MINUTES
BOARD OF SELECTMEN
September 25, 2007
Present at the meeting that was held at the Town Building were Chairman Stephen Dungan and Selectmen Kathleen Farrell, Thomas Ruggiero, and Ellen Sturgis.
Jason Robart was absent.
Also present were Town Administrator William Wrigley and Administrative Assistant Susan McLaughlin.
Mr. Dungan called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
Public Input
None.
Chairman’s Comments
Mr. Dungan said the Board would postpone its vote on priorities for the Snow land until all members could be present. The regular meeting scheduled for October 9 would be rescheduled to the week of October 15.
Town Administrator’s Report
Mr. Wrigley reported on the following activities.
· Regarding Executive Order 193 and the Recreation Commission’s application for state funds, Mr. Wrigley had completed his role in the problem resolution and a solution is in progress. He arranged and chaired a meeting among state agencies and Stow boards, at which all parties were persuaded that EO 193 is in effect for the Snow property. This means that the Town must provide a mitigation plan for taking land out of agricultural use. Following the meeting, Ms. Sferra, member of Open Space and Conservation, sent a draft mitigation plan for his review prior to submission to the state.
· On the Lower Village Water project, Mass Dept of Environmental Protection held a regional meeting in Stow, at which Director Marty Suberg publicly stated his support of the Lower Village plan.
· Re: the Kunelius matter, a meditation session is scheduled for September 18, on the prospects of a possible settlement offer.
· Implementation of the SwiftReach emergency notification system is underway and the Public Safety department heads are working with the vendor on set-up.
October 16 Special State Election Warrant
The Board accepted and signed the warrant for the October 16, 2007 special election to fill Rep. Marty Meehan’s seat.
Meeting Minutes
September 11, 2007: Ms. Farrell moved to accept the September 11 minutes as amended; Ms. Sturgis seconded; and all voted in favor.
Appointment to the Council on Aging
Kate Hogan of Hastings Street requested appointment to a voting member position on the Council. She is presently an associate, one of many volunteer opportunities she has sought out since moving to Stow in March.
Asked her opinion on the most pressing need for seniors, she emphasized space needs, to allow COA services to keep pace with the growing senior population. She said the recent appointment of COA Executive Director Alyson Toole will serve the seniors well.
Ms. Sturgis moved to appoint Kate Hogan as a member of the COA; Ms. Farrell seconded; and all voted in favor.
Appointment of Part-time Public Safety Dispatcher
Upon the recommendation of Police Chief Mark Trefry, Ms. Sturgis m9oved to appoint Justine St. John as a part-time dispatcher; Ms. Farrell seconded; and all voted in favor.
Assabet River Rail Trail Inter-Municipal Agreement
At the request of Stow’s ARRT representative, Don Rising, the Board voted to extend the five-town project plan and agreement, which expires this year, for an additional five years.
Ms. Farrell moved to extend the Assabet River Rail Trail inter-municipal agreement until December 31, 2012; Ms. Sturgis seconded; and all voted in favor.
December 3 Special Town Meeting
The Board set a closing date for articles for the December 3, 2007 Town Meeting warrant. Ms. Sturgis moved to close the warrant on October 19; Mr. Ruggiero seconded; and all voted in favor.
Mr. Dungan stated, as a reminder, that the warrant articles and ballot questions must be in their final language when the warrant closes.
Assabet River Rail Trail Committee Appointments
The Board appointed Ralph Fuller of Laws Lane and Scott Arsenault of Red Acre Road to positions on the newly established Assabet River Rail Trail Committee, bringing the committee to its full five members. Both residents said they are enthusiastic cyclists and eager to help with the project.
Ms. Sturgis moved to appoint Scott Arsenault to the Assabet River Rail Trail Committee; Ms. Farrell seconded; and all voted in favor.
Ms. Farrell moved to appoint Ralph Fuller as a member of the Assabet River Rail Trail Committee; Ms. Sturgis seconded; and all voted in favor.
Recreation Commission member John Sangermano asked to join the committee, also. It was agreed that his experience on the Conservation Commission and being a liaison to ARRT from Recreation would help the project. He will see the ARRT Committee about an associate membership.
Status of the Affordable Housing Partnership
Affordable Housing Trust Chairman Mike Kopczynski visited the Board to discuss the Town’s problem getting members for the Affordable Housing Partnership. Members discussed several reasons why a Partnership was needed – eligibility for state grants, checks and balances with the Trust. Following discussion, it was agreed to have both the Partnership and Trust and redefine the former’s composition.
Mr. Dungan moved to modify membership of the Affordable Housing Partnership to include three people: one will be a joint appointment to the Housing Partnership and the Housing Trust and two will be independent of the Housing Trust; Ms. Sturgis seconded.
After discussion, Ms. Sturgis moved the motion with a small wording change: she moved to modify membership of the Affordable Housing Partnership to include three people: not more than one will be a joint appointment to the Housing Partnership and the Housing Trust and two will be independent of the Housing Trust; Ms. Farrell seconded; and all voted in favor.
Housing Partnership member Trish Settles had previously applied for the open Trust position and she will be invited to the next Selectmen’s meeting for appointment.
Snow Property Priorities
Mr. Dungan introduced the discussion, suggesting the following information be considered:
· Land Banking evaluation criteria
· Municipal Land Use Needs study – the six “Needed Now” items
· Full version of the Master Plan – including agricultural land
· Master Plan Update – actions on open space, housing, village and community
Members made the following points:
· There are priorities exclusive of the Snow property: school, fire station, and senior center.
· Agriculture, recreation, and affordable housing are “taking center stage now;” they keep coming up.
· Town is losing ground on 10-percent affordable housing goal.
· Making the community affordable for seniors is hugely important.
· Town is at “turning point” in recognizing the importance of affordable housing.
· The Board should take “a longer view” on recreation. The last purchase for recreational land was in 1994, for $40,000.
· To be successful at Town Meeting, a land purchase should have a multiplicity of use.
· Can affordable housing, agriculture and recreation all fit on Snow?
· Concern about spending a lot of money without fully vetting Snow property. Despite urgency, don’t want to make a mistake.
· In 13 years, Recreation has made no proposals until now. Rebutted that no rec funds were needed because they were frugal and used Air National guard and citizens to build the fields.
Mr. Wrigley was asked about the Snow cost impact on the debt schedule; he replied that $1.3M debted over 20 years “is not an eye opener” and “will pale” compared to the new school.
It was noted that feedback from the Joint Boards meeting and public forum was little interest in affordable housing and much interest in agriculture and recreation. This was rebutted, stating that affordable housing does not have a “marketing machine.”
It was agreed that the Board would review a matrix of options at a time when Mr. Robart could be present before making a decision.
Bob Wilber, Eric Bachtell, Linda Hathaway, and Mike Kopczykski gave opinions from the audience. Then the discussion closed with agreement to find a meeting date to decide on priorities for Snow property use.
Liaison Reports
As liaison to the Elementary school Building Committee, Ms. Sturgis reported that the committee reviewed the timing of building projects and the MSBA posting requirements, deciding they will not have a proposal by the May 2008 Annual Town Meeting. The next steps will be posting for an Owner’s Project Manager and for three associate members. Mr. Dungan asked Ms. Sturgis whether she was sure there was no risk in jeopardizing [MSBA] funding by jumping ahead. She affirmed that she was sure.
As liaison to Public Safety, Mr. Ruggiero noted that the office had responded to questions from Mr. Graf regarding the Board’s decision not to change the Red Acre Road speed zones.
At 8:55 p.m., Ms. Sturgis moved to adjourn; Mr. Ruggiero seconded; and all voted on favor.
Respectfully submitted,
Susan McLaughlin
Administrative Assistant, Board of Selectmen
Approved as written, October 30, 2007
| 
