Board continues review of pole work at 22 Pleasant Street after staff finds temporary pole in wrong location

The Licensing Petitions meeting continued review of utility work at 22 Pleasant Street to Sept. 15 after staff reported a new pole already installed near the curb that appears to be a temporary swap and not the relocation shown in the petition.

Planning staff described photographs showing the newly placed pole “out beyond the face of the curbing” and noted the pole’s location did not match the proposed relocation. Staff said Verizon’s work-order history suggested the installation might be temporary, and the pole had been tagged with the same pole number as the existing structure. Verizon representative Mike Wallanovich told the board he could not confirm the reason for the temporary placement because the assigned Verizon engineer, Kevin, was on leave; Mike said he would investigate and report back.

Board members raised broader concerns about congestion on the nearby street segment, accessibility and the Historic District Commission’s role. Brooke told the panel that property owners should attend hearings to explain driveway and curb-cut requests and said she was “less and less willing to approve these as property owners” do not attend. Several board members said they would not finalize approvals until the HDC weighed in and the property owner explained driveway plans.

Tom moved and the board unanimously voted to continue the public hearing to Sept. 15 to allow Verizon, the property owner and HDC or DPW input. The board instructed staff to advise petitioners that driveway or curb-cut changes should be coordinated with HDC and town staff before a final license or relocation is approved.