BOARD OF SELECTMEN
DECEMBER 9, 2008
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, Kathleen C. Norbut and Edward S. Harrison. 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 November 25th and December 2, 2008 – open sessions. Ms. Norbut seconded and it was so VOTED.
Monson Pool Boosters – Request for Donation from the “Gifts to the Town” Account:
Mike Kane of the Pool Study Sub-committee and Jo Sauriol of the Monson Dolphin’s Booster Association approached the Board of Selectmen. It was explained a new federal law was passed on December 19, 2007 requiring safety covers for all pool and spa drains. This law mandates additional covers on the drains of pools and spas to avoid entrapment in the drains across the country, as there have been many injuries and death caused by entrapment.
The requirement was made known by the Mass. Department of Public Health to the Health Inspector for Monson on October 30, 2008. The deadline for covers to be in place is December 20, 2008, not allowing much time for the procedure.
Following this announcement the Pool Study sub-committee discussed ordering the drain covers, installation and financing of the unfunded, mandated safety covers in compliance with the law. The drain covers were ordered and should arrive within the next day or so. Equipment has been rented for the installation and should be here on Friday. The equipment rental will cost $300.00 and will be shared with the Town of Wilbraham. The labor will be volunteered. Initially, it was thought the pool might have to be drained of its 210,000 gallons of water, requiring chemicals to be re-added and water reheated once it was refilled, with a downtime of approximately ten days. They have now found out the pool will not have to be drained as scuba divers will install the covers under water. There are two scuba divers in the Town of Monson
who are also licensed Mass. General Contractors, who have volunteered to do our pool as well as the pool in Wilbraham on Monday.
Ms. Sauriol was here to request a donation from the Gifts to the Town Account for the purchase of the two safety drain covers. The drain covers cost $2, 486.00. It was explained there might be a trade in services for the shared expense of the rental equipment; therefore that price is not included in the request. If the trade is decided differently, the Boosters will cover this expense.
Mr. Harrison made a motion to approve $2,486.00 from the Gifts to the Town Account to pay for covers for the pool filter. Ms. Norbut seconded and it was so VOTED.
Mr. Kane complemented Ms. Norbut for setting up the committee and everyone involved.
Ms. Norbut thanked Ms. Sauriol and all of the Booster parents and young people who have raised money by doing an extraordinary job this past summer with fundraisers. It was stated the concept of the pool sub-committee was to bring departments together, to find an economical way to keep a facility going which is widely used, and at the same time relieving the burden from the education budget. Ms. Sauriol said a lotto calendar fundraiser was held, which they are hoping will become an annual fundraiser. The Boosters also received a grant from National Grid which was combined with Capital funds from the town to purchased pool covers to assist with keeping the heat in the pool and the humidity down in the pool area. The Dolphin Booster Association purchases necessary items such as flippers along with trying to assist families
with the expenses of the swim teams through the funds raised.
Mr. Kane also noted the School Committee would be interested in looking at alternative energy and would like to be involved with any town-wide committees regarding this issue. Ms. Neggers said it’s still undetermined which way the town is going to go with this. Mr. Guertin noted a lot of ideas have been kicked around at this point such as solar panels on the roof the Town Administration Building, but found it wouldn’t benefit the town as we would have to generate approximately $1,600.00 worth of electricity annually, with about a 34 year pay back. Ms. Neggers noted a single wind turbine could run about $2 million. Ms. Neggers added she attended a workshop for the Green Community Act which has been passed, and added there are some grants forthcoming at the state level, but the hoops that you would need to jump
through in order to qualify as a Green Community and the commitments of money and resources you must make are very demanding, and noted it’s still a work in progress. She believes as it unfolds it will become much more affordable for cities and towns.
Ms. Norbut suggested inviting community members who specialize in the energy field such as Dr. Mike Fitzpatrick, with Blackstone Regional Vocational, in to speak with the Long Range Financial Planning Committee. Mr. Guertin stated the Long Range Financial Planning Committee welcomes any input.
Mr. Harrison wondered why this isn’t happening at a state level rather than being a municipal effort. Ms. Neggers said there is a lot happening at the state level, but the town would have to become a certified Green Community which requires the town to revamp its automatic zoning rights if it’s going to have a green component, commit to reducing the energy consumption as a town by 20% in the next five years, and commit to purchasing low energy consumption vehicles, etc.
Approve Pre-Disaster Mitigation Plan:
Mr. Guertin said this is something that was drafted by the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission with the help of Monson’s Emergency Management Director Jeremy Bedson. The request is asking the Board of Selectmen to sign off and approve the Pre-Disaster Mitigation Plan as a board. Ms. Neggers added the document was prepared via a grant the PVPC obtained where the town of Monson provided some matching funds. FEMA has approved this plan and now this plan must be adopted locally in order to apply for a mitigation grant in a flood emergency or a natural disaster. When the plan was first presented a few months back, there were a few errors on it. It was given back to Mr. Bedson for correction, and the changes have been made. Ms. Neggers noted the plan has been sitting around for a number of months in excess of a year
pending approval, and she isn’t aware of anyone in town who would be filing for a mitigation grant.
Ms. Norbut noted she has spoken with Catherine Miller who was going to speak with someone from MEMA. Ms. Miller understands it’s not a perfect document, containing flaws and deficits to be addressed, and was going to inquire if subsequent changes were made, would this trigger a new need for approval from FEMA and if so, would this set a new start date for Monson. Ms. Norbut said we have until May 2009 to adopt the plan.
Mr. Guertin said he also found changes needing to be made and sections needing to be completed. He also said the section pertaining to the 2005 flood made no mention to three bridges being washed out completely at Pulpit Rock Lake here in town, leaving many people stranded. With bridges washed out, emergency vehicles can’t get in, fuel trucks can’t get in, people can’t get out, and feels this needs to be addressed. Also, the document addresses the Town of Ware, which he said shouldn’t be in the document as it was a template and that was not removed. He doesn’t feel as though any Town official should sign off on any documents, on behalf of the town, unless they personally feel the document is valid and accurate. Ms. Norbut said she echoed everything Mr. Guertin just said. Ms. Norbut added, in
the section pertaining to fires and house fires, there is a section which speaks about Worcester fires and not Monson’s fire such as the two Monson recently had on Bethany Road and Cote Road. Mr. Guertin said Monson’s topography is unique relative to streams, brooks, and rivers and feels Monson’s disasters would pertain to water issues; such as snow, ice, flooding with the many hills in town.
Mr. Guertin noted putting a document together like this takes an enormous amount of time, and there aren’t a lot of people stepping up to help out with the load, and thanked Mr. Bedson for all of his work on this.
Ms. Norbut said Mr. Bedson wasn’t able to attend tonight’s’ meeting, but will work with Mr. Bedson on this document, adding information where it needs to be edited and bring it back to the Board of Selectmen.
License Renewals – Various:
Mr. Harrison read and made a motion to approve the licenses as attached. Ms. Norbut seconded and it was so VOTED.
It was noted two letters of concern were mailed out this past week. One letter was to Main Street Liquors, who have gone through the request twice to transfer ownership of their business, going from an individual to an LLC. The A.B.C.C. is requesting information going beyond the usual Matrix and Ms. Neggers noted it’s very comprehensive. The liquor license is being renewed subject to, if they have not initiated the process to correct the issue prior to February 1st, a hearing will be held by the Board of Selectmen.
The second letter of concern was sent to 10th Planet Pizza who needs to change their manager, alter the premises and change their hours, also to be initiated prior to February 1st or a hearing will be scheduled with the Board of Selectmen.
Ms. Neggers noted the Building Inspector and the Fire Chief have conducted the Fire Safety inspections on all of the establishments as required by the A.B.C.C. The Magic Lantern is modifying their establishment by not using a portion of their building in order to bring it in compliance with the fire safety law. Mustang Sally’s is also temporary, as the business is closed; however they have renewed and paid for their license.
Department of Environmental Protection Invoice – Request to Authorize Hardship Filing Request:
Ms. Neggers stated the town took down South Main Street School, eliminating the threat it posed to the environment within the zone to the water supply district. To do this, the town sought out the money from the federal government and received a grant, along with the use of local income. Ms. Neggers stated on November 5th the town received a bill from the Department of Environmental Protection for a $4,000.00 fee, which they will be charging the town every year from now until eternity, even if the property is sold, because the town is the owner of the contaminated site, even though the site has been cleaned up.
Ms. Neggers read the penalty for non-payment, which states they will revoke our permit for failure to obey as provided in CMR 4.03 (7) (b) and (g). If the failure to pay goes beyond 120 days from the original invoice date, the account will be deemed delinquent and be referred for interception of state payments or tax refunds, and referred to a collection agency under M.G.L. c. 7A, M.G.L. c. 62D and 815 CMR 9.00. There is a request for reviews for a financial hardship and Ms. Neggers feels Monson is entitled to ask the Commonwealth for a review as Monson is having a financial hardship.
Ms. Neggers stated in approximately 1992 the Department of Environmental Protection sent their taskforce in their jumpsuits in to see Ms. Neggers. At that time she was told they were going into South Main Street School to clean it up. They left 52 barrels of toxic waste that 12 to 14 years later were leaking in the building. State agencies are exempt from the fee, but cities and towns are not, and if we had left the building alone we would not be charged the fee.
Ms. Neggers said the town doesn’t have the $4,000.00 in any of their accounts, as the project is over budged significantly. For an additional fee it could be reclassified, and the amount could possibly be reduced as low as $800.00 a year.
Ms. Neggers said the Governor hasn’t answered any of her letters. Ms. Norbut felt the town should proceed with filing for the hardship. Mr. Guertin said he feels the town should see what would happen if we didn’t pay this and didn’t apply for the hardship. Ms. Neggers said she felt they could seize $4,000.00 out of our Cherry Sheet money. Ms. Neggers added the frustrating thing is we are being penalized for doing the right thing, and cleaning the property. Mr. Guertin stated this is wrong. Ms. Neggers added this is the type of thing everyone needs to write the Governor about.
Ms. Norbut made a motion to file for the hardship according to the instructions in the document. Mr. Harrison seconded. Mr. Harrison – aye, Ms. Norbut – aye, Mr. Guertin – nay.
Ms. Norbut said she agrees with Mr. Guertin and feels it’s a travesty, but didn’t feel it was prudent to work outside the box on this and felt we should go up through the chain as she has concerns with additional costs, fees and legal fees. Mr. Guertin said by filing for the hardship, it’s acknowledging the legitimacy of this payment, and didn’t feel it was a legitimate payment. Mr. Harrison and Ms. Norbut agreed according to the laws of the Commonwealth it is, even though it might not be legally or morally correct. Ms. Neggers added a check is required to file for a grievance.
Trench Permit Process – Review Preliminary Proposal:
Ms. Neggers summarized this proposal stating the Commonwealth passed a new law requiring cities and towns to create a trench permitting authority for issuing permits for unattended trenches left open that are at least 3 feet deep and less than 15 feet across. The Building Inspector, Highway Surveyor, Water/Sewer Superintendent, Fire Chief and Police Chief met to discuss this, and developed a proposal wherein the Building Inspector will be the permitting authority. The Building Inspectors office will also issue the permits. The Police Department will respond to any complaints after hours. A revolving fund was set up at the Special Town meeting for the funds collected from the permits, which will pay for an off duty
Police Officer to guard the area until the permit holder can come to secure the site. The minimum fee will be $35.00.
Ms. Norbut made a motion to accept the current application fee as presented. Mr. Harrison seconded and it was so VOTED
Correspondence was read and completed.
At 8:30 p.m., Mr. Harrison made a motion to adjourn from open session to go into executive session for the purpose of non-union contract bargaining strategy and collective bargaining strategy sessions, not to return to open session. Ms. Norbut seconded and it was so VOTED.
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Edward S. Harrison, Clerk
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