Two Selectmen Candidates Kicked Out Of Wilmington ZBA Meeting

WILMINGTON, MA -- Suzanne Sullivan and Rob Fasulo, who are both running for selectmen in Wilmington's town election on April 27, were ordered out of the Zoning Board of Appeals meeting Wednesday night. The board was meeting to affirm its earlier denial of a special permit for a controversial drug treatment facility. Both Sullivan and Fasulo oppose the proposed detox center at 362 Middlesex Avenue.

"Tonight an injustice was done to the residents of Wilmington. I along with Suzanne were escorted out of the ZBA meeting after calling a Point of Order," Fasulo wrote on Facebook after the meeting. "The ZBA is supposed to follow Roberts Rules, and the Chairman violated the rules set forth by the town bylaws. Another example that our town government is not working for the people."

After Sullivan and Fasulo were removed from the meeting by police, the board voted 3-2 to not hold a public hearing on a request by the applicant for a special accommodation that would have nullified the board's earlier decision denying the special permit. Chairman Daniel Veerman and Anthony Barletta vited against the measure, with Thomas Siracusa, Raymond Lepore and Jacquelyn Santini arguing that granted a special accommodation under the Americans With Disabilities Act was not within the board's authority.

The decision came despite the advice of Town Counsel Jonathan Silverstein, who said holding the hearing was the "safe option" to avoid future liability.

Betterment LLC, which wants to build the 48-bed detox center, was hoping to use the ADA to bypass local zoning laws and move forward with its project. Betterment has threatened to file a lawsuit against the town in federal court. With local remedies seemingly exhausted, Betterment will likely have to file the suit to move the project forward.

Special Town Meeting passed the new rules in December 2017 limiting where such facilities could be built and, contrary to town counsel's warning, the Massachusetts Attorney General signed off on the new rules.

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Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).