USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Saugus > Town annual report of the officers and committees of the town of Scituate 1934-1936 > Part 32
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REPORT OF TOWN COUNSEL
January 22, 1937.
In the year 1936 the town was involved in several court matters, only one necessitating a trial and in that case the town was successful. In another case a claim for personal injuries was settled for a small amount and thus the possibility of a large damage award was avoided. The officials of the town in the various de- partments by their foresight and appreciation of exist- ing legal pitfalls undoubtedly saved the town great expense on many an occasion.
Municipal government is playing an ever increasing part in the daily lives of our citizens as to business, employment, licenses, zoning restrictions, recreation, utilities, financial aid and other beneficences. The in- crease is best seen by referring back to annual reports in other decades. It must be borne in mind, too, that our town during the summer months merits the desig- nation of city on account of its growing seasonal activity and multiplied population, estimated in summer at 20,000 to 25,000 residents. This circumstance and such factors as above mentioned account for many of the problems of government confronting our public officials. In my observations I can honestly say that Scituate con- ducts her municipal affairs in a most commendable manner.
Respectfully submitted,
VERNON W. MARR, Town Counsel.
LAW DEPARTMENT
Vernon W. Marr
. 1,000.00
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By-Law Committee
BY-LAWS OF THE TOWN OF SCITUATE
Compiled to Date by Vernon W. Marr of the Original Committee on By-Laws (1929)
PART I
(A) BY-LAWS OF THE TOWN OF SCITUATE AS APPROVED BY THE SUPERIOR COURT, NOVEMBER 20, 1899
(B) AMENDMENTS AND ADDITIONAL BY-LAWS
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(A) BY-LAWS
ARTICLE I General Conduct of Town Affairs
Section 1. The financial year shall begin with the first day of January and end with the thirty-first day of December.
Section 2. The annual meeting shall be held the first Monday in March.
Section 3. Town meetings shall be notified by posting an attested copy of the warrant, calling the same, in the Post Offices, at the Town House, seven days at least be- fore the day appointed for said meeting, and by publi- cation in a newspaper, if any be published in the town.
Section 4. At the annual meeting the reports of the Selectmen, Overseers of the Poor, and all other Town officers, and all standing committees shall be first in order, after the choice of a Moderator.
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Section 5. All motions shall be submitted in writing at the discretion of the Moderator or Clerk.
Section 6. Twenty-five voters shall constitute a quo- rum for the raising and appropriating of money under an article in the warrant providing for such action. See Amendment, Annual Town Meeting-1929.
Section 7. The annual report of the Town Officers shall be printed and distributed at least ten days before the Town Meeting.
Section 8. The duties of all Town Officers not spe- cially provided for by law nor by these rules shall be determined by the rules of parliamentary law contained in Cushing's Manual, as far as they are adapted to town meetings.
ARTICLE II Streets and Public Lands
Section 1. The Selectmen or Road Commissioner may grant permits to any persons to build sidewalks in front of their own land, or on any of the streets or ways of the town, whenever the public safety will permit; which permit shall specify the width and mode of constructing the same.
Section 2. Whenever complaint shall be made to the Selectmen that the practice of coasting on any of the streets or sidewalks in the town has become dangerous to the public safety they may, if they shall judge it expedient, post up a notice in some conspicuous place, on the side or corner of such streets, forbidding all per- sons to coast upon the same; and if any person shall be found coasting upon the same after the posting of such notice he shall pay a fine of not less than one dollar nor more than five dollars for every such offense, to be recovered of the offender, his parent or guardian.
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Section 3. No person shall wheel, drive or draw any handcart, bicycle, handsled or any other carriage of burden or pleasure, baby carriages excepted, nor permit any horse or other beast to go upon any sidewalk, nor to encumber the same with any boxes, barrels or any articles whatever to interfere with the convenient use of the same.
Section 4. Every owner or occupant of premises in the town shall keep the same free from all nuisances and sources of filth injurious to the public health and safety ; and any nuisance, source of filth or cause of sick- ness found on private property must be removed upon notice of the Board of Health and within such time as it may designate. If upon notice from this board any premises are not put in proper sanitary condition, the same shall be vacated upon the order of the Board.
Section 5. No person shall place or cause to be placed in any public or private way of the town the contents of any sink, cesspool or privy, nor place any dead animal, or dead animal or vegetable substance, rubbish or garbage in the same, except for the purpose of im- mediate removal therefrom, under a penalty of not less than five nor more than twenty dollars for each offense.
Section 6. The words "public or private way" in the foregoing section shall be understood to include alleys, lanes, yards, beaches, or any other place where the presence of such refuse shall give offense to neighbors.
Section 7. One or more persons standing on any side- walk or crosswalk, in such a manner as to obstruct a free passage for foot passengers, who shall not disperse immediately when ordered by any of the Selectmen. police officers or constable of the town, shall severally forfeit and pay a fine of three dollars for any violation of this By-Law.
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Sections 8 and 9 not approved.
Section 10. No person shall move any buildings through any street, lane or alley without license from the Selectmen.
ARTICLE III
Miscellaneous
Section 1. Whoever posts, affixes or in any way attaches any poster, handbill, notice, advertisement or placard to or upon any wall, fence, building or structure, shall forfeit and pay for each offense a fine of not less than five dollars nor more than twenty dollars.
Section 2. Whoever paints, draws or stamps any let- ter, notice, figure, advertisement or marks upon any wall, fence, post, tree, building or structure not his own, without the permission of the owner thereof, or without said permission, mars, defaces or disfigures in any way, such wall, fence, post, tree, building or structure, shall forfeit and pay for each offense a fine of not less than five nor more than twenty dollars.
Section 3. Any persons congregating together in a dis- orderly manner, who shall not disperse when ordered by any constable or police officer, and any person or persons congregating or loitering about in any school house yard, or outbuilding, not being a member of the public schools, who shall not immediately disperse and leave the premises when ordered or requested to by any school official, constable or police officer of the town, shall severally forfeit and pay a fine of five dol- lars for every such offense. See Amendment, Annual Town Meeting, 1930.
Section 4. No person in a nude state shall bathe or swim in any public or exposed place in the town.
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Section 5. It is ordered that it shall be the duty of the constable and police officers to enforce the foregoing By-Laws.
Section 6. These By-Laws may be amended at any annual town meeting, articles for that purpose having been inserted in the town warrant.
See Annual Reports 1898 and 1899.
(B) AMENDMENTS AND ADDITIONAL BY-LAWS
1900 ANNUAL REPORT
See Annual Town Meeting, Article XXXIV.
It was voted :
"To amend Sections 4, 5 and 6 of Article II of the Town's By-Laws."
1904 ANNUAL REPORT
Annual Town Meeting, Article XXVI, page 66:
"To see if the town will cause an addition to its present By-Laws, a clause making it legal for its Selectmen to grant licenses for the purchase and sale of old junk, or act thereon.
"Voted, Yes."
1905 ANNUAL REPORT
Annual Town Meeting, Article LI.
It was voted :
"That the town instruct its constables to enforce the town By-Laws upon the written request of any citizens of the town."
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1910 ANNUAL REPORT
Annual Town Meeting, Article XIX, page 60.
In re advisory committee it was voted :
"That this town do choose an advisory committee of seven non-officeholding taxpayers, who shall serve without pay, and whose duty it shall be to investigate and consider all financial propositions or articles to be brought before the town, and to report or advise thereof in open town meeting before action thereon by the town.
"Committee chosen in open town meeting: Joseph A. Ward, Charles H. Tilden, Albert D. Spaulding, John T. Fitts, Clifton B. Lee, John Cummings, Edgar Tilden."
REPORT OF ADVISORY BOARD
To the Citizens of Scituate:
An Advisory Board of seven members was elected by the town at its annual meeting in March, 1910. Early in our deliberations it became evident that if such a Board or Committee was to be of any real value to the town, its constitution and the by-laws governing its service must be placed upon some reasonable, perma- nent basis. While, therefore, your Board may make suggestions regarding financial articles in the warrant for 1911, we beg leave to suggest the adoption of a code of by-laws under Chapter 130 of the Acts of 1910. These by-laws, if adopted by the town, properly approved by the Attorney-General and published, will provide for the perpetuation of such an Advisory Board after March, 1912.
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PROPOSED ADVISORY BOARD
Town of Scituate, Mass.
Section 1. An Advisory Board to consist of nine non- officeholding taxpayers shall be elected at the annual town meeting following the adoption, approval and publication of these by-laws, who shall serve without pay, and whose term of office shall be as follows: three for one year, three for two years, and three for three years; and there shall be elected to said Board at each annual town meeting thereafter three members to serve for the term of three years, or until the close of the town meeting at which their successors are elected.
Section 2. After the close of each annual town meet- ing said Advisory Board shall organize by the choice of a Chairman and Clerk.
Section 3. It shall be the duty of the Advisory Board to investigate and consider all financial propositions or articles to be brought before the town, and to report and advise thereof in open town meeting before action thereon by the town.
Section 4. The Selectmen shall transmit to the Ad- visory Board a copy of every town warrant issued by them on or before the day the same is posted.
Section 5. The Advisory Board may require the Selectmen and other town officers, under whose direc- tions appropriations of money are expended, to submit to them, at least thirty days before the annual town meeting, an estimate of the appropriation necessary to be made for their various departments, and to come before them for consultation regarding the same, at such times and places as said Board shall determine.
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Section 6. The Advisory Board shall grant a hearing to the several voters whose signatures first appear as petitioners upon all articles under which appropriations of money are proposed.
Section 7. All reports and advice or recommenda- tions of said Board, as provided in Section 3, shall be submitted in writing, signed by the Chairman and Clerk, and together with the records of the proceedings of said Board, which it shall be the duty of the Clerk afore- said to keep, shall be filed with the town's records in the office of the Town Clerk.
Section 8. Five members of the Board shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business.
(Signed)
Albert D. Spaulding, Chairman, Clifton B. Lee, Secretary, Charles H. Tilden, John Cummings, Joseph A. Ward, Edgar Tilden, John T. Fitts.
1911 ANNUAL REPORT
Annual Town Meeting, Article XXXIII.
"Voted, That the town do adopt By-Laws under Chap- ter 130 of the Acts of 1910, providing for a permanent Advisory Board as proposed by the Town Advisory Committee in their printed report."
Article XXXIV.
"Voted, That the town do continue its Advisory Com- mittee of non-office-holding taxpayers, who shall serve without pay, whose duty it shall be to investigate
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and consider all financial propositions or articles to be brought before the town and to report or advise thereof in open town meeting before action thereon by the town."
1915 ANNUAL REPORT
Special Town Meeting, May 1, 1915, Article II, page 85.
"Voted, To have the By-Laws of the Town printed in the next Annual Town Report."
1918 ANNUAL REPORT
Annual Town Meeting, Article XXX, page 73.
"Will the Town rescind its previous votes regarding the licenses of hawkers and peddlers, and accept the following article to be inserted in the town By-Laws, or act thereon.
"Voted, To rescind.
"Voted, The Board of Selectmen shall have authority to grant licenses to hawkers and peddlers for the sale or barter in this town of fruit, vegetables or fish.
"'Such licenses, unless sooner revoked by the Select- men, shall expire one year after the granting thereof. and the fee therefor shall be five dollars.
" "No person shall go from place to place in this town selling or bartering or carrying or exposing for sale or barter any fruit, vegetables or fish in and from any cart, wagon or other vehicle or in any other manner without a license therefor from the Board of Select- men: provided, however, that this by-law shall not apply to any person who sells only fruit or vegetables raised or produced by himself or his family, or fish which is obtained by his own labor or the labor of his family.
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By-Law Committee
Boston, Mass., March 25, 1918.
"'Whoever violates any provision of this by-law shall be punished by a fine not exceeding twenty dollars'."
"The foregoing by-laws are hereby approved.
HENRY C. ATTWILL, Attorney General."
1921 ANNUAL REPORT
Annual Town Meeting, Article IX, page 96.
"Voted, That its taxes be collected the same as last year. All taxes shall be payable by November 1, of the year when assessed, and that all taxes unpaid after said November 1 shall draw interest at six per cent from the fifteenth day of October until paid."
1922 ANNUAL REPORT
Annual Town Meeting, Article L, page 112.
"Voted, The Selectmen shall make some suitable regu- lations for the occupancy of the highways and streets of the town for parking of carriages, automobiles or other vehicles as shall provide for the public safety. and convenience.
"Addition to article 50 as approved by the Attorney- General, J. Weston Allen, June 28, 1922.
"The Selectmen may make and rescind from time to time as occasion in their judgment may require, rules and regulations governing all traffic upon the high- ways of the town as well as the parking of automobiles and other vehicles thereon, violation of the rules and regulations so made shall be punished by a fine not in excess of $20 for each offense."
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1926 ANNUAL REPORT
Annual Town Meeting, Article XLVIII.
"The Tax Collector's term of office shall be three years as provided in Chapter 66, Acts of 1923, Massachu- setts Legislature."
1929 ANNUAL REPORT
Annual Town Meeting, March 4, 1929, Article XXVI amending Article I, Section 6 of the town By-Laws as follows:
"Voted, 100 voters shall be the number of voters neces- sary to constitute a quorum at Town Meetings except meetings for the election of town officers, provided that a number less than a quorum may from time to time adjourn the same."
"At the same meeting it was voted to adopt Planning Board By-Laws in accordance with the requirements of the General Laws of the Commonwealth.
"Section 1 and Section 2 of these Planning Board By- Laws were further amended at a special Town Meeting on June 28, 1929, so that the Planning Board By-Laws of the town now read as follows :
" "Section 1. A board of five members is hereby created and established, to be known as the Planning Board. At the Annual Town Meeting to be held in March, 1930, there shall be elected one member to serve for one year, two members to serve for two years, and two members to serve for three years, and thereafter there shall be elected at the annual meeting in each year one or two members, according to the number of vacancies occurring by expiration of terms of office, each new member elected to serve for the term of three years.'
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""'Section 2. Other vacancies occurring in the Board shall be filled as provided in General Laws, Chapter 41, Section 11.
" 'Section 3. The duties of such board shall be such as are provided by law, and further to consider and advise upon municipal improvements either at the request of other officials of the town or upon its own initiative. It shall consider and develop a Town Plan with special attention to main ways, land develop- ments, playgrounds and parks and sites for perma- nent school plants. The Board shall meet at regular intervals. It may hold public meetings. It shall at all times have access to public documents or informa- tion in the possession of any town official or depart- ment. It shall examine the plans for the exterior of any public building, monument or similar feature, and for the development and treatment of the ground about the same before the adoption thereof, and may make such recommendations thereon as it may deem needful. It may provide for public lectures and other educational work in connection with its recommenda- tions. It may incur expenses necessary to the carry- ing on of its work within the amount of its annual or special appropriations.
" 'Section 4. All plans for laying out, extending, dis- continuing or changing the limits of any public park or square, and every purchase of land for the site of any public building, and all plans for the location, erection or alteration of public buildings, shall be sub- mitted to said Board for its opinion at least two weeks in advance of action by the Board of Selectmen or the town.
"'Section 5. Such board shall make a report to the town annually, giving information regarding the con- dition of the town and any plans or proposals for the development of the town and estimate of the cost
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thereof. Such report shall be sent to the Selectmen not later than such time in January in each year as the Selectmen may prescribe or as may be prescribed by law in force relative to reports, and a copy thereof shall be filed with the Massachusetts Department of Public Works.'"
1929 Annual Town Meeting, Billboard By-Laws, Article LIX.
"Voted, To adopt the following By-Laws :
"No person, firm, association or corporation shall erect, display or maintain a billboard, sign or other outdoor advertising device, except those exempted by Sections 30 and 32 of Chapter 93 of the General Laws, . . . .
(a) Within fifty (50) feet of any public way;
(b) Within three hundred (300) feet of any public park, playground or other public grounds, if within view of any portion of the same;
(c) Nearer than fifty (50) feet to any other such bill- board, sign or other advertising device, unless said billboards, signs or other advertising devices are placed back to back ;
(d) On any location at the corner of any public ways and within a radius of one hundred and fifty (150) feet from the point where the center lines of such ways intersect;
(e) Nearer than one hundred (100) feet to any public way, if within view of any portion of the same, if such billboard, sign or other advertising device shall ex- ceed a length of eight (8) feet or a height of four (4) feet;
(f) Nearer than three hundred (300) feet to any pub- lic way, if within view of any portion of the same, if
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such billboard, sign or other advertising device shall exceed a length of twenty-five (25) feet or a height of twelve (12) feet;
(g) In any event if such billboard, sign or other ad- vertising device shall exceed a length of fifty (50) feet or a height of twelve (12) feet; except that the Select- men may permit the erection of billboards, signs or other advertising devices which do not exceed forty (40) feet in length and fifteen (15) feet in height if not nearer than three hundred (300) feet to the boun- dary line of any public way.
(h) No billboard, sign or other advertising device shall be erected, displayed or maintained in any block in which one-half of the buildings on both sides of the street are used exclusively for residential pur- poses; except that this provision shall not apply if the written consent of the owners of a majority of the frontage on both sides of the street in such block is first obtained and is filed with the Division of High- ways of the Department of Public Works, together with the application for a Permit for such billboard, sign or other advertising device.
(i) No billboard, sign or other advertising device shall be erected, displayed or maintained until a Per- mit therefor has been issued by the Division of High- ways of the Department of Public Works pursuant to the following provisions : Upon receipt from said Divi- sion of a notice that application for a Permit to erect, display or maintain a billboard, sign or other adver- tising device within the limits of Scituate has been received by it, the Selectmen shall hold a public hear- ing on said application at least one week before the date of such hearing. A written statement as to the results thereof shall be forwarded to the Division,
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containing, in the event of a disapproval of such appli- cation, the reasons therefor, within thirty days from the date of notice to the town that an application for such a Permit has been made. The provisions of (a), (c), (d), (e), (f) and (g) shall not apply to districts which the Selectmen may determine are of a business character.
This By-Law shall not apply to signs or other devices which advertise or indicate either the person occupy- ing the premises in question or the business transacted thereon, or advertise the property itself or any part thereof as for sale or to let; and provided further that this By-Law shall not apply to billboards, signs or other advertising devices legally maintained at the time of its approval by the Attorney-General, until one year from the first day of July following such approval.
Whoever violates any of the provisions of this By-Law shall be punished by a fine of not more than one hun- dred (100) dollars, and whoever, after conviction for such violation, unlawfully maintains such billboard, sign or other outdoor advertising device for twenty (20) days thereafter shall be punished by a fine of not more than five hundred (500) dollars.
If any provision of this By-Law is declared unconsti- tutional or illegal by final judgment, order or decree of the Supreme Judicial Court of the Commonwealth, the validity of the remaining provisions of this By- Law shall not be affected thereby.
1930 ANNUAL REPORT
Annual Town Meeting, Article 51.
Voted, To adopt the following By-Law.
"There shall be an annual audit of the town books under the supervision of the State Director of Ac- counts, Department of Corporations and Taxation."
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Article 52, voted, to amend Article III, Section 3 of the By-Laws as follows :
"Any person or persons loitering about or persons congregating on a public way or sidewalk, or other public place, who shall not immediately desist from said loitering about or disperse when ordered or re- quested so to do by any constable or police officer of the town, and any person or persons congregating or loitering about in any schoolhouse yard, or outbuild- ing, not being a member of the public schools, who shall not immediately disperse and leave the premises when ordered or requested to by any school official, constable or police officer of the town, shall severally forfeit and pay a fine of not over twenty dollars for every such offense."
It should be noted that under Article 34, Annual Town Meeting, 1900, it was voted to amend sections 4, 5, and 6 of Article II of the town's By-Laws, but no further action was taken thereunder insofar as I can ascertain from all subsequent annual reports.
1931 ANNUAL REPORT
Special Town Meeting, August 19, 1931, Article 6.
Voted, To accept Section 38a of Chapter 41 of the General Laws ... and adopt the following By-Laws: "By-Law: The Collector of Taxes shall collect under the title of Town Collector, all accounts due the Town and said Collector shall once in each week or oftener pay to the Town Treasurer all money received by him during the preceding week or lessor period.
"By-Law: In the collection of all water revenue the Town Collector shall be governed by and subject to all rules and regulations of the Water Commissioners of the Town."
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1934 ANNUAL REPORT
Annual Town Meeting, March 5, 1934.
Voted, To adopt the following By-Law :
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