears below? YES_____ NO____ 

 SUMMARY: Sections 3 to 7 of Chapter 44B of the General Laws of Massachusetts, also known as the Community Preservation Act (“Act”), establishes a dedicated funding source to acquire, create and preserve open space and land for recreational use; acquire, preserve, rehabilitate and restore historic resources; acquire, create, preserve and support community housing; and to rehabilitate and restore open space, land for recreational use and community housing that is acquired or created in accordance with the Act. In Templeton, the Act will be funded, beginning in Fiscal Year 2008, by an additional surcharge of 3% on the annual tax levy on real property and by matching funds provided by the state. The following exemptions from such surcharge, permitted under Section 3(e) of said Act, will apply: (1) property owned and occupied as a domicile by a person who would qualify for low income housing or low or moderate income senior housing in the Town; (2) $100,000 of the value of each taxable parcel of residential real property. A taxpayer receiving a regular property tax abatement or exemption will also receive a pro rata reduction in surcharge. A Community Preservation Committee must be created pursuant to by-law and will make recommendations on the use of the funds. Town Meeting must approve any such recommendations before funds can be expended. At least 10% of the funds for each fiscal year must be spent or reserved for later spending for each of the Act’s three purposes: (1) open space (but excluding land for recreational use); (2) historic resources; and (3) community housing. All expenditures pursuant to the Act will be subject to an annual audit.

QUESTION #2 Community Preservation Act 

Precinct A, B, Total

Yes 314 247 561 

 No 258 218 476 

 Blanks 30 32 62 

 TOTAL 602 497 1,099 

 Plan the dive, dive the plan.

Planning, not one of Templeton's strong points. That said, back in 2018 at Town annual town meeting, May 19, 2018, there was aa plan presented to town meeting, article 29, authorize lease of capital item - fire.

article 29 - On a motion duly made and seconded the Town voted to (a) raise and appropriate the sum of Ninety Two Thousand Five Hundred Dollars and No Cents ($92,500.00) to pay for the first year of a six year lease for a fully equipped fire engine apparatus with said lease not to exceed Five Hundred Fifty Five Thousand Dollars and No Cents ($555,000.00) in total, and have a so called escape clause for lack of appropriation in addition to provisions for an early pay-off, without penalty, and a One Dollar ($1.00) buy-out upon the conclusion of all regularly schedule lease payments and (b) appropriate the sum of Twenty Five Thousand Dollars and No Cents ($25,000.00) to write down the purchase price of said item such that it may be leased within the foregoing limits set in this article and to meet said appropriation of by a transfer of said sum from certified free cash.

Passed by a 2/3 Vote/May 19th @ 1:18 pm

 Monday, April 3, 2023, went to Gardner Hannaford, checked out at 12:04. Departed and headed to route 2A and as I drove by Salvadore chevy dodge jeep, I spotted Templeton ambulance in parking lot. Since it is a ford truck, no reason to be there, I turned into dodge and drove around, two people in the ambulance and one exited, went into building, then the Templeton fire chief vehicle began to exit parking area following the Templeton ambulance. So, if anyone would have needed an ambulance yesterday at around this time, you have been waiting a while. Not sure what the procedure would have been if a 911 call came in for ambulance, but, you might have had to wait a bit longer than if the ambulance was where it was supposed to be. Now most people might not think this a big deal, however, if you were someone who did call 911 at this time and needed ambulance for a life saving incident, police officer showed up first, did cpr for a long period of time before ambulance showed up, you might feel different. In my opinion, this is another example of poor management of personnel, service/equipment in Templeton. Not the first and probably not the last. The town owned ambulance is to provide life saving service to residents, the fire chief suv is primarily a vehicle to get the chief back and forth from home to work and vice versa and to any official duties. Surely there is a better way to pick up a vehicle used for personal use other than using an ambulance. Team Templeton needs to work on management and budget, I hope more team Templeton residents show up for annual town meeting in May. Your money and you have final say on if it is available for spending or not.

 Grange Hall - use public money for renovations, including a proposal for a handicap bathroom.

Consider this when you vote.

Handicap parking Location:

These spaces should be in a level location providing the shortest safe, accessible route of travel to an accessible entrance. With more than one accessible entrance, the spaces should be located near each accessible entrance. Sidewalks at such spaces should have curb cuts at each access aisle, so a person is not required to enter the stream of traffic to get to a sidewalk.

 From email on 3/16/2023:

Please see the email that I received from John Jeffress, Demolition Coordinator for 10 Pleasant Street.

Demo of 10 Pleasant Street - project status:

Electric, gas, cable, and phone services are disconnected and letters have been received from the providers.

Water and sewer lines will be exposed for town to cut & cap next week or the week after, weather depending. Dig Safe ticket is valid, Town Water and Town sewer will mark their services after snow melts.

Asbestos work was scheduled for this week, but has been put off until next week because of poor weather conditions. That work is estimated to take 2 full days and your hygienist is on board to come inspect when our crew is finishing up.

With the water and sanitary lines cut and capped to DPW’s satisfaction, the asbestos finished and inspected, and the rodent treatment report that the town will provide in hand, we’ll be ready to apply for a demo permit. As we are working for the town we expect a quick turnaround on the permit review. Once we get the permit in hand we will mobilize to town, and our estimation is 5-6 days of demo, load out, and backfill.

Best,

John Jeffress

Demolition Coordinator

Associated Building Wreckers, Inc.

 A reminder that sometimes, you have to keep your foot on the gas. The town has been receiving $200.00 per month from Ahisma by way of autopay from a banking institution. It is my understanding the autopay mechanism has been in play since sometime in 2016 or early 2017. Either way, town has been receiving the rent for the building unless they thought it was a donation of some sort. This item along with a few others show that someone is not doing their job very well when it comes to day-to-day operation of the town affairs. This is another reason to always look at agenda of select board. When there seems to be a question on how the town is conducting it's business, people must show up at select board meetings and ask why or what is going on. Strength in numbers!

Off Newsbreak.

TEMPLETON ― An expired lease and the DPW's need for office and locker space has created a hot button issue, as the facility that houses Ahimsa Haven Animal Rescue was on the Feb. 22 Select Board agenda as a possible use for the Department of Public Works.

Nicole Roberts, president of Ahimsa, said she was concerned because she had not been invited to participate in the preliminary discussions among town officials that had prompted the item to appear on the Select Board’s agenda.

“Nor were we invited to the meeting,” Roberts said, adding that the shelter has occupied the space since 2013.

But Ahimsa officials and town officials, including Town Administrator Adam Lamontagne and DPW Director Bob Szocik, did meet a few weeks later to discuss the issue, according to Lamontagne.

“We had a meeting that I thought went exceptionally well,” Lamontagne said. “I said that (Ahimsa) had an expired lease, and the DPW director just wanted to share his thoughts with the board – it was just a discussion item on the agenda, there was no action. There was no indication from any of the Select Board members that they would not want to continue (Ahimsa’s) lease.”

Town officials expect to renew shelter's expired lease

Lamontagne added that because the facility is town property, of which the Select Board is a custodian, any discussion about the facility must be held during a public hearing. He said the discussion at the Select Board meeting had primarily involved Szocik expressing his concerns about the need for more office and locker room space for the DPW.

“I don’t know how the impression got out there that the Select Board was looking to throw (Ahimsa) out,” Lamontagne said, adding that the shelter’s lease had been expired for several years. “At the very least, we need to update the lease.”

Following the meeting between Ahimsa and town officials, Ahimsa officials took to social media to post their concerns about the possibility of the facility’s lease not being renewed by the Select Board. They urged followers to attend the Select Board’s March 22 meeting and make their support for the shelter known to officials.

“Can you imagine letting an animal suffer or putting them to sleep because of budget restrictions and the inability to help financially?” a post on the shelter’s Facebook page read. “Ahimsa is a very important part of the community, helping cats and residents.”

Lamontagne said that he had been disappointed that Ahimsa officials had written the post after what he felt had been a very positive and productive meeting with all parties involved.

“We had a very nice discussion, and I was shocked to hear of the post when I heard about it from a Select Board member and another town employee – for that to be thrown out there, I think, is disingenuous,” he said, describing the post as an “overreaction.” “(The situation) just spiraled into this thing, and quite frankly, on social media some people don’t understand the full situation and they misinterpret it.”

Lamontagne added that he hoped Ahimsa officials would consider not posting further messages on social media while negotiations on renewing the facility’s lease are ongoing.

“I think it’s important we establish some ground rules before such negotiations occur between Ahimsa and the town,” he said.

Social media posts intended to raise awareness about Ahimsa's mission

But Roberts, who agreed that the meeting between Ahimsa and town officials had been a productive one, said the intention behind the post was to raise awareness about the crucial role the shelter plays throughout the region, and the importance of renewing its lease.

“It is a board decision, and you never know how a board is going to vote, so we reached out to seek community support and to let the community know what’s going on,” she explained. “I felt that the more support we have and the more people have a chance to get to know us and know what an asset we are to the community, the better.”

Roberts said she is optimistic that the town’s Select Board will decide to renew Ahimsa’s lease and ensure the shelter can continue its mission to help animals across the region.

“We want to continue to be in Templeton and do what we do, working with the town, leasing their building, and helping area communities as well as our own community,” she said.