Date of Meeting: Monday, September 8, 2009
Location: Town Hall, 221 Main Street
Time: 6:30 PM – 8:40 PM
Members Present: Chairman James Stanton (arrived at 7:00 p.m.); Roger Deal; Ken Sydow
Others Present: Nancy Colbert, Town Administrator; Stephen Madaus, Town Counsel; others as listed on attached Sign-in sheet.
Financial Warrants signed in approval.
Report of Chief of Police Sahagian to the Board of Selectmen
· 8/18 – bicyclist struck by car on Rte. 70; minor injuries sustained. Hit and run, no suspect yet.
· 8/22 – Other Place Pub underage review was set up. No problems noted.
· 8/28 – B&E at 138 and 551 Main Street. 8/31 both breaks were found tied to two Worcester individuals from Dorchester Street; some property recovered.
· 9/2 – Chief’s cruiser repaired (cracked flywheel); under warranty.
· 9/2 - Replacement still needed for flashing light on Rte. 140 near Elementary School. Talked to Light Dept; Mgr. Gary Harrington looking into other towns to see what they have (eg., if some were upgraded to LCD, old ones may be available).
· 8/16 – Officer Barbato out on IOD, after shoulder injury attempting to restrain patient in ambulance. MRI to be read 9/11.
· Officer Bazydlo might need follow up back surgery.
Report of the Highway Superintendent (Don Parker) to the Board of Selectmen
· Employee that had medical issue is back to work with limited lifting capacity. His cardiologist and our doctor at Fallon (Occ. Health) do not have same opinion (his Dr. said ok to return, ours did not). Currently just mowing grass on riding mower until we hear further from Fallon doctor.
· Loader has been shipped from Indiana to Milford. When it arrives in Milford, they need to prep it for delivery.
· Mack truck needed brakes and springs replaced, repair cost around $5K.
· Summer help finished, except for Saturdays to help with cemetery work. He did an excellent job.
· Jim Stanton asked if Don has done any paving. Not yet.
· Don noted there is not enough money in Stiles Crossing bond for finish work to be done if town acts on bond (short by about $90K).
· Jim Stanton asked if staffed appropriately for plowing season. Don hasn’t received quotes back from sand contractors yet and hasn’t secured plowing contractors yet.
Report of the Town Administrator to the Board of Selectmen:
· Rte. 140 Corridor Study: 9/23 public meeting to be held; will invite all property owners that abut property.
· CEDS Meeting: Successful in adding Rte. 140 Corridor and Hillside projects.
· Fire Station / Mile Hill Road Cell Tower Use: RFP will be finalized. Mrs. Puff drafted bylaw zoning change article for special town meeting, subject to Planning Board review and report. Ken Sydow made a motion to send article to Planning Board review; motion seconded and voted all in favor.
· Building Dept. Review / Analysis: Mrs. Colbert Puff completed a review of the Building Dept. operation and service, as a result of the Revenue Study Committee’s report recommending the Building Inspector’s hours be reduced to part time.
o Job Description and Hours: The Board had some discussion concerning hours of Building Inspector, and what duties he performs, given that his “posted hours” are limited. Mrs. Puff supplied the following:
§ Updated job description
§ Minutes of Board of Selectmen meeting of 2/13/06 detailing the change to full time.
§ Minutes of 4/4/06 meeting of Mark Bertonassi’s interview, noting the Board was aware of his ongoing commitment as a Hudson building inspector.
Additionally, Mrs. Puff noted that Mr. Bertonassi’s posted hours are a fraction (1/5) of his total hours on the job, and he is here 40 hours per week, with duties divided among office hours, inspections, and meetings. She analyzed his time spent for seven weeks and developed a pie chart to reflect time spent on tasks.
Roger Deal asked if Mr. Bertonassi works Mon – Fri in Boylston, and if so when does he come in. Mrs. Colbert Puff replied “8:00a.m., except Monday, Wednesday and Friday, which is 10:00am”, and then he works until about 5 or 6pm. Mr. Deal asked if this was every day; if so, he must get up at 5:30am if he works those hours and also part time in Hudson. Mrs. Puff said roughly, yes, but she would need to see the calendar. He is out on the road 30% of the time, and posted office hours vary. Generally speaking, he’s probably not here until 6pm every day, but for sure he’s here until 4pm. Mr. Deal said he’s just trying to get justification for the 40 hours per week.
o Department Revenues and Expenses – Part vs. Full Time position: The Board discussed whether a small town such as Boylston is able to afford a full time inspector in this economic climate. Over the course of 2001-2009, Mrs. Colbert Puff has found that the ratio of revenues to expenses was similar for the entire time. The department is a revenue-producing department. The differential of what is spent vs. revenue is largely unchanged. Mrs. Puff believes the town is well served by its present arrangement, and sees no compelling reason for a change at this point in time.
§ Roger Deal confirmed that for the position the ratio has not changed. If the position were to continue on a part-time basis, would revenue returns be less or remain the same? Nancy said the net revenue will go down, proportionate to expenses.
§ Mr. Deal noted that in 2006, fees increased from $5 to $10 per s.f. for new construction (additions and renovations from $5 to $7 per s.f.); perhaps the revenue increase is due to the fees being increased. Mrs. Puff said it should be, since fees should be proportionate to cost of service.
§ Ken Sydow asked if we changed the job to part time, would the level of service go down as well. If we’re paying a lot of money, we expect a high level of service. Mrs. Puff said she sent a survey to 80 recent permit holders; had a 29% response rate of generally favorable reviews. Average 9 out of 10 for service rating, overall very positive. Mr. Deal said he is not questioning the popularity of the building inspector, just trying to justify the full time job itself, noting we’re paying almost $60K including support services. Why do we continue to need this level of service? He further noted that when we had a part time inspector, the support came from the Board’s administrative assistant, Lori Esposito. I
clarified that I agreed to work for Mr. Dillon shortly after I began and supported the building department for no additional stipend. When a full time inspector was to be hired, the intent was to also hire a 20-hour per week support person, but the budget did not support it; $10K was then allotted for support and the job was offered to the Town Clerk. Jim Stanton said it was first attempted to consolidate the position with other boards but it didn’t work out.
§ Jim Stanton said they had several discussion around the need for a full time position to be the “eyes and ears” for boards and commissions in Town. They need to make a decision about having a position devoted to just building inspection or also zoning enforcement and level of service we want. The full time position was created due to an outcry of a lack of central enforcement in this Town.
§ Roger noted 12 of 16 towns surveyed recently had part time or shared service for their building inspector. Are we so unique that we are willing and able to spend near $60K? Mr. Stanton asked Mr. Deal if his intent was to reduce to part time, then go ahead and make the motion.
MOTION: Mr. Deal made a motion to reduce the building inspector’s hours to part time. There was no second to the motion.
· Mr. Deal said if the position is to continue on a full time basis, the hours need to be posted, and not indicate “subject to change without notice”. Any changes need to be notified to Town Administrator 48 hours in advance. Also, his hours worked need to be documented and accounted for. Mr. Stanton suggests he discuss that matter separately with the Town Administrator, who signs off on the accounts of the individual. Roger will do so.
Business Marketing Committee Update Herb Cronin present.
Mr. Cronin presented a draft marketing flyer encouraging business to come to town; the committee has developed a website that also ready to go. The committee has spent a lot of time exploring and has met with business and agencies, including DCR.
· Jim Stanton said the focus of the committee was supposed to be the development of Route 140. Herb agreed, and said they would like to go ahead with 140 and list parcels now, but that would pre-date the 140 study completion. Mr. Stanton asked what the coordination between the brochure and 140 consultants. Nancy Colbert Puff said she has yet to review it; the consultants have yet to complete their findings. Most things in the brochure can pre-date the study completion, with the exception of the uses listed. Otherwise, she feels it’s a great advertisement for business in Boylston. Mr. Cronin said the committee would like to help land owners sell their property. They’d like to move ahead, and are admittedly somewhat impatient.
· Ken Sydow would like the brochure to go hand-in-hand with the timing of the 140 study findings. He wouldn’t want this to differ from final results of study (eg., uses, etc.).
· Roger Deal asked if the 140 consultants have seen the draft brochure. Herb said not yet, he just received the draft today. Mr. Deal asked Mr. Cronin if he will be presenting at the 9/23 140 Corridor study meeting after it’s reviewed by consultants, BOS, and agreed in principal before being presented to the public. Mr. Sydow said they can’t have consultant info by 9/23, but can agree to a brochure like this that needs to be finalized.
· Mr. Stanton and Mr. Sydow suggest the brochure could be ready to go as of January 1, 2010, since the study info will not be final until November. Mr. Cronin said if they have to wait until January 1, they will. Meanwhile, they are trying to enlist support of property owners, get a list of properties available to the public. Roger Deal said his sense of urgency (to get info out) is due to upcoming needs/projects, such as school rebuild, library, etc. If we have a concrete plan by then it will give a sense of hope for townspeople for potential tax relief with incoming business.
· Ken Sydow told Mr. Cronin he is very happy with the committee’s progress, but we need to be sure it’s done right, and in time with the 140 study results.
Park and Rec (‘P&R’) – Soccer Field Discussion
Present: Jeff Walsh (Coach and Con Comm. Chair), Joe Dicele (President, Boylston Youth Soccer), and Alan Cosimini (P &R member).
Mr. Dicele said P&R has been looking to develop the lower soccer field at Hillside. Due to slowdown in construction, they may be able to build it now without public funding. They are looking to the Selectmen to see if there is any objection to them developing the lower field.
· Jim Stanton asked if the Conservation Commission was contacted yet. Mr. Walsh said he didn’t approach yet, but he would need to recuse himself from the hearing.
· Mr. Parker asked about water being diverted. Mr. Walsh had plans and showed the drainage path would be redirected, not changed; the runoff would end up in the same place.
· Mr. Stanton asked if there is anything other than topographical changes being made, noting that in a few years we may have a development needs. Mr. Dicele confirmed there are no other changes being made to the field.
· The timing for creating the field would be immediate, following the necessary permits/hearings.
· Mr. Dicele noted that Boylston Youth Soccer (‘BYS’) has been saving money for 10 years in anticipation of adding a new field. Also, a one-time donation from and individual added to their current total of $50K.
· Mr. Cosimini asked Mr. Walsh about a thinner loom layer possibly replacing existing turf. Mr. Walsh said they are essentially replacing grass with grass; the flow rate would be net same. Making the area flatter, the run-off should be slower.
· Ken Sydow asked the difference between BYS and P&R (eg., P&R says they have no money to contribute to town utilities, upkeep, etc.). Mr. Dicele explained BYS is a private corporation that runs the soccer program. P&R is not involved in the operation, but they manage use of fields, gymnasium, etc.
· Mr. Sydow said he doesn’t want to commit long-term; it’s not an unreasonable proposal, but it’s town-owned land and the field is subject to the risk of being moved in the future.
· MOTION: Jim Stanton motioned to allow BYS to proceed with creating the field, while working with Don Parker, Chief Sahagian, etc.; seconded, voted all in favor.
Report of the Town Administrator to the Board of Selectmen (continued):
· Town properties for auction: Nancy continuing to work with Atty. Berenger in arranging for an auction. Will be distributing RFP for auctioneer services this week, with a target auction date of December 1, 2009.
· Regional Dispatch Feasibility Study grant awarded: Official notice not yet received, but Boylston has been included in a regional dispatch study with Rutland acting as lead community.
· Agricultural Preservation Restriction, George Stowe’s Farm. Mr. Stowe is working with DCR to secure preservation restriction on his property. The Board is invited to comment to DCR on his proposal.
· Gough House/ Hillside: The Gough House committee would like to involve other Town parties in a discussion about a long-range vision for the house and its surroundings. Nel Lazour would like a member of the Board of Selectmen and perhaps the Business Marketing Committee to attend their session on 9/21 at 5:30 pm.
· Special Town Meeting Schedule: Schedule presented for November 9, 2009 special town meeting. Ken Sydow motioned to approved schedule as presented; seconded and voted all in favor.
· Training/ Vacation for TA: New Managers training 9/24; vacation request for 9/28-10/2. Approved by board.
Meeting Schedule: Motion to approve Selectmen’s meeting schedule for October 2009- January 2010 as presented; seconded and voted all in favor.
Meeting Minutes: Motion to approve meeting minutes of 8/10/09 as presented was seconded and voted all in favor.
Upon a motion made by Ken Sydow and seconded by Roger Deal, and voted All in Favor, the meeting was adjourned at 8:40 PM.
Respectfully Submitted,
Lori Esposito
Administrative Assistant
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