BOARD OF SELECTMEN
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2006
The regular meeting of the Board of Selectmen convened at 7:00 p.m. in the conference room at 110 Main Street. In attendance were Richard E. Guertin, Edward S. Harrison and Kathleen C. Norbut. Also present were the Town Administrator and the media.
The Pledge of Allegiance was recited.
Acceptance of Meeting Minutes:
Mr. Harrison made a motion to accept the meeting minutes of October 24, 2006 – open and executive sessions. Ms. Norbut seconded and it was so VOTED.
Pole Petition #8259 – One New J.O. Pole on Moulton Hill Road:
Ms. Norbut read pole petition #8259 for Moulton Hill Road into the record. There was no one in the audience to speak for or against the petition and the Water/Sewer and Highway Departments expressed no objection to the pole location.
Ms. Norbut made a motion to accept pole petition #8259 as presented. Mr. Harrison seconded and it was so VOTED.
Request to Schedule “Santa Train” Event:
Carolyn Bedard and Bob Richardson approached the Board of Selectmen regarding their request to hold the annual Santa Train event. Ms. Bedard explained the Santa Train will basically be the same as in the past. Ms. Bedard explained this year it is Monson’s turn to provide the insurance, as Palmer provided it last year. Ms. Bedard said she has been given permission to use the parking lots at Diversified Metal and the old Dunkin Donuts for additional parking for participants. The boarding location will once again be Washington Street. The Santa Train will be held on Saturday, December 16th starting at 8:00 a.m. with the last ride being held at 2:00 p.m. The rides will leave on the hour, every hour. Mr. Guertin thanked Ms. Bedard, Mr. Richardson, and the New England Central Railroad for holding this event
every year as it is a lot of work, but really enjoyed by the children.
Ms. Norbut made a motion to approve the request for the Santa Train to be held on Saturday, December 16, 2006 with boarding time in Monson on the hour, every hour beginning at 8:00 a.m. with 2:00 p.m. being the last ride, and to provide the insurance out of the Blanket Insurance Account. Mr. Harrison seconded and it was so VOTED.
Ms. Norbut made a motion to approve Monson’s portion, $400.00, for the cost of fuel and clean-up from the Gifts to the Town Account. Mr. Harrison seconded and it was so VOTED.
Announce Winter Parking Ban:
Mr. Guertin read the memo on the winter parking ban into the record which stated: during the winter season, there will be no parking on streets between the hours of 1:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. starting with the first snowfall or December 1, 2006 through March 31, 2007. Parking permits for overnight parking at Dave Grieve Park are available in the Town Collector’s office at a cost of $5.00.
Mr. Harrison made a motion to approve the winter parking ban as read. Ms. Norbut seconded and it was so VOTED.
Ms. Neggers said this information will also be posted on the Town’s web site at www.monosn-ma.gov .
Review Departmental Needs and “Gifts to the Town” Capital Funding Proposal:
Ms. Neggers explained two significant needs have recently come to light. One need is to make routine replacement of the Police Department technology. The second need is to replace the vehicle used by the Building Inspector for his inspections in town.
Ms. Neggers explained some of the desk top computers being used in the Police Department are several years old and are in critical need of replacement. The Board of Selectmen had a prioritized list of the needed equipment, which was created by Chief Kozloski and Officer Buley, who is their technology specialist within the department.
Ms. Neggers explained with the Building Inspectors vehicle, the past practice has been to donate an old cruiser to the Building Inspector for use on town business. The Police Department is in the process of replacing three cruisers, which is done every three years. The rotation cycle in the past has rotated from the Sergeant to the Police Chief to the Building Inspector, however, this rotation schedule has changed over the years so there is no longer a reliable vehicle available for transfer and the best vehicle, with 100,000 to 120,000 miles on it (not including idle time) requires $1,200.00 in repairs. Neither the Police Department nor the Building Department’s budgets contain the required funds for the needed repairs. The current vehicle being used by the Building Inspector has over 100,000 miles on it and also
is in need of significant repairs.
Ms. Neggers explained purchasing a new 4X4 truck off state bid would provide significant time for the town to develop a way to budget for this need in the future as this will last ten years. A four wheel drive vehicle is needed for some of the sites visited by the Building Inspector. Ms. Neggers said she has been speaking with the Police Chief and the Finance Director to plan for this better, as the no money method used by the town in the past is no longer working and puts the Building Inspector at risk with an unsafe vehicle. Mr. Guertin and Ms. Norbut agreed these are Capital needs items and feel it is troubling the town has dire Capital needs such as these, and yet are scraping the bottom to come up with the funds required for computer up-dates for our Police Department, which is responsible for our public safety, and
to purchase a much needed car for the Building Inspector.
Ms. Neggers explained the spreadsheet detailing the expenses of the $14,800.00 for the Police Department technology and the $15,695.00 for the Building Inspectors vehicle; which utilizes a total of $25,297.00 from the Gifts to the Town Account for the two purchases. The cost of the Building Inspectors vehicle, $15,695.00, will come solely from the Gifts to the Town Account; while the Police Department technology up-date will be split with $9,602.00 coming from the Gifts to the Town Account and $5,198.00 coming from the Technology Revolving Fund. This leaves $1,000.00 in the Gifts to the Town Account for other purposes and $10,949.00 in the Technology Revolving Fund, which $2,200.00 is committed for the purchase of a laptop computer for the Emergency Management Director. Ms. Neggers explained the reason these critical
items weren’t requested for placement on the Special Town Meeting warrant is they came to light after the warrants had been closed.
Mr. Harrison made a motion to approve the expenditure of $14,800.00 for Police Department technology with $5,198.00 coming from the Technology Revolving Fund and $9,602.00 coming from the Gifts to the Town Account. Ms. Norbut seconded and it was so VOTED.
Mr. Harrison made a motion to approve the expenditure of $15,695.00 for the purchase of a vehicle for the Building Inspector with the entire amount coming from the Gifts to the Town Account. Ms. Norbut seconded and it was so VOTED.
In Other Business to Come Before the Board of Selectmen:
Mr. Guertin mentioned, this morning he attended a pandemic flu exercise with Lori McCool, the Health Inspector for Monson and Wilbraham, and Jeremy Bedson, Monson’s Emergency Management Director, held at Springfield Technical Community College. They went through exercises pertaining to just what would happen each day, from the beginning to the end, during a pandemic. They went through the different phases from food being gone from the grocery store shelves, to no gas, schools closed, no socializing, etc. and how the town would handle it. Mr. Guertin said he, Ms. McCool and Mr. Bedson are going to continue working together with the Board of Health regarding this issue. Contacts have been set up on local levels, state levels and federal levels and every town in Massachusetts is now working on pandemic issues. If
anyone has any questions they may contact Mr. Guertin at 596-2090. Ms. Norbut and Mr. Harrison said they are also willing to speak with anyone or to answer any questions. Ms. Norbut also stated anyone with internet access my visit the www.mass.gov web site to link onto the MEMA site for fact and instructional sheets explaining what individuals can do. Ms. Neggers also said people can visit the town’s web site at www.monson-ma.gov where the Emergency Management Director has a web site pertaining to this issue as well. Mr. Harrison added computers are available at the Monson Free Library with internet access.
Mr. Guertin said most web sites recommend households plan on a week or two of supplies such as water and canned food, rotating the supplies so they don’t go bad. A pandemic could last several weeks or months. Ms. Norbut suggested people on medications should speak with their doctors to see if it would be possible to get a few months supply if necessary.
Also in other business to come before the Board of Selectmen, Mr. Harrison thanked everyone who voted to pass the Community Preservation Act on November 7th. Mr. Harrison said he feels this will be a good way for Monson to raise funds to help pay for historical preservation, affordable housing and open space. Mr. Harrison also said he spoke with Ms. Jenkins, the Town Collector, who said this won’t go into effect until the fiscal year beginning in July of 2007 with the first bill being in January 2008. Mr. Guertin said a committee will be formed to go through all of the requests and recommendations and to bring them to a town meeting for the towns’ residents’ approval. Mr. Harrison said there are a number of open spots on the committee if anyone wishes to participate. Ms. Norbut said Monson had
a very good turnout with 58% of the registered voters voting during the recent elections, which was quite impressive.
Ms. Norbut said next Tuesday, November 21st at 4:00 p.m., at the Monson Free Library; the Teen Advisory Board will host Pizza and Politics. Everyone is welcome to attend but it is geared toward teens, to discuss local, state & national political procedures and the recent election.
Everyone was reminded of the up-coming Special Town Meeting, which will be held on Monday, November 27th at Granite Valley Middle School. The 29 articles on the warrant may be viewed on the town’s web site at www.monson-ma.gov. The 28th annual Holiday Craft Fair (Big M.A.C.), sponsored by the Monson Arts Council, will be held on the Saturday and Sunday following Thanksgiving, November 25th and 26th.
Mr. Guertin wished everyone a wonderful Thanksgiving and reminded everyone to keep safety in mind as Thanksgiving is one of the most traveled holidays.
Correspondence was read and completed.
At 7:55 p.m., Mr. Harrison made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Ms. Norbut seconded and it was so VOTED.
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Kathleen C. Norbut, Clerk
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