Minutes
Stow Board of Selectmen
November 9, 2016
Pompo Community Center
Present at the meeting that was held at the Pompositticut Community Center Function Room were James Salvie, Brian Burke, Donald Hawkes and Thomas Ryan. Ingeborg Hegemann was absent.
Also present were William Wrigley, Town Administrator and Maureen Trunfio, Administrative Assistant
Mr. Salvie called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
Public Input: None.
Chairman’s Comments: Mr. Salvie welcomed all to the first meeting at the Pompo Community Center. He announced that the Stow Gobbler 5K would take place on November 24th, Thanksgiving Day, at the Stow Community Park and that anyone interested could still sign up. He mentioned that on Friday, November 11th, the Rotary Club would sponsor a Veterans’ Day Breakfast at the First Parish Church beginning at 8 am. Finally, he thanked all who had voted on Tuesday, contributing to the 86% voter turnout and thanked the Town Clerk for her efforts.
Meeting minutes
Mr. Ryan moved to accept the meeting minutes of the October 26, 2016 meeting with amendments. Mr. Hawkes seconded the motion and it was passed unanimously.
Mr. Ryan moved to accept the meeting minutes of the January 26, 2016 as drafted. Mr. Burke seconded the motion and it was passed unanimously.
Tax Classification Hearing
Principal Assessor Kristen Fox and Chair of the Board of Assessors Dom Pugliese were present to discuss the implications of splitting the tax rate. At this advertised hearing, the public was invited to present their views on whether or not Residential, Commercial, Industrial, Open Space and Personal Property should be taxed with one rate for all property classes or to use different tax rates for different property classes. It was decided that the Town would continue to use one-rate system for property tax assessments and they signed the Classification Tax Allocation for FY-2017.
Based on information from the Board of Assessors, Mr. Hawkes moved that the Town of Stow adopt a minimum residential factor of 1, to keep a single tax rate for fiscal year 2017, taxing all property classes at one rate. Mr. Ryan seconded the motion and it was passed unanimously.
Update on Town Center Park – Conservation Coordinator & Project Team
Conservation Coordinator Kathy Sferra was present with Landscape Architect Stuart Weintraub to update the Board regarding plans to develop the new park planned for property at 323 Great Road. Ms. Sferra explained that most of the funding for the project would be provided by the CPC (Community Preservation Committee.) She told the Board she would provide them with a cost estimate in the near future.
Eversource Presentation re: Sudbury to Hudson Transmission Reliability Project
Project Manager Beverly Schultz, Head of Transmission Siting Maija Benjamins, Senior Environmental Engineer Denise Bartone, EMF Specialist Bob Carberry, Sr. Engineer of Transmission Planning Betty Leonard, Consultant Tom Johnson, Head of Research and Surveying Terry Feursanger, Project Outreach Specialist Mark Kimball and Community Relations Representative JoAnne O’Leary, of Eversource Energy were present for a follow-up to their first presentation (2/23/16) on this project. Members of the Town Administrator’s Working Group Arnie Epstein and Jesse Steadman were present as well.
Eversource officials explained the need to resolve energy transmission reliability problems. They provided information on the three possible scenarios of an overhead or underground transmission line route along the rail bed, plus a route under the public way.
Stow residents including Rosemary Monahan of 50 Marlboro Road, Stan Michalski of 11 Chestnut Street and Bhaird Cambell of 18 High Street spoke out against the project. In addition, Brian O’Neal of Parmenter Road in Hudson was present and spoke in opposition to the project.
Discussion/vote re: Belmont’s withdrawal from the Minuteman Regional School District and option to hold Special Town Meeting
The Town received notification on October 28th from the Minuteman School District that Belmont had given notice of their wish to withdraw from the District. The Selectmen saw no reason to call a Special Town Meeting to address Belmont’s withdrawal.
As a result of the discussion by the Board of Selectmen, Mr. Hawkes moved not to convene a Special Town Meeting to consider Belmont’s withdrawal from the Minuteman High School District. Mr. Ryan seconded the motion and it was passed unanimously.
Discussion/vote to authorize Town Administrator to enter into negotiations for food distribution agreement and to execute a contract
Mr. Wrigley reported that he had been in discussions with the Stow Food Pantry regarding space from which to operate at the Pompo Community Center. The Board voted to authorize the Town Administrator to execute a contract with the Stow Food Pantry.
Mr. Hawkes moved that the Board of Selectmen authorize the Town Administrator to enter into negotiations and subsequently enter into an agreement with the Stow Food Pantry for the use of Town-owned space at the Pompo Community Center. Mr. Ryan seconded the motion and it was passed unanimously.
Town Administrator’s Report
Mr. Wrigley reported that he would like to organize a working group to address various traffic issues in Stow. The Board agreed this would be a good approach to take.
He told the Board that the annual budget process is underway and that a 2% cost of living increase for employees is planned for FY-2018. He announced that the Planning Department had received a MassWorks Infrastructure Grant for $850K and thanked Jesse Steadman and Karen Kelleher for their work in securing the grant.
The Town Administrator left the meeting at 9:27 p.m.
Liaison Reports
Mr. Burke mentioned that the Local Access Channel Advisory Committee is preparing to come into compliance with new State regulations regarding accounting practices. He reported that perambulation is underway.
Mr. Hawkes reported that the Lake Boon Commission (LBC) met on November 7th. He said they have been running into delays in appointing a Bylaw Safety Review Subcommittee. He said the LBC Patrol Boat is out of the water for the season and that, on the advice of the Board of Health and the Conservation Commission, they voted to remove the board that controls the level of the lake.
Mr. Salvie reported that there will be a meeting of the Randall Building Committee on Monday, November 14th to review plans relating to the remodel of the historic portion of the Library.
At 9:38 p.m. Mr. Hawkes moved to adjourn. Mr. Ryan seconded the motion and it was passed unanimously.
Respectfully submitted,
Maureen Trunfio
Administrative Assistant to the Board of Selectmen
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