By John Swinconeck, Contributing Writer
Shrewsbury ??” Shrewsbury Town Meeting members approved 12 out of the 17 warrant articles – including several zoning articles – during the Oct. 21 Special Town Meeting.
Town Meeting members unanimously voted to allow the town to enter into a new agreement with Wheelabrator. The agreement allows the waste-to-energy company to extract metals from ash at its landfill off Route 20. According to Town Manager Daniel Morgado, the equipment needed to extract the metal would not be visible from the road and the extraction process does not produce dust. The town stands to collect tax revenue on the equipment and collect an additional fee from Wheelabrator. ?Any such facility will need approval from the Zoning Board of Appeals, Shrewsbury Board of Health, and state Department of Public Health.
Residents did not muster the two-thirds majority needed to rezone 26,000 square feet of land at 420 Boston Turnpike at the intersection of Oak Street. Town officials wanted to rezone the area from residential to business, and Town Planner Kristen Las said the location was “prime location” for economic development. However, some residents cited concerns about increased traffic on Oak Street.
Town Meeting members did approve a modification to the zoning map to increase commercial space by about 55,500 square feet on Route 9 between Maple Avenue and Oak Street.
With the adoption of two warrant articles, Shrewsbury's zoning will now allow indoor and outdoor farmers markets as well as for outdoor entertainment in areas that are not residential.
Town Meeting began with a moment of silence for Richard Perron and Robert K. McGinley. Perron, 89, died July 19, 2013, and was the Veteran's Agent for Shrewsbury, Grafton, and Northborough. McGinley was a former Police Chief, who held that post from 1980 to 1998, and died May 30.
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