Date of Meeting: Monday, January 12, 2009
Location: Town Hall, 221 Main Street
Time: 6:30 PM - 9:15 PM
Members Present: Chairman James Stanton; Roger Deal; Ken Sydow
Others Present: Nancy Colbert, Town Administrator; Stephen Madaus, Town Counsel; Lori Esposito, Administrative Assistant; others as noted on sign-in sheet.
Report of the Town Administrator to the Board of Selectmen:
1. 43D Grant approved and finalized at December meeting; $59,700 should be transferred to Town by month-end.
2. TIF for Phillips Precision approved, based on Town’s request.
3. Gough House grant approved. Funds available from federal government: $245K. Town has completed all required filings.
4. MCJTC – DCAM accepted our proposal for an annual lease of $87,489.
5. Increased co-pay proposal: Police Department and Dispatchers Union approve; Boylston Elementary Teachers Union is a split vote taken twice (second vote taken December 23). Nancy Colbert is consulting with Town Counsel regarding moving forward.
6. Library waiver hearing completed; decision due on February 5.
7. Police Department Employee FMLA leave expiring January 27. Will work with the Chief and Town Counsel on next steps.
8. Obama Infrastructure requests submitted to the State. (Nine projects totaling over $17M).
9. FEMA declared us a disaster area for the ice storm. Will attend a workshop with Joe Flanagan on Wednesday morning, January 14, to get reimbursement details.
10. CMRPC Technical Assistance – submitted a request to CMRPC to assist Town in developing updated zoning maps.
11. Free Cash certified at $643,420. Town Accountant, Dan Haynes, says number due primarily to (1) closed appropriations from FY’08; (2) unused free cash from 7/1/07 certification; (3) tax-title collections; and (4) higher than projected excise tax receipts.
Linden Street Extension:
· Attorney Altomare contacted the Board of Selectmen and Attorney Madaus on behalf of resident David Wheeler, who wants the Linden Street extension discontinuance on the Annual Meeting warrant again.
· Jim Stanton said the Board was waiting to confirm that the land was owned and the status of the abutting land.
· Stephen Madaus felt the prior Town action was insufficient to discontinue the way, so he gave to Gould Title to research. Jim: We need to know soon, should we have a citizens’ petition for the Annual Town Meeting.
· Ken: It is important to know what access the Town has, what parcels we own, etc. We want to do it correctly when it’s done again. Stephen will check with Gould Title for status.
Annual Town Meeting:
· Nancy drafted a notice for warrant articles. She suggests articles be opened Monday, February 9, to close Monday, March 16. Approved by Board of Selectmen.
7:00 PM – Monthly Report of Chief of Police to Board of Selectmen:
· Provided year-end Annual Department report to Board for review
· December 24, 2008: New Crown Victoria cruiser received.
· January 2, 2009: New marijuana law into effect; first offense arrested.
o Jim asked how they were issuing marijuana citations. The Chief said they modified their citation with the State website model. A copy goes to the Town Clerk for the purpose of collection of money only – there is no discussion with the Clerk. Appeals go the Clinton District Court.
o The Chief was asked what happens if they don’t pay? What happens if they appeal? Chief said this has not yet been decided by the State.
o The Town could incorporate a by-law to assist with enforcement of the violation.
· Officer Shepard still in therapy for his shoulder; is requesting FMLA as of February 3, 2009. He expects to be back to work by the end of February.
· Ken inquired as to the status of the latest house breaks. Tony said they are waiting on a computer gaming company so that when the individual uses it, it can be tracked. He has touched bases with Nextel and the Worcester Police. He will follow up on leads received.
· Jim asked about the status of the McGrath case. Tony said the continuance date is January 20.
Don Parker – Monthly Report of Highway Superintendent to Board of Selectmen:
· The new-used pickup truck was received.
· Don is waiting for two more quotes for the removal of trees and brush damaged by the ice storm. They have started doing some removal near the center of Town. The South side of Route 140 (the beetle zone) is eligible for USDA cleanup. Jim asked if, once he hires someone, he will give a priority list for removal. Don said he will show them around Town – where to start, etc.
· Don and his crew spent a couple of days at the School Department/Police Department building. The roof is leaking (ice dams) into the second and first floors. The roof needs ventilation or an ice/water shield.
· Don ordered salt – it didn’t come in for a week and a half. He ordered some from another vendor in the meantime as backup.
· The 2003 truck was overheating. They changed thermostats and fixed broken wire in harness. Truck overheated again. Fixed again; now okay but not sure if problem is completely solved.
· Oil tank: Mount Pleasant Country Club gave us an above-ground steel, double-wall storage tank; billed the Highway Department $4,000. Can the money be taken from the Special Article for fuel storage tanks for it to be paid?
· Ken asked about the usage of salt/sand YTD. Don said he isn’t sure; hasn’t checked his books yet, but has already had seven deliveries.
Monthly Report of Building Inspector (Mark Bertonassi) to Board of Selectmen:
Applicant Advisory Committee (AAC).
· Roger asked theoretically, if he’s a builder, what will AAC do for him when he comes to it? Mark said he would be sure he has all of the proper information before meeting with boards.
· Roger questioned the no minimum quorum to start a meeting. Mark said he will determine who should be at the meeting after the application is received. Not all Committee members need to be present, depending upon the application.
· Roger asked if the Town Administrator needs to sit in; Jim said he doesn’t feel it’s necessary. The idea is to get only the necessary representatives together to assist and give advice for builder to have as complete an application and information as possible.
· Nancy said she wants to be involved.
· Lori Esposito asked about the availability of the AAC to homeowners, since the introduction on the policy addresses anyone considering a “large scale development”. Mark said the AAC wouldn’t apply to homeowners, since they wouldn’t likely be meeting with various boards.
· Ken said that ideally, this should reduce repeated trips to various Boards and save time for both the applicant and the Board or Committee members.
· Roger asked about Mark’s office hours as posted. Said there have been questions about Mark’s availability. Mark said he posts it monthly and gives copies to the Town Administrator and the Town Clerk.
Report of Revenue Study Committee to Board of Selectmen: (Present, members Roger Deal and Herb Cronin.)
· Report “Study of Revenues and Expenditures” Analysis FY’03-FY’09 presented. This includes “Forecast for FY’10” and “ Recommendations.”
· Roger stated that this is a “living document” that will continue to change and grow.
· Herb said that overall, there is no “smoking gun” that stands out. The Town is in reasonably good shape compared to many other towns.
· The Committee highly recommends putting together a development plan to attract business and commercial development:
o Sell Town-owned property for business development to collect tax revenue;
o Many Townspeople are capable and willing to help with some of these things.
One-day alcohol license request of Bob Seed: Motion was made and seconded to grant the request for a one-day alcohol license on Saturday, January 24, 2009. Voted All In Favor.
FY’2010 Budget Proposal:
· Need year-to-date new growth figure for January – December 2008.
· Dave: $120K for new growth seems aggressive. He would suggest using $80K for a figure.
· Jim: Prefers not pre-deciding numbers for the Town before the school budget is complete.
· Dave Butler: Hold until the government’s numbers and State aid numbers are available and then meet again.
· Jim: Will also contact the school administration and let them know they need to reduce their budgets and then meet with the Selectmen.
Capital Plan:
· Herb Cronin will look into capital items, evaluate and prioritize and then report back to the Selectmen.
Motion made to adjourn; motion seconded; voted All In Favor.
Meeting adjourned at 9:15 PM.
Respectfully Submitted,
Lori Esposito
Administrative Assistant
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