Clarksburg Cracking Down on Code Violators
CLARKSBURG, Mass. — The Select Board on Tuesday voted to enforce zoning and health violations on 471 Middle Road.
"The health code does allow for alternative housing, but you have to have proper septic, proper well, proper sewage disposal and proper drinking water," said Health Inspector Valerie Bird of Berkshire Public Health Alliance. "Typically it's six months or seasonal, and they would have to have a permit from the Board of Health. But he hasn't shown any."
The board had taken up the property last month because the owner has been living in trailer since the house burned down in 2021. Members had been concerned that the occupant had some place to go and was aware of possible help.
"I think we're probably going to move forward with the process," said member Colton Andrews.
Chair Daniel Haskins agreed, "it'd be different if we saw something being built right now, and we could maybe do an extension on it, but at this point, don't think anything's ever going to be built."
Member Seth Alexander asked what the process would and Building Inspector William Meranti said it could be through the building code or through the health department, which would be more immediate.
"These conditions are unsafe for condemning your property. You can no longer stay here," he said, adding the town could use both paths.
Bird said she would submit an inspection report to the Board of Health, which would then set an order of conditions. The owner would have time to comply, but if they did not, the Board of Health would hold a public hearing to condemn the property and order it vacated
"If he doesn't comply with that, then it would be to Housing Court, and Housing Court requires town attorney now," she said, adding that the court meets on Wednesday and is currently backed up.
The Health Board is holding a condemnation hearing next Tuesday for 750 Daniels Road. Bird said the occupant had no electricity and was running a generator, there was also trash and junk vehicles on the property.
She said she had issued an order to correct and he did hook up the electric but did not clean up property.
"I did tell him that, when I went back, that we would condemn the property and he would not be able to live there. He didn't understand why," Bird said.
The owner of the property is the occupant's grandmother. Bird said the board could order the occupant to vacate and the grandmother to board up the property.
Again, if the BOH condemned and occupant didn't leave, "I would present the judge with the steps I've taken to get him to clean up this property, the pictures that show it hasn't been cleaned up, and the judge will make a decision that would be for him to vacate," she explained. "Then we would notify the sheriff's office."
Bird also said she had sent orders to 805 River Road because of bags of trash and vehicles and to 301 West Road for piles of mattresses and a camper; neither owner has picked up their certified letter.
She's also checking on in-home food businesses for sanitation and ServSafe certifications. The town had contracted with Berkshire Public Health Alliance with an eye toward addressing code violators.
Town Administrator Ronald Boucher said he'd given her a couple other properties as well.
"I'll probably end up moving up here at some point," she joked about the amount of time she'd been putting into Clarksburg.
Andrew McKeever of the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission updated the board on the master planning process which is being funded through a grant.
The steering committee held its first organizational planning meeting last month and will meet this Wednesday at 2 via Zoom.
McKeever explained that the plan is designed to provide a guide for the town's short and long-term goals and sets a framework for future policy decisions. It will a look at wide range of factors from population to economic development to natural resources.
Stakeholders will be invited to weigh in on their areas of expertise and the general public will have opportunities to air their desires for the community. The plan will be completed by next June.
In other business:
• Meranti will have office hours on the first and third Tuesday evenings at Town Hall to field permitting questions from residents.
• Boucher said the town is short of members on several town boards, especially the Americans with Disabilities Act Commission which has no members.
Anyone interested in serving on that commission or filling spots on the Zoning Board of Appeals or the Hoosac Water Quality District should contact Boucher at Town Hall.
• Boucher also gave updates on the Department of Public Works, grant opportunities and the school roof project, which is largely complete. He said there were a couple add-ons to the roof project to address water infiltration and a rotten egress cover. "We're running well within budget," he said.
• He also reported that the concert at the town field was very well-attended and that the food vendor had broached the idea of having a "pickle festival" next year, which board members thought an interesting idea.
Tags: board of health, code enforcement,
