All but 1 Hollis zoning amendment passes

Friday, March 12, 2010

Staff photo by Don Himsel School board candidate Heidi Cadwell spins wool into yarn while greeting voters outside the polls at the Hollis Brookline Cooperative High School Tuesday, March 8 2010.

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Staff photo by Don Himsel Voters in Hollis made their way to the polls at the Hollis Brookline Cooperative High School Tuesday, March 8 2010.

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Staff photo by Don Himsel School board candidate Heidi Cadwell spins wool into yarn while greeting voters outside the polls at the Hollis Brookline Cooperative High School Tuesday, March 8 2010.

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2010 Hollis Town Meeting
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HOLLIS – A controversial attempt to change zoning laws to allow mulch and compost to be stored and sold at private businesses drew much of the attention in Hollis elections Tuesday.

The motion, Amendment 6, was the only zoning change rejected: 928-828.

The article was put on the ballot by petition. It arose from a battle between the town and Douglas Orde, who operates a “grandfathered” gravel pit on Depot Road.

More than a year ago, the town said expanded operations at the site, including selling landscaping material such as bark mulch and compost, was a violation of zoning, and the town issued a cease-and-desist order.

Orde appealed the order in court. His hearing on the attempt to overturn the town’s ruling was delayed until after this vote.

The rejected article would have allowed “landscaping materials yards” on sites of at least 20 acres in certain zoning districts.

Five other zoning changes were on the ballot, and all passed.

About 32 percent of Hollis voters cast ballots Tuesday: 1,758 votes were cast out of 5,572 registered voters.

In other matters, Selectman Peter Band garnered 1,077 votes in his run for one of two open Board of Selectmen seats, while his colleague Mark LeDoux also won, with 968 votes. Newcomer Spencer Stickney came in third with 646 votes.

The Budget Committee race was a five-way competition for two three-year seats. Christopher Hyde, presently chairman, topped the ballot with 750 votes, followed by Tom Gehan. Committee member Bob Labednick wasn’t re-elected, getting less than half of Hyde’s tally.

Jim Belanger was elected town moderator, a two-year seat that opened after longtime moderator Dr. James Squires retired.

Two three-year seats on the Board of Library Trustees went to incumbents Jone LaBombard and Michelle Repp, who edged newcomer Jane Natches by about 50 votes.

In the contest for Hollis School District moderator, a one-year post, Harry Haytayan bested Drew Mason 801-777, while newcomer Robert Mann, the only candidate for a three-year seat on the School Board, won office with 1,215 votes.

Rosemary Mezzocchi won a one-year seat with 222 write-in votes; there were no official candidates for the seat.

There were four candidates for two Hollis seats on the Hollis/Brookline Cooperative School Board, including two incumbents, Dr. James O’Shea and Steve Simons, who won easily over newcomers Bill Beauregard and Heidi D.L. Cadwell.

By contrast, there was no contest for the two open seats on the cooperative school district’s Budget Committee: Incumbent Steve Pucci was elected with 1,084 votes and newcomer Darlene Mann won the other seat with 1,076 votes.

In the race for the three-year post as moderator in the cooperative school district, a two-way contest between Haytayan and Brookline resident James Murphy, Murphy won 1,209-1,172.

Hattie Bernstein can be reached at 673-3100, ext. 24, or hbernstein@cabinet.com.