NAHANT — The Board of Selectmen voted unanimously to issue a written response to an Open Meeting Law violation levied against Chairman Josh Antrim during its meeting Tuesday night.
The complaint was submitted by Planning Board member Shannon Bianchi on Aug. 5, and the Selectmen were in the final day of a 15-day period to review and respond to it.
According to the Massachusetts Open Meeting Law, deliberation is defined as “an oral or written communication through any medium, including electronic mail, between or among a quorum of a public body on any public business within its jurisdiction including email, text messages, and serial conversations.” Bianchi’s complaint stems from an email exchange initiated by Planning Board member Michelle Capano, which ultimately resulted in Antrim responding to a question posed by Selectman Gene Canty in a chain that had all three Selectmen included.
Antrim described the subject matter of the exchanged emails, which was about a recently-passed law by the Commonwealth making Accessory Dwelling Units accessible by right. Canty asked if ADUs could be used to meet affordable housing requirements. Antrim’s answer is what he said triggered the violation.
“Only if the entire property is deeded as affordable,” Antrim wrote response to Canty’s question. “In other words, if you build an ADU in your yard, both your house and the ADU would have to be deeded as affordable. At least that is my understanding.”
Antrim quickly sent another email in which he insisted his email did not include any deliberation or opinion, one of the four factors that determine if Open Meeting Law was violated.
While the Selectmen could have sought a decision from the Attorney General’s Office about whether a violation occurred or not, they decided to issue a response as if one had occurred.
“I don’t want to waste my time on interpersonal strife, or bickering, or ego trips, or gossip, or power struggles, or any of that stuff,” Antrim said. “Whatever the most expedient way to get back to spending our time on productive efforts, that is in line with what I’m thinking.”
Antrim and his peers’ response included three components: all Selectmen review the Massachusetts Open Meeting Law guide and educational materials, continue to refrain from future deliberation via email, and acknowledge the complaint and respond to it in Open Meeting session.
