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Warrant 69 would change CRC membership language; council weighs volunteer shortages and risks
Summary
The Council discussed warrant 69, which would remove a standing requirement that the Contract Review Committee include a member from NPEDC and allow NPEDC to appoint a representative; members raised concerns about volunteer shortages, legal history and potential perception issues at town meeting.
The council reviewed warrant 69, which would strike language requiring a CRC member to be from NPEDC and instead let NPEDC appoint a representative. Veronica Bolic said the change responds to repeated volunteer shortages and that NPEDC has been unable to nominate a member for multiple cycles.
Members noted the CRC’s workload — one new member reported spending 45–60 hours between July and December to get up to speed — and said a flexible appointment mechanism would help maintain a full seven‑member CRC during the heavy October–December review period. "We have not been able to get someone from NPEDC; the warrant basically strikes that they have to be a member...it could be someone from planning or someone they appoint," Bolic said.
Some members cautioned the change could be perceived as a 'slippery slope' that allows committees to appoint non‑members to town bodies, and they discussed the legal and historical basis for CRC membership, which dates to a town‑meeting vote in 1986. The chair said the language must again go to town meeting for approval and that finance committee reviewed and ultimately supported the change after discussion.
The warrant will appear on the town meeting warrant; members encouraged outreach to explain the rationale in advance and hoped it would not be called for extended debate at town meeting.
