Fairhaven Town Meeting Features Oxford Project, Marijuana Delay

Fairhaven's upcoming Town Meeting warrant looks to be a long one, with 58 articles set to be voted on.

Many of the items featured will look to appropriate funding for a number of smaller projects like the Community Preservation Committee's request for $20,000 for a Board of Public Work's land protection project, $10,000 for a fitness station at the Recreation Center, and $17,500 for tennis court restorations at Cushman Park.

The Oxford School Residences project also has issues to be addressed during the Town Meeting. Article 31 features a number of appropriations being made by the Community Preservation Committee. One of which being $50,000 to the Oxford project's developer, the Stratford Capital Group.

Article 52 would allow the Oxford School Residences a parking, access and utility easement in nearby Livesy Park.

Selectman Bob Espindola tells WBSM News the articles will be important hurdles for the senior housing project.

"The project has been shown to be something the town meeting is in favor of, and these types of things need to be worked out in such a way that they're going to benefit the developer and the town equally," Espindola said.

The Board of Selectmen also recommended Article 51, which would place a temporary moratorium on the sale and distribution of recreational marijuana for up to a year. This idea behind the short-term ban is to give the town time to create local zoning bylaws after the state issues their regulations.

The moratorium would not be in effect later than the 2019 Town Meeting.

Articles 42 and 43 could bring the town another step closer to a regional school system with Acushnet. Article 42 would create a volunteer school regionaliztion study committee, while article 43 appropriates $20,000 to conduct a study of the possibility of combining Fairhaven and Acushnet Public Schools. Acushnet will spend the same amount on a study.

Town Meeting begins at 9 AM on Saturday May 6.

People with questions on the warrant articles are encouraged to attend the precinct meeting on May 3 at the Hastings Middle School, where they can ask questions and get more familiar with the warrant.