Norwell Considers Changes to South Shore Tech Agreement, MBTA Zoning

Town to host informational sessions on multi-family housing proposal

NORWELL, MA - October 30 - Norwell officials are weighing a proposed amendment to the South Shore Technical High School regional agreement that could alter how debt is assessed to member towns for future capital projects.

The change, presented by South Shore Tech Superintendent Tom Hickey at the Oct. 30 Select Board meeting, would shift capital debt assessments from a fixed three-year enrollment average to a four-year rolling average when calculating each town's share of debt.

"We got some feedback from communities saying, that's a big project, there are some big numbers, and 30 years is a long time, and every one of our communities changes enrollment over a period of time," Hickey explained.

Under the current agreement, a town's share of debt is determined by looking back at three years of enrollment data and fixing that percentage for the life of the borrowing. The proposed amendment would recalculate the share annually based on the previous four years of enrollment.

Hickey emphasized that the change is not contingent on the approval of South Shore Tech's proposed building project, which will be voted on district-wide in January. However, if approved, the new debt assessment method would likely be first implemented with that project.

The estimated cost of the building project is $276 million, with $111 million covered by a state grant and $165 million to be funded locally. Norwell's initial share is projected to be about 3.75% of the total.

Select Board members expressed support for the amendment but raised concerns about potential impacts on tax rates and fixed-income residents.

"I just, again, I think I've been clear in the past, everybody knows my concern about folks trying to exist on a fixed income in this town as our taxes continue to rise exponentially," said board member Andrew Reardon.

Town Administrator Darleen Sullivan assured the board that the change would not impede the town's ability to set tax rates or report to the state, as they would have several years of projections available.

The Select Board voted unanimously to include the South Shore Tech amendment on the warrant for the upcoming special town meeting.

In total, the board approved placing six articles on the special town meeting warrant, including two related to long-term leases and two Community Preservation Committee proposals.

One lease article would authorize the town to enter into a 20-year agreement for a wireless cell tower on Grove Street. The other would allow for a 10-year contract for solid waste removal.

"It's really one of the only games in town," Sullivan said of the waste removal contract. "The way that this is going now is rail. They're not taking any new customers. We're like a legacy, original type of town that was in there."

The board also discussed upcoming informational sessions on the MBTA Communities zoning article, which will be voted on at the special town meeting.

An informational session is scheduled for Nov. 7 at 6:30 p.m. at the library. Sullivan said the school may host an additional session, likely at the middle school, closer to the town meeting date.

"It's just informational. It's just so residents can feel that whichever way they go, that they feel that they're well-informed when they get there," Sullivan explained.

The December 12 Special Town Meeting warrant will include six articles: the South Shore Tech regional agreement amendment, two long-term lease authorizations, two Community Preservation Committee proposals, and the MBTA Communities zoning article.

The Select Board's next meetings are scheduled for Nov. 13 and tentatively for Dec. 4.