Municipal Matters

With winter around the corner, Marblehead drivers are getting another break from the town's traditional overnight parking ban. The Select Board voted Oct. 14 to waive the midnight-to-7 a.m. ban for another winter, instead restricting street parking only during declared snow emergencies. The policy allows the DPW director, police chief and fire chief, working with the town administrator, to determine when restrictions begin and end based on weather forecasts and road conditions. Vehicles violating snow emergency restrictions may be ticketed or towed. This winter, drivers…

Developers' proposals for the Coffin School property are due Monday, Oct. 19. Town Administrator Thatcher Kezer said an evaluation committee will review qualifying submissions and recommend one or more projects for Select Board consideration. Meanwhile, Marblehead residents who responded to a town survey favor smaller homes, affordable housing and green space at the former Coffin School property, according to results presented to the Select Board on Oct. 14. The town's first FlashVote survey drew 300 responses, with participants favoring starter homes, age-restricted housing and townhouses.…

Marblehead is again eliminating its traditional midnight-to-7 a.m. winter parking ban this season, replacing it with restrictions imposed only during declared snow emergencies. The Select Board approved the change, which allows the DPW director, police chief and fire chief, working with the town administrator, to determine when restrictions begin and end based on weather forecasts and road conditions. Vehicles violating declared snow emergency restrictions may be ticketed or towed. Blue warning lights will soon be installed at strategic locations around town to alert drivers when…

Approximately 15 candidates applied for Marblehead’s town administrator position, according to Select Board member and Screening Committee Chair Erin Noonan. In addition to Noonan, the Screening Committee includes Police Chief Dennis King, Finance Committee Chair Molly Teets, Select Board member Jim Zisson and former Select Board member Jim Nye. Noonan told the Current that following interviews on Oct. 16, 19, 20, “we will make the decision on which (candidates) to move forward as finalists before the full Select Board.” The names of applicants are being…

Marblehead could move to ban data centers under a new zoning bylaw, following a discussion at the Planning Board's Oct. 13 meeting. Planning Board Chair Marc Liebman raised the possibility of prohibiting data centers in town, citing concerns about their impact on communities and pointing to similar efforts underway in Salem. "There's all kinds of reasons why data centers create a strain on the communities they're in," Liebman said.  Data centers are facilities that house computer servers and other equipment used to store, process and…

Marblehead officials will hold their first formal joint financial review later this month, fulfilling a requirement of a memorandum of understanding signed by town and school leaders last spring. The agreement was reached as officials urged residents to support a three-year, $15 million Proposition 2½ override, which voters approved in May. Select Board Chair Dan Fox said the review will take place the week of Oct. 19. "As per the MOU, Joint Financial Review section, the town administrator and superintendent will be reporting to the…