Board of Selectmen
Community Hall Annex
January 6, 2014
6 pm
Present: Peter J. Letsky, Chairman; Sheila H. Dibb, Vice-Chairman, Joseph R. Becker, Leroy C. Clark and Nancy M. Macaruso, Secretary. Michael S. Pantos arrived at 8:50 pm.
Mr. Clark moved to sign Treasury warrant #14 and payroll. Mr. Becker seconded. Vote unanimous.
Mr. Clark moved to accept the minutes from November 25, 2013 with a slight amendment. Regarding the pole hearing at Wildbrook Drive, part of the motion was that the road must be brought back to original condition and all seams need to be sealed. Mr. Becker seconded. Vote unanimous.
Open Session:
George Johnson came before the Board stating that he’s pleased the flow meters will be installed soon on Miles Road. He feels that the Town needs a separate Water Board and secretary. Short discussion. He also is concerned about excessive water on his property due to the building of three new homes in the area.
6:50 pm – Dog hearing (Sillo / Haber)
Laura Pease, ACO, summarized her report for the Board. Deborah Sillo, owner of Georgia, agreed that her dog left the property and did indeed bite another dog, but states that it was her mistake, not the dog’s. She then went on to give instances where her dog has been in public and was not a threat. Sherrie Haber gave her account of the attack on her dog, Hudson. Several residents were in attendance to state their fear of Georgia as well. Hearing closed at 7:15 pm. Ms. Dibb moved the following recommendations for both dogs and that Georgia be classified as a nuisance dog, not a dangerous dog:
1) spaying or neutering (completed on both dogs already)
2) micro-chipping the dogs to ensure identification should the dog be sold or given to another person
3) require ongoing behavior training by a qualified trainer specializing in dogs with problem behavior
4) use of a correctly fitted wire basket muzzle for both dogs whenever outside or off the owner/keeper’s premises
5) containment of the dogs on the owner/keeper’s property in a fashion provided, however, that a radio-fence alone will not constitute restraint on an owner’s property; to include an appropriate wire run with muzzle; without confinement
6) the dogs must never be unrestrained in town boundaries
7) the dogs must be hand walked by a competent adult, on an adequate leash no longer than six feet in length
Mr. Becker seconded. Vote was three in favor, Mr. Clark nay. Motion passed.
DPW:
Superintendent Kellaher spoke to Town Counsel about Nexamp and Hampshire Power and handed each member a packet to review at their leisure. Geoff Rogers is not happy with the prices he’s getting. Mr. Kellaher will be attending a meeting with Paul Cranston and Paul Burnett from Quabbin Regional School District.
Gail Krikorian, DPW custodian, has submitted her resignation; she will be retiring on February 6, 2014. The Board thanked her for her duties and wished her well.
CMMPO meeting this Wednesday at 4:30 pm at Union Station regarding the TIP process.
Mr. Kellaher submitted a packet from EcoTec, Inc. re: the topographical survey of Rutland’s watershed. The Board will review and bring back for public presentation at the February 3rd meeting.
Short discussion regarding Paxton and the fuel purchase.
Flow meters will be installed on Miles Road in two weeks. Mr. Becker asked the superintendent about the available options to control speeding on Miles Road. Several options were discussed.
Mr. Kellaher informed the Board that he has a current employee, who due to a health issue, is no longer able to continue his employment as a DPW laborer which leaves him extremely short-handed especially during plow season. He is asking permission to hire a temporary/seasonal plow driver (no benefits). After a short discussion, Mr. Becker moved to support the superintendent’s request to advertise for a temporary/seasonal laborer. Mr. Clark seconded. Vote unanimous.
Correspondence:
Ms. O’Brien will be attending the Worcester Regional Retirement meeting January 9th.
Fire:
Some discussion on the mutual aid agreement with regard to the Oakham chief’s retirement. Rutland responded to an Oakham fire Friday night. A chimney fire was also recently fought in town.
Goals and Objectives for the Fire Chief:
Chief Weber has been employed for 13 months and read through his goals and accomplishments thus far including hiring procedures, labor relations, staff management, team building, shift coverage, training, budget prep and management, public relations, equipment, grants and funding opportunities, shared dispatch, chief development/training, and general competencies. Mr. Becker feels that overall the Chief has met his expectations, has overcome some early challenges and has made some improvements, but additional work is needed such as PAT testing and goals and objectives brought forward regarding the dispatch director. Mr. Becker would like to see the Emergency Management component worked on more formally and the Chief get more aggressive in achieving a measurable decline in write-offs regarding ambulance
billing. Mr. Pantos would like to see a spreadsheet listing specific department training that’s planned and then completed. Mr. Pantos stated that he had not seen a ‘stats’ report that he requested of the chief and would like to see a “Train the Trainers” type of seminar done in the department. The chief explained the difficulty in getting that particular ‘stats’ report from the present software program. Mr. Clark is glad to see that uniform medical procedures are being followed during ambulance calls. Ms. Dibb stated that she is still seeking documentation that a particular training class has been completed. She further stated that she was extremely concerned that the Chief and the Dispatch Director were not on site when the 911 system went down for a day a few months back. Chief Weber went on to explain that he was out sick that day but in fact did come in when he was informed of the problem and that the Director felt it was more
important that she be in the other town to assist with the downed system and he supported her decision. Ms. Dibb was extremely upset that two recent 911 calls from a town school came in requesting an ambulance, but were not sent. Lengthy and heated discussion ensued between Ms. Dibb and Chief Weber. Ms. Dibb would like to see an equipment replacement plan for 5, 10 and 15 years.
Once all policies are in place, the Chief will bring them forward. Mr. Becker will draft everything discussed and present at the next BOS meeting on January 21, 2014. Mr. Becker moved to sign Form 1 and to table signing Form 2 to January 21, 2014. Mr. Pantos seconded. Vote unanimous.
New Business:
Mr. Becker moved to appoint Anita Pratt to the Recreation Committee per the recommendation of the Recreation Committee. Ms. Dibb seconded. Vote unanimous.
Bids for IT services were opened today. Top four of the seven were Akuity Technologies, ClearCom IT Solutions, CMGeeks, Inc. and Forsberg & Carlson. They will be contacted and asked to attend the next Selectmen’s meeting individually from 6 – 8 pm for a short presentation and question/answer session.
Rebecca Tuttle, Treasurer/Collector: Goals and objectives
All are in agreement with Form 1 in being straightforward. Progression will be made toward all goals as everything listed cannot be accomplished within the next six months. Mrs. Tuttle suggested reversing #s 2 and 3 on Form 2 in order of importance. After some discussion, Mr. Becker moved to authorize the Chairman to sign Form 2 (reversing 2 and 3). Mr. Clark seconded. Vote unanimous. Mr. Becker moved to authorize the Chairman to sign Form 1 as presented. Ms. Dibb seconded. Vote unanimous.
Mrs. Tuttle’s appointment to the Health Insurance Advisory Committee will be added to the next agenda.
Mr. Pantos questioned the status on the transitional audit for the Treasurer/Collector’s office. Mr. Becker informed the Board that he, Dan Haynes and Rebecca Tuttle would be meeting Thursday at 4:30 to review for the annual audit and tax title.
Respectfully submitted,
Nancy M. Macaruso, Secretary
Board of Selectmen
| 
