Mobile Home Listings & News

Buses to drive voters to oppose mobile home ban



By Alice C. Elwell, Enterprise correspondent

MIDDLEBORO — Officials are preparing for Monday's town meeting to be bursting at the seams because there are several controversial issues at hand and voters will be coming by the busload.

There are a number of zoning articles, including one to create a new commercial district.

But the most contentious, an article to ban mobile-home parks has raised the ire of Oak Point residents, and Town Moderator James V. Thomas expects close to 400 from the park to attend the meeting. Gary Darman, principal owner of the over-55 community, confirmed he hired buses to bring the people to the meeting.

The article and its companion which asks for a financial study of mobile home parks, comes near the end of a 24 article warrant. Thomas said he advised residents of Oak Point not to call for the zoning articles out of order, so they can't be brought back for consideration if residents leave early.

Typically after a controversial article passes, someone moves for reconsideration, it's approved and the matter isn't brought up again. Thomas said he'll allow reconsideration more than once and thwart the ploy to “close any and all discussion .... I won't be apart of it.”

Town meeting will be held in the high school auditorium which has a seating capacity of 624, and

Thomas is anticipating droves, so he's opening the high school gymnasium for non registered voters and equipping it with a two-way audio visual feed.

Zoning issues aren't the only thing that will bring voters out. Robert M. Desrosiers will offer a motion under committee reports to form a seven person committee to make recommendations on the casino issue.

“We need a broad cross-section of residents to get represented, rather than selectmen and their designees who have clearly indicated which way they are going,” Desrosiers said.

If approved, the moderator would appoint the committee to act independently of selectmen and make recommendations at the next town meeting on whether a casino would be good or bad for Middleboro. Desrosiers said the committee would draft a petition of their findings and if approved send it on to the governor, Legislature and the Secretary of Interior.

“I am restricting conversation to the formation of the committee, and will not go far a field on who's in favor, or not,” Thomas said of Desrosiers proposal.

Despite the controversy surrounding the casino and zoning, the moderator said his first order of business will be to “wrap up the budget.” Thomas said selectmen will also motion for a contingency budget to appropriate more money, which will save holding another town meeting, if the June 2 override question passes.

The Finance Committee is moving a budget of more than $58 million, said member Steven M. Studley. The board disagreed with the selectmen's recommendation to cut the Library, Council on Aging and Park departments budget 30 percent and will ask for a 10 percent reduction, Studley said.

Although the School Department is asking for a $24.3 million budget, Studley said his board is recommending $1 million less, $23.3 million.

The School Department is also asking for a $2 million override on the June 2 ballot.

If business is not finished on Monday night, the moderator will ask to continue town meeting to June 4, due to the holiday next week.