Brewster Begins To Formulate Fall Special Meeting Warrant; Officials Anticipate 10 To 15 Articles

BREWSTER – The fall town meeting warrant is officially open for articles. 

That happened on Monday, Sept. 14, and already there are two articles teed up for the Nov. 16 meeting. The board expects 11 more, and that along with the closing article will comprise the warrant barring any citizens petitions or last minute additions. 

Town Manager Peter Lombardi estimated a total of 10 to 15 potential articles. 

Voters will be asked to create a disability commission, in part to replace the all-access committee, which has been unable to fill out a full complement of members for several years. The town first created a committee for the handicapped in 1985, and that was reformed as the all-access committee in 1995. The goal was to make Brewster’s public buildings and resources available to all by doing a major project each year. It was supposed to have seven members, but by 2019 Laurel Labdon, now on the select board, was the lone member, and it hasn’t been active since.

“We were not able to reconstitute the all-access committee,” Labdon said. “Brewster has usually been ahead of the curve.”

She noted that the town’s population is skewed towards age 60 and up and the new commission would have to include several members with disabilities.

“This has some teeth to it. The commission has financial levers to pull and there is a lot of money out there to promote accessibility,” Labdon said. “The commission can identify areas in violation and act on remedies. This is something that’s long overdue for the town of Brewster to do.” 

Under Massachusetts law, towns can create a disability commission by a town meeting vote. The commission would have multiple responsibilities advising town officials on compliance with state and federal regulations and recommending policies, resolving problems, coordinating programs and activities.

The select board placed the article on the warrant by a 5-0 vote along with an article to revise the stormwater management bylaw. The bylaw was initially adopted in 2021 and created a stormwater management permitting process. Most of the updates are technical housekeeping measures, but the revisions would switch the rules from a bylaw to regulations which could be set by the planning board. The two-year look-back provision is also being eliminated as it was difficult to enforce. Amendments to the regulations would require a public hearing. 

The other 11 articles delineated so far are pending board approval. The first article will cover outstanding obligations, basically unpaid bills. The town is also seeking Community Preservation Act funding to improve the tennis courts at the Cape Cod Sea Camps. 

“This is for working through the permits and design process, to refine the design, we’re looking to add a fence,” Lombardi said. The town is also seeking a $140,000 grant from the United States Tennis Association, he said.

The tennis for seniors program would shift there from the courts at Stony Brook.

The largest article will likely be capital and special projects expenditures. Lombardi will need to meet with department heads Oct. 6, to determine exactly what the requests will be. He said that Brewster has $3.5 million in free cash available for fiscal 2027 projects, and usually the town leaves $1.2 million or more in the account for the following year.

There will also be a separate capital article for Sea Camps expenditures. The Sea Camp finance committee will present their requests to the board Oct. 19.

Another article will set up a revolving fund for short-term rental registration and inspection revenue before the $300 fees roll in. The board voted 4-0 (Mary Chaffee recused herself) to adopt the registration and inspection fees at the meeting.

The town received a $400,000 settlement from a lawsuit over PFAS pollution that can be used for water projects, Brewster would like to use it to extend the water main to Sea Meadow Lane north of Route 6A.

There are a couple of local options involving veterans: adopting the Brave Act to help pay for employees serving in the military and implementing the Hero Act that provides some tax exemptions for disabled veterans. 

Another article would provide citizens with a report from the select board and school committee on the elementary school regionalization study.