Minutes of Meeting – October 29, 2014; meeting called to order at 7:00pm. Present: Ed Lane; Dave Roche; Warren Archey; Channing Gibson; Ken Fowler.
MOTION by DR, seconded by KF to accept the Minutes of October 15 as presented. 5/0 vote.
CG announced that CTSB is now offering Video on Demand for Channel 18, the Government Channel, and that soon they will be offering the public access channel as well. He also read the various Halloween activities as well as the hours for Trick or Treating in Town on Friday evening, 10/31.
Citizen’s Open Forum: George Raymond appeared before the Board, asking people to consider voting yes to Question #1 to repeal the casino law. Mark Schapp also appeared to discuss the traffic speeds in the downtown area, as well as the deplorable condition of some of the sidewalks in town.
Consent Agenda: CG went through each item on the Consent Agenda, asking if any item needed a Hold placed on it. MOTION by KF, seconded by EL to approve the Consent Agenda as follows:
a one-day W&M license to the Lenox VFW for 11/11 from 6-8pm at the St. Ann Parish Center; the replacement of two existing blue directional signs with new signage for Eastover. 5/0 vote. MOTION by DR, seconded by KF to approve a one-day W&M license to Leah Larmon for Sunday, 11/9 from 4-8:30pm in the Community Center Ballroom. 5/0 vote.
Town Manager Report: The TM asked the Board to review the draft solar by-law for larger-scale commercial solar arrays included in the agenda packet, and to give him their comments ASAP. At the 10/15 BOS meeting, the TM requested that a Special Town Meeting be called sometime between November 13-24. After reviewing the possible dates, MOTION by KF, seconded by DR to hold a Special Town Meeting on Tuesday, November 18, 2014. 5/0 vote.
Laurie Klefos and Lindsey Schmid from the Berkshire Visitors Bureau appeared before the Board to make a presentation regarding advertising. Laurie stated that spending by visitors to the Berkshires is up 4%, and that $403M was spent in 2013 with 40% ($161M) of that spent in Lenox. The BVB Lenox 2015 Marketing Proposal consists of the BVB website ($6500), the Berkshire’s Official Visitors Guide full-page ad ($3310), cooperative advertising in New York metro and Boston metro areas ($4450) and the BVB e-communications ($5890). The total cost would be $20,150 plus additional design costs directly with Studio 2. This represents a $3000 increase over last year, but this campaign does include year-round marketing. This will be the third year promoting Lenox, and she believes that we are getting a good bang for our
money.
Rest of River: The TM stated that the letters containing our comments on the Rest of River have been sent out to the EPA, and that copies of the letters from the other communities are attached to the agenda packet.
Solar Project: KF stated that there was a pre-bid conference held on Monday, 10/27, with eighteen firms attending. The next step is to wait for questions from the developers. He stated that the STM vote will help this process along.
Tennessee Pipeline: No report.
BOS Reports: DR stated that he feels the BVB is doing an excellent job on behalf of Lenox. KF stated that taxes are due 11/3, and that the state election is on 11/4 from 7am-8pm. He mentioned that he recently visited the MRF facility in Springfield, and found it very interesting. EL wanted to make sure that the WWTP issues and finding new water sources does not get forgotten with all of the other large issues confronting the town. It was suggested that the CIC Committee work on these two issues. CG stated that the tennis court work is ongoing, and that the overnight parking ban will go into effect on 11/1. The Board then reviewed their meeting calendar for the upcoming months, keeping in mind the many federal holidays. It was agreed to meet on Wednesday, November 12, have a brief meeting on
Wednesday, November 26, a regular meeting on Wednesday, December 10 and another brief meeting on Tuesday, December 23.
By roll call, CG, EL, DR, KF and WA voted to go into Executive Session at 8:25pm to discuss strategy with respect to potential litigation, as well as for a negotiating strategy for the acquisition/disposition of real property.
Minutes Taken By: ______________________ Minutes Accepted By: ______________________
Mary Ellen Deming Clerk
Administrative Services Director Board of Selectmen
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