WELD – Weld’s annual town meeting was held Saturday, March 9. Approximately 70 people attended the meeting and each article in the warrant passed, most with minimal discussion.
The two issues that involved the most discussion were article nine, regarding whether the selectboard could begin seeking bids from contractors to replace the superstructure of Kennedy Bridge; article 12 regarding whether to adopt the “Town of Weld Food Sovereignty Ordinance” as presently written; and Article 13 regarding whether to place a moratorium on any pending applications for creating solar farms or other alternative energy farms of large size.
The meeting was presided over by moderator Thomas Skolfield, as well as selectboard chair Richard Doughty, selectboard members Lisa Miller and Dina Walker, and Town Clerk Carol Cochran.
Weld voters elected municipal officials on Tuesday, March 5. Dina Walker was elected to another term on the select board with 119 votes, against 48 write-in votes for B. David Rackliffe. Carol Conant was elected for a five year term on the planning board with 156 votes, and both Laureen Pratt and Rebecca Scott were elected to the budget committee with 157 and 149 votes, respectively.
State representative Randy Hall attended the latter half of the meeting, and regarding the sovereignty ordinance, expressed some of the ongoing amendments at the state level that have led to complications in towns knowing how to write their town ordinance. Most concerns were not regarding the ordinance itself, but the ways it needs to be rewritten slightly for amendments made after the current draft was written, and concerns that these amendments will continue. Ultimately, it was accepted with the condition that people will be appointed to work on improving the ordinance so it matches current state standards.
Regarding the “Solar Farms and Large Scale Commercial Structures Moratorium,” opinions were more divided, with some expressing concern that a moratorium could be extended indefinitely and thus infringe on landowners’ rights, while others felt that it makes sense to put a moratorium on potential votes. When asked, the selectboard expressed that there are presently no pending applications, but there have been developers speaking with some landowners who are interested in selling.
Though the vote was the closest of the meeting, it also passed.
Between discussing and voting on warrants, highlights of the meeting included the Weld Ukes playing a tribute to those town citizens who had passed away over the past year, in which they played “A Daisy A Day” by Jud Strunk; and the town singing “Happy Birthday” to representative Randy Hall, who was spending his birthday dividing his time between the Industry annual town meeting and the Weld annual town meeting.
