Select Board
Minutes of the meeting of 5/16/16
Meeting Opened at: 9am
Select Board Members Present: Kenn Basler, Chairperson and Carol Edelman
Also in attendance: Stephen Moore for the Monterey News, David Dempsey, Tim Lovett, Claudia Crane, Alice Berke and Julio Rodriguez
Miscellaneous Items Reviewed:
1. Members of the Conservation Commission came in to express their concern about what took place at their Tuesday meeting. Dave read a personal statement into the record which Claudia and Tim both supported (see attached). There was confusion as to whether Steve Weisz’s presence at their meeting was as a Selectman or a private citizen; the Con Comm assumed it was as a Selectman as he had an email from Town Counsel stating that the application submitted by the FLG should be denied rather than continued as the applicant had requested. The Con Comm felt pressured to deny the application and did so by a vote of 4-1. Kenn stated that one of the very important roles that the Board plays is to have open communication with all of our very hardworking volunteer boards/commissions and commended
the Con Comm on the amount of time they spend working for the town. Carol was at the meeting as a concerned citizen and didn’t feel that Steve was challenging the Con Comm’s legitimacy as a Board and was more concerned that no members of the FLG (the applicant) were present at the hearing. Our representative from DEP has since been contacted and has informed us that the Con Comm incorrectly handled this as the Con Comm had no regulatory right to deny for the reason they did. It was suggested that a conversation with the Board, Con Comm and town counsel should be had to discuss each board’s roles and responsibilities.
2. The Commission reported that they may look into hiring a Commission Agent to share with other towns.
3. The Board signed the group purchasing agreement with HGACBuy at the request of the Fire Chief.
4. Administrative Assistant’s weekly report was reviewed.
5. The Chief’s weekly report was reviewed.
6. Julio Rodriguez came in representing the Veteran’s Memorial Committee. A mailing has been sent out to the Veteran’s in town with regards to the ceremony and parade. They will be requesting 2 more markers which will cost around $15,000 for the FY18 budget. They also would like to expand the committee and include the parade in their planning as long as a Selectman is a part of the committee; the Board agrees with this idea. The Committee would also like to send out a mailing to the whole town regarding the ceremonies which would cost approximately $400 (the Veteran’s Committee does not have a budget). It was suggested that the local papers be called to print an article about the festivities instead. Kenn will coordinate with Michael Johnson for help in setting
up the sound system. M. Noe is taking care of ordering the food, wreaths, ice cream truck, etc. Notification of the festivities has been and will continue to be in the news & events email sent out from town hall.
7. Kenn noted that a major goal of his as chair is to keep the meetings moving smoothly – one suggestion to keep the meeting moving will be to send suggested changes to M. Noe during the week so that a final version can be distributed prior to the meeting and approved on Monday.
8. The Board discussed a few issues that have arisen with the newly elected Treasurer and current Accountant:
a. The new Treasurer’s office hours do not currently work with the timeframe for payroll submission.
b. The new Treasurer has also stated that she will not process the payroll as it has been handled to date (see MGL Chapter 41 Section 56) and the Accountant is unwilling to change the current process as he states this is how it is done in most communities.
c. The Board is requesting that Town Counsel come in this Wednesday or Thursday to meet with the Board and the Treasurer.
9. Mail was reviewed which included:
a. The Board reviewed the renewal proposal for the police accident coverage and agreed to keep it at its current levels even though the weekly indemnity would not cover the Chief’s full salary as they are assuming that worker’s comp would pick up the rest.
A motion was made and unanimously approved to adjourn the meeting at: 10:30am
Submitted by:
Melissa Noe, Administrative Assistant
Approved by:
Monterey Select Board
Select Board Members
Minutes Book
Town Clerk
Documents reviewed at this meeting (attached to hard copy of minutes at town hall):
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