Town of Princeton, Mass.
BOARD OF SELECTMEN --- February 11, 2013
Open Meeting
6:00 PM -- The meeting was called to order in the Town Hall Annex. Present were Chairman Edith Morgan, Stan Moss and Town Administrator John Lebeaux. Neil Sulmasy arrived at approximately 6:40 PM
The board voted all in favor to approve regular meeting minutes of January 28, 2013
--The board review and approved FY13 Vendor and Payroll Warrant # 16
Scheduled Meetings and Hearings –
6:05 PM -- Edie opened the Public Hearing for Norco Sportsman Club – for a Change of Manager Petition to its All Alcoholic Beverage Pouring License as required by the state ABCC. Representing the club were Jay Fitzgerald, John Flynn, Atty. Paul Sushchyk and the new manager Alan Sacks. The club has a full liquor license but does not maintain regular hours that are open to the public. The group explained briefly that personnel changed and they support Mr. Sacks to serve as manager as being experienced, knowledgeable and responsible.
Edie asked for any questions or comments from the selectmen then from the public and there were none. Stan moved to close the hearing, Edie seconded, the two voted all in favor. Then the two voted all in favor to approve the NORCO request for a change in management. Stan thanked the group and commended the club on its community support, with the 8th Grade fundraiser and other events.
6:10 PM – Broadband Committee (BBC) members Dag Olsen, Chairman Steve Cullen and John Kowaleski were in with a PowerPoint presentation. Selectman Stan M. is also on the committee. John K. went through the process his group had used—mainly traveling to Leverett, Mass. (which is about half the size of Princeton) where fiber-optic lines are being installed that reach all homes and buildings. To fund the project, Leveret did use grant funding that is no longer available, and also secured a bond. The BBC was able to use the research and info that Leverett officials had acquired, as they were very willing to share.
The fiber-optic network could provide bundled services similar to what cable offers but much faster and more reliable—it’s essentially photons in a “glass” strand traveling at the speed of light. No electricity is involved, so lightning and water are not an issue as with copper wire. The infrastructure would access every address.
The presentation included a spreadsheet of costs with comparisons and outlined the PR efforts the committee would take to gather support to publically fund this project. A press release was submitted describing a survey to be taken to assess the support of taxpayers in funding a bond and debt exclusion. A postcard will be mailed to invite residents to take the survey online or obtain a hard copy.
New Business
7:00 PM-- Town Clerk Lynne Grettum came in to explain a proposal from the state allowing municipalities to combine local elections this spring with state primary election—hold them on the same day with separate ballots. Stan made the following motion as supplied by the town administrator:
“I move that the Board vote, pursuant to Section 2 of Chapter 2 of the Acts of 2013, and after consultation with the Town Clerk, to change the date of the Annual Town Election to coincide with the date of the Special State Primary on April 30, and further, pursuant to the authority of said Chapter 2, the last day for filing nomination papers with the Board of Registrars for said local election will be March 19th, 2013, notwithstanding the provisions of G.L. c.53, §7, and that the remainder of the election calendar for said Annual Town Election shall be set as required by statute and shown on a calendar prepared by the Town Clerk, posted in her office, in the office of the Board of Selectmen, and on the Town’s official website; and further, to direct that the Town Clerk and Town Administrator work to ensure
that information about the rescheduled election be widely publicized in a manner calculated to best inform the public of the change in date of the Annual Town election and related election calendar, and I further move to change the hours for the Annual Town Election to coincide with the Special State Primary hours of 7am to 8pm.”
Neil seconded the motion and Edie abstained from voting because she is a candidate when her BOS term is up this spring. The remaining two voted to adopt the proposal.
7:12 PM The board started the annual budget process, with a spreadsheet supplied by John L., who explained how the tax levy is computed. He outlined all sources of revenue, concluding with the total $9.483 million in the revenue stream, of which about 7 percent comes from various state sources. John then distributed a list of budget requests from town departments, noting that any that didn’t respond were level-funded, although most of those responding agreed to level-funding. He reported that the Council on Aging gets a formula grant based on the number of senior citizens in the community. Also, the assessment for the Worc. County Retirement System was up $40,000. John will mail a budget calendar again to the Advisory Board and will post a meeting for them at 6:30 at the next BOS meeting.
The board considered a Class II Auto Dealers License for Steve Zottoli, to expire Dec. 31, 2013. They voted all in favor to approve and sign it.
Old Business
After a brief explanation by John L., the board voted all in favor to approve a date change requested by MIT Bike Race officials, from March 31 to March 31, as Easter Sunday was considered a conflict.
Other Business
7:55 PM The Advisory Board and selectmen lauded the efforts of public safety personnel, DPW and PMLD through the blizzard of Feb. 8 & 9. The snow was cleared quickly and there were no interruptions in infrastructure or services. Edie said they should know that they are appreciated. Stan proposed sending a letter to all departments to reflect thanks and regards for their dedication.
John noted that town staff is tracking extra expenses incurred by the storm, and documenting them as preparation for any reimbursements
8:00 PM Adjourn
Respectfully submitted, Marie Auger, administrative assistant
Referenced Documents: Broadband Committee PowerPoint document & press release; town budget spreadsheet; Class II License; ABCC license
Marie Auger
Administrative Assistant
Planning Department
| 
