Marlborough council rejects boards-transparency order in 6-5 vote

MARLBOROUGH — June 7, 2021 — Marlborough council kills boards-transparency order in 6-5 vote, approves Callahan land deal. At-Large Councilor Samantha Perlman's order asking the mayor's office and city clerk to publish a clearer process for residents to apply to boards and commissions failed referral to the Personnel Committee on a 6-5 vote, with Chair Patricia Dumas casting the deciding no out of concern about "a perception from the community that there's an inside track." Councilor Kathleen Robey said the website "is the mayor's office's job," not the council's. The council unanimously approved a $150,000 transfer from open-space stabilization to help acquire a 33-acre Parmenter Road parcel for Callahan State Park, with a June 30 closing, after Vice-President Sean Navin called it "a great example of what can happen when governments at all levels work together." Calverde Naturals LLC received an 11-0 special permit for an adult-use marijuana store at 239 Boston Post Road West, subject to 16 conditions including a 60-day police detail.