Shane Howley of Main-Land Development Consultants Inc., left, tours with Bethel’s Planning Board members, including Jim Bennett, right, on a 2024 site walk. Rose Lincoln/Bethel Citizen

BETHEL — Bethel Planning Board Chair Laurie Winsor requested a stipend for each of her seven board members in a proposal to the Bethel Select Board on March 5.

Town Manager Sharon Jackson said some area towns pay their planning boards while others do not. The Bethel Select Board, Bethel Board of Assessors and SADD-44 school board members all receive stipends.

Chair Michelle Cole said that historically only elected Bethel officials have received stipends, but she described this as “a first step.”

Select Board member Frank Del Duca raised concerns saying, “Once you give it to one, you have to give it to all of them … If you want quality people, normally money talks. I don’t know how much it talks in this situation.”

Former Planning Board Member Pat McCartney disagreed with Del Duca’s assessment, explaining, “The Planning Board has a lot of authority in town. I don’t see the comparison.”

Board Member Meryl Kelly, who agreed with Cole that it would be wise not to rush to a decision, emphasized the significant time commitment required by the Planning Board. “If you do it well, it’s a considerable amount of time compared to pretty much every other board I’ve been on. The workload is not comparable,” she said.

Cole asked for clarification on what Bethel town office staff does to help. Windsor responded their staffer’s work was strictly administrative.

“We are not an advisory board for whom recommendations are being made and somebody else has to make sure the implementation and action on them is decided. It is weighty work in that sense because we are quasi-judicial. There may be a way to look at a distinction amongst various boards and committees,” said Winsor.

Planning Board Member Sue Dunn offered a second distinction. “We are on a timeline, we cannot put things off and look into them later. Once we start looking at an application we have a certain amount of time that we have to act by no matter what. So there is a big difference,” she said.

Winsor added, “Many of us are doing the research on our own and it’s time consuming.”

Kelly noted the potential risks involved, “It’s probably the most vulnerable the Town is when it comes to liabilities and getting sued. It’s essential for the Board to be prepared.”

On Cole’s recommendation, the select board decided to take it to the budget committee who will meet later this month to get their feedback. Winsor said she will attend the budget meetings to answer questions.

Planning Board members are: Aaron Osterhage, Brandy Lee Rodney, Jim Bennett, Chair Laurie Winsor, Mitchell Benedict, Travis Wojcik, and Carolyn “Sue” Dunn