With backers of the Beach Avenue warrant question saying they intend to ask voters to pass over the Beach Avenue warrant item (#11), Town Moderator Steven Fors posted this message on how the matter can be handled Tuesday:

“I have been hearing rumblings that there is a constituency that plans to oppose passing over Article 11 at Town Meeting. I have no problem with that in principle, but I have some concerns. If they succeed in defeating a motion to pass over, there could then be an affirmative motion made. I hope everyone understands that I could not accept a motion to “leave Beach Avenue as it is”, to “prevent the Selectmen from closing Beach Avenue” or anything of the like. The only motion that would be in order would be one that falls within the “four corners” of the article. The article proposes to:

1. abandon a portion of Beach Avenue

2. Grant the Selectmen power to secure interests in the land under the abandoned portion of the road

3. Appropriate money for #2

4. Grant the Selectmen power to do other miscellany relative to #2

So an affirmative motion could propose all or some part of those things, but nothing else. If you are in touch with whoever is inclined this way, please have them contact me so I can either help them do what they want to do the right way or let them know what they are trying to do is impossible so we don’t spend 45 minutes debating a motion to pass over only to have me reject a new affirmative motion that is out of order.”