SWAMPSCOTT — The third and final night of the annual Town Meeting passed several zoning amendments to finish the warrant.
Most of the amendments corrected incorrect language in the town’s zoning bylaws or put down in writing practices that were already in place, including requiring that a site plan be submitted to the building commissioner for work outside of the existing footprint of a building and regulating pools and self-contained spas as accessory structures with setback limitations.
One zoning amendment — specifying a requirement of a minimum distance of 40 feet between multi-family buildings on a single lot — failed to pass, with many Town Meeting members expressing concern that the change would contribute to increased density in the town.
Planning Board Chair Angela Ippolito explained that the board, as well as the Zoning Board of Appeals and the building commissioner, believe that the original language was always meant to refer only to buildings on one lot, but her reassurance was not enough to convince the meeting to pass the amendment.
During Tuesday night’s portion of the Town Meeting, members approved 49 capital projects totaling $3.18 million. The largest project on this list, with a price tag of $1.14 million, will be repairs to the beach wall at King’s and Eisman’s beaches.
One project that prompted much discussion during the meeting was a proposed $100,000 for the design and planning of a new pier at Fisherman’s Beach as well as a living reef, both projects outlined in Swampscott’s Harbor and Waterfront Plan released last year. The Finance Committee had recommended allocating just $20,000 for the pier project only, which would serve as a local match for the town to receive an $80,000 grant from the state Seaport Economic Council, but left out planning for the reef. Despite this recommendation, Town Meeting members passed the full amount of $100,000 with encouragement from the Select Board.
Select Board member Neal Duffy explained that the planning for the pier and the living reef inform one another and could not be done separately.
“The living reef would be a crucial step in addressing resiliency,” Duffy said. “In Swampscott, we’re experiencing the effects of climate change now. We’re way behind on this work and it’s going to take a long time.”
Another project that provoked strong debate was a proposed $100,000 for upgrades to security cameras throughout the town. While some Town Meeting members expressed concern that expanded security camera use infringed on the privacy of residents, Police Chief Ron Madigan explained that most of this money would go toward upgrading outdated, existing equipment at the police station and schools, and the project ultimately was approved.
“The technology has reached its end of life, and frankly, we’ve had a couple of failures lately that have caused me to be concerned,” Madigan said.
