The City Solicitor, in consultation with the Attorney General’s Office, has determined that Thursday’s Board of Aldermen meeting has NOT been properly noticed and must be canceled. The notice of this meeting was posted Tuesday evening, which was NOT in compliance with the State Open Meeting Law. That law requires that meeting notices be posted 48 hours in advance, not counting holidays or weekends. In this case, the Veterans Day holiday voided the legitimacy of the posting. I should have posted it on Monday. As City Clerk, it is my responsibility to properly post all Board of Aldermen meeting notices, and I apologize for the confusion and inconvenience my error has caused.

The Board’s next meeting will be on Tuesday, November 24, at 7 PM. The agenda and meeting notice will be posted no later than Friday, November 20, at 7 PM.

For your information, the following is from the state’s Open Meeting Law:

Except in an emergency, in addition to any notice otherwise required by law, a public body shall post notice of every meeting at least 48 hours prior to such meeting, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays. In an emergency, a public body shall post notice as soon as reasonably possible prior to such meeting. Notice shall be printed in a legible, easily understandable format and shall contain the date, time and place of such meeting and a listing of topics that the chair reasonably anticipates will be discussed at the meeting. (MGL c30A, s20(b)