Annual Town Meeting Warrant

On March 27th the Final Annual Town Meeting Warrant and the proposed budget were sent to the printer. Upon Rex Peterson’s passing, the preparation of the warrant fell to me, and the final budget preparation was shared with Trudi Brazil, Town Accountant. I personally would like to thank Trudi, the Board of Selectmen, the Finance Committee, and all the Department Heads for their assistance in finalizing the warrant and the budget.

Annual Town Meeting

The Annual Town Meeting is scheduled for April 29, 2014, at the Truro Community Center, beginning at 7:00 pm. The Pre-Town Meeting and Candidates' Night are scheduled for Thursday, April 17th at 5:30. A copy of the warrant is available on this Town website. This year’s warrant contains 37 Articles, of which six are zoning amendments and seven are proposed changes to the Town Charter. Two of the zoning articles (Articles 28 and 29) have to do with changes to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRM). Truro participates in the FEMA/FIRM program by its having zoning articles, which include references to the flood maps. By the Town's participating, property owners are eligible to purchase flood insurance through the FEMA/FIRM program. If the Town does not participate in the program, Truro property owners would not be eligible for FEMA/FIRM flood insurance.

Zoning Articles

Another zoning amendment (Article 25) has to do with the addition of two common uses “Habitable Studio” and “Working Studio” to the Use Table. These are terms which are currently defined; however, they are not within the Use Table. There are changes proposed within the Sign Code (Article 26,) relative to temporary signs and also to sight distance. Article 27 provides a complete reorganization and some rewrites of Section 70 – Site Plan Review. The final zoning article (Article 30) provides definitions for several terms which are noted in the Use Table.

April at Town Hall

April is a very busy month for all of us at Town Hall. We are busy getting ready for the summer season and the next fiscal year. Advertising has begun for a number of seasonal positions at the Recreation and Beach Departments. Also, we are advertising once again for a new Building Commissioner, a part-time clerk in the Assessors’ Office, and a full-time clerk in the Clerk/Treasurer/Collectors Office. Very soon we also will be advertising a number of Requests for Proposals for a variety of services, such as plumbing and electrical.

I will continue to work on projects which Rex began, and I hope I will do them all justice. In closing I would like to thank all the Townspeople (both residents and non-residents) who have reached out to lend me moral support and an offer of assistance. It is appreciated greatly.

Sincerely,

Charleen Greenhalgh
Acting Town Administrator
assttownadm@truro-ma.gov
(508) 349-7004, ext 27