Town of Hanson - Board of Selectmen
Meeting Minutes – Hanson Town Hall
February 24, 2015
Members Present: Donald Howard, James McGahan Kenny Mitchell, William Scott & Bruce Young
Members Absent:
Others Present: Town Administrator Ronald San Angelo
Executive Assistant Meredith Marini
7:00 p.m. Chairman Young called the meeting to order, led the Pledge Allegiance.
II NEW BUSINESS
Swear in Fire Lt. Keith Wilson – Chief Thompson informed the Board that as a result of Paul Proudman’s retirement Keith Wilson has been selected to fill the Lieutenant’s position. Chief Thompson explained the selection process which was conducted by an outside vendor. Keith Wilson received the highest score and was offered the position. Lt. Wilson is a
14 ½ year veteran of the department having come to Hanson from Boston EMS. He has worked on the Paramedic program, is the EMS coordinator and the supervisor of B Shift.
Chairman Young congratulated Keith Wilson on is promotion. Town Clerk Beth Sloan swore in Lt. Keith Wilson. His son pinned out his new badge. Lt. Wilson thanked the Board, his wife, kids and family, friends and colleagues.
Chairman Young read the announcements and upcoming meeting schedule.
Appointments:
Special Police Officer – East Bridgewater Police Officer Richard Eldridge – Chief Miksch was present and requested that the Board appoint Officer Richard Eldridge who is a full time police officer in East Bridgewater. Officer Eldridge has special training in commercial motor vehicle enforcement. The appointment will assist in the tri-town area to avoid jurisdictional issues and provide him the legal power in Hanson. He should be appointed as a Sealer of Weights & Measures for DOT enforcement only. Officer Eldridge has been a Police Officer for 14 years, is an Air Force veteran and a good officer. The East Bridgewater Chief Cowen is in favor of the appointment.
MOTION by Howard, second by McGahan as a Special Police Officer and Sealer of Weights & Measures for the specific propose of DOT enforcement.
Mr. Mitchell asked if the Chief would consider training a Hanson officer for the position. The Chief explained the State Police usually handles this work, but are not always available. East Bridgewater and West Bridgewater have historically had the position.
Mr. Scott noted that specialized equipment such as scales is necessary for such a position. He explained the history of the truck teams and cautioned adding the position to Hanson Police. The Chief feels the appointment solves a problem.
So Voted 5 – 0
North River Commission – Kathleen Womersley 152 Whitman Street Term to Expire 6/30/15
MOTION by Howard, second by McGahan to appoint Kathleen Wormersley to North River Commission term to expire June 30, 2015. Voted 5 – 0
Discussion relative to Selectmen attending Department Head Meetings. – Mr. Scott informed the Board that he wanted to attend a Department Head Meeting and was told Selectmen do not attend. He feels it would be good for the Selectmen to attend these meetings occasionally to see what is happening. Mr. Young doesn’t have a problem with Selectmen attending.
Mr. Howard pointed out that the Town Administrator is in charge of the Town and doesn’t feel he would attend. Mr. McGahan can only discuss on the corporate level but if a supervisor wished to attend a meeting of subordinates, they would attend.
Mr. Mitchell informed that Board that he attended an emergency management meeting. He has no problem with Selectmen attending.
MOTION by Scott, second by McGahan to set a policy that Selectmen be allowed to attend Department Head Meetings.
Mr. San Angelo explained that he has never had Selectmen attend a Department Head meeting. He invited all Selectmen to come in and meet with him in his office. If the Selectmen want information from a Department Head, he would be happy to get the information or have the department heads attend a Selectmen’s meeting. Mr. San Angelo is concerned that the Selectmen’s presence at a meeting will cause the Department Head to limit what they say.
So Voted 4 – 1 (Howard)
Discussion letter from WHRSD Re: Statement of Interest Maquan School MSBA – Chairman Young read the following letter from the Whitman Hanson Regional School District to the Town Administrator Ron San Angelo dated February 12, 2015.
Dear Mr. San Angelo:
This letter is written on behalf of the Whitman-Hanson Regional School District School Committee to provide an overview of the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) Statement of Interest (SOI) process and to request information from Hanson town officials regarding their interest in the submission of a Statement of Interest for a CORE Program project for Hanson school buildings. In order to determine whether the District will submit SOIs for the Fiscal Year 2015 MSBA Core Program, the Regional School Committee is gathering information from both the Town of Whitman and the Town of Hanson.
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MSBA is accepting Statements of Interest (SOIs) for consideration in Fiscal Year 2015 for their CORE Program, which is for projects beyond the scope of their Accelerated Repair Program. CORE Program projects include buildings that require extensive repairs, renovations, addition/renovations, and new school construction.~ The deadline for the SOI submission is Friday, April 10.
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The submission of the SOI allows school systems to inform MSBA about building deficiencies and how those deficiencies impact the educational program. The submission of the SOI, authorized by the Regional School Committee, is done by the Superintendent of Schools. Prior to submittal, the SOI must be signed by the Superintendent of Schools, the School Committee Chair, and the local chief executive officer.~
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After the SOI is submitted, the MSBA reviews the information in order to gain an understanding of the needs of a particular school facility. The MSBA then works with the District to validate problems and collaborate on possible solutions. The approval process is dependent on the extent and urgency of the problems, the extent and urgency of the problems in relation to other SOIs, the number of solutions that may need to be explored, the time required for MSBA and the District to agree upon a sound solution, and the ability of the District to fund the agreed-upon solution. The MSBA grant system is based on urgency and need, not the time of the SOI submission. Districts may submit more than one SOI; however, the submissions must be prioritized by the District prior to submittal.
The Regional School Committee respectfully requests your review of the MSBA Core Program process in the context of the Hanson school facilities. Please notify Dr. Ruth Gilbert-Whitner, Superintendent of Schools, on or before Friday, March 6 as to whether the Town of Hanson is interested in participating in a SOI submission for FY2015 MSBA consideration. This will allow the Regional School Committee to place the SOI on the agenda for discussion at their scheduled March 11 meeting. This will also allow time for the SOI to be completed prior to April 10.
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Thank you for your attention to this letter.~ Please contact us if you have any questions or need additional information. Additional information about the MSBA 2015 Statements of Interest is available on the home page of MSBA website, www.massschoolbuildings.org.
Sincerely,
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Ruth C. Gilbert-Whitner, Superintendent~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Robert Hayes, Chair
Whitman-Hanson RSD~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Whitman-Hanson RSD, School Committee
Chairman Young asked that the Board members review the information he had placed in their boxes, which was the guidelines for submitting a Statement of Interest. Mr. San Angelo requested that the Board table the matter to the next meeting on March 3rd so that he can obtain the correct verbiage for the vote.
Lengthy discussion on the process for Statement of Interest and Feasibility Study. He reviewed the six various options that were discussed two years ago for Maquan School.
Chairman Young would prefer a Maquan School only option as a solution to the Maquan School.
Mr. San Angelo questioned how much of the former feasibility study could be used in a future Maquan School. Mr. McGahan indicated that Superintendent Gilbert-Whitner feels several components from the study can be used.
MOTION by McGahan, second by Mitchell that the Board support participation of the SOI submission for the FY2015 MSBA’s consideration. Voted 5 – 0
Mr. San Angelo noted that if new options are added to the initial six options, then there will be a cost for an additional feasibility study.
Mr. McGahan wanted to be sure that the Town is not eligible for the accelerated repair program. Chairman Young and Mr. San Angelo confirmed the Town is not eligible.
The least expensive option was to build a new Maquan School which would have cost taxpayers $17 Million.
Request from Halifax for funding to clean up Monponsett Pond - Mr. Howard read the following request from Halifax Town Administrator Charlie Seelig dated February 13, 2015.
Mr. Ron San Angelo
Town Administrator
542 Liberty Street
Hanson MA 02341
Dear Ron,
The Town of Halifax is preparing to begin two projects involving water quality in Monponsett Pond for 2015.
The first is the use of a herbicide to reduce the amount of invasive aquatic weeds in East Monponsett. The second is to continue to treat West Monponsett Pond with aluminium sulfate to reduce the amount of phosphorous available for algae growth, algae that closed West Monponsett Pond during much of 2014 as the algae is hazardous to human beings using the Pond.
Part of West Monponsett Pond is located in the Town of Hanson and much of the watershed of West Monponsett Pond is in Hanson. Hanson residents, both those that abut or live near the Pond but also those who seek to use the Pond for recreational activities. During the past decade, the Town of Halifax, with assistance from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, has funded activities to improve the water quality of the Ponds for residents and non-residents alike.
The cost of the work in West Monponsett Pond during 2015 is expected to be between $56,170 and $62,170. My rough estimate is that approximately 10% of West Monponsett Pond lies in Hanson. If the Town of Hanson could contribute 10% of the cost of this year’s work, that would be helpful. In addition to making this request to Hanson, the Town of Halifax will be making a request to the City of Brockton to fund this work as outlined in the 1964 legislation giving the City certain rights to transfer from Monponsett Pond to the City’s water supply at Silver Lake.
I would appreciate any consideration that you, the Board of Selectmen, and the Town of Hanson might give to this request. If you have any questions, please contact me.
Sincerely,
Charlie Seelig
Halifax Town Administrator
Mr. Howard requested that Board support placing an article to fund the cleanup of Monponsett Pond.
Mr. San Angelo noted that a year ago he would not have supported the request because the Town of Halifax did not have control of the pond. Brockton had been controlling the height of the pond. Subsequently, a new committee has been created and they have control over the pond and the treatments will stay in the pond and be effective.
Mr. San Angelo is now comfortable in supporting the work and funding the clean up. Mr. Howard explained the history of the pond, the dam and sluiceway. He noted the height of the pond has caused problems for property owners with septic system.
Brief discussion regarding the ownership and clean up of Wampatuck Pond. Mr. McGahan noted that a company will identify who is contributing to the contamination of Wampatuck Pond.
MOTION by Howard, second by McGahan that the Board of Selectmen supports placing an article on the warrant to fund up to 10% of $62,000. Voted 5 – 0
III TOWN ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT
Mr. San Angelo thanked the Old Colony Planning Council for their work on the Plymouth County Hospital Study. He encouraged residents to attend the forum on Thursday, March 5th which will be held at the High School Library. Residents’ input will be added to the plan and then the Board will move forward with a plan. He noted that while the Old Colony Planning Council makes a recommendation for a best use, it does not obligate the Board to their plan.
Mr. San Angelo attended the annual Massachusetts Municipal Association meeting. He met with representatives from Virtual Town Hall who hosts the Town Website. They are willing to come in and update the website for $1,500 or change the platform of the website which will allow an unlimited number of users. The users can update their own pages and information. The cost for revamp the site would be $9,000. He noted there is some money available in the existing budget.
Mr. Mitchell is in favor of upgrading the website.
MOTION by Howard, second McGahan to authorize the Town Administrator to move forward with contracting to upgrade the Town website. Voted 5 – 0
Financial Update – Mr. San Angelo noted that the financial update is in the packets.
Mr. San Angelo is working with the Health Agent to gather the financial information on the Pay As You Throw program and will be making a presentation to the Board at an upcoming meeting.
Mr. McGahan would like data on the haulers and the number of residents using curbside pickup and the Pay As You Throw program.
8:50 p.m. – Brief Recess
8:54 p.m. – Return to open session
IV OLD BUSINESS None
V ONE DAY LIQUOR LICENSES - Camp Kiwanee
New England Bartending Services, Middleboro - Recreation Play
Fri & Sat., March 20, 21, 27 & 28 6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.
Sunday, March 22 & 29 3:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
MOTION by Mitchell, second by Howard to approve the one day liquor licenses as presented. Voted 5 – 0
VI COMMITTEE REPORTS
Monponsett Pond Committee - Already heard
Indian Head & Maquan Priority Repair Comm. – Mr. Young reported the committee will meet Wednesday at 7:00 p.m. and will be discussing the Maquan School repairs of the roof and windows. They will also discuss the lentils. They reduced the number of firms from seven to three Gale Engineer, Habib and Russo. Gale finished first with Russo coming in second. The committee voted 4 – 2 to select Gale Engineering to serve as the architect.
WHRDS Capital Repairs & Facilities Committee – Mr. McGahan looks forward to receiving the estimates for the gym at Maquan and the windows. He only wants to fix the items which are broken. Snow removal from the school roofs were assisted by cranes. Maquan and Indian Head had minor leaks as a result of the storms. He is waiting on the next meeting date.
Lite Control – Mr. Scott reported that the committee organized and he is the Chairman, Mr. Mitchell will serve as the vice-chairman and Gil Amado will serve as Clerk. They hope to next meet on site on Monday during the day.
VII EXECUTIVE SESSION
Chairman Young announced that the Board will be going into Executive Session to conduct strategy sessions in preparation for negotiations with nonunion personnel or to conduct collective bargaining sessions or contract negotiations with nonunion personnel; and
To discuss strategy with respect to collective bargaining or litigation if an open meeting may have a detrimental effect on the bargaining or litigating position of the public body and the chair so declares;
So moved by Howard, second by Mitchell to go into Executive Session. Roll Call Howard aye, McGahan aye, Young aye, Scott aye, and Mitchell aye. Voted 5 – 0
9:06 p.m. Brief Recess
10:08 p.m. Returned to Open Session
VIII ADJOURNMENT
MOTION to Howard, second by McGahan to adjourn. Voted 5 – 0
10:09 p.m. Meeting Adjourned.
Respectfully submitted,
Meredith Marini,
Executive Assistant
Approved and Voted 5 – 0
September 15, 2015
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