Middleborough Select Board conditions Sol Homestead work on certified lead clearance, forms advisory board

The Select Board voted unanimously Jan. 13 to allow Sol Homestead work to proceed on both buildings only after the organization obtains a certified lead inspection or hires a contractor with the required lead-safe certification and after the Board of Health agent signs off on results.

The board’s motion required (1) both buildings be cleared by a lead-certified inspector or a contractor with lead-safe certification, (2) no work begin until the Board of Health agent is satisfied with the inspection results, and (3) no work be completed until those results are approved. Select Board member Brian moved the motion; it passed unanimously.

Context: Sol Homestead representatives said they had already hired a remediation firm and that some work had been done, but town staff and the Department of Labor Standards raised concerns about whether the contractor held the appropriate lead- and asbestos-related certifications. Sol Homestead’s representative, Nathan Demers, said the east classroom (an addition from the 1990s) likely does not contain lead paint and asked to allow finishing that section while specialists inspect the farmhouse. A Department of Labor Standards official advised the board that either a lead inspector must certify an absence of lead in the work area or a contractor holding the state’s lead-safe renovator credential must do the work.

Public testimony at the meeting included former board members and volunteers who said they were alarmed by earlier scraping and paint removal and urged strict oversight. Former board member Carrie Crusell said she resigned over the issue and alleged “dishonesty” in prior handling of lead response; long-time volunteers including Dave Kramer and Sol Homestead’s acting treasurer, Nancy Lefebvre, defended recent volunteer repair work and said Nate had not been paid for his labor.

The board also discussed forming an advisory board for Sol Homestead; staff reported more than a dozen residents had applied to serve. Board members said the advisory panel would include a Select Board representative, a Sol Homestead representative, and a community member at large; the board agreed to bring an advisory-board appointment vote to a future meeting.

What the vote does and does not do: The board’s action allows weather-tightening and other work to continue only after the lead-clearance condition is satisfied; it does not authorize specific expenditures in the transcript and does not specify which firm will perform inspections. The transcript records the vote as passing unanimously but does not list an exact roll-call tally.