Saugus Town Meeting opening ceremonies tonight at 7:30

SAUGUS-The opening night of the annual Town Meeting is always one of pomp and circumstance but often not much work. This year, however, Town Moderator Robert Long has set out an impressive wish list.”We will actually have some business to conduct,” he said Friday.Town Meeting officially opens tonight at 7:30 p.m. in Town Hall auditorium.Along with the traditional opening ceremonies and reports of committees, which this year includes the Alternative Energy Committee along with the Finance Committee, Long is hoping to clear 13 articles from the warrant.Most of the articles he has planned are general items that reappear on the warrant each year. They include a supplementary appropriation to be used in conjunction with the budget, which won’t be taken up until May 11 and authorizing a $911,000 no-interest loan from the Massachusetts Water Resource Authority. Long also hopes to take care of the six articles that address re-authorizing various revolving accounts; Article 13, which gives money the organization Help for Abused Women and Their Children; distribution of Chapter 90 highway money and dissolving two inactive enterprise accounts.Long said approving Article 15 would remove the last vestige of Kasabuski Arena from the town’s pocketbook. Approving articles 16 and 17 would also close out the last of the Main Street landfill accounts as well.While meeting members might want to debate Article 18, which frees up $134,000 in free cash from fiscal 2008 for fiscal 2009, Long said that money is already spent.”If all that works out well, we’ll do Article 23,” Long said, referring to Selectmen Michael Kelleher’s article that would prohibit any vendors, other than the permanent concession stand, to operate within 2,000 feet of World Series Park.”I don’t think it will hold much water but we will have a discussion on that and see where it goes,” Long said.Long said he would also like to dispose of Article 27, which seeks to establish a bylaw that would define and protect “Heritage Trees,” and Article 29 that would allow the town to issue an additional liquor license.”If we get through all that we’ll be in good shape,” Long said.The Planning Board will be taking up the four articles that deal with zoning issues during its Thursday meeting and Long said it should have recommendations for the next meeting.”They’re shooting for the 18th the same day we hope to have the budget,” Long said.If Town Meeting members get through everything as planned, Long said it’s likely Town Meeting won’t reconvene until May 18 when the budget is slated to hit the floor.”Everything else that’s coming up is behind the budget,” he said. “We usually don’t do the rest of the stuff like water and sewer until the budget is taken care of.”If the budget is wrapped on May 18, Long said he expects Town Meeting on the whole to wrap by June 1, which would be the earliest it’s ever wrapped in recent memory.