By K.B. Sherman, Contributing Writer
Grafton – Robert S. Berger, inspector of buildings and zoning enforcement officer, appeared before the Grafton Board of Selectmen at its July 7 meeting. He told the board that current fees for building permits, last set in 2004, were not covering the expenses of required building and land inspections. He indicated that for fiscal year 2016, current building permit fees would be short approximately $38,000 in covering the actual expenses.
Noting that fees are based upon the square footage of the proposed structure or room, he advocated three changes: (1) a change to $5 fee per $1,000 building/renovation cost, with a $50 minimum; (2) a change to fire systems protection inspections to $200 for up to a two-hour inspection; and (3) a buildable lot/zoning inspection fee of $200 for up to four hours.
Selectman Dennis Flynn replied that he was concerned that Grafton was becoming an ever more expensive town in which to live and that townspeople had expressed the same concern. He questioned if raising building fees was a good idea at this time. Other selectmen noted that the proposed increases were small and that overall the proposed new fee schedule should not be an undue burden while closing the revenue-cost gap. In the vote, the first two proposed changes were passed unanimously, while the third was defeated 4-1.
In other business, Highway Superintendent David Crouse again appeared before the board regarding the proposed new Department of Public Works facility to be completed in 2020. As he had outlined at the June 2 meeting, budgeting for planning is to be done in three stages. At the October 2015 Town Meeting, the voters will be asked to approve $295,000 for overall building, site acceptance and building plan costs for the planned 35,400-square-foot facility. The total cost of the project will be $13.895 million.
Crouse was praised for his work to arrange “Turtle Crossing” signs along the brook at Stowe Road, an area known for causing numerous turtle deaths during mating season.
In addition, the board again discussed the proposed creation of a “what if” board to deal with possible disasters caused by the placement of the liquid propane gas (LPG) storage facility for the Grafton & Upton Railroad. After discussing membership numbers, member attributes, voting rights, and other such items, the board voted 4-0 (with Flynn abstaining) to create a board with seven voting members: four from other town boards and three “at large” from the railroad yard’s neighborhood. These seven would be assisted by a number of non-voting advisers with applicable expertise.
