Westport in Brief!
EverythingWestport.com
Tuesday, July 26, 2016
photos/EverythingWestport.com except as
noted
7/25/16 BOS Statement: Incident at 465 American Legion Highway in
Westport.
Westport BOH responds
to their involvement in the situation at 465 American Legion Highway.
|
7/25/16 BOS Statement: Incident at 465 American Legion Highway in
Westport. EverythingWestport.com Tuesday,
July 26, 2016 7/25/16
BOS Statement: Incident at 465
American Legion Highway in Westport. Read by select board chair Michael
Sullivan. “The Board
of Selectman and members of the Board of Health were just briefed on the
situation on American Legion Highway and we would like to make a statement
prior to beginning our regularly scheduled meeting. Let me
start by thanking all those individuals and agencies that have pitched in to
help us sort out this situation; ·
First we would like to express our appreciation to Westport Police
Department and in Particular, Lt Holden, Sergeants Majewski
and Cestodio as well as ACO
(animal control officer) Donna Lambert for their hard work in initiating,
conducting and coordinating our investigation into this tragedy. We are also grateful to have three officers
within the department that are bilingual and have been on duty continuously
over the past 7 days, Sergeants Cestodio and Couto
as well as Officer Gonsalves. The Westport Police Department will
continue to take the lead into what is now a criminal investigation. ·
The Board would also like to express our appreciation for assistance
from
·
We would also like to thank; o the US Department of Agriculture
who is presently involved and has offered to assist us with the extensive
work and costs associated with cleaning up this site. ·
These organizations have helped us provide medical care, food, shelter
and transportation for the animals, and in general, the expertise and
manpower that we do not have to conduct an operation of this scale over such
a very short period of time. As is
the case with all residents of Westport, we at the BOS are shocked and
dismayed at the revelation of neglected and mistreated animals on rented properties
located on American Legion Highway…. AGAIN.
All of the members of our Board have visited and toured the site and
have a good working knowledge of the past and present conditions. I am not going to try to catalogue the
particular abuses here as others have already done so. You
all know that we are a “Right to Farm” community and as such we are very
friendly to Farmers in particular and agricultural activities in
general. However, let me read one
important passage from our Farming By-Law; “The provisions of this By-Law shall
not apply whenever an impact results from willful negligence or reckless
misconduct in the operation of any such agricultural or farming operations….” “So let’s be clear that that Right to
Farm is not a right to neglect or mistreat animals, and there is nothing
wrong with our Right to Farm bylaw.” BOS Chairman R. Michael Sullivan Let me
also be clear, that these revelations are not a reflection on the
overwhelming majority of excellent farmers here in Westport who are using
industry best practices and producing top shelf products. This situation appears, at this point, to
be related to rented properties only. So, if
you are a land owner who rents property to others for agricultural purposes,
you are responsible for what happens on your property. Be certain that any animals present are
properly permitted and known to the Board of Health and properly cared
for. If you
are a tenant using someone else’s land, make sure you have the necessary
permits and animal tags and take care of your animal. The Town of Westport will do everything in
its power to insure the proper treatment of all animals and that includes
pressing criminal charges against those who do not comply with the law. And as demonstrated by state intervention
last week, you can lose control of your animals and possibly lose possession
as well. We and
the organizations previously mentioned are presently focused on rectifying
the conditions for what remains of the more than 1000 animals that were
present on the property last week. It
should be noted that some of these tenants that were not abusing their
animals and we are in the process of sorting this out and allowing those
individuals the opportunity to reclaim and remove them. This may take another week or more. The
Board of Selectmen obviously needs to look into why this happened in the
first place and more specifically why we have a repeat occurrence. We will be working closely with the Board
of Health, the Agricultural Commission and appropriate State agencies to
address these issues to insure that proper standards of care are observed in
the future. We
will have more to report on this as the situation develops and I would just
like to remind everyone that this is an active and open criminal
investigation and as such we are limited in what we can rightfully address in
the interim.” Thank
you, Westport
Board of Selectmen Westport BOH responds to their
involvement in the situation at 465 American Legion Highway. EverythingWestport.com Monday,
August 8, 2016 The
following statement was released Friday by the Westport Board of Health …. This
is not a statement of finger pointing, blame or guilt. The past few weeks
have been an eye-opening lesson in the problems within the town, its
government and the function of team work. Westport
has pushed hard to become a right to farm community with the Agricultural
Commission to be the ambassador between the public and farms. The BOH takes its job duties and responsibilities in the area
of farms very seriously. The town by-law requires contact with the
Agricultural Commission in regards to all complaints and issues regarding
farming activities. Most of the issues have become litigious, as opinions on
both sides have become passionate. Anybody attending last year’s annual Town
Meeting saw the divide and lines being drawn over farming issues. The BOH has permitting requirements for pigs and horses only.
The BOH is tasked with nominating an individual or
individuals for the Massachusetts Department of Agriculture Resource to
appoint an animal inspector. The duties of these inspectors include the
animal census, rabies monitoring and education. The BOH has been justifiably criticized for some aspects of
the enforcement, but in some cases was not aware of the activities or the
movement of animals to and from locations because of apathy by abutters,
other tenants, and people in the “know.” The problem in town is not the real
farmer but the “keeper” of animals. In most cases these parties are not known
until an egregious complaint is filed, usually anonymously, and a serious
situation has developed. Even then it becomes a difficult task to enforce
without a specific ordinance or by-law to give teeth to the BOH. Most
of you have become well aware of the situation regarding the property on
Route 177. What has not been acknowledged is the BOH
involvement previously with this property. On
Christmas Eve 2010, the BOH was summoned to the
property on a similar complaint. At the time, the MSPCA,
MDAR, Westport Police, Westport Building
Department, and BOH all cited the owner of the
property and known owners of the animals (for) various offenses. The state
agencies declined to prosecute the land owner, animals were removed and the
site partially cleaned up. State agencies responsible for pressing charges
backed off somewhat, allowing the land owner to face lesser charges. Follow-ups
on the site were to be done under state agencies. The town Agricultural
Commission as required under the Right to Farm By-Law was to oversee problems
and to help the “farmer” come into compliance with by-laws and regulations.
Owners of horses and pigs were Left: BOH Chairman John Colletti
(right) reads from a prepared statement prior to the start of the meeting. BOH member Karl Santos listens. Photo | EverythingWesport.com Shortly
after the initial incident, the BOH pushed to have
the former “dog” officer position changed to an Animal Control position. That
year, at the annual Town Meeting, the position was created. A town by-law was
crafted with the new Animal Control Officer was sponsored jointly by the BOH to regulate “tenant” farms. That by-law was widely
criticized as too restrictive and cumbersome to “farmers” and was withdrawn
from the warrant due to lack of support. The Animal Control Officer was
widely criticized by some residents as being “overzealous” in animal
enforcement, and improperly entering properties to check on the welfare of
animals. This position was essentially neutered to a point where the
position, although written into the job description as a requirement, was not
allowed to do animal inspections. The Westport Senior Agent was not allowed
to become an Animal Inspector by the overseeing agency. During
the past 4 years, the BOH has received numerous
complaints on farm odors, farm operations and animals. The BOH has followed up after hours and through the AGComm to address these issues. In some cases, with no
support from entities that should be overseeing the operations and others by
residents who have vocally voiced an opinion of support by the perpetrator. Now we
are at a crisis point for the town and the welfare of the animals. Solutions
to future problems will include the former by-law, which will require the
landowner and all “tenant” farmers to register locations, number of animals,
ownership, and all appropriate state and local by-laws. This will include a
right of entry by the agent or agents for the town on a regular basis and the
disposition of all animals and operations. It will involve singling out
sections of the town where the keeping of certain animals is not appropriate
or warranted. It will involve a challenge to the Right To Farm By-Law,
universally accepted by the town itself. It requires support, it requires a
change in culture and it requires action. It also requires a new thought
process in town government and town communication and cooperation. EverythingWestport.com Sunday,
July 31, 2016 Did
you know that George Manchester, former captain of the whaling ship Kate Cory,
was the first keeper of a Humane Society Lifesaving Station established at
Westport Harbor in 1888? The
station was moved to its current location in 1894 when the bridge from
Westport Point to Horseneck Beach was completed. Learn
all about the network of lifesaving stations built along the Massachusetts
coast to rescue shipwreck survivors. The Westport Fishermen’s Association is
the current “keeper” of the station. Lifesaving Station hours. Weekend
summer hours at the Horseneck Point Lifesaving Station, located at 241 East
Beach Road, began Saturday, June 25th and run through Labor Day weekend. The Lifesaving
Station will be open to the public on Saturday and Sunday afternoons from 12:00
– 4:00 p.m., as well as the ongoing Wednesday hours of 12:00 – 4:00 p.m. Occasional
programs will be held outside the station - weather-permitting - to display
the local ecology and navigation and reveal the basics of knot-tying. Stop
in at the Visitor Center next door for more displays, information about the
Westport Fishermen’s Association environmental advocacy work, the opportunity
to shop for apparel and the chance to enter a raffle to win a beautiful
hand-crafted kayak. More information is available by calling 774.264.9200 or
emailing wfa@westportriver.org.
Above: Annual Antique boat exhibit at the Westport Lifesaving Station. Photo | EverythingWestport.com © 2016 Community Events of
Westport. All rights reserved. EverythingWestport.com |
