WEEK AHEAD: Summer St. hearing, Special Town Meeting, COVID-19 watch

An abbreviated Week Ahead today, as there’s a lot happening…

SUMMER STREET PROJECT

Tonight might be the final Planning Board hearing on a proposed 156-unit apartment complex off Summer Street next to the Abington MBTA Commuter Rail station. The Planning Board has been considering and reviewing the project for well over a year. Tonight’s meeting, however, will take place via Zoom; the last in-person hearing had to be postponed after the number of residents who showed up would have exceeded the current 25-person cap on indoor meetings.

The meeting will start at 6 p.m. (see link below) Neighbors will still be able to watch the proceedings, see documents, ask questions, and give their opinions. Those without computer or internet access can call in and listen.

If the Planning Board approves the project, it still needs to secure permits from the Zoning Board of Appeals and Conservation Commission.

Join Zoom Meeting
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Meeting ID: 827 1246 6791
Passcode: 697349
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Meeting ID: 827 1246 6791
Passcode: 697349

SPECIAL TOWN MEETING

The town will again try to hold a Special Town Meeting Tuesday night starting at 7 p.m., inside the Middle/High School auditorium. The last meeting had to be postponed because of a quorum wasn’t present. Selectmen last week voted to lower the quorum needed to 75 voting residents. The meeting will deal with a number of spending requests due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. There’s also a number of articles dealing with zoning changes and street acceptances that were held over from the abbreviated Annual Town Meeting in June. However, there may be pushback from some corners about taking up zoning changes, especially lifting the town’s cap on retail marijuana licenses, with a reduced quorum size. A full recap of the meeting warrant can be found here.

SCHOOLS

This will be the first full week the town’s schools are back in hybrid learning mode. The “Wave” cohort resumed in-person learning. The “Green” cohort is back today. The schools went back to full-remote learning in October after signs that the COVID-19 virus had started to spread in the classrooms. By sending everyone home, the town’s health and school officials essentially gave the “Close the bridge!” order Jon Hamm’s character gave in “The Town” in an effort to contain Ben Affleck’s crew. It didn’t work in the movie, but appears to have worked in the Abington schools. Abington had 40 cases as of Monday, but Health Agent Marty Golightly said the spread was mostly inter-family, and not student-to-student.

MEETING SCHEDULE

Monday

Board of Health, 6 p.m., via Zoom. Agenda includes a COVID-19 update and a discussion on a possible COVID vaccine

Planning Board, 6 p.m., via Zoom. Agenda only features Summer Street project.

Library Board of Trustees, 7 p.m., Copeland Room. Agenda includes budget, capital, and strategic planning discussions.

Tuesday

Council on Aging, 6 p.m., Senior Center

School Committee, 6:30 p.m., Frolio Gymnasium. Agenda includes a possible FY ’21 budget discussion

Special Town Meeting, 7 p.m., Middle/High School auditorium

Wednesday

Housing Authority, 6 p.m., 71 Shaw Ave. Agenda includes awarding contracts for capital updates.

Parks & Recreation Commission, 7 p.m., Town Hall. Agenda includes surveying Griffin’s Dairy for Little League fields.

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