Monday, April 29, 2013
The proposed change would have had unintended consequences, according to its original proponent.
In an unexpected turn of events Monday night, the Town Meeting member who proposed the article that would have lifted Arlington’s long-standing ban on self-service gasoline asked his colleagues to vote against it. Carl Wagner, of Precinct 11, said his proposal needs more work. “I ask you to resoundingly vote ‘No,’” he told Town Meeting. Less than 10 minutes later, his fellow Town Meeting members adhered to his wishes and shot down the article convincingly by voice vote. Wagner said after speaking with a number of people leading up to Town Meeting, he now believes his article would have had unintended consequences – it could have led to self-service-only stations and “mega stations,” he said. Wagner said he would still ultimately like to …
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Arlington Town Hall
730 Massachusetts Ave, Arlington, MA
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Should Arlington’s 252 Town Meeting members lift the ban on self-service gasoline? Let us know by posting a comment below.
Last week, Town Meeting members significantly lessened restrictions on leaf blowers and shot down a proposed bottled-water ban. Tonight, they’ll decide whether or not to lift Arlington’s long-standing ban on self-service gasoline. Town Meeting member Carl Wagner, of Precinct 11, submitted the self-service article, technically a town bylaw amendment, by petition. In early March, the Board of Selectmen endorsed the change in a 4-1 vote. “I enthusiastically support this,” Selectman Joseph Curro Jr. said at the time. Three of Curro’s colleagues echoed his sentiments. Selectman Diane Mahon, who cast the dissenting vote, did not. “I haven’t heard from a person in my precinct, including business owners, who is in favor of this,” she said. At the …
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Arlington Town Hall
730 Massachusetts Ave, Arlington, MA
/articles/self-service-gasoline-to-be-decided-tonight
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Thursday, April 25, 2013
The bylaw amendment passed Wednesday by 18 votes.
Town Meeting did away with the town’s controversial seasonal leaf-blower ban Wednesday night, replacing it with a list of restrictions that’s been dubbed the “leaf-blower compromise.” Some Town Meeting members took issue with the term “compromise,” as they said the new bylaw, which passed 113-95, “eviscerates” the intent of the seasonal ban. The seasonal ban, which Town Meeting passed 95-85 last May, would have prohibited the use of gas-powered leaf blowers on private property from May 15 to Oct. 15. The ban was never in effect (it would have been starting next month). The new bylaw, which was developed by a Town Meeting committee, allows commercial and town employees to use leaf blowers from Sept. 15 to June 15. Then, from June 15 to Sept…
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Arlington Town Hall
730 Massachusetts Ave, Arlington, MA
/articles/town-meeting-replaces-seasonal-leaf-blower-ban-with-compromise
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/locations/9308032
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Did Town Meeting make the right call? Let us know by posting a comment below.
After 25 minutes of debate Wednesday night, Town Meeting members convincingly voted down a proposed bottled-water ban by voice vote. The ban, Article 4 on the Special Town Meeting Warrant, would have outlawed the sale of single-serving water bottles in town, except in the event of an emergency. Three Arlington High seniors, Amy Currul, Sonia Zacher and Marina Milan, collected enough signatures to put the ban to a vote. They said they pursued the ban for environmental reasons. Currul (pictured right) presented the article Wednesday. “It’s not about taking away people’s liberties,” she said, “it’s about saving the planet.” A couple Town Meeting members and the store manager at the local Stop & Shop spoke against the ban before debate was …
Members also decided to wait on zoning the dispensaries.
There won’t be any medical marijuana dispensaries in Arlington for at least another year. Town Meeting members voted Monday to put a moratorium on the dispensaries, delaying them from coming until after the town’s 2014 Town Meeting next April. The measure, Article 8, passed convincingly by a voice vote. The delay is meant to give the town more time to understand all of the nuances of the dispensary application process, Town Manager Adam Chapdelaine said recently. For a simple guide on the issue: 8 Things to Know About Medical Marijuana Dispensaries in Arlington The other medical marijuana dispensary article on the 2013 Warrant, Article 7, received 114 “Yes” votes to 72 “No” votes – however, it failed to get the necessary two-thirds …
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Arlington Town Hall
730 Massachusetts Ave, Arlington, MA
/articles/town-meeting-puts-hold-on-medical-marijuana-dispensaries
230699
/locations/9300146
The narrow “Yes” vote on Question 1 hasn't swayed selectmen away from supporting the project’s current design.
The Board of Selectmen unanimously agreed Monday to send a letter to the Massachusetts Department of Transportation expressing its continued support for the Mass. Ave. Corridor Project, as it’s currently designed. At the request of Selectman Kevin Greeley, the board did so in response to the recent “Yes” vote on Question 1, which opponents of the current design viewed as an indictment on it. On Monday, Selectmen Steven Byrne and Joseph Curro Jr. called the non-binding ballot question “flawed,” and Greeley said there is “ample evidence” that the town wants the current project. “We’re ready,” Greeley said. “We need to do this, or we lose all of the money.” The project, which is expected to cost about $6.8 million, would be 80 percent …
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Arlington Town Hall
730 Massachusetts Ave, Arlington, MA
/articles/selectmen-continue-to-back-mass-ave-corridor-project-after-question-1-vote
230699
/locations/9300416
Town Meeting members will consider a bottled-water ban and leaf-blower compromise.
Today is Wednesday, April 24. Here are five things you need to know. 1.) Town Meeting members will vote on a bottled-water ban and leaf-blower compromise tonight during a Special Town Meeting. The bottled-water ban, which was opposed by the Board of Selectmen, would prohibit the sale of single-serving bottled water in town. The ban is being proposed by three Arlington High seniors – Amy Currul, Sonia Zacher and Marina Milan – for environmental reasons. The leaf-blower compromise, which was crafted by a town committee, looks to lessen the restrictions on gas-powered leaf blowers from the seasonal ban, which was passed at Town Meeting last May and upheld at a Special Election in July and Special Town Meeting in October. If the compromise is …
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Arlington Town Hall
730 Massachusetts Ave, Arlington, MA
/articles/two-controversial-articles-at-town-meeting-tonight
230699
/locations/9299937
Tuesday, April 9, 2013
See what step Selectman Kevin Greeley wants the board to take at its next meeting.
Count Selectman Kevin Greeley firmly in the camp of those who believe that Saturday’s “Yes” vote on Question 1 shouldn’t be interpreted as a deathblow to the current Mass. Ave. Corridor Project. At the end of Monday night’s Board of Selectmen’s meeting, Greeley said he plans to draft a letter, with help from Town Manager Adam Chapdelaine, to Federal Highway and the Massachusetts Department of Transportation expressing the board’s “[strong continued] support for the project” and to request the project's funding. He said he would bring the letter to the board’s next meeting on Monday, April 22, for his colleagues’ approval. The Mass. Ave. Corridor Project, which is expected to cost about $6.8 million, would be 80 percent federally funded, 20…
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Arlington Town Hall
730 Massachusetts Ave, Arlington, MA
/articles/video-selectman-responds-to-question-1-vote
230699
/locations/9196469
Saturday, April 6, 2013
See the map of precinct-by-precinct results on Question 1.
The 2013 Arlington Town Elections Results Editor's note: The numbers below are unofficial. We've attached the full results, including Town Meeting races, to this article. Voter turnout: 8,619 ballots were cast from Arlington's 30,069 registered voters for a turnout of 28.66 percent. Question 1. This question is not-binding. Shall the Town have four vehicular travel lanes on Massachusetts Avenue in East Arlington as now practiced? Question 2. This question is not-binding. Do you favor the Town’s current overnight parking ban? Board of Selectmen for Three Years (Vote for Not More Than One) School Committee for Three Years (Vote for Not More Than Two) School Committee for One Year (Vote for Not More Than One) Town Moderator for …
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Arlington Town Hall
730 Massachusetts Ave, Arlington, MA
/articles/results-2013-arlington-town-elections
230699
/locations/9183479
Leave a last-minute endorsement in the comments section below.
The Arlington Town Elections are today (Saturday, April 6). Polls are open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., and if you’re not sure where to vote, you can find your polling place here. We’ll have the election results on Arlington Patch tonight, and ACMi will also be broadcasting the results live and streaming them online. Below is the town-wide ballot with links to the candidates’ campaign websites and past coverage. To see who’s running for Town Meeting in your precinct, check the attached sample ballot. And be sure to check out our Letters to the Editor section, which is full of election-related opinions. Also, leave any last-minute endorsements in the comments section below. TOWN-WIDE BALLOT Question 1. This question is not-binding. Shall the …
Spyponder
10:10 am on Thursday, May 9, 2013
Arlington is only 5 sq miles, if you are in a hurry you will hit a border in no time and then a self serve gas station. the rest of the country is a little less congested and spread out. makes it easier and logical to put self serve. This is one of those things that make Arlington.... well, Arlington. People move in and want to change things. I miss the quarter of 7 whistle. more ›