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Select Board says easement for Oak Hill property would require town meeting; offers path forward
Summary
A property owner asked the Select Board for permission to use a town-owned access road to build a home; town counsel advised the board it lacks authority to grant an easement and town meeting action is required. The board asked town counsel to review and discussed options including a warrant article for the Nov. 3 meeting.
Property owner Jack Shaheen asked the Southborough Select Board on June 17 for preliminary approval to relocate his driveway and to obtain town permission to access a town-owned access road near the Oak Hill water tank, as part of plans to build a single-family home behind his existing property.
Town counsel advised the board the Select Board cannot itself grant an easement over town-owned land; that authority requires a vote at town meeting. The board did not grant the easement but discussed next steps, including review by town counsel and possible placement of a warrant article for the Nov. 3 special town meeting or a citizen petition.
Shaheen said the access road has a documented history: a town conveyance in June 1955 granted rights of passage for two residential lots, and an ANR in 2009 further subdivided property near the water tank. He asked for the same conveyance for his lot, saying, "we're just asking for the same conveyance and the same legal precedent that was allowed for people on the road already. We're not asking for anything new or different." He also said the proposed driveway relocation would avoid cutting town-owned trees and that wetlands and DPW approvals would be addressed in later permitting.
Mark (town counsel) told the board that "town meeting is required to grant an easement," and clarified the board's options: recommend a warrant article to town meeting, support a citizen petition, or pursue designation of the way as a public way (which would require substantial road upgrades). Bill (DPW) framed the item narrowly: "the request is ask permission to cross town property. That's all the board's considering." He said operationally the road already serves three residences and that DPW expects to treat the request as a permission-to-cross question distinct from zoning or building approvals.
Board members raised other factors the applicant and the town must consider. Select Board member Al noted ongoing planning for a rebuilt water tank to serve an inter-municipal arrangement with Hopkinton; any redesign could require changes to nearby land and could affect trees that currently screen the tank. Members discussed that the access road is narrow and does not meet modern public-way standards; accepting it as a public way would require widening and expense. The planning board'related question of whether past ANR approvals were appropriate was also raised.
No formal vote to grant access occurred. The board and town counsel agreed to examine the legal pathway; Select Board member Andrew said he was "willing to put it on the warrant in November if we review with town council." The applicant was advised that, separately from the Select Board decision on an easement, he will need to secure DPW, building department, and conservation approvals for any driveway or house construction and that a town meeting vote would be necessary before an easement could be conveyed.
The board asked the applicant to provide any additional documents and to coordinate with town counsel and DPW; board members said they will consider whether to sponsor a warrant article after further review.
