HOLDEN BOARD OF SELECTMEN
MEETING MINUTES
FEBRUARY 20, 2007
6:30 PM Senior Center
Present: Chairman David J. White, James Jumonville, Kenneth O’Brien, Kimberly N. Ferguson, Joseph G. Sullivan
Others Present: Brian J. Bullock, Town Manager, Jacquie Kelly, Assistant Town Manager, Liz Helder, Recording Secretary
Chairman White opened the meeting at 6:30PM. The board participated in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Selectmen Subcommittees
Sel. Sullivan: Holden Hospital: Nothing to report.
Starbard Scholarship:
Public Displays: Next meeting is scheduled for 2/22 at 6:30PM.
Sel. O’Brien: EDC: Next meeting is scheduled for 2/26.
Use of Town Property: Next meeting is scheduled for 2/22 in the Starbard Building.
Sel. O’Brien informed the Board that the District is expecting a $2M increase in salaries. This increase will impact the school budget by 5-6% and does not include the remainder of the school budget.
Sel. Ferguson: Holden Tomorrow: Met on 2/15. Next meetings are scheduled for March 6th and March 8th.
Affordable Housing: Has not met.
Sel. Jumonville: Trash/Recycle: Meeting on 2/14 was canceled and rescheduled to 2/21.
Open Space/Recreation:
Memorial Day Parade: Met on 2/7.
Sel. White: Public Safety Committee: Met on 2/7. Next meeting is scheduled for 2/21 at 6:30PM at the Light Department. Committee has received a preliminary report from the architect. There might be some structural value at the existing Fire Station for possible remodeling/expansion of the head-quarters. The architect has commented that the future for the Fire Department in town would be to build substations to service specific areas of town.
Town Manager Miscellaneous
The Manager informed the Board that Duncan Leith, Chairman of the High School Building Committee, will attend the March 5, 2007 Selectmen’s Meeting to provide an update on construction activities and timetables.
The Manager announced that the Board attended a pre-meeting demonstration to see a demonstration of a records management system that will allow sharing of information among area police departments.
The Manager provided an update on the plans for the Memorial Day Parade. While the Memorial Day Parade event was not reflected on the recent Save the Date flier, the Committee has been extremely active in its planning efforts. A flier will be sent out to all residents in the March utility bills announcing the Committee’s goal of re-establishing the Parade as an annual event, and ask for citizen assistance through donations and/or volunteerism. The Committee sent out two rounds of letters to Chamber of Commerce merchants in October 2006 and February 2007, which netted approximately $1,200 in donations to date. The Manager added that a representative from the Memorial Day Parade Committee will address the Board this evening to answer any questions regarding the upcoming event.
The Manager announced that according to Jane Dutton, Library Director, the library has been awarded a literacy grant from Verizon in the amount of $2,250. The Library has created Newborn Literacy Kits available to Holden residents with babies six months or younger, free of charge. Each kit contains books, a music CD, brochures and educational resources for parents to use to instill reading readiness in babies. Kits will be available after February 21st and may be picked up at the Gale Free Library.
The Manager reported that as a member of the MIIA Board of Directors, MIIA is pleased to announce that the MIIA Property and Casualty Group has declared $500,000 in dividends and $1,500,000 in participation credits for a total of $2.0 Million for participants in MIIA’s workers’ compensation and property and casualty programs. Holden’s share of the dividend is $4,051, which the town has chosen to apply as a credit to its premium. The participation credit is awarded as a result of the Town’s efforts to control losses through education and prevention, whenever possible. Much of the work to comply with the MIIA’s loss control requirements and thus qualify for the credit is accomplished by Judy Sikes of the Town Manager’s office. The Board congratulated the Manager
and acknowledged and commended Ms. Sikes for her exhaustive efforts on the town’s behalf.
The Board reviewed the Y-T-D Revenue and Expenditure Reports for January 2007. Sel. O’Brien commented that projected expenses on the water/sewer account were high. The Manager said that the account is affected by seasonal costs. While it might be high in the winter, it will be low in the spring.
The Manager said that recent communication between the Finance Committee and the School District had been included in the Board’s packet for review. Sel. Sullivan requested that in the future, communications be forwarded more expediently via email from the Town Manager’s office to all Board members. The Chair said that he would not forward emails in order to avoid violating in the Open Meeting Law. Sel. O’Brien said that it would be helpful to have a “drop account” on the town’s web site where the public could access minutes from all town committees. Sel. Ferguson said that she attended a workshop on Open Meeting Laws at the January recent MMA Conference. She said that by having the Manager forward emails and communications, the town is in compliance with
the guidelines for the Open Meeting Law. She informed the Board that other towns include a “Communications” section in Selectmen packets where all communications can be forwarded for review without violating the law.
The Manager said he would not be able to attend the April 17, 2007 Selectmen’s meeting. The Board agreed to reschedule the meeting for April 23rd.
The Board will attend a Resource Profile meeting on 2/21.
Citizens’ Address
Sgt. 1st Class Peter Pouliot, a Holden resident and a member of the Memorial Day Parade Committee, spoke about the Memorial Day Parade. He said that the goal of the committee was to coordinate the attendance and participation of the towns’ veterans during the Parade. An informational flyer will be sent with the March utility bills to outline the highlights of the event and seek volunteers and donations from Holden residents.
Mr. Warren Stowell said that the town qualifies for a full-time Veteran’s Agent. Mr. Stowell felt that the town should take advantage of this qualification and staff a full-time Veteran’s Agent.
Ms. Karen Greenwood, the Town’s current Veteran’s Agent, said that she is currently the full-time Veteran’s Agent for the City of Worcester and serves as the Part-Time Veteran’s Agent for the Town of Holden. She said her phone number is listed in the phone book and she is well versed in all Veteran Affairs laws.
Welcome Aldrich Fund Presentation
The Manager provided an update on the donation activities for the Welcome Aldrich Fund. The fund provides funding to those who cannot pay their utility bills. To date, the town has received 211 donations to the fund. Ms. Margaret Donaldson, Office Manager, Holden Municipal Light Department, presented a check for $8,565 to the town.
MMA Workshop Follow-Up
Sel. Sullivan attended Smart Implementation of 40R Growth, Successful Succession Planning: Building for the Future, and Measuring the Pulse of Your Community with Muni-Stat. Sel. Ferguson attended a discussion on Open Meeting laws, Affordable Housing, and Effective Manager/Board Relations. Sel. Jumonville attended workshops on School Building Authority, Standing up to Intimidation and Bullying in the Workplace, and Successful Prop 2 ½ Overrides. The Chairman attended Smart Implementation of 40R Growth, Affordable Housing and 40B, and Effective Manager/Board Relations.
Selectmen Miscellaneous
Sel. O’Brien: 1. Initiated discussion on the disposition of the $800,000 pool reimbursement. Sel. O’Brien said that the grant reimbursement from the State was intended to offset the debt that the town incurred to build the pool. The Manager said that the DOR just recently certified $790K of the $800K for free cash (the DOR said that the town must return $10K as a tax credit to residents). He said it would be his recommendation to place the reimbursement in the IIF and use it to make the scheduled pool debt payments. Sel. O’Brien countered that the money should be placed in an interest bearing account and used to make payments to the pool debt. He felt that the money should not be placed in the IIF to pay a deposit on a future project. Sel. Ferguson
commented that she remembered that the pool grant reimbursement money was to be used to pay down the pool debt. Sel. Sullivan said that it was premature to discuss what to do with the money. He would like to attend the Resource Profile meeting on 2/21, and wait until the town and school budgets are complete before making a decision where best the money will be used. The Chairman said that he was in favor of allowing the Manager to maximize the money and place it in the IIF.
2. Requested the available snow removal balance in the budget. Any money that remains will be used to cover deficits in other line items. These will be discussed during the budget process.
3. Requested an update on Senior Tax Abatements to date. Manager will forward information to the Board.
4. Suggested that the HMLD hold a “burned out street light” contest for residents. Any outages should be reported to the HMLD. Sel. O’Brien suggested that the HMLD hold a Christmas Lighting Decorating Contest. Sel. Sullivan suggested that Sel. O’Brien work on a proposal that could be included in the Use of Public Space Committee.
Sel. Sullivan: 1. Announced that Call-Firefighter Mike Dombrowski lost his battle with cancer last week. Over 500 people attended a fundraising event for his family on 2/17.
Sel. White: 1. Provided an update on Rep. Evangelidis’ workshop on sex offenders. Currently, only level three sex offenders can be viewed on line. Residents can request a list of level one and two sex offenders in writing at the Police Department. Sel. White questioned whether Holden should implement a by-law similar to those in West Boylston and Marlboro, which places a restriction on where registered sex offenders can live. Sel. Jumonville, Sullivan, and Ferguson said that they would be interested in learning more about the bylaw in order to continue discussion of pursuing this type of bylaw for the town. Sel. O’Brien commented that these residents had paid their debt to society and felt that it was up to neighborhoods and neighbors to help each other. Sel. O’Brien announced that the “Good Neighbor Awards” would be presented by the town Democratic Committee.
2. Provided an update on the Town Manager’s Review. Sel. White said that he would present a summary report at the next meeting. Sel. Sullivan requested a copy of the Board members’ individual reviews. The Chairman said that the Manager had the originals. Requests for copies should be made through his office.
Sel. Ferguson: 1. Discussed a follow-up letter from Senator Chandler regarding legislation she intends to file regarding removing taxes from gasoline for municipal vehicles. The Manager said that he would send a letter of support from the town to Senator Chandler. This letter will be forwarded to the other District towns to encourage them to do the same. Last year, the town paid over $15,000 in gasoline taxes to the State.
2. Reported that there are dual light poles on Putnam Road. Will the second pole be removed? The Manager said that Verizon and Charter share these poles with the HMLD and are often very delinquent in their efforts to switch their hardware from the old pole to the new pole.
3. Sel. Ferguson reported that the School District’s insurance company will not reimburse the District for the clean-up efforts regarding the recent 9,000-gallon oil spill/leak at the Jefferson School. Sel. Ferguson expressed great concern over the possibility that these charges will be passed on to the District Towns in an increasing difficult financial season. Sel. O’Brien said that the District is currently disputing the insurance claim. Sel. O’Brien added that he is helping to work on a clean-up solution packet with Lt. Governor Tim Murray. The Board was in agreement to send a letter to the District requesting how these clean-up efforts will affect the District and express concerns on how these clean-up efforts might ultimately affect the town budget. The letter
will include an invitation to Superintendent Pandiscio and School Committee Chair Margaret Watson inviting them to attend a Selectmen’s meeting to discuss these concerns. Sel. Sullivan cautioned Board members on becoming politically involved in matters that do not directly involve the town. Sel. O’Brien said that Superintendent Pandiscio asked him for help with the State. The Manager said he has done some preliminary budget work on how a clean-up effort would affect the town budget.
Sel. Jumonville: 1. Nothing to report.
Follow-up to Citizen’s Address
The Manager commented that Mr. Stowell had approached the Manager and said he would like to become the town’s full-time Veteran’s Agent. The Manager commented that technically the town could become authorized for a full-time agent. However, the Manager said that there were not enough veteran customers to keep a full-time agent busy. Ms. Greenwood, the current agent, is available for Holden residents through the town, or at her current position as the Veteran’s Agent for the City of Worcester. The Manager will contact Mr. Stowell to see if his concerns have been answered.
Executive Session
Motion by Sel. Sullivan, seconded by Sel. Jumonville, it was UNANIMOUSLY VOTED TO MOVE INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION AT 9:07PM TO DISCUSS REAL ESTATE TRANSACTIONS. ROLL CALL VOTE: Sullivan: yes; Ferguson: yes; O’Brien: yes; White: yes; Jumonville: yes.
Adjournment
Motion by Sel. Sullivan, seconded by Sel. Jumonville, it was UNANIMOUSLY VOTED TO ADJOURN THE FEBRUARY 20, 2007 MEETING AT 9:17PM.
Approved: March 5, 2007 as amended
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