04/07/2008 Special Town Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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Town of Mashpee A Special Town Meeting Barnstable, ss: Greetings A To the Constables of the Town, In the name of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, you are hereby directed to notify and summon the inhabitants of the Town of Mashpee who are qualified to vote in the elections to meet at the Mashpee High School on Monday, the 7th day of April 2008 at 6:30 p.m. for the following purposes: To act on the articles contained in the following Warrant. Article 1 ,i �f To see if the Town will vote to authorize the Board of Selectmen to enter into an Inter-Governmental Agreement with the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe of Massachusetts, a federally recognized Indian tribe, upon such terms and conditions as the Selectmen deem advisable and in the best interest of the Town, or take any other action relating thereto. Submitted by the Board of Selectmen Explanation: This Article seeks the authorization of the Town Meeting for execution of an Inter-Governmental Agreement with the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe of Massachusetts ("Tribe"). Upon the final approval by the United States Department of the Interior of its petition for acknowledgment, the Tribe obtained the status of sovereign governmental entity pursuant to and in accordance with the terms of applicable Federal law. Acknowledged Indian Tribes frequently enter into Inter-governmental agreements with municipalities, counties and/or states .i'` ;�9 within which they acquire property in trust for reservation and other tribal purposes which specify terms and conditions for the disposition of real estate interests and claims, and address inter-governmental relationships between the Tribe and other sovereign governmental entities. Representatives of the Tribe and Town have been engaged in discussions and negotiations for nearly two years relative to the disposition of interests in certain real property located within the Town of Mashpee, the disposition of potential claims or actions relative to certain Town owned and private owned land located within Mashpee, the intentions of the Tribe to conduct gaming activities within the Town and other land use and regulation issues. The proposed Inter- governmental Agreement issued for public review in February 2008 has been negotiated and endorsed by the Board of Selectmen and Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Council as the Chief I Executive Boards of the Town and Tribe, respectively. This Article seeks authorization of Town Meeting for execution of the proposed Agreement by the Board of Selectmen. The Board of Selectmen recommends approval by a vote of 5-0. ' The Finance Committee recommends approval by a vote of 5 in favor; one abstention; one absent. � N