Oh, the memories of good ole yester-year:

By Jean-Paul Salamanca

Posted Nov 24, 2010 at 12:01 AM

TEMPLETON -- The Planning Board will explore whether changing the town’s administrative permit fees -- which developers say are high in comparison to other communities -- would be prudent as officials seek to bring a proposed shopping center to a site off Route 2A. According to James E. Rheault of Leominster-based engineering firm Whitman and Bingham and attorney Matthew J. Campobasso, representing Lowfield-Templeton LLC, their research found that the total administrative fees for building permits that would be incurred in constructing a 270,000-square-foot shopping mall at the intersection of routes 2, 2A and 202 in Templeton would total an estimated $247,000. In comparison to other neighboring communities, Templeton’s fees are higher, according to Mr. Campobasso. As a comparison, he listed similar commercial administrative permit fees for Athol at $58,000, Lunenburg at $70,000, Gardner at $500 and Orange at $75, among others. Templeton sets their permit fees for such projects based on the number of parking spaces. Previous estimates indicated the proposed shopping mall should have 912 parking spaces, if constructed. Although he declined to indicate if the price of the fees would be a “deal buster,” Mr. Campobasso asked if the planning board -- which set the fees in 2007 -- would be willing to negotiate in order for the project to get underway. Planning board Vice Chairman Robert Whalen, in the board’s defense, said that the permit fees were set during more prosperous economic times, although he stated he could be amenable to amending the fees to “level the field.” Board Chairman Gerry White said while the board would review the fees to determine if an adjustment could be made, he offered strong reservations about lowering the fees to levels as low as Orange. “The thing to keep in mind is that when you build these kinds of projects, there is a cost to the town for building them,” he said. “For example, Templeton hardly has any extra police detail for shoplifting calls. If this is built, it’s a guarantee that they will. That’s an extra cost for the town. We don’t want to be unfair or too large on those fees, of course. We’ll take a look at (the fees) but we don’t want to just give it away.” However, a public hearing needs to be held before the fees can be adjusted. While there is clear potential for economic benefits and increased commercial activity in town by lowering the fees, there is also the possibility of residents opposing lower permit fees for environmental or anti-development reasons. Acknowledging both possibilities, Mr. White said that residents would have an opportunity to air their concerns when the time comes. Selectman Robert Columbus urged the board to take revisal of the fees under consideration, noting that the town could use the potential tax revenue -- estimated to be between $165,000 to $180,000 annually -- for future “big ticket items.” “Templeton has never seen anything like this before, to my recollection,” he said. “I’d hate to see us left at the station by dragging our feet on it.” Developers are expected to turn in a letter with a project timeline sometime between next week and Dec. 14, when the board will discuss the matter further in the second of two meetings. The other meeting is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Dec. 6 at the town’s 690 Patriots Road offices. jpsalamanca@thegardnernews.com1