Marblehead KOs zoning fix to save home

By a 2-1 margin, voters rejected a zoning proposal that would have legalized and saved Wayne Johnson?s $1 million home on Bubier Road.The vote to indefinitely postpone Article 36 was 474-218. The matter cannot be brought up for a year. Johnson left the Marblehead Veterans Middle School shaking his head after the vote.The Planning Board offered no recommendation. Board Chairman Phil Helmes instead discussed Johnson?s amendment to the article, which would change the legal lot width from 75 percent of the required frontage to 60 percent of the required frontage. Helmes said the change would affect only eight properties in town and remove one restriction from five more.At deadline the voters were discussing a proposal for a new $25.4 million Glover School.Monday evening, after lengthy debate, voters approved a proposal to remove the police chief?s job from Civil Service, along with a search process for the next police chief.Supporters said the change would expand the pool of applicants for the job, but opponents argued that removal could create an obstacle for choosing the chief from local police officers. Town Administrator Tony Sasso said the change did not prevent local officers from seeking the position of chief and pointed out that Assistant Harbormaster Charles DalFerro was chosen to be harbormaster over a group of out-of-town applicants.The voters also approved a $15.1 million landfill remediation and new solid waste facility, after lengthy debate. .Proponents pointed out that they cut $7 million from last year?s proposal, which passed Town Meeting but failed in a debt-exclusion override vote. Assistant Town Counsel Lisa Mead said the Department of Environmental Protection is ready to fine the town if no action is taken this year.Override opponent Jack Buba told the voters, “Now is not the time. There?s no emergency. What we need from our leaders is a plan for slow progress to satisfy the DEP until the economy gets better. If they decide to fine us we can hold a special Town Meeting and approve this plan.”The plan was approved 668-52 and will go before the voters again at a June debt exclusion override election.Accompanying proposals for a $770,600 landfill contamination monitoring program and two clean-up land-takings that will cost $1.8 million and $1.25 million also were approved, each with less than 30 votes in opposition. All will require debt-exclusion override votes.