Date of Meeting: Monday, April 14, 2008
Location: Town Hall, 221 Main Street
Time: 6:30 PM – 9:45PM
Members Present: Chairman James Stanton, Ken Sydow, Roger Deal
Others Present: Suzanne Olsen, Town Administrator; Lori Esposito, Administrative Assistant; Town Counsel, Steve Madaus;
Annual Town Meeting Warrant Review.
· Special ‘pre-meeting’: combine Articles 1 and 2?
· Articles 1 – 16 will be voted together.
· Article 17 – Hillside transfer for operating expenses ($250K). Jim Stanton to Sue: by the time of the Town Meeting please tell us what the beginning balance was, receipts year to date, expenses, ending balance.
· Move Article 22 closer to Nos. 17 and 26 (MOB) Steve: recommends delete “first floor” description. Ken Sydow: will that take care of the old boiler as well? Sue: that’s the goal. It won’t be needed with the new HVAC system.
Police Chief Monthly Report (7:00 PM):
· Gave crime statistics to the Board.
· March 13: conducted a records burn.
· March 14: ticket hearings in Clinton court.
· April 8: marijuana case in Clinton court for Tahanto students.
· May 14: mock crash exercise at Tahanto in preparation for prom.
· Dispatch schedule delivered to eliminate short days and reduce overtime.
· Ken inquired regarding nightly building checks; why the number is so much higher in the month of March. Chief: due to weather. In bad weather police are busier responding to motor vehicle accidents, etc. Also, businesses are requesting an increased presence and department is obliging them.
· Jim asked how the new car (Charger) is working out. Chief said it is good; to date, about three to four miles better per gallon over the Crown Victoria. Sergeant Szymkiewicz is the primary driver.
· Jim re budgets: Per previous conversation with the Chief, the Chief offered reserve officer line item as budget reduction. Is that his preference? Chief: two of three reserve officers are not taking the available shifts on a regular basis. The Chief feels the reserve program has outgrown itself. Cutting other expenses out of his budget will limit his ability to cover unforeseen costs that come up including increased fuel costs. If it is necessary to take a cut in his budget, he would prefer cutting the reserve program over expenses.
· Jim asked Chief to provide an analysis of fuel usage by the time of the Annual Town Meeting for numbers to support the Article to support fuel tank purchases. Sue said she already has his numbers.
Fire Chief Monthly Report (7:10 PM):
· Applied for two FEMA grants (one forestry truck ($275K) and one radio frequency upgrade ($91K).
· There were two mutual aid fires recently: one in Northborough (O’Brien’s in the Rte 20 strip mall) and one in West Boylston (brush fire on DCR property).
· Fire Marshall’s office is pursuing the removal of abandoned fuel storage tanks. Loomis Fargo building on Route 140 has an underground tank (approximately 2200 gallons) which is empty. A notice to remove has been issued by the Fire Marshall’s office; given 30 days to remove.
· Bid specs to Sue for Fire Dept. exhaust removal system.
· Weekend staff working with Water Dept. to flush and paint all fire hydrants in town.
· Jim: regarding budgets: additional $5K to come out of salary line to be covered by ambulance fund and one quarter of third firefighter versus one third to be funded out of ambulance fund for FY’09.
· Ken made a motion to approve the Fire Chief’s recommendation to increase ambulance fees as presented, dated 4/14/08, effective May 1, 2008. Motion seconded, voted All in Favor.
Rudy Lambrecht, Parks & Recreation (7:25 PM):
· When they last met he asked Karen to be here to monitor gym activities and clean before she left; then the problem with the bathrooms happened. They closed the gym for a week and then met with coaches to let them know additional supervision is required.
· Created a checklist for anyone using the gym before use: lights off, all clean, etc. If all is not completed, the first time will be given a warning; the second time will mean loss of gym use.
· They will have people here on Saturdays to monitor and clean up.
· A monitor will be paid and here on Fridays when there are games. Fees will be increased as a result.
· Ken: these steps seem responsible and thorough; hopefully, they will resolve the issue.
· Jim: re budget. It is level-funded; looking to reduce it a bit closer to previous year; expended $13K.
· Rudy questioned whether there was a further discussion regarding the fields at Hillside. Jim: we have not done further study yet. Where is Parks & Rec with negotiations? Rudy: the last company lost interest but they might be able to get others interested. Jim: we’re not prepared to discuss this tonight; we have to get through the budgets.
Finance Committee:
· Reserves have been eliminated.
· Highway Dept. mechanic eliminated ($25K).
· $45K Highway salary account FY’08 budget transferred to Assabet tuition; school then will use it to prepay Special Education tuition for next year and reduce the FY’09 budget.
Assessors: Margo Richardson (present) expressed concern regarding the $13K reduction in expenses. Many of her expenses need to be paid at the end of the fiscal year.
Capital Expense Review:
· Ending balance = $88,257. All reviewed.
· Discussion held regarding lease for Highway Dept’s front-end loader = $170K ($155 with $15K trade-in.) Dave: would rather wait a year than pay interest. Lease payment = $25K/year. Jim: would prefer to wait until next year and purchase it outright. Don Parker: we can’t wait until next year. When a piece of equipment breaks down, the Town can deal with the next Highway Superintendent. Don said he’s being a “team” player; other departments are not taking a hit at all in their budget. Ken: can we lease with option to purchase? Roger: we just don’t have the money and will have to wait until next year.
Warrant Review (Dennis Pojani present):
· All 53E1/2 - BOS recommendations reviewed on all.
· Article 27 – Earth Removal Board By-law. Hasn’t heard back from Earth Removal Board. Two ways to go about it: can’t have 53G account. Should pull article until Earth Removal Board in agreement.
· Article 28 – Linden Street. Pull. Still need to address drainage and easement issue.
· Article 29 – Pending.
· Dennis Pojani: was there a problem putting specific amounts in ballot section? Stephen: For a budget override you do. Roger: Is ballot vote needed? Dennis: if moved.
· Discussion item: Northborough and Green Street; drainage issue.
Meeting adjourned at 9:45 PM.
Respectfully Submitted,
Lori Esposito
Administrative Assistant
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