Select board unanimously moves to indefinitely postpone Suiswet Harbor West design project

The Dennis Select Board voted unanimously to indefinitely postpone Article 14, the Suiswet Harbor West design and construction project, after members said they are still awaiting state grant awards that could cover part of the cost.

Chair, who opened the meeting, said bids for the project “came in substantially lower than what we thought,” and noted the board does not yet know the amount of state grant support, which the meeting referenced as potentially up to $3,000,000. A staff member urged caution and advised the board not to disclose bid results now after consulting legal counsel, recommending the item be taken up at the board’s next meeting on Nov. 4. “We spoke with legal counsel in regards to the matter, and we should take this up at your next select board meeting on November 4,” the staff member said.

Committee members discussed procedural options for delaying the item, including indefinite postponement and the town practice of “passing over” an article to take it up at a later town meeting. The chair reminded members that Article 14 would require a two-thirds vote at town meeting because it is a borrowing article.

A board member moved to indefinitely postpone Article 14; the motion was seconded and the board conducted a roll-call vote, which the chair recorded as John: Aye; Paul: Aye; Carlin: Aye; Jim: Aye; Chris: Aye. The motion carried unanimously, recorded in the meeting as 5–0 in favor of indefinite postponement.

Next steps: the board removed the detailed explanatory paragraph about Article 14 from the warrant-explanations handout and will present a brief note recommending indefinite postponement to the town moderator for the Oct. 21 special town meeting materials.