Date of Meeting: Monday, September 14, 2015
Location: Town Hall, 221 Main Street
Time: 6:30 PM – 8:15 PM
Members Present: Chairman James Wood; Michael May; Jamie Underwood; Marty McNamara, Town Administrator; Lori Esposito, Administrative Assistant
The meeting was called to order at 6:30 PM by Chairman Wood.
Report of the Town Administrator to the Board of Selectmen:
Power at Town Hall: The power outage to Town Hall required new lines. The Light Department also installed another conduit so that when and if FIOS becomes available to Town Hall we will be ready.
Mile Hill Road RFP: The Request for Proposals to lease a portion of Town-owned land for a cell tower at the old dump has been prepared. The lease option offered five years ago has expired; this will reopen that process. The Board needs to determine the annual rent, the annual increase and number of co-locators allowed. The base lease for one year is $25K, to increase annually a minimum of three percent. This allows two co-locators; all others need to be negotiated for additional rent and an amendment of the lease.
Mike May said perhaps we can determine the percent of new and additional co-locators. He is not sure of the market dollar amount; Richard Ricker would know as he owns several towers along Rte 140.
New DPW Building: Weston & Sampson will meet with the Conservation Commission on Monday, September 21 and with the Planning Board on Wednesday, September 23. Once approvals are given, bid documents will be prepared and the bidding process can go forward. The TA does not foresee any issues.
Gough House Lease: The TA attended a meeting at Gough House on September 9 regarding the HRP’s plan to go forward. Senator Chandler along with staff members from Representative Naughton’s office were in attendance.
Library OPM/Walkthrough: The TA attended a meeting on September 9 regarding proposals for the OPM on the Highway and Library projects. Six to seven firms were represented at this meeting and we expect a good response to the RFW. Proposals are due on September 17.
Spectra Energy Gas: Several residents, as well as the Town, received requests to allow Spectra Energy to do surveys of their property for a new gas line. The TA is awaiting direction from the Board before responding.
Jamie Underwood said he is an abutter; he allowed the survey to get information. Mike May asked if any of the gas is earmarked for local usage. Marty said the majority of it will be local.
Electric Vehicle: All paperwork has been completed; the charging station has been installed and delivery should be on September 16.
Chapter 90 Work: The repaving of Linden Street is scheduled to begin the first or second week of October.
Also, we are contemplating a new bidding process for Chapter 90 work. Many communities bid paving work on a three-year basis. Bids are requested for the price of asphalt, reclamation, labor, etc. for a three-year period. Once the bid is awarded, the vendor is in place for all project with no additional bidding required. The Town would notify the vendor that we will be doing certain streets and arrange a time for the work to be done. This locks in the price and speeds up the process.
Library/Food Pantry Move: The Library Trustees have approved the funds for the updates for the Library/Food Pantry move downstairs. The Library expects to move in early mid January and be there through October of next year.
One-Day Alcohol License: The HRP dinner will be held on September 26 from 5 to 11 PM. An all-alcohol license has been requested.
Michael May motioned to approve the request for an all alcohol license for September 26, 2015 from 5:00 to 11:00 PM. Jamie Underwood seconded the motion; voted all in favor.
Meeting Minutes: Jamie Underwood motion to approve the May 15, June 15 and July 13, 2015 minutes as presented. Mike May seconded the motion; voted all in favor.
Draft Selectmen’s Meeting Schedule: Meetings will be held on October 13 and October 26; November 9 and 23; December 7 and 21 and January 4, 2016. Schedule approved as presented.
Report of the Chief of Police to the Board of Selectmen:
July 25: Officer Bazydlo had an accident with his cruiser in the driveway, allegedly attempting to avoid a deer. The vehicle was to be replaced with an SUV but the insurance company didn’t allow enough money. Therefore, the Chief purchased a 2013 leftover to replace his car, which was next in line for replacement.
August 4: Officer Bazydlo submitted his resignation with August 31 being his last day.
August 5: Attended a regional dispatch meeting at the Holden Police Department. He doesn’t feel regional dispatch would be a good fit for us but he is still looking into it.
August 26: First day of school; a fairly smooth day. High School traffic is an issue; he spoke with the Principal who is looking into solutions. Lori Martiska (in the audience) said the Principal is staggering dismissal times for pick-up students. Jamie said possibly they should restrict the number of students who drive. Mike May said they already have a limited number of spots. Tony feels it is a drop-off situation with gridlock to get to the back lot. Mike asked about having a 20 mph zone. Tony said he went to the State and it is not an elementary school so it cannot be posted as a 20mph school zone.
August 28: The Chief discussed the evacuation plan and fire drill at Tahanto; the date is set for October.
September 1: The Chief was the morning speaker at the men’s breakfast at the Congregational Church.
September 2: Drug and behavioral classes were conducted by Officer Parker for the Fifth Grade students. This is a follow-up to the DARE program, which is no longer in place.
September 3: Attended ticket hearings at Clinton District Court.
September 4: Met with a resident regarding a CTC issue.
September 15: The Chief will be interviewing the candidate to replace Officer Bazydlo. There were 14 applicants; four were brought in for interviews and it has now been narrowed down to one.
September 19: A prayer vigil is scheduled at the Police Department to be held by Pastor Dave Buchanan.
October 15: The Chief will attend ticket hearings at Clinton District Court.
New signage has been posted at the Haven at crosswalks and parking areas. There has been a marked reduction in the number of golf carts being driven on Green Street.
Additional signage has been added by the DPW on Warren and Maple Way and the school near Cyprian’s.
Boylston Elementary School zone lights are non-functioning. The Chief contacted the School Department.
Trick or Treat will be held on Saturday, October 31 from 5:00 to 7:00 PM. The two-hour limit was discussed and the Board agrees with the schedule.
Tower Hill: The Chief is attempting to set up a meeting with them regarding traffic backups at the gate going onto Route 70. He would like them to move the shack up to the top of the hill to ease the line of traffic on the street. Jim Wood said that since they are charging residents to enter, don’t go easy on them.
$15,200 911 Grant: Boylston and several other towns are having problems with the state paying bills. The State said to pay them from Town funds and then be reimbursed by June 30, 2016. This is being blamed on the recent Governor’s election. Vendors are understanding but the Chief still gets regular calls.
Gough House: Mike May asked the Town Administrator about follow-up with Assabet regarding work to be done. The TA met with Nel, Patrick, Judy and Nadine. HRP needs only one office on the second floor; the balance can be renovated for the School Department to take over. The School Dept. also needs access to the rear first floor meeting room. They currently have 4,000 square feet and cannot lose much space. The Superintendent will look at the space and the plan with the facilities manager. Once plans are in place, Assabet can look at the building.
The issue is funding. Neither the Town nor the School Dept. have renovation money. If HRP supervises the work and the Town is not involved, we would not have to follow 30B regarding prevailing wages, etc. Mike May said HRP agreed to fund the first floor with three of four spaces available to lease. The back section (up and down) would be conventional, not historical, renovation which would be more cost efficient. Assabet is currently available to do conventional renovations.
Jamie Underwood said it all has to be privately funded. The Town will not spend a dime on it. The Superintendent said the main goal in moving is to reduce their overhead cost. HRP, under a one-year lease, is a Town-owned building. Mike May said we have private parties willing to offer hundreds of thousands of dollars in support to renovate if they have a plan.
Marty McNamara’s concern is that when HRP backs away from the building, it’s the Town’s burden to maintain to historical standards with upkeep, etc. Also, the current rent from the School Dept. goes to the Town’s Hillside account to support facilities; if that goes to HRP, we lose revenue.
Jamie Underwood feels a new lease should be in place before any work is one on the building.
The Board agrees a meeting should be set up with HRP, the School Department and the Town. A date has been set of September 25 from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM
Library Planning Committee: Present: Brad Barker, Chair and Gene Therriault, Co-chair.
The final figures for engineering are significantly higher after the Town Meeting, so it was rebid and all came in higher than originally expected. The architect reduced the fee for his services by $30,000. The total change order is for $16K. The contract calls for $48K more than anticipated. The amount includes an estimate of DCR ADA fees, etc., which are subject to change. This contract amount being over does not mean the project will be over budget; the contingency is set at 20%.
The contract was reviewed by Marty McNamara and Attorney Stephen Madaus. The Board of Selectmen is the governing body and needs to sign the contract.
Mike May questioned the contract time being increased by 430 days. Brad said the original Dineen contract was signed in 2010. Each phase is not a new contract but a change order, which includes the time extension. Mike said he was disappointed with the huge miss on the estimate by Dineen for engineering services. Jamie Underwood said it is actually a $78K miscalculation because the architect’s fee has been reduced by $30K in addition to the $48K overage.
Brad Barker said he has had confidence from 2010 until now and has had a good experience with Dineen. He is also disappointed and concerned with this large underestimate.
Mike May motioned to enter into a contract with R. E. Dineen based upon the revised final proposal of August 27, 2015 with a new contract including a change order of $269,033. The motion was revised to $161,405 with the change order total approved. Jamie Underwood seconded the motion; voted all in favor.
The original contract was signed with one copy to be returned to the architect.
Conservation Commission: Rebecca Longvall, a new volunteer, submitted a letter, along with her resume, stating her interest in serving on the Conservation Commission.
Mike May motioned to appoint Rebecca Longvall to the Conservation Commission. Jamie Underwood seconded the motion; voted all in favor.
At 8:05 PM a five-minute recess was called. The meeting reconvened at 8:15 PM.
Jamie Underwood motioned to adjourn Mike May seconded the motion; voted all in favor.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:15 PM.
Respectfully Submitted,
Lori Esposito,
Administrative Assistant
Board of Selectmen
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