Second Attempt at Demolition Delay Appeal Fails

A second attempt to create an appeals process for property owners who want the option to demolish their historical structures failed to come to a vote Monday night.

The non-binding motion, as read by Town Meeting Member Erin Calvo-Bacci, would have instructed the historical commission to develop and present its own appeals process for property owners who don’t want their land added to the demolition delay inventory.

The motion stirred passionate commentary from the floor. Town Meeting member Mary Ellen O’Neil called it yet another attack on the Historical Commission, which had been the subject of in the last year, but several town meeting members called the historical label a “burden.”

Calvo-Bacci told the assembly that the label had scared away a commercial developer that had been interested in purchasing the Main Street property which houses her store, .

Despite the passion displayed by both sides, Town Meeting never arrived at a verdict. After a member of the assembly put the measure up for a final vote around 11:30 p.m., another member asked for a quorum count.

The moderator counted 94 members present, three short of that required for a valid vote. That count was followed by a motion to adjourn.

Because only non-binding measures remained on the warrant, the adjournment ended Town Meeting for the year.