BOARD OF SELECTMEN
TUESDAY, JANUARY 27, 2009
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 January 13, 2009 – open session. Ms. Norbut seconded and it was so VOTED.
Pole Petition #8401 – One J.O. Pole on Palmer Road:
Mr. Harrison read pole petition #8401 into the record. The Water/Sewer Superintendent had no objection to the pole location and being a State highway it didn’t pertain to Highway Surveyor John Morrell. No one in the audience spoke for or against the pole location.
Ms. Norbut made a motion to approve pole petition #8401 as presented. Mr. Harrison seconded and it was so VOTED.
Country Club Heights/Lane/Drive Street Numbering Discussion:
Mr. Guertin explained the Board of Selectmen are the responsible party for the assignment of house numbers in town. Fire Chief George Robichaud and Police Chief Steve Kozloski approached the Board of Selectmen. Chief Kozloski said several weeks ago he met with the residents of Country Club Drive, Country Club Heights and Country Club Lane along with Chief Robichaud and Principal Assessor Diane Hildreth to address issues regarding confusion in the names and street numbers on those three streets, relative to public safety. It was explained there have been mix-ups in mail and package deliveries, and an oil delivery. Communications between an EMT and the dispatcher have been mixed-up on two separate occasions and Chief Kozloski said steps have been taken to improve the communication due to those incidents. However, it is
still difficult for delivery drivers, visitors or anyone not familiar with that specific area to find the residence they are looking for. The Police and Fire Departments agreed they both rely on mutual aid from neighboring towns which is also a big concern. Chief Kozloski said he spoke with the Highway Surveyor who acknowledged the signage is appropriate and up to date with federal standards. It was thought there would be significant costs if new signs were needed. Both the Police Chief and Fire Chief agreed in light of what has occurred in the past, the least expensive plan would be changing the house numbers by making all of the houses on Country Club Drive in the 100’s (example 101, 102 etc.), Country Club Heights in the 200’s (example 201, 201 etc.) and Country Club Lane in the 300’s (example 301, 302 etc.), so no two residences would share the same number, ensuring quicker emergency responses.
Approximately fifty residents were in attendance at this Selectmen’s meeting.
Jim White who lives at 24 Country Club Drive said he feels many visitors to the Country Club Drive and Country Club Heights area aren’t sure where one road ends and the other begins.
Pete Hull of 4 Country Club Lane said he had to change his address when the 9-1-1 began in town as his side door is on one street and the main entrance is on another and found it a nuisance to have to change everything over to the new address.
Dudley Strum of 34 Country Club Heights agreed the signs are adequate, but the houses are numbered very poorly and felt this was the problem. Mr. Strum noted there are many streets in town with the same name such as State Street and State Avenue, Lincoln Street and Lincoln Place, etc, and felt they must have the same situation. As far as the mix-up in mail, Mr. Strum said he gets mail for residents on Fenton Road as well which isn’t even close to Country Club Heights in name or location. Mr. Strum felt the situation could be cleared up by having the residents install large numbers on their homes with a light above them for nighttime viewing.
Valerie Beaudoin of 2 Country Club Heights said the problem she has with changing the house numbers is she would become 202 and people would drive all the way up Country Club Drive past the 100’s only to have to come all the way down Country Club Heights to get to her home. She also said she spoke with several State Police who said they use GPS to assist them in getting somewhere or a cell phones. Ms. Beaudoin said she feels if she changes her number it won’t be a legal number and won’t show up on a GPS (global positioning systems). Ms. Beaudoin said she telephoned Garmin (a GPS manufacturer) and MapQuest who told her they would need notification of the changes by someone who can authorize the changes, and it could take approximately three months to get the information onto the sites. Ms. Beaudoin also
questioned how long it would take to up-date the 9-1-1 system if the house numbers were changed. Chief Kozloski said it would just be a matter of hours as Verizon would up-date as soon as they got the fax from him and the internal emergency would be up-dated immediately. Chief Kozloski said he isn’t aware of any departments using GPS. Ms. Beaudoin responded they are using their personal navigation systems.
George Campbell of 14 Country Club Drive felt if the street names were the problem with the confusion in deliveries, visitors, and emergency personnel then by changing the house numbers wasn’t going to help. Mr. Campbell agreed as well, residents should install better house numbers.
Mr. Harrison asked the residents in the audience who was in favor of changing house numbers and who was against changing the house numbers. Everyone raised their hands they are against changing house numbers.
One resident added signs could possibly be placed at the end of driveways clarifying the streets. Chief Robichaud said this was looked into as well, but noted the signs were breaking. The resident also said her name and number are on her mailbox which reflects and she has never had any problems.
Richard Griffin of 35 Country Club Drive said twice recently the ambulance responded to his home and had no trouble finding his residence. He is also the resident who received the wrong oil delivery and felt it was the fault of the driver. He has never had any problems with receiving his own oil deliveries. Mr. Griffin agrees large numbers need to be installed and if an ambulance or fire truck can’t find a house, it’s the fault of the home owner. It was also suggested to place signs stating Country Club Drive ends here, Country Club Heights begins here, etc.
Gary Kratovil of 40 Country Club Heights said he has adequate lighting and his home is clearly marked. One day he was out in the yard at 2:00 in the morning with his pregnant wife awaiting the ambulance with all of the house lights on and the Fire and Police personnel went right by. Mr. Kratovil recommended having people drive all the way up to the top and go around.
Irene Orluk who lives at 9 Country Club Heights stated she has lived in her home since 1956. She has many visiting nurses come to her home and has never had any problems. Ms. Orluk added her home is clearly marked.
Dave Lord of 43 Country Club Heights said he didn’t understand adding 100, 200 and 300 to the addresses if the Lane, Heights and Drive remain the same. Mr. Guertin explained the gain would be in having no duplicate numbers.
Dick Knight of 13 Country Club Heights said he is the 5th house on the right and tells everyone this when expecting deliveries or visitors. He feels all the residents should describe the location of their house in this manner.
Mr. Harrison said the cost of signage would need to be looked into. Many of the residents agreed they would be willing to chip in toward signs that state one road ends here and another road begins here. Many of the residents also felt a letter from both Chiefs stating they will not get proper service if their residences aren’t clearly marked, is needed. Everyone agreed without full compliance or co-operation from the residents it could still be confusing.
Paul LaFlamme of 49 Country Club Heights agreed with placing signs stating one road begins here and another one ends here. Mr. LaFlamme said he feels the sign there now is on the wrong side of the road and stated he would agree to have the sign placed on his lawn, right across the street from where it is now, so it would be visible to people driving up the road.
Ms. Norbut said she appreciated the residents taking responsibility and thanked everyone for attending this meeting, for all of their thoughts and for the research they put into this. Ms. Norbut felt if a tragedy did occur the town would be liable, therefore she was inclined to go with sending letters to all the residents letting them know they have been duly notified to place large numbers on their residences.
It was agreed the steps would be identifying locations where signs should go, make sure property owners of those particular locations are in agreement the sign can go there, find out what should be placed on the signs and then find out how much the signs would cost. taking up the offers from the residents to pay the costs. Mr. Harrison said he would like to see visible signs with Heights, Lane and Drive in large capital letters. Ms. Beaudoin and Mr. LaFlamme agreed they are willing to do the footwork on the signage and consult with Mr. Morrell.
Ms. Norbut made a motion to send a letter to every residence on Country Club Drive, Heights and Lane highlighting the bylaw and informing them they need to post adequate numbers appropriately in a visible spot. Mr. Harrison seconded and it was so VOTED.
Mr. Guertin thanked everyone for coming in.
David Beaudoin: Memorial Hall Electrical Inspection Report:
David Beaudoin approached the Board of Selectmen and stated he did an inspection of Memorial Hall on January 12th. He found the equipment and wiring to be original and explained the Federal Pacific panel is outdated and added, fifty percent of the time the breakers will not trip. Mr. Beaudoin showed pictures taken by Building Inspector Chip LaPointe, to the Board of Selectmen, and provided them with his findings and recommendations, as attached.
The Board of Selectmen agreed the building should be brought up to code in order to make the building safe. The stage lighting was also discussed. Mr. Guertin said some groups have already booked Memorial Hall for plays in the spring and they will need to know if the house lights will be the only lights available for use. Mr. Beaudoin said rental light could be brought in for now, and the town would have to build their way back by adding lights a few at a time. Mr. Beaudoin said the stage lighting should be done with a lighting professional.
Rich, who operates the camera for M-PACT who televises the Selectmen’s meetings, approached the Board of Selectmen to explain the dimmer packs used for the play as he operates the light for the plays. Mr. Beaudoin said extension cords can not be used and the extension cords are different sizes which is also wrong.
Raymond Surprenant with the Monson Arts Council was in the audience and stated the Arts Council owns the dimmer packs in the stage area. Mr. Surprenant agreed to look up the information for Mr. Beaudoin as the UL listing was missing. Mr. Beaudoin stated they need to be certified on what they can handle for amperage.
Ms. Norbut made a motion to authorize the purchase of the equipment needed to up-date the wiring in Memorial Hall for steps one, two and three of the recommendations as attached, from the Gifts to the Town Account, with procurement and a limit of $6,000.00. Mr. Harrison seconded and it was so VOTED.
2-1-1 Information Phone Line – Kathleen Norbut
It was agreed to postpone this discussion due to the meeting running late.
State Aid Reductions – General Discussion – Define Process:
Finance Director Deborah Mahar approached the Board of Selectmen. Ms. Neggers said Governor Patrick announced he will be making approximately a 10% cut in lottery aid to cities and towns for the current fiscal year. It is anticipated he will announce the final numbers tomorrow for the cuts in the current fiscal year as well as the next fiscal year. Ms. Neggers said the estimated numbers for the town would mean a $160,000.00 reduction in the current fiscal year and a $320,000.00 reduction in the next fiscal year. Ms. Neggers said the department heads have been very helpful and co-operating with maintaining the spending freeze. There has also been a savings in energy costs which helped the town, and added the current fiscal year can be managed. Ms. Neggers said their might be lay-offs next year with a reduction in services.
Ms. Neggers requested a special meeting for next Tuesday, when the Governor’s numbers are in and a more detailed projection can be provided.
The Board of Selectmen agreed to hold a Special Meeting on Tuesday, February 3, 2009 at 7:00 p.m. in the Town Office Building to discuss the town finances.
Correspondence was read and completed.
At 9:10 p.m., Mr. Harrison made a motion to adjourn from open session to go into executive session for the purpose of a non-union contract bargaining strategy session and a collective bargaining strategy session, 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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