Topics such as how to manage solar development, adopting new housing bylaws, banning rat poison and more will be voted on Monday, April 28 at Wareham High School beginning at 7 p.m. for spring Town Meeting.

The meeting will begin with voters deciding on the annual Town Meeting agenda items and a Special Town Meeting will begin immediately after.

On the annual Town Meeting agenda are a number of routine town business and financial items, amendments to the capital planning committee and a citizens petition to ban the use of rat poison.

Rat poison ban. Onset Resident Jessica Bell is spearheading a citizen petition to ban the use of rat poison.

If passed, her petition would give the town 90 days to phase out the use of rat poison. The chemical could only be used “to remediate a public health condition” determined by the Board of Health.

In rat poison’s place, she proposes the town provide residents education on integrated pest management, a service Bell has used in her own home.

Instead of laying poison traps, integrated management companies aim to target specific pest problems with the “least harmful and most effective methods, minimizing risks to human health, beneficial organisms and the environment,” according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

Director of Natural Resources Gary Buckminster said banning rat poison has pros and cons, saying enforcing the ban would be difficult and expenses for pest control companies and their customers would likely rise.

For more, see a previous Wareham Week story here.

To look at the full annual Town Meeting agenda, visit the link here.

The Special Town Meeting agenda includes several routine budget transfers, almost $1.5 million in Community Preservation Fund spending, the adoption of new housing bylaws, relegating solar development to a specific area and several other bylaw amendments for voters to consider.

Accessory Dwelling Units. The town will be presenting new bylaws to define the rules and regulations around accessory dwelling units, a new housing designation created by a state law last year. An accessory dwelling unit is a second, smaller residence that can be built on properties zoned single family.

Under the proposed bylaw, accessory dwelling units must provide one, off-street parking space unless it is within a half mile of a bus or commuter rail station.

The definition of “commuter rail” and “bus station” was something voters at the Jan. 13 Special Town Meeting voiced confusion over, before deciding the proposed bylaw needed further study before implementation.

Under the new version of the bylaws, a bus station is a location where people can get on and off a bus operated by a transit authority. For routes that allow passengers to flag the bus down at any point on the route, the entire route is considered a bus station.

A commuter rail station is defined as a station operated by a transit authority with year-round service; it does not include seasonal or event-based service.

The new version also states accessory dwelling units cannot be constructed on properties owned by a corporation, real estate investment trust, or any similar investment entity.

What this means is only individuals, LLCs, trusts or S Corporations — but only if every owner is a real person, not a business entity — can build an accessory dwelling unit on their property. In order to do so, they must first register with the Board of Health.

Other restrictions on accessory dwelling units include: only one is allowed on a property as of right, the footprint cannot exceed that of the principal dwelling, the the size of the accessory dwelling unit cannot exceed 50% of the gross floor area of the principal dwelling or 900 square feet, whichever is smaller and the accessory dwelling unit must have its own entrance.

Large scale ground mounted solar installation restriction. The town is looking to restrict all large scale ground mounted solar installation to the existing, 1,300 acre Business Development Overlay District located north of I-495.

Currently, solar developers can build anywhere in town and officials have said restricting where solar can be built allows them to gain some control over solar development.

“We are responding to the pressure we get from the Massachusetts legislature,” said Planning Board Chair Carl Schulz at the Jan. 13 Special Town Meeting. "We are trying to protect the rest of the town."

If approved, a solar development could not be built in the Business Development Overlay District until the Planning Board conducts a site plan review with a special permit, despite A.D. Makepeace owning much of the land in the district.

Town officials presented the idea to voters at the Jan. 13 Special Town Meeting. Voters decided the proposal needed further study, voicing concern over battery storage safety, clear cutting of forests and fearing the district would encourage further solar development.

Land Use Coordinator Josh Faherty said during the Jan. 13 Special Town Meeting that creating the district would not loosen any existing permitting restrictions.

Community Preservation fund spending. Voters will be asked to consider spending just under $1.5 million out of the Community Preservation Fund on a land purchase, upgrades to Swifts Beach Road and assessing the exterior of Hammond School.

The Community Preservation Fund is a pool of money which is collected through a surtax on property values over $100,000 and it currently has $4 million dollars in it.

The Wareham Land Trust will be asking voters to allocate $1.2 million out of the Community Preservation Fund to purchase the River Walk Conservation Area, a 19.37 acre piece of land. 

If purchased, it would create a 50 acre stretch of conservation land, ensure endangered species are protected and create a mile of walking trails the land trust would incorporate into their regular walk schedule.

The town will be asking voters to allocate $250,000 towards replacing Swifts Beach Road with a 6-foot wide porous walkway. A drop-off area would be maintained for vehicles to stop briefly but no new parking would be added.

Town Administrator Derek Sullivan will be asking voters to consider allocating $60,000 to assess the exterior of the Hammond School, a building Sullivan has described as an important building and added “this would be the first step in coming back for a much larger ask.”

For more information on these items, visit a previous Wareham Week article here.

Voters will also decide on if $189,865.12 will be returned to the Community Preservation Fund from past projects that did not use all of the money granted.

To look at the full Special Town Meeting agenda, visit the link here.