Seekonk Planning Board approves site plan updates for five auto dealers in one night

SEEKONK -- December 10, 2019, Seekonk Planning Board approves updated site plans for five auto dealers, defers sixth to January. The board voted unanimously on five automotive site plan applications Tuesday, Land Point LLC (First Acura) at 16 Highland Ave, capped at 150 vehicles; AutoMart at 1012 Fall River Ave, capped at 20 vehicles; Ally Motor Group at 984 Fall River Ave; Pride Hyundai at 1113 Taunton Ave, capped at 397 vehicles across two lots; and All Mobile Towing at 102B Pond Street for 66 vehicle spaces, which passed with one abstention. The reviews are tied to a Board of Selectmen automotive licensing renewal process set to conclude at the Selectmen's December 18 meeting. A work session debate over a fall Town Meeting procedural dispute, in which the board convened mid-meeting under an open-meeting exemption to provide a positive recommendation on a Marijuana Overlay District expansion, which subsequently failed anyway, drew sharp criticism from one member: "I don't want this board to look like a puppet of another board, and that's what we looked like."