Dalton Planning Board Works to Update Special Permit Fees

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
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DALTON, Mass. — The Planning Board is navigating how to update its special permit fees to bring them up to date with the current costs of services. 
 
During the board meeting last week, Town Planner Janko Tomasic said the cost of completing the services is higher than what it costs to take action on the application.
 
The current application fee charged by the Board of Appeals and the Planning Board is $375. 
 
This fee is intended to cover the cost of labor, time, materials, postage for the certified abutters list for abutter notification, postage for the certified mail for the notice of the decision, and two Berkshire Eagle legal advertisements for the public hearing.
 
"According to the data, the base cost for a permit application is barely enough to cover the cost of the application process," according to Tomasic's special-permit costs breakdown. 
 
Based on the last six permits, the least expensive permit is $414 to complete because of the increase in cost for the steps in the permit process.   
 
The flat certified mail fee for eight letters is $69.52, which covers the cost of certified mail to abutting towns, the applicant, and notice of the decision to the applicant
 
The abutters list is $25, and two legal advertisements in The Berkshire Eagle is $268.40.
 
Board members asked if there was another paper they could use with a cheaper legal advertisement fee. 
 
The Berkshire Eagle is the only place to legally advertise as public notices are required by law to be posted in a print newspaper. The town can not just do online advertisements, Tomasic said. 
 
"We can't unfortunately advertise anywhere else. So, I'm exploring those options. I think, right now, we're legally tied to The Berkshire Eagle. We can't just do online advertisements. I'm not quite sure why. I didn't get a straight answer on that, but I spoke to [Town Manager Tom Hutcheson,] and he said for right now, we have to do The Berkshire Eagle,"
 
"So when there are other chances to switch where we can legally advertise. I think that would be a good thing to do. But as of right now, can't we're kind of stuck with The Berkshire Eagle.' 
 
These base expenses leave only $12.19 for the postage for the Notice of Public Hearing letters. 
 
The town is legally required to send a Notice of Public Hearing letter to all abutters within 300 feet of the property.
 
Over the years, materials and services have been rising in cost, including the fees for The Eagle advertisements, postage, and the two different fees for an abutters list. It is unclear when the town last updated its fees.
 
"The general public pays $50 for a certified abutters list, while a special permit or variance applicant only pays $25," the cost-breakdown sheet states.
 
"The current fee the Town of Dalton has for its applications is not reflective of the actual cost of the materials, work, and time needed to go through the process."
 
If the town does not address this, it will become a problem for the town budget, Tomasic said. 
 
He proposed two potential solutions: a tiered system in which the number of abutters is separated into ranges, and there is a set fee for each range or a set fee with an additional cost of $8.69 per abutter. 
 
In a follow-up, Tomasic said he prefers the second option because it is more accurate to the cost of services. 
 
When looking at what other towns are doing, they have a flat fee and an additional charge for the cost of postage for abutter notification, he told the Planning Board. 
 
The board directed Tomasic to draft an updated special permit application with this new fee system for the board to review at its next meeting. 

Tags: fees,   Planning Board,   

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Berkshire DA, Kids' Place Launch Internet Safety Programming

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Berkshire District Attorney's Office wants to break the silence about virtual child abuse that predators thrive on.

"Silence is the ally of an abuser," District Attorney Timothy Shugrue said.

On Tuesday, Shugrue and the Berkshire County Kids' Place & Violence Prevention Center detailed their newly created internet safety program that was softly rolled out in December.

"When I first took the office, I made a pledge that I wanted to reinstate youth programming, particularly school-based programs offered by the district attorney's office. Today, I'm proud to announce that I fulfilled that pledge," the DA said.

"The District Attorney's Office, in partnership with the Kids' Place, now offers internet safety education not just for children, but also for caregivers as well."

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month, and Shugrue said his office sees an "astronomical" amount of child sex abuse cases that originate on or happen online. He put that down to the Berkshires not being silent when it comes to reporting abuse. 

"We have a lot of reporting of child abuse cases and we have a lot of follow-up with that," he said.

Heather Williamson, program director at Kids' Place, is often asked how to know which children are in danger. Her answer: "All of our kids are on the internet right now. They're all in danger of accessing people that have a harmful nature towards them."  

The educational program was developed by both agencies using the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's NetSmartz curriculum model. Two facilitators, one from the DA's Office and one from the Kids' Place, travel to schools to meet with students and caregivers across the county.

There will soon be billboards for public awareness.

"As technology rapidly evolves and internet access reaches new highs, our children face greater risks than ever before," Williamson said.

"As professionals, community members, and parents, it is our responsibility to educate, protect, and provide resources to keep children safe. While this topic isn't new, the threats facing children online are more serious than ever."

Other resources, such as Take It Down, a service that allows minors to get sexually explicit material taken off the internet, were highlighted. Shugrue emphasized that the program will hold presentations anywhere it is welcome.

"We would not let our children play outside without first teaching them how to stay safe and ensure that they are supervised. Therefore, we should not allow children to wander the digital world without first providing them with the education they need to stay safe and the supervision they deserve," he said.

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