Excerpt From Plymouth Town Manager Report

Press release from the Town of Plymouth:

Q - Just a quick question, Are trash barrels going to be placed at Fresh Pond? Just left and some trash is there. A lady was looking for a bag and I had given her one I had. Just passing it on to you.

A - We are definitely going to put trash barrels there – some time prior to the Park being staffed on June 20th – please see May 16th Town Manager’s report for other details (available on line under news). In addition, there will be some service delivery delays since many town employees have been out due to the covid situation worldwide. However, the parks crews are amazing and are catching up as quickly as they can.

Q - I am wondering if you have been able to find out the information of how many vacancies we have and what positions you are considering for layoff

A - No, unfortunately this week we were inundated with other priorities. However, we will be working on that exercise as soon as we can.

…. all of the residents are not happy with all of the dog excrement on all of White Horse Beach and the sidewalks, I hope you understand that dog waste carries a great deal of bacteria and as the warmer weather increases, people are stepping, sitting and the children are playing in the bacteria laden sand. When the Covid-19 came upon us, uninvited people of unknown residents brought their dogs to WHB for unleashed exercise and defecation. There are far to many that are no-baggers, they don't pick up the waste, some even kick sand over it, others state that the high tide will take it away. This issue needs to be addressed. Let me know what can be done about this for I and the MVSC have asked repeatedly for several years to have a dog officer or natural resources officer patrol WHB and that idea has just washed out to sea, (no pun intended) ….. We need this to go forward please!

As many know, there were court required dog prohibitions imposed on Long Beach as a result of some legal appeals. Only Long Beach has this restriction though. If the Town wants to ban/restrict dogs from all the other public beaches, during season or year round, this would require a bylaw change by Town Meeting. In addition, you would definitely need enforcement or this bylaw will not be followed. An article for Town Meeting can be petitioned by residents or sponsored by a Board/Committee.

QQ- Just wondering if I was to travel to Plymouth this weekend, are there restaurants open? And if so, if you eat at one of those restaurants, are you okay to use the restroom as a paying customer?

AA - Our restaurants are still ‘take out’ only. However, we are anticipating an announcement from the Governor this weekend that may allow the restaurants to open for outside dining early next week. That is not yet confirmed, but is what we are preparing for now.

QQ - I know you have much bigger things on your plate right now, but I'm trying to figure out who to contact in town about putting the tennis nets up at Hedges Pond. The gates are unlocked, but no nets. Just an email address would be great, or if you just want to forward this on to the right person (and copy me so I know who for the future) I'd appreciate it.

AA - I apologize that I can’t give you an exact date. We have slowly brought back in more staff for more hours over the last couple of weeks, however, we are certainly behind in terms of workload. Our public works crews (actually all town employees) will be trying to catch up over the next few weeks, and that includes our Parks crews. They hope to get nets up at a few of our locations this week and next week.

Q - Can you confirm Paul and melissa's email. I still have not gotten a response from either. I'm trying to get an idea of what my options are, for instance, can we send pictures of the wiring. I know they may not know everything but there has to be a way to move forward. To be honest, I really don't understand why they can't do inspections, it's one person coming in the house just looking, not touching. I guarantee you that when everything is done they'll be real quick to get the assessor over here to increase the tax assessment

A. – I have had no issues or complaints from anyone else regarding accessing me by email (see all prior QnA segments from residents). So this individual’s struggle to email me is indeed puzzling and worrisome. Please, if you hear of a situation like this, ask the resident to send you a copy of their email to me, so I can research it on our end and see if Information Technology can find why it did not go through. All residents are welcome to email me and I have posted my email address in as many places as I can. It is marrighi@townhall.plymouth.ma.us. In addition, we have a significant amount of information on inspections during this time on our website, on our facebook page, and I have included information in my Town Manager’s reports on line and at publicized Select Board meetings. If any of the Select Board members get inquiries about inspections, feel free to send them to this website or provide them with the information below. Unfortunately, at this time, we are taking precautions with Town employees (inspectors in this case) and cannot provide for the same level of service regarding entering occupied spaces as we did prior to covid-19.

https://www.plymouth-ma.gov/inspectional-services

Inspectional Services Procedures During The Emergency Declaration as of May 13, 2020

New - Online Payment for all permits! See below for details.

Plumbing, Gas & Wiring Inspections: email request form to scheduleinspection@townhall.plymouth.ma.us We will confirm receipt by email and forward them to the inspectors. Permit applications and Inspection request forms can be found on our webpage in the "downloadable forms" tab. Please note: For the most part, we will not be inspecting occupied buildings.

Plumbing, Gas & Electric permits: email applications to both Dana and Marianne to be priced. dburke@townhall.plymouth.ma.us mcoffin@townhall.plymouth.ma.us We will then reply to you with an application number and the fee. Click on the "Online Payment" tab to your left on our Inspectional Services page or in "Citizens Action Center" on the main page and follow the prompts. Once we receive notification that the fee has been paid, the permit number will be emailed to you soon thereafter; turn-around time is 72 business hours after payment is made. You will be required to pay the permit fee before we issue the permit.*IMPORTANT NOTE: Please email applications to both Dana & Marianne as we are rotating shifts due to Covid-19.

Building Inspections: Please email scheduleinspection@townhall.plymouth.ma.us to schedule your building inspection. Please provide the property address, application number, type of inspection, the perferred date and your contact information. **NOTE: For the most part, we will not be inspecting occupied buildings. You can also call 508-747-1620 x10117 to schedule.

Building & Zoning permits: Please mail all building & zoning permit applications along with trailing documents to the Town of Plymouth, Attn: Inspectional Services. Permit applications can be found on our webpage in the "downloadable forms" tab. We now have a payment portal for all permit fees. You will be required to pay the permit fee before we issue your permit. When we receive your application in the mail, we will start the permit process. We will supply you with an application number and the fee amount; you will then click on the "Online Payment" tab to your left on our Inspectional Services page or in "Citizens Action Center" on the main page and follow the prompts. Once we receive notification that the fee has been paid, your permit application will then move to "review".

Melissa G. Arrighi, Town Manager

This press release was produced by the Town of Plymouth. The views expressed here are the author’s own.