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Select Board Meeting Minutes 8/9/17
Select Board
Minutes of the meeting of 8/9/17

Meeting Opened at: 8am
Select Board Members Present: Steve Weisz, Chairperson, Carol Edelman and Kenneth Basler

Also in attendance: Shawn Tryon, Gareth Backhaus, Justin Cole, Joe Baker, Steven Hayward, Ray Tryon, Mary Makuc, Dennis Lynch, Alice Boyd

Miscellaneous Items Reviewed:
  • Warrants were signed.
  • Minutes from 7/26/17 were approved.
  • The Board signed a letter of intent to National Grid to participate in their LED street light retrofit program.  They requested information on towns that already have them installed to view and check for heat emission.
  • The Board approved and signed the blanket NOI for the highway department.
  • Compost program: Gould Farm has passed the necessary inspections and things are moving along to start on the 26th of this month.
  • A suggestion has been made to start a weekly departmental meeting and have at least 1 Selectman and 1 Finance Committee member present to foster better relationships with the departments and keep everyone better informed.
  • Kenn suggested changing the evening meeting from 3pm to 4pm and the monthly finance committee from 4pm to 5:30pm at that meeting. Everyone concurred with the change starting with the 9/27 meeting (as there are previous commitments on the 8/30 agenda).  
  • Terry Walker, grant writer reported to the Board that she has submitted the MassWorks grant.
  • Administrative Assistant’s weekly report was reviewed.
  • Police Chief’s weekly report was reviewed.
  • A motion was made to reappoint Mary Makuc as the ADA Coordinator.  The motion was seconded and unanimously approved.
  • Complete Streets Program: Keen updated the Board on a workshop attended by Cliff Weiss with regards to bicycle lanes.  As an avid cyclist Cliff is interested in the future planning.
  • The Board met with members of the Friends of Wilson McLaughlin House/Community Center to discuss the procedure for special events and serving alcohol.  Joe Baker also provided an update on the activities there.  They plan to start scheduling regular workshops and such next month.
  • The Board met with grant writer Dennis Lynch to update the Board on the Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness (MVP) grant.  The $15,000 should be distributed sometime in September followed by training and workshops through the fall.
  • The Board met with Alice Boyd of Boyd & Associates to discuss procedures and timelines for the CDBG grant we’ve been awarded.  Alice is suggesting that in February when the next grant round begins we consider applying again, maybe in conjunction with a neighboring town.
  • Alice Boyd, Selectperson from Sandisfield provided an update on Frontier’s progress for broadband.
  • The Board briefly discussed the upcoming school committee meetings and our letter to the committee requesting action on the future of the Monterey School.
  • Trash: Our trash and bulky waste collections are down and recyclables are up.  Kenn estimates that we will be about $7-10k below what was budgeted.  The mattress collection has been working very well.  Kenn is working with CET and they are setting up a visit to the recycling center in Springfield as well as training on accepted recyclables.  The rigid plastic container is up and running.
  • Curtis Rd Bridge: Kenn and Shawn met with the Conservation Commission last night to keep them up to speed.
  • Ken Wagner, Lake Scientist has completed his report and has confirmed there is less milfoil in the lake.
The Board met with Director of Operations, Shawn Tryon to discuss the following:
  • Carpet cleaning: It is suggested to clean the carpeting in town hall (which has not been done since construction).  3 quotes were received and it was unanimously agreed to go with the low bidder.
  • A bid package has been put together for the repair and repave of the town hall parking lot area, opening is at the end of the month.  During the survey of the property we learned that our property line is actually further into the property next door than originally thought and will allow for larger, easier parking.  A large tree will need to be removed for the drainage system.  Kenn is going to reach out to the neighbor.  Plan is to start the work in September.
  • Shawn is looking at options for correcting the water issues in the basement.
  • Community Center: Shawn is recommending a temperature alarm installed on the furnace.  The estimate to install would be a couple hundred dollars.  The Board agreed.
  • Chapter 90:  The Board approved the Chapter 90 request to purchase an excavator and signed off on closing an older open project (engineering for RT23).
  • Road planning:  Once all the input has been entered into the road tracking program Shawn will be able to provide the Board with reports on future road planning needs.
  • Shawn had someone test the Monterey School building for lead and areas did test positive.  It only has to be remediated immediately if children less than 6 years old occupy the building for 14-16 consecutive days.  Shawn will provide the Board with copies of the report.
  • New per diem transfer station attendant – He’s working out well but has concerns with the amount of time to set up and take down and not being compensated for the time.  Shawn will reach out to Bill as this is second hand information.
The Board met with Police Chief, Gareth Backhaus to discuss the following:
  • Scheduling – The Chief reported he is currently working an additional 16 hours 3 days a week in the absence of a full time officer.
  • Full time position: The Chief would like to place an ad for a full time police officer; several people have already shown interest.  At this point the position would be for an officer, not a Sergeant, but would require a candidate with a few years’ experience.  Kenn pointed out that the Board needs to plan ahead for the future of the department. M. Noe was asked to update and add information to the existing salary survey for surrounding police departments so the Board can come up with a comparable amount to pay the right applicant.
  • Part timers – The Chief currently has someone in the part time academy set to finish mid-September.
  • Sedan cruiser: It was brought to the shop and it was found that it is only running on 3 of the 8 cylinders.  The Chief officially requested to junk it, strip off all the valuables and bring it to the scrap yard.  The Board agreed.
The Board met with Baystate Municipal Accounting Group to discuss the following:
  • July reports will be going out by the end of today.
  • OBRA (mandatory and voluntary): Baystate has figured out the problem with payroll contributions not being sent to the state by previous Treasurers for a considerable amount of time to the MA Smart Plan.  In doing this research there are also inconsistencies found with the number of employees the state has and what we have.
  • M. Noe is working with Baystate to finish collecting the missing employee update forms.
  • Justin reported that the processes are smoothing out and they continue to work on the back log.
  • Baystate is streamlining the bill paying process to make it easier for the departments and save time.
  • Tracking capital assets (recommended by auditor): Justin is waiting for additional information prior to giving an estimate for starting this process.
At 10am National Grid was present to review the pole request for Chestnut Hill approximately 1,850 feet north of Cronk Rd.  No abutters were present and the Tree Warden and Director of Operations had no objections.  A motion was made to approve the request which was seconded and approved unanimously.

At 10:15am National Grid was present to review the pole request for Chestnut Hill approximately 2,750 feet north of Cronk Rd.  No abutters were present and the Tree Warden and Director of Operations had no objections.  A motion was made to approve the request which was seconded and approved unanimously.

A motion was made and unanimously approved to adjourn the meeting at: 12:15pm

Submitted by:
Melissa Noe, Administrative Assistant
Approved by:
Monterey Select Board

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