Lakeville discussion centers on stormwater bylaw: authority, enforcement and peer review funding

Select Board members, planning and conservation officials and staff reviewed a draft stormwater bylaw that would formalize the town's stormwater authority, authorize outside peer review of stormwater work and set enforcement mechanisms ahead of the town's annual meeting.

Board members and staff focused first on who should be the appointing authority for stormwater reviews. Multiple meeting participants said the select board as the appointing authority would be appropriate, with authority to designate an agent (for example, the town administrator or a designated staff member) to sign peer-review contracts so the board would not need to approve routine consultant agreements at every step. Participants also discussed routing administrative work through existing departments—inspectional services, the building inspector's office and the town administrator—to reduce the burden on volunteer boards such as the conservation commission and planning board.

Why this matters: the bylaw would allocate responsibilities that now fall across several volunteer…