Robert Bland v. Rockport, Town of - Police Department (SPR 20200804)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records May 29, 2020 SPR20/0804 Michelle Rowe Office Manager/Records Access Officer Town of Rockport Police Department 168 Main Street Rockport, MA 01966 Dear Ms. Rowe: I have received the petition of Robert Bland appealing the response of the Town of Rockport (Town) Police Department (Department) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Specifically, Mr. Bland requested: “Any record that [justifies] a claim that the subject Pine Avenue is a public footpath, including but not limited to the following: a. A laying out and acceptance by the town as a public way according to G. L. c. 82, § 21-24; b. A laying out and acceptance by the town as a public footpath according to G. L. c. 82, § 33; and c. An adjudication of public rights by prescription.” In addition, Mr. Bland indicates, “[a] Registry reference (book and page) is an acceptable response. If no such records exist, please include that information in your response.” On April 10, 2020, the Department provided Mr. Bland with information in its possession. As a result, Mr. Bland petitioned the Supervisor of Records (Supervisor), and this appeal was opened. By email response on April 10th to you, Mr. Bland explained that the information provided is non-responsive. Mr. Bland asserts, “[i]t is unclear what portion of this document is being offered as a record that the subject of my request is a public footpath.” In its April 20, 2020 response, you informed Mr. Bland that the Department does not have possession, custody or control of the records requested. “As a result, there is no obligation for a Department to create a record for a [requestor] to honor a request.” Furthermore, the Department asserts, “[p]lease note that a copy of an internal document we found pertaining to the One Ashburton Place, Room 1719, Boston, Massachusetts 02108 • (617) 727-2832• Fax: (617) 727-5914 sec.state.ma.us/pre • pre@sec.state.ma.us

Michelle Rowe SPR20/0804 Page 2 May 29, 2020 general topic has been included with this response. This document was in the possession of Chief Horvath and while it does not fall within the categories [Mr. Bland] prescribed above, it has been included for [Mr. Bland’s] information.” No responsive records In a May 28th telephone conversation with a Senior Attorney in the Public Records Division, Town Clerk, Patricia Brown, indicated that if the requested record exists it would likely be in the records of the “Right of Way” Committee (Committee). In a May 19th email to Ms. Brown, Mr. Bland inquired whether any Records Access Officers were currently working in the Town Hall building. Ms. Brown explained that the Town Hall is closed to the public due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and the members of the Committee do not have access to the records. However, once the members of the Committee have access to the building, a search could be conducted. Conclusion Accordingly, the Town is to provide a response to the request in a manner consistent with the Public Records Law and its Regulations as soon as practicable. A copy of any such response must be provided to this office. It is preferable to send an electronic copy of this response to this office at pre@sec.state.ma.us. Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Robert Bland Patricia Brown, Town Clerk