Cranberry Growers Service, Inc. v. Town of Duxbury

We hold that a town conservation commission may not lease property held in its care, custody, management, and control without a town meeting vote authorizing the lease.

The plaintiff brought this action in November, 1990, seeking a determination that it had a valid lease from the Dux-*355bury conservation commission granting it the right until 2000 to farm cranberry bogs (premises) that the inhabitants of Duxbury had purchased for conservation purposes pursuant to town meeting authorization. The inhabitants of the town acquired the larger portion of the premises for conservation purposes by a 1971…