Council extends term limits for N.S. planners & zoners

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Zoning Board member Robert Najarian speaks before the council.

NORTH SMITHFIELD – Members of the North Smithfield Planning and Zoning Boards will be able to serve three five year terms or a total of 15 consecutive years in their roles going forward, following a change this week to an ordinance that previously limited appointees to two terms followed by a five year break in service.

The move comes just as the chairmen of both boards have run up against the town’s previous term limit, causing councilors to express concern about the thought of losing needed institutional knowledge.

“The Zoning Board and the Planning Board are incredibly important boards” said Councilor Rebecca DeCristofaro during discussion of the issue this week. “I do feel like the onus is on the Town Council to do their due diligence in appointing and reappointing members to our boards and commissions. At the end of the day, a finite number of terms really should not matter because these members are coming up for appointment on a two year, three year, five year basis.”

The ordinance limiting planners and zoners to two five year terms was first adopted in 1995 with the hope of ensuring that the two important volunteer groups would always have new members, bringing in a fresh perspective. According to the law, members could reapply to serve following a mandatory five year break.

But when the topic of new appointments to various boards and commissions came before councilors in December, Planning Board Chairman Gary Palardy said that he wished to continue in the role. Councilors agreed to hold off on appointing someone to fill the tole in order to discuss a possible change to the ordinance.

This week, Councilor John Beauregard made the case for an alternative approach to eliminating term limits, suggesting the council could simply opt not to take action on naming Palardy’s replacement while sending the larger question to the town’s Charter Review Commission.

“The optics on this are not good,” said Beauregard. “I’m not saying this is the case, because I know it’s not, but it looks like we’re changing the ordinance – we’re amending an ordinance – for the benefit of one person.”

“The Charter Review Commission is taking a comprehensive look at the whole picture,” he said. “Let the Charter Review Commission come to us with their recommendation.”

Any proposed charter amendment, Beauregard noted, would ultimately have to go before voters.

“Let the voters decide if they want term limits,” he said.

Councilors weren’t sold, however, on Beauregard’s plan to simply leave Palardy in his current role by not naming a successor. Town Solicitor David Igliozzi confirmed that by charter, a planning board member would remain in place until a successor was appointed, but noted the intent of the provision was to account for logistical issues – such as a council not having time to hold a meeting after a term expired.

“The concept is, you don’t want the Planning Board to be down a person,” Igliozzi said. “It is a technique, I guess,” he added of the suggested use of the phrasing.

DeCristofaro pointed out that other members’ terms will expire next year, questioning how the council could act on those appointments while leaving Palardy in place.

“It sounds kind of messy,” said Council President Kimberly Alves.

Beauregard noted that his job with the state police had mandatory retirement after 25 years, and that when his time came, he felt no one was more qualified to fill his role.

“You know what happened the day after I left? Somebody else took my position and the job went on just fine without me,” he said. “That’s the way life is. Maybe we wouldn’t have the knowledge that the person would take with them. But life would go on without them. We’d figure it out. Everybody is replaceable.”

But Zoning Board Chairman Robert Najarian pointed out that North Smithfield never has a full slate of members for its various boards and commissions.

“I don’t know that they’re knocking down the doors trying to volunteer,” Najarian said on Monday, noting that like Palardy, he, also was set to hit the limit. “Both positions are very difficult, very demanding, if you do it properly.”

Najarian added that limiting the boards to three terms would make sense.

“If you’re looking for a reasonable compromise, I think 15 is the number,” he said.

DeCristofaro pointed out that term limits are not standard practice across other municipalities and said that Palardy’s request had just prompted a more broadly needed discussion.

“I don’t want to lose institutional knowledge because of a term limit,” she said.

Beauregard made the motion to amend the ordinance to three terms, which was passed unanimously.

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