BELCHERTOWN – Voters at the annual Town Meeting on Monday approved a $50 million budget, and a bylaw to regulate small wind-energy systems.
Approximately 150 of the town’s 9,732 registered voters attended the Town Meeting at the high school which lasted three hours.
The budget totaling $50,223,677 for the fiscal year beginning July 1 is up 3.1 percent from this year’s figure of $48,983,749.
The education budget of $29,109,478 is up 3.3 percent from this year. That includes the town’s contribution to the Pathfinder Regional Vocational Technical High School in Palmer.
School Committee Chairman Richard Fritch said during the meeting that raising athletic fees and a donation from the Belchertown Band Boosters, respectively, averted an anticipated elimination of junior varsity sports and 5th grade band.
Town Meeting also appropriated $160,000 to purchase and possibly demolish the John Patrick Center at 47 State St., an abandoned building that once belonged to the Belchertown State School. The cost of purchasing the property – which includes almost five acres surrounded by school property – from the state is $80,000. The rest of the money is being set aside for tearing the building down because Select Board Chairman Ronald Aponte determined it is beyond repair.
In response to concerns raised from the Town Meeting floor, Aponte said a final decision on demolishing the building would wait, pending consultation with the town’s historical commission.
Town Meeting also approved a bylaw proposed by the Planning Board to regulate small wind energy systems that residents or small businesses may want to construct on their properties.
The regulation specifies the process for applying for permits and provides guidelines in terms of size and placement of what would be permissible.
The purpose of the new bylaw is to “promote safe, effective and efficient use of small wind energy systems (and) to reduce on-site consumption of utility supplied electricity.” It applies to units of no greater than 100 kilowatts of capacity. Wind generators used for agriculture are exempt from the provisions of the bylaw.
Such wind turbines are limited to one tower per parcel. The height cannot exceed 120 feet and the turbine must have a non-reflective finish of an unobtrusive color. Permits granted for the construction or operation of a small wind-energy system will be valid for 25 years and are transferable to subsequent owners of the property.
Before Town Meeting started, there was a swearing-in ceremony for new Police Chief Christopher Pronovost, who is leaving the Amherst Police Department to lead the Belchertown force.
Officials also recognized James Natle, who has served on both the Planning Board and the Community Preservation Act Committee, as the Citizen of the Year.
Police Sgt. Bruce Jenks was recognized as the town’s Employee of the Year. Jenks had served as acting police chief since the previous chief, Francis Fox Jr., resigned last September after a Granby Police report became public showing that he appeared to be drunk during a traffic stop in February 2015.
The Volunteer of the Year honors went to the Belchertown Animal Relief Committee, which has been raising money to help build a new animal shelter.
Eric Goldscheider can be reached at eric.goldscheider@gmail.com.