Bourne Planning Board Meeting – March 26, 2026
Bourne Planning Board Meeting – March 26, 2026
The Bourne Planning Board convened at 7:00 PM on March 26, 2026, with Vice Chair Liz Brown presiding (Chair John Dugan absent). The board addressed several consent items, a performance bond for an occupancy request, two Approval Not Required (ANR) plans, a site plan review waiver, and other business. All votes were unanimous.
Consent Calendar
- Minutes of March 12, 2026: The board voted unanimously to approve the minutes as distributed.
Discussion and Decisions
Occupancy Bond – Canal Street (Map 11, Parcel 29)
- Mike Allen, CEO of Chief Cannabis, presented a request for a performance bond totaling approximately $103,000 (including 15% contingency) for paving, dumpsters, sidewalks, landscaping, and picture box frames at 10 Canal Street. The bond is needed to secure final work before obtaining a certificate of occupancy (CO).
- Mr. Allen explained that paving is scheduled for April 15, weather permitting, with striping and landscaping to follow. He sought clarity on the board’s timeline and the ability of the town’s (then vacant) interim building commissioner to sign off on the CO, noting that the lack of a building commissioner (Warren has no interim commissioner and is trying to borrow from another municipality) could delay his cannabis license process by several months.
- The board discussed the adequacy of the estimates and the town’s vacant building inspector position. Member Catherine raised a concern that the DPW director had not yet reviewed the estimates, citing past issues with bonds being insufficient. The board voted to accept the bond on the condition that the DPW director first review and approve the estimates. Motion passed unanimously.
ANR Land Swap – 17 Perch Lane & 77 Bars Road
- Greg Warson of Greensale Environmental represented the Huckley Trust and the Masonic Building Corporation. The ANR plan involves a land exchange: the Huckley Trust receives 34,598 square feet, and the Masonic Building Corporation receives 3,137 square feet, with the Huckley Trust (a nonprofit) covering engineering costs. The board approved the ANR unanimously, with the note that endorsement is needed for Land Court.
ANR Lot Split – 190 Main Street
- Sam Imlay of JC Engineering presented an ANR plan to divide a 14,000-square-foot lot (currently with a hair salon) into two lots, both compliant with downtown core zoning requirements. The existing building remains on the northern lot; a vacant lot (6,020 sq. ft.) is created on the south. The board approved the ANR unanimously.
Site Plan Review Waiver – 190 Main Street
- The applicant requested a waiver from site plan review (required for a loading area) for the same property. The waiver was based on the minimal change (reduction in parking area) and the low delivery needs of a hair salon. Four parking spaces (three required) are provided. Board members questioned future use of the vacant lot (mixed-use possible but not yet determined) but found the waiver appropriate. The motion to approve the waiver with standard conditions passed unanimously.
Old/New Business
- Board members discussed the town’s vacant building inspector position (the interim commissioner is also unavailable). They noted a serious need for a building inspector, especially as the construction season begins, and encouraged individuals to apply or for the town to seek a state waiver or borrow from another community. No formal board action was taken.
The meeting adjourned shortly after the vote on the waiver.
Meeting Transcript
So being seven o'clock on March 26, 2026, I call the planning board meeting and warrant to order. My name is Liz Brown. I'm filling in as vice chair for John Dugan who can't be here. So the first um oh, anyone recording? Can you please identify yourself? That would be no one. All right. Now moving on. So the first item on tonight's agenda is the meeting minutes from March 12th, 2026. Does anybody have any issues? Changes? I think a motion to uh adopt them as sent out. Second. All right, let's go. Amanda. Um we're we're voting on the minutes. Yes. Yes. I don't know if you need to vote on the case. Um sorry, Mandy. Yes. Yes. And chair votes yes, so that's unanimous. Okay. All right. Next item on the agenda, request for occupancy bond for canal 10 canal street, map 11, parcel 29. The bond is needed for paving, dumpster, sidewalks, landscaping, and picture box frames. Um you have did everybody get the estimates. All right, did anyone Jimmy said June for you 28? Has anybody been assign this as a reviewer? No. Okay. I looked at the uh Madam Chair. Uh it has a nice ring, doesn't it? It does. It does. Um I looked at the the numbers, and I think the numbers are in line with what we were asking for. Um so I would make a motion that we move it to a vote. Yeah, we're mad and discussion anyway. Uh do you want him to come up to explain his bond? I'd appreciate that. Yeah, I can really generally favorable, obviously, but we would like to sure. Good evening, madam chair, members of the board, Mike Allen. Um the CEO of Chief Cannabis. Um thank you for the opportunity this evening to come in and um speak to uh what we hope to have uh open here in a relatively short period of time after after this evening. Um we are in the process of scheduling the remainder of the work that we have to complete, which has been held up primarily due to weather. Uh paving is a good example. Umscaping and line striping, uh, which is kind of the lion's share of uh the remainder of what we have what we have left. Um but that that stuff is uh the paving is scheduled for April 15th, whether it's a pending. Uh we do have and then the line striping will will follow shortly thereafter, um and the landscaping as well.
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