SAUGUS — The Board of Selectmen failed to add a fifth permanent member to the Zoning Board of Appeals on Tuesday, with members split on the appointment and signaling different visions for the future of the board.
Selectmen were tasked with appointing either Precinct 2 Town Meeting member Chris Riley — the husband of Selectman Corinne Riley, who recused herself from the vote — or former longtime ZBA member Ben Sturniolo as a permanent member. Chris Riley has served as an alternate member of the board since being appointed by the Selectmen last August, when a vacancy opened up on the ZBA.
With Corinne Riley’s recusal, the vote on the appointment was split evenly at 2-2. The vote is the latest indication of the divisions amongst the board, which appears to be split into two distinct camps. Chairman Anthony Cogliano and Corinne Riley appear to be in one while Vice Chairman Debra Panetta and Michael Serino are in the other, with Jeff Cicolini serving as a swing vote on issues. In this instance, Cogliano and Cicolini backed Chris Riley’s appointment, while Panetta and Serino supported Sturniolo.
Sturniolo wrote to the Selectmen seeking reappointment to the board, which currently has six members — four permanent members and two alternates — in April after stepping away last year, in part to take care of his dying mother. Before his resignation, Sturniolo spent 22 years on the board, including a stint as chairman.
Chris Riley, on the other hand, has much less experience than Sturniolo but has spent nine months as an alternate member of the board, gaining valuable insight into the ZBA process and conducting site visits with fellow members. ZBA Chairman Tom Traverse told the Selectmen that alternate members were treated essentially as full-time members, only unable to make motions or vote.
Cicolini supported Chris Riley in large part due to his willingness to “throw his hat in the ring” when the Selectmen put out a call for new ZBA members last year following Sturniolo’s abrupt resignation.
“It took several attempts to get enough people that we could have at least a board and one alternate or two alternates available,” Cicolini said. “Since that time, Mr. Riley and one other alternate have participated in the meetings, the hearings, the site visits as if they were members.”
“I just think it sets a bad tone when we reach out to the public and we say we want to get new people and fresh blood involved in the community and we make a plea to get these people involved, like Mr. Riley, and they step up and they don’t have to, but they do. But now, when a situation comes up where they can fill a permanent opening… we say ‘Well sorry, we have someone who has more experience that wants this spot, back in line again,” Cicolini explained.
Cicolini said denying Chris Riley the appointment would set a bad example for the town, particularly at a time when Saugus is trying to increase public participation in politics and in the community writ large.
While Panetta agreed with Cicolini about the difficulty of the situation, she cited Sturniolo’s experience as a key factor that should swing the vote in his favor.
“Having that type of in-depth experience… working with municipalities is so important, his knowledge base over all those years is critical,” she said. “The experience and the knowledge, 22 years, and [Sturniolo] did a great job on the Board of Appeals… I wish we had more slots.”
Serino agreed with Panetta, once again pointing out the gulf in experience between the two men.
“Twenty-two years experience, you can’t beat that,” he said.
Panetta also noted the unique situation Sturniolo faced, resigning from the board to take care of a personal matter and now seeking reappointment. A longtime selectman and a former member of the School Committee and Town Meeting, Panetta said she could not recall a similar situation in her time involved in Saugus politics.
Cogliano, a high-school classmate of Sturniolo’s who served on the Board of Selectmen when Sturniolo was first appointed to the ZBA, acknowledged Sturniolo’s experience but backed Cicolini’s sentiment regarding Riley’s decision to step up and meet the call.
“I don’t feel comfortable jumping over people that have stepped up and done a good job, and I think it sends the wrong message,” he said.
Cicolini then moved to appoint Chris Riley to the position, while Panetta made a substitute motion to appoint Sturniolo, which failed.
It remains unclear what the path forward is regarding the ZBA vacancy, with both camps unlikely to budge regarding the appointment and Corinne Riley unable to vote due. The ZBA can conduct its business with four full-time members and two alternates, but Traverse did urge the Selectmen to fill the vacancy.
The ZBA vote is indicative of a larger phenomenon, as the board often can not conduct business with a simple majority vote. Perhaps the most important role the Selectmen play is in the issuance of S2 permits, which require the votes of four members. With the board split in half, doing so can be difficult, as residents saw earlier this year when Serino opposed a proposal to open a tattoo shop on Hamilton Street before eventually changing his mind.
The divisions could likely play a significant role as the board gears up to hear proposals from seven marijuana dispensaries seeking to open in town. With only three S2 permits available for dispensaries, the process could be long and drawn-out.
