Mary Harrington v. Hull, Town of - Town Clerk (SPR 20232251)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records October 2, 2023 SPR23/2251 Lori West Town Clerk Town of Hull 253 Atlantic Avenue Hull, MA 02045 Dear Ms. West: I have received the petition of Mary Harrington appealing the nonresponse of the Town of Hull to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On August 10, 2023, Ms. Harrington requested the following records pertaining to the “Rail Road Bed:” [1] …the number of License Agreements between the property owners/abutters…. [2] [the number of] License Agreements [that] are in effect…. [3] …a sample copy of the License Agreement. [4] All written documents outlining the reason(s) for not following the recommendations outlined in the 1992 Rail Road Bed Study…. [5] All written documents relating to the decisions to create a License Agreement between the property owners/abutters and the Town ... [6] All written documents regarding to charge a lifetime fee of $1 rather than following the recommendations outlined in the RR Bed Study…. [7] …documents on what professional and technical services were received…. [8] …all written correspondence between the Town and the unnamed Massachusetts attorney…. [9] …all documentations from the contacted survey companies specifying 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

Lori West SPR23/2251 Page 2 October 2, 2023 costs involved. Claiming to not yet have received a response, Ms. Harrington petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR23/2251, was opened as a result. Subsequently, I learned that the Town intends on providing a written response to Ms. Harrington. Accordingly, the Town is ordered to provide Ms. Harrington with said response in accordance with the Public Records Law, its Regulations and this order within ten business days. A copy of any such response must be provided to this office. It is preferable to send an electronic copy of the response to this office at pre@sec.state.ma.us. Ms. Harrington may appeal the substantive nature of the Town’s response within ninety days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Mary Harrington