On June 11, Rockport voters overwhelmingly approved Article 15, which requires the Select Board, “to appoint an advisory committee to study the costs and benefits of a collaborative approach for improving wastewater treatment systems in the towns of Rockport and Camden, including a municipal utility district, and to have such committee report findings to the Board prior to the 2025 Rockport Town Meeting and prior to funding the construction of a new wastewater treatment plant”.

The Rockport voters also overwhelmingly defeated Article 3, a proposal to build a new wastewater treatment facility. The message to Town leadership should be clear. We strongly urge the Select Board to heed the will of the voters, appoint an appropriate group of citizens to this Advisory Committee and allow the Advisory Committee to do as Article 15 specifies without placing unnecessary restrictions or timelines on its work.

We note that Article 15 does not suggest the formation of a Task Force, nor does it require or empower the Advisory Committee to negotiate prices or other terms with the Town of Camden.

Moreover Article 15 does not impose other conditions on the Advisory Committee, such as early or interim reporting requirements, or the requirement that our neighbors in Camden agree to form a parallel committee or otherwise cooperate in the process.

The Advisory Committee that Article 15 requires the Select Board to appoint is an investigative group. It should be given time and the freedom to do its job, without preconditions.

We also feel that Advisory Committee members should have a bias towards wanting a successful outcome. All members of the previous Rockport Wastewater Task Force that promoted Article 3, as well as those who publicly supported Article 3, expressed distrust of Camden, or questioned the advisability of seeking to collaborate with Camden should not be included as members of the new Advisory Committee. These views are inconsistent with the goals of Article 15. New perspectives are needed.

The voters have spoken. We ask the Select Board to heed their will, appoint an Advisory Committee as required by Article 15, and let that group do the work that the voters asked to have done.

Sally Cook
Brenda Richardson
Peter Ralston
Des Fitzgerald
Bill Leone
Bill Freeman
Constance Gibbons
Courtnay Smith
Judy Bonzi
Andy Austin
Ni Rong
Linda Leonard
Anastasia Fischer
Lucas Fischer
Lisa Morgan
Parker Hackett
Nick Horowitz
Natalie Watson
Simon Castle
Diana Castle
Sam Clark
Jet Serle
Tim Watts
Jan Czak
Aaron Johnson
Tom Young
Mary Ann Young
Tom Amory
Mary Amory
Martha White
Steve Smith