Barre Select Board Approves Interim Treasurer Contract, Advances Marijuana Bylaw Talks

BARRE -- October 15, 2018, Barre Select Board approves interim treasurer contract and advances marijuana bylaw draft at October 15 meeting. The board unanimously approved a part-time interim agreement with the departing treasurer-collector to cover a roughly three-week gap before a permanent hire can begin, after the Finance Committee interviewed three candidates. The bulk of the meeting was consumed by discussion of a draft marijuana bylaw prepared by Town Administrator Andrew, with members debating how to split regulatory authority between a general licensing bylaw and a Planning Board zoning bylaw, and whether license-number changes should require a town meeting vote; the board warned that without a two-thirds-approved zoning bylaw, the town would lose all local site-control over cannabis establishments. Solar developer Clark Fenner, working with partner Eddie Keller, pitched the Ten Farm Road landfill as a 5-megawatt solar site capable of generating roughly $100,000 per year in lease income and $50,000 in pilot payments, contingent on DEP review and an estimated $5 million National Grid substation upgrade. The board also voted unanimously to set trick-or-treat hours from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.