WASHINGTON PLANNING BOARD

Minutes

October 19, 2015

Planning Board met to work on the list of Master Plan goals and recommendations and to determine which committee/department or commission might best be suited to head up an effort to achieve the goal or recommendation.

Members present: Jim Crandall, Jean Kluk, Nan Schwartz, Steve Terani and Andrew Hatch.

The meeting was called to order by Jim Crandall at 9:00 AM.

Crandall informed us that an “All-Boards” meeting has been scheduled with the Selectmen for November 12^th at 2PM at Camp Morgan Lodge. He said that the purpose of the meeting was to assist the various committees by reviewing the various goals and recommendations and to highlight those that seemed to pertain to each committee. This was discussed and all agreed that our role was to be of assistance and not be seen as delegating responsibility and that follow up responsibility is the Selectmen's.

Hatch said he keeps coming back to the 4 new roles that the Master Plan speaks about creating; an Economic Development committee, an Agriculture Commission, a Heritage Commission and a part time communications person. He wanted to know if we should push to create these entities. Schwartz said that several of these would have to be created through the Town Meeting process, only the communications position could be created by the Selectmen.

Terani suggested adding the School Board to the list of committee/department or commissions that we were working from. All agreed.

We went through the list of goals starting with the first chapter and everyone suggested who they thought would be most interested in working on a goal or recommendation. We suggested primary, secondary and supporting committee/department or commissions for each chapter’s goals and recommendations. Schwartz made notes as we worked through each of the eleven chapters.

We then discussed what we are hoping to accomplish at the “All-Boards” meeting and how we wanted to conduct the meeting. Hatch asked if we were going to divide the groups and chapters at the meeting. We decided we didn’t want to get that far into roles at the meeting. We decided our goals for the meeting would be to first increase awareness of the Master Plan and what it contains. Secondly, obtain input from the committee/department or commissions on priorities and feasibility of achieving goals. Thirdly, emphasize the items that apply to all committee/department or commissions: communication and transparency. Lastly, to have a conversation about the 4 new roles that might be created. Crandall would like to have the chair or their appointee at the meeting from all the committee/department or commissions. We feel he should emphasize that there is a 10-year horizon until the next update. These are ideas from the community and the committee/department or commissions that were all part of the Master Plan process. We would like them to go back to their committee/department or commissions and see what they feel can be done in the time frame.

Hatch asked how long the meeting will be and we all though it would be an hour or 1½ hours at most.

Kluk and Crandall had worked on a cover letter to the committee/department or commissions that will be sent by email and will accompany their hard copy of the Master Plan and goals that will be put in their town mailboxes. Hatch offered to work on a spreadsheet that could be a handout for the meeting, he will do a draft and send to Kluk. We discussed other handouts for the meeting and decided that we will do one that describes the 4 new roles and one that covers the overarching recommendations of communication and transparency in town business. Kluk will work on these. Schwartz said the copies of the Master Plan are due back on Thursday. Schwartz and Kluk will get together to put them in binders and put packets together for the committee/department or commissions.

Meeting adjourned at 11:10 AM.

Respectfully submitted,

Nan Schwartz

Planning Board Secretary