[Massplanners] Statute of Limitations on Town Meeting Vote

[Bob Mitchell]

Rachel: 2005? Yikes, that's ancient history!

Chapter 40A, Section 5 states: *if a town meeting fails to vote to adopt
any proposed by-law within six months after the planning board hearing, no
action shall be taken thereon until after a subsequent public hearing is
held with notice and report as provided.*

After 6 months, the town starts all over again with the zoning amendment
adoption process. All, or any of these amendments, would have to be brought
back to Town Meeting, (if the Town wants to do that)  whether exactly the
same, tweaked or completely rewritten, to be acted upon by Town Meeting.

There really isn't any such thing as "Indefinite Postponement" when it
comes to Zoning Amendments when there is the 6 time period for action.


Bob Mitchell FAICP
Planning Consultant
Land Use, Planning, Zoning, & Training Programs
151 Tremont Street Suite 23A
Boston, MA 02111
617-512-9751 (c)
MitchellFAICP at gmail.com



On Tue, Aug 17, 2021 at 2:58 PM Rachel Benson <RBenson at wrentham.ma.us>
wrote:

> Hi All,
>
> Would anyone out there be able to share what the statute of limitations is
> on a Town Meeting vote of “Indefinite Postponement” on zoning amendments?
>
>
>
> Background: In 2005, 22 Zoning Amendments were proposed at a Special Town
> Meeting. All 22 were unanimously voted down due to the residents not having
> enough information on the articles. Furthermore, the residents voted to
> indefinitely postpone all those articles.
>
> Our Town Clerk was not clear on what if any was the time table to bring
> these articles back up at Town Meeting and if we do bring them back up (not
> all 22 at once…craziness!!) would they have to be substantially different
> than originally proposed.
>
>
>
> Thank you in advance!
>
>
>
> Thank you and have a great day!
>
>
>
> *Rachel Benson*
>
> Director of Planning & Economic Development
>
> Town of Wrentham
>
> 79 South Street
>
> Wrentham, MA  02093
>
> 508-384-5441
>
> www.wrentham.ma.us
>
>
>
> *Please be advised that the Massachusetts Secretary of State considers
> e-mail to be a public record, and therefore subject to the Massachusetts
> Public Records Law, M.G.L. c. 66 § 10.*
>
>
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>
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