USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Saugus > Town annual report of the officers and committees of the town of Scituate 1943-1945 > Part 26
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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."
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1918 ANNUAL REPORT
Annual Town Meeting, Article XXX, page 73.
"Will the Town rescind its previous votes regarding the lic- enses 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 Selectmen, shall expire one year after the granting thereof, and the fee there- for 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 Selectmen: 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.
Boston, Mass., March 25, 1918. " 'Whoever violates any provision of this by-law shall be pun- ished by a fine not exceeding twenty dollars'."
"The foregoing by-laws are hereby approved.
HENRY C. ATWILL, Attorney General."
1921 ANNUAL REPORT
Annual Town Meeting, Article IX, page 96.
"Voted, that its taxes be collected the same as last year. All ยท 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 regulations for the occupancy of the highways and streets of the town for
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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 highways of the town as well as the parking of automobiles and other vehicles thereon, viola- tion of the rules and regulations so made shall be punished by a fine not in excess of $20 for each offense."
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, Massachusetts Legis- lature."
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 necessary 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 developments, 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 document or information in the possession of any town official or department. 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 recommendations. It may incur ex- penses necessary to the carrying on of its work within the amount of its annual or special appropriations.
"""Section 4. All plans for laying out, extending, discontinuing 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 build- ings, shall be submitted 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 condition of the town and any plans or proposals for the development of the town and estimate of the cost 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, dis- play or maintain a billboard, sign or other outdoor advertis- ing 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;
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(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 billboard, 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 exceed a length of eight (8) feet or a height of four (4) feet;
(f) Nearer than three hundred (300) feet to any public way, if within view of any portion of the same, if 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 advertising device shall exceed a length of fifty (50) feet or a height of twelve (12) feet; except that the Selectmen may permit the erection of billboards, signs of 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 boundary 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 purposes; except that this provision shall not apply if the written consent of the owners of a ma- jority of the frontage on both sides of the street in such block is first obtained and is filed with the Division of Highways of the Department of Public Works together with the appli- cation for a Permit for such billboard, sign or other advertis- ing device.
(i) No billboard, sign or other advertising device shall be be erected, displayed or maintained until a Permit therefor has been issued by the Division of Highways of the Depart- ment of Public Works pursuant to the following provisions : Upon receipt from said Division of a notice that application for a Permit to erect, display or maintain a billboard, sign or other advertising device within the limits of Scituate has been received by it, the Selectmen shall hold a public hear- ing on said application, notice thereof having been posted in three public places in said town at least one week before the date of such hearing. A written statement as to the re-
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sults thereof shall be forwarded to the Division, containing, in the event of a disapproval of such application, 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 occupying 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 main- tained 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 hundred (100) dollars, and whoever, after conviction for such violation, un- lawfully 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 unconstitutional or illegal by final judgment, order or decree of the Supreme Judicial Court of the Commonwealth, the validity of the re- maining provisions of this By-Law shall not be affected there- by.
Approved May 25, 1929, GEORGE E. WARNER; Attorney General.
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 Accounts, Department of Corporations and Taxation."
Article 52, voted, to amend Article III, Section 3 of the By-Laws as follows:
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"Any person or persons loitering about or persons congregat- ing on a public way or sidewalk, or other public place, who shall not immediately desist from said loitering about or disperse when ordered or requested so to do by any constable or police officer of the town, and any person or persons con- gregating or loitering about in any schoolhouse yard, or out- buildings, 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 Meet- ing, 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 Col- lector 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."
1934 ANNUAL REPORT
Annual Town Meeting, March 5, 1934.
Voted, To adopt the following' By-Law:
"By-Law: The Selectmen are authorized to prosecute, com- promise, or defend any suit or suits within the Commonwealth in the name of the Town and to settle any claim against the Town not exceeding twenty-five dollars ($25.00) out of any available funds therefor."
Approved April 25, 1934, by the Attorney-General.
Voted, To adopt the following By-Law, Article 11.
"By-Law: The Board of Selectmen shall annually appoint
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a member of the bar to serve during their pleasure as Town Counsel. The duties of the Town Counsel shall be to advise and serve the Board of Selectmen and all other boards, depart- ments and officials of the Town in any and all legal problems and cases arising in the conduct of their respective offices as they may deem necessary."
Approved April 10, 1934, by the Attorney-General.
1936 ANNUAL REPORT
ZONING BY-LAW
Section 1. Zone "A" shall be all areas of Scituate not dis- tinguished as section "B" on drawing of said plan of Town of Scituate presented by the Planning Board as of February 11, 1935, and February 18, 1936.
Section 2. Zone "B" shall be as shown on drawing of said Town of Scituate presented by the Planning Board as of February 11, 1935, and February 18, 1936, and as on file at the Town Clerk's Office.
Sections 1 and 2 amended 1940, Art. 12 as follows: The boundary lines between said Zones "A" and "B" shall be as shown upon plans on file with the Town Clerk entitled: "Detail plan of Zone B areas, etc., Jan. 1939, Daniel Appleton, Town Engineer."
Section 3. In an "A" zone, no building, structure or premises shall be erected, altered or used for any purpose except one or more of the following:
(1) A single family or a two family detached dwelling.
(2) A club house, except one whose chief use is for a service customarily carried on as a business.
(3) Church, school, public library, public museum, parish house.
(4) Farm, greenhouse, nursery, truck garden, and the sale of produce raised on land of the owner shall be permitted, pro- vided, such sale does not interfere with traffic on the public way; further, a stand shall be permitted if set back from public way with ample private parking space and of design approved by the Planning Board.
(5) Cemetery, hospital, sanitarium, and philanthropic insti- tution, but no such permit shall be issued, except with the written approval of the planning Board and subject to such conditions as the Planning Board may deem it proper to impose.
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(6) Passenger station.
(7) Telephone exchange, provided there is no service yard or garage and that the design of building with reference to har- mony with the architecture, characteristic of the district, to be approved in writing by the Planning Board.
(8) The use of a room or rooms in a dwelling as an office or studio or for customary home occupations by a person residing in the dwelling. In such cases a professional sign of not over one square foot in area may be used and there shall be no public display of goods.
(9) A private stable and all farm buildings which are used in connection with and as a part of the operation of the farm.
(10) A private garage with space for not more than three automobiles to be used in connection with and as an incident of one of the foregoing purposes, provided, as to each such garage that after a public hearing by the Board of Selectmen fourteen days' notice of which shall be published in the local newspaper and marked to the last known address of each owner of property within the five hundred feet of the proposed location, the Select- men shall rule that such garage will not be detrimental or in- jurious to the neighborhood.
Section 4. Any building structure or premises in an "A" zone which at the time of adoption of this by-law is being used for a purpose not permitted hereunder, may be continued to the same extent in such use or in a use not substantially different therefrom. Any building or structure in an "A" zone, which at the time of adoption of this by-law does not conform to the kinds of buildings or structure permitted hereunder, may be maintained, may be structurally altered, or enlarged to the extent of the entire con- tiguous premises owned on the date of passage by this by-law by the then owner of said building or structure. Should any non- conformiing building occupied by a non-conforming use be par- tially or wholly destroyed by fire, abandoned, or destroyed by any other casualty, it may be repaired or replaced by a building or structure substantially the same in character and used for the purpose for which it was formerly used or for a use not substan- tially different therefrom, provided such repair or replacement is commenced within a year from the date of such destruction and work thereon prosecuted with reasonable dispatch.
Section 5. In a "B" zone there shall be no restrictions as to construction or use of the building, structure, or premises therein located.
Section 6. Where a boundary line of an "A" zone divides a single lot at the time of adoption of this by-law it does not extend
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more than twenty-five feet within said boundary line of an "A" zone, the regulations applicable to an "A" zone shall not apply to said lot, except, that if said lot has no entire frontage on a street in a "B" zone, said entire lot shall be subject to the regula- tions of an "A" zone.
Section 7. Any structure which shall violate the provisions of this by-law shall be removed and the person or persons guilty of the violation shall be punished by a fine of not more than Twenty Dollars to be paid into the Treasury of the Town of Scituate.
Section 8. The invalidity of any section or provisions of this by-law shall not invalidate any other section or provisions thereof. See Annual Report 1937, Article 28.
Section 9. This by-law may be repealed or modified at a Town meeting after notice as provided by law and an opportunity for objectors to be heard, by a two-thirds vote of said Town Meet- ing.
Section 10. So much of this by-law as is approved by the Attorney-General shall go into effect upon its publication as re- quired by law.
Approved July 25, 1936, by the Attorney-General.
1938 ANNUAL REPORT
Zoning Board of Appeals, Article 50 Annual Meeting.
A Zoning Board of Appeals shall be established and appointed by the Selectmen in accordance with and subject to the provisions of General Laws, Chapter 40, Section 30, as amended. Said Board of Appeals shall have all the powers, privileges and duties as pro- vided by law.
An appeal to the Board of Appeals by any person aggrieved by his inability to obtain a permit from an administrative official under the provisions of said Chapter 40, Section 25 to 30A inclu- sive, must be taken in writing within fifteen days after notice has been given said person of his failure to obtain the desired permit.
Upon passage of this addition to the town's zoning by-laws by the required vote of the town meeting, it shall become effective to the extent of its approval by the Attorney-General and after due publication thereof by the Town Clerk.
Voted: 289-0. Approved by the Attorney-General March 29, 1938.
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Sale of Lands ARTICLE 1.
Special Meeting June 22, 1938
The Selectmen are authorized to sell after first giving notice of the time and place of sale by posting such notice of sale in some convenient place in the Town fourteen days at least before the sale, property taken by the Town under tax title procedure provided that the Selectmen or whomsoever they may authorize to hold such public auction may reject any bid which they deem inadequate, or take any action relative thereto.
Unanimous vote.
Approved Sept. 14, 1938, by Paul A. Dever. Attorney-General.
1939 ANNUAL REPORT Regulation of Clams Annual Meeting, Article 59
The Selectmen shall control and may regulate the taking of cels, clams. all other shellfish, and seaworms within the Town by appropriate rules and regulations, in accordance with the pro- visions of General Laws or any amendment thereof.
VOTED: To accept the by-law as printed in warrant. Yes 147. No 42.
1940 ANNUAL REPORT Zoning By-Laws: Zones defined; Maps
Annual Meeting Article 12
VOTED: To add to Sections 1 and 2 of its Zoning By-Laws the following paragraphs: The boundary lines between said Zones A and Zones B shall be as shown upon plans on file with the Town Clerk entitled: "Detail Plans of Zone B Areas, etc., January, 1939; Daniel Appleton. Town Engineer."
Unanimous vote.
Abolition of Advisory Board: Creation of Advisory Committee ARTICLE 13 Will the Town vote to rescind its By-Laws establishing an Advisory Board and adopt the following By-Law in order to
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comply with the General Laws, Chapter 39, Section 16, Tercenten- ary Edition, or act thereon:
BY-LAW
Section 1. There shall be established an Advisory Committee for the Town which shall perform duties as set forth in the follow- ing sections of this article and be governed by the provisions of General Laws. Said Committee shall consist of nine citizens of the Town, which committee shall be appointed as provided in the following section, and no person holding an elective or ap- pointive town office or receiving a salary from the said Town shall be eligible to serve on said committee.
Section 2. Immediately upon taking effect of this by-law the Moderator shall appoint from the citizens of the Town three mem- bers whose term of office shall expire at the dissolution of the annual town meeting of 1943, three members whose term of office shall expire at the dissolution of the annual town meeting of 1942, three members whose term of office shall expire at the dis- solution of the annual town meeting of 1941; and at each annual meeting thereafter the Moderator thereof shall fill vacancies oc- curring in this office. Said committee shall choose its own officers and serve without pay. Said committee shall cause to be kept a true record of its proceedings and annual file a copy in the office of the Town Clerk.
Section 3. To this committee shall be referred all articles in any warrant for town meeting hereafter issued. The Selectmen, after drawing any warrant for a town meeting, shall transmit im- mediately a copy thereof to the Advisory Committee, and said committee shall consider all articles therein and shall report thereon in print or otherwise, to the town meeting such recom- mendations as it deems to be for the best interest of the Town. Upon written request a reasonable time in advance the Advisory Committee shall grant a hearing to the petitioners for any articles, before making recommendations.
Section 4. The Advisory Committee shall require the Select- men and other Town Officers, under whose direction, appropria- tions of money are expended, to submit to them, at least thirty days before the annual town meeting, an estimate of the appro- priations 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 committee shall determine. A public hearing may be held upon all articles due notice of which is to be given to the citizens. The Advisory Committee shall state the amounts which in its opinion shall be appropriated for the ensu-
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ing year, and shall add thereto such explanations and suggestions in relation to the proposed appropriations as it deems expedient and report thereon as provided in section three.
Section 5. Whenever any vacancy shall occur in said com- mittee by any cause, said vacancy shall be filled by the Moderator. Five members of the Committee shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business and if any member is absent from five consecutive meetings of said Committee, except in cases of illness, said Committee may consider his position vacant and report such vacancy to the Moderator who shall proceed to fill the same. The term of office of any person appointed as aforesaid to fill a vacancy shall be for the unexpired term of the person whom he succeeds.
Section 6 The Advisory Board heretofore established by vote of the Town is discharged upon qualification of the new Committee hereby established.
VOTED: To rescind the By-Laws establishing an Advisory Board and adopt the By-Law submitted in order to comply with the General Laws, Chapter 39, Section 16, Tercentenary Edition. Yes 251. No 8.
Boston, Mass., April 12, 1940.
The foregoing by-law is hereby approved.
PAUL A. DEVER, Attorney-General.
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