Swampscott board OKs painting Burrill Street parking spaces

SWAMPSCOTT – Swampscott Selectmen unanimously approved painting lined parking spaces on Burrill Street to improve library access, but recommended delaying discussion on other issues with downtown parking and parking by Phillips Beach until a further meeting.”I don’t disagree with painting spots. On Humphrey Street, it led to some giggling, but it’s certainly helped,” Town Administrator Andrew Maylor told the selectmen at their Wednesday night meeting. Maylor referred to a previous reaction to painting lines on Humphrey Street as a potential solution to parking problems.”I recognize the issue of parking in the downtown area, but we will (need) to look at it as to concrete proposals and we will also have to come up with how to handle the police station property,” Maylor said.A local resident requested in a letter to selectmen that the town paint lines to mark parking spaces on Burrill Street, add parking spaces along the street by the hand-pump building next to the fire station and move crosswalks in order to better accommodate library patrons.Selectmen have been discussing similar requests for parking changes throughout the summer, particularly in the neighborhood around Phillips Beach. At their Aug. 30 meeting, selectmen favored working to adopt an overall parking plan for that neighborhood instead of adding additional spots on Shepard Avenue. They reaffirmed their commitment to continuing discussions on such a plan Wednesday night.But in regards to Burrill Street, the board chose to approve the request for painted parking spots rather than send it for further study. Maylor noted that several issues – including access for fire vehicles and the historical stone wall along the street – would complicate trying to devise a major parking plan. Furthermore, he said that the town has not yet decided what to do with the police station property once the station moves to its new location on Humphrey Street. Selectmen took no action on the requests for additional spaces and relocated crosswalks. Maylor said that the spaces will be painted from the intersection of Monument Avenue and Burrill Street to the fire station. In other business, the board unanimously approved the Statewide Public Safety Mutual Aid Law and the Public Works Municipal Mutual Aid Law, which establishes a framework for collaboration among communities and allocation of state and local resources in times of emergency.Maylor is requesting participants for a new garden club that will focus on improving plantings along Monument Avenue and on the Town Hall Lawn.The screening committee has selected three applicants for a new town planner position and Maylor said he expects to present selectmen with a possible candidate by the next meeting.