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Yarmouth continues public hearing on municipal fee increases after corrections, removes two planning items
Summary
The Select Board continued a public hearing on proposed fee increases across multiple departments to May 13 after staff identified errors in the legal notice. The board removed proposed changes for the preliminary plan and subdivision rescission from this hearing and accepted a correction to a Conservation Commission fee for freshwater piers.
The Yarmouth Select Board continued a multi-department public hearing on proposed fee increases to May 13, 2025, after staff and members identified errors in the legal advertisement and asked for clarifications.
What was on the table: The advertised proposal listed fee changes for many departments — Conservation Commission, Old King's Highway Historic District, Planning Board, Zoning Board of Appeals, Community Services, Finance, Town Clerk, Public Works, beaches, disposal and water. Examples in the advertisement included raising the Zoning Board of Appeals commercial fee from $200 to $450 and increases to water quarterly meter fees effective in mid-2025 and 2026.
Corrections and removals: During public comment and staff presentations, Planning Board staff identified mistakes in the advertised language for the planning fees: the increases for the preliminary plan and the subdivision rescission were incorrectly listed. The Select Board agreed to remove the preliminary plan and subdivision rescission proposals from this round of the hearing so those specific changes can be re-advertised correctly. The Conservation Commission fee for Notice of Intent category 5 for freshwater piers was clarified as $200 (advertised as $400) and staff indicated a correction could be made without re-advertising because it lowers the fee.
Public comments: Business and property owners spoke during the hearing. Tom Nicanello (Precinct 3) urged reconsideration of a large increase to the Zoning Board of Appeals commercial fee and requested the packet show the percentage change from current fees. Conservation Administrator Britney D'Arianzo explained that some increases incorporated the cost of legal advertising and abutter-notification postage into the permit fee to simplify billing, accounting and to align with neighboring towns. Water Superintendent Larry Rosales explained the quarterly water billing is rounded to the nearest thousand gallons for billing purposes.
Board action: The Select Board formally continued the hearing to the May 13 Select Board meeting, and the chair directed staff to remove the preliminary plan and subdivision rescission items from this hearing’s advertised changes and to correct the Conservation Commission freshwater pier fee in the posted materials.
Next steps: Written comments will continue to be accepted in advance of the May 13 hearing. Staff will correct the advertised materials and re-advertise the removed planning items for a future hearing so the public can comment on the corrected language.
