By Danielle Ray
The Selectboard voted at their March 9 meeting to hold the 2021 annual town meeting on May 15 at 10 a.m. in a tent at Thomas Prince School.
Last year’s town meeting was held on a playing field at Thomas Prince School, which was an appropriate option again for this year’s meeting.
“People seemed pleased with how it worked out,” said Selectboard Chair Karen Cruise. “We were able to keep people socially distanced and they felt safe. We had a few technical glitches last year that we hope to resolve before this coming meeting.”
Cruise said they have already discussed this year’s town meeting with the Advisory Committee.
“Since we may need to have a ballot vote after the meeting, we would like to have the meeting early enough that the ballot vote can be done before people head off for their summer adventures,” she said of the timing.
Another vote happening before the start of summer is the annual town election, which is scheduled for May 10 from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Thomas Prince School.
“Obviously, this is barring any significant changes regarding the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Town Clerk Nathan Boudreau. “PPE will be provided as it was at the 2020 elections.”
Nomination papers for the election are available at the town hall by appointment. The deadline to file them is March 22 at 5 p.m.
When asked how difficult it has been to figure out the logistics of the town meeting, election and more in the midst of a pandemic, Cruise said it certainly has been challenging.
“As you can guess, there are a lot of moving pieces,” she said. “We have to make sure that everyone is kept as safe as possible, that the location is accessible, that we don’t interfere with school activities, etc.
Cruise said that the Planning Board has decided to postpone updating the town’s master plan at this point in time.
“The board wanted to defer the master plan work until COVID is in the rearview mirror and we can have in-person meetings with in-person participation by as many residents as possible,” Cruise said. “They’ll probably start with solicitations to every board, committee, and interest group for comments and suggestions.”
For more information visit town.princeton.ma.us.