[MassHistPres] Application process question

[Ralph Slate]

I am wondering if anyone on this list can help point me in the right direction.

Is there a legal reason that a future applicant cannot meet with a local historical commission - at a public meeting, but without abutter notification - to work out the details of a project - before the application process is started. 

This would allow the petitioners to work out the agreement with the commission without the interested public knowing about it, avoiding all the messiness of public input and all that. 

Then, once the agreement is reached in principle, the formal public hearing could be held, the abutters could be notified and the commission could just vote to formalize the agreement that was reached before the abutters could mount opposition?

Is there a specific legal statute that would prevent this? Does anyone know if this has been tried before?

Thanks,

Ralph Slate
Springfield, MA
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