Town of Princeton, Mass. – April 6, 2015
Minutes - BOARD OF SELECTMEN
6 PM The meeting was called to order in the Town Hall Annex. Present were Chairman Neil Sulmasy, Edith Morgan, Stan Moss, and interim T.A. Robert Reed., Advisory Board members present were Bill Lawton, Jim O’Coin and David Cruise.
Glenn Lyons was in for Highway Dept. FY’16 budget presentation. He reported the snow & ice budget went over by $30,000 due mainly to increased price for road salt. He’s requesting an extra $10,000 for the FY’16 budget. His total operating budget is $634,840 or $984,839 with road reconstruction money added in—plus the extra day in FY’16 will be added in, as it will be to all budgets.
Selectmen voted all in favor to appoint Chad Steiner, 111 Wheeler Road, to Agricultural Commission for the length of Jane Fife’s remaining term (Jun e 30, 2017), as Jane is stepping down from the Agr. Comm. the board agreed to send a letter of recognition to Jane for her service on the commission since 2010.
Selectmen discussed appointing member for the new Facilities Study Committee and received applications from seven potential members, which they haven’t completely reviewed, so the appointments were tabled to the next meeting. Stan M. noted that the committee would be charged with actions outlined in the architects’ recommendations.
6:20 PM The board voted all in favor to sign a contract with MassDOT for road repairs from winter damage and receive $52,110 for the Highway Dept.
6:25 PM Planning Board members John Mirick and Jon Fudeman came in to explain zoning articles. John M. outlined several details about the new Earth Removal Bylaw as it was presented at the public hearing on April 1. The other two articles were “housekeeping” issues.
6:45 PM The board voted all in favor to grant permission for a road race at the mountain on Saturday, May 23, conditional on approvals from the police and fire departments.
Old Business
Stan M. outlined a procedure to hire town administrator. The screening committee will evaluate candidates submitted by the Collins Center and conduct preliminary interviews to narrow the field; then the selectmen will interview the 3-4 individuals that the committee has selected on the target date of May 18. The selectmen voted all in favor to adopt the charge as noted in the (above) procedure. They then voted to appoint a screening committee comprised of Edith M., Joe O’Brien, Ray Dennehey, Jim O’Coin and Jim Dunbar. This committee would disband after a T.A. is hired.
Stan reported no real Broadband Committee update, other than attorneys on both sides are now communicating.
The event at Harrington Farm for John Lebeaux was reported as a great success and Bob R. will send a thank-you to John Bomba.
The ice rink at TP School was decommissioned last week and considered a success with more than 1,200 visitors this winter.
The board agreed to set the next BOS meeting for Thursday, April 16, as the next Monday is Patriots Day and Neil is unavailable that week. The time may be 3:30 PM
7 PM Bob R. will write ATM motions and get them to Town Counsel this week. He distributed the budget articles and a balance sheet. The board voted all in favor to close the FY’16 warrant for the ATM, noting that they could always re-open it if they deemed necessary. Stan M. had created a tax rate calculation report which he distributed and will give to the Advisory Board and finalize it at the next BOS meeting.
Other Business
The floor tiles at T.P. School are degraded and are coming up, especially in the oldest part of the building. Selectmen asked that Bob R. get a quote from the abatement firm that did the same project at Princeton Center. It was suggested that Jim O’Coin, who was in the furniture business, may know some sources for replacing commercial floor tile.
The board noted that representatives from WRSD did not appear as scheduled to discuss their budget, although they had met with selectmen last Thursday and confirmed tonight’s meeting then. The selectmen still need both a lease agreement and maintenance agreement from WRSD.
Bob R. reported that some budgets that need more funding next year include Veterans Services which needs another $5,000 for remainder of the year and $10-12,000 going forward, they are funded from the Reserve Fund which currently has $61,000. As noted, all department budgets need one extra day of funding in FY’16
.
Minutes and Warrants
Board voted all in favor to approve regular meeting minutes for March 23
Reviewed and approved vendor and payroll warrants: FY15 #20
7:45 PM Board voted all in favor to adjourn.
Respectfully submitted, Marie N. Auger, administrative assistant
BOS Referenced Documents: Letters from candidates for Facilities Study Committee; FY’16 budget summary for Highway Dept.; Facilities Study report from HKT Architects; request for road race; proposed zoning articles; ATM warrant and budget articles (draft).
Marie Auger
Administrative Assistant
Planning Department
978-464-2100
| 
