BOARD OF SELECTMEN

MINUTES

SEPTEMBER 4, 2007

Present:          Hal White, Chairman

Steven Halterman

Ted Goodwin

Arnold Wilson

William Emrich

James Malloy, Town Administrator

The Chairman called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. following the Pledge of Allegiance.

Approval of Minutes

MOTION:       To accept the executive session minutes of August 6, 2007, to remain confidential, by S. Halterman.

2nd:     W. Emrich

Vote:  All in favor.

MOTION:       To accept the minutes of August 20, 2007 as amended, by W. Emrich.

2nd:     A.Wilson

Vote:  All in favor.

Ed Plimpton – Renewal of Earth Removal Permit – Public Hearing Continuance

J. Malloy informed the Board that additional information had been submitted by Greg Morse, DPW Director.  He said that G. Morse and Kelly Kippenberger, Conservation Agent, had conducted a site visit and determined that there were no conservation issues, as the work will be done outside the buffer zone.  G. Morse forwarded a memo dated August 22, 2007, and his recommendation was to grant an extension to the permit, and advised that E. Plimpton have his contractor complete the grading of the slope.

MOTION:       To close the public hearing, by S. Halterman.

2nd:     T. Goodwin

Vote:  All in favor.

MOTION:       To approve the two-year extension of the Earth Removal Permit for Edward Plimpton for 323 New Boston Road under the same conditions as the original permit dated June 16, 2003, by S. Halterman.

2nd:     T. Goodwin

Vote:  All in favor.

Camp Robinson Crusoe Bids

MOTION:       To award the contract and authorize the Town Administrator to execute all contract documents for the demolition of buildings at the former Camp Robinson Crusoe to McConnell Enterprises as per their bid dated August 21, 2007 for $174,000, by W. Emrich.

2nd:     A. Wilson

Vote:  All in favor.

H. White asked that Bob Briere be notified so that certain parts of the building could be retained for historical purposes.  J. Malloy said that the things that Bob Briere was looking for have been removed from the building.

LEPC Full Certification

J. Malloy submitted to the Board an August 17, 2007 letter from MEMA awarding a stipend to the Town of Sturbridge for achieving full certification for the Town’s Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) as well as two August 20, 2007 letters congratulating the Town for achieving full certification and for the new Regional Emergency Planning Committee for achieving the start-up certification.  He noted that the Police and Fire Departments had done a lot of work to obtain full certification, and John Hart has worked hard to obtain the start-up certification.  He recommended that the two Chiefs and John Hart be commended for their efforts.  It was the consensus of the Board to send commendation letters to them.

MOTION:       To authorize the Town Administrator to execute the agreement between the Town of Sturbridge and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for $750 for the Sturbridge LEPC, by W. Emrich.

2nd:     T. Goodwin

Vote:  All in favor.

Property Information

The Board had asked for an analysis of several sample commercial and industrial properties in Town which showed actual property tax increases.  J. Malloy submitted to the Board the properties requested as well as a comparison with average single family homes tracked from the year before the tax rate was split through the last fiscal year, with both dollar and percentage increases.  He also included a comparison (copy on file) between FY04 (single tax rate) to FY07 by the major classes (Residential, Commercial, Industrial, Personal).

J. Malloy noted that the Town has maintained a 75/25 split from FY04 to FY07, and noted that there was substantial new residential development between those years.  He said that he had met with the Board of Assessors, and they indicated that they had submitted the information on the revaluation to the Dept. of Revenue.  The tax classification hearing will be scheduled soon.

Senior Municipal Service Program

MOTION:       To approve the Senior Municipal Service Program for Ellen Speed working for the Finance Department, by W. Emrich.

2nd:     T. Goodwin

Vote:  All in favor.

Fiske Hill East

J. Malloy distributed the revised site plan for the development known as Fiske Hill East (Dan Flynn) showing how the lots would be divided and used (copy on file).  He noted that there are several issues that the developer will need to meet with the Board with regarding sewer, 40B vs. traditional development and a discussion on a possible donation of land that abuts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife property.  He suggested scheduling the property owner to meet with the Selectmen.

J. Malloy informed the Board that the state has identified the property as qualifying for a 40B application.

Woodside/Westwood Drive Right of Entry Agreements

MOTION:       To authorize the Board of Selectmen to execute the Right of Entry Agreements for the Woodside Circle and Westwood Drive Sewer Project as presented, by W. Emrich.

2nd:     T. Goodwin

Vote:  All in favor.

SCRAM Grant

MOTION:       To authorize the Town Administrator to submit a school chemical management/cleanout grant to the South Central Recycling Association of Massachusetts Inc. and to sign any documents necessary to submit the grant, by S. Halterman.

2nd:     T. Goodwin

Vote:  All in favor.

McGilpin Road

J. Malloy informed the Board that he had spoken with Jean Bubon, Town Planner and Greg Morse, DPW Director, and G. Morse indicated that he had marked the trees to be removed with orange ribbons.  The hearing on the tree removal will be held on Sept. 25th at the Planning Board meeting as the Scenic Road hearing.  J. Bubon and G. Morse indicated that a direct notice will be sent to all residents.  Tom Chamberland, Tree Warden, said that he and G. Morse had met on the site and agreed to the list of trees.  T. Chamberland determined which trees would be subject to the Scenic Road hearing and Ch. 87, and those which would only be subject to the Scenic Road hearing because of their individual hazardous condition.  They will move forward with the posting.

J. Malloy said that he would schedule an informational meeting within six to eight weeks, with G. Morse in attendance.

Thomas Chamberland, Veterans’ Agent

T. Chamberland said that the Gold Star Mothers’ Monument in front of the Center Office building had been erected in cooperation between the American Legion Post and the Town after World War 2 to honor the four men who had lost their lives in battle with four white crosses.  The monument has been cleaned.  He would like to add an additional cross for Lt. Joshua Booth, and suggested the addition of a bench.  The walk was installed in the mid 1980s, but it was not placed at ADA grade.  He asked Tantasqua students to draw up plans, which was done, featuring a bench with brick sidewalk at ADA grade, a patio with an area to place flowers, and five new white crosses.  He submitted copies of the drawing to the Board (copy on file).  An additional tree will be planted and additional landscaping will be done.  The DPW crew will excavate and do the necessary work.  T. Chamberland said that he had contacted the Sheriff’s Office to see if he could get some assistance, but he has received no response.  J. Malloy said that he would ask the Police Chief to get in touch with the Sheriff’s Department.

T. Chamberland said that the Gold Star Mothers’ Monument rededication will take place on Sunday, September 30th at 1:30 p.m., at which time each family of the veterans will be asked to place a flower pot in front of each cross, followed by a salute from the firing squad, taps, and a prayer by the Chaplain.  Following the ceremony, they will travel to the Holland Road bridge for the dedication ceremony in honor of Lt. Joshua Booth.

Tantasqua Assessments

H. White asked for an update on the Tantasqua assessments.  J. Malloy said that the School Committee had voted to return money to the Town of Sturbridge.  They will reduce Sturbridge’s portion of the transportation assessment by $12,371; they will reduce Sturbridge’s operating assessment by $75,956, for a total reduction of $88,328.  H. White said that the Town’s operating deficit will be reduced to $100,000 because of this and other changes.

Miscellaneous

H. White announced that on Sept. 12th there will be a meeting at 7:00 p.m. at the Monson Library regarding the proposed casino in Palmer.

H. White announced that there will be a CMMPO meeting on Sept. 5th.  He suggested that CMMPO meeting announcements be mailed to the Chairman of the Board of Selectmen or the Town Administrator.

MOTION:       To convene in executive session under MGL CH. 39, §23B, Paragraph #6:  To consider the purchase, exchange, taking, lease or value of real property; and to invite the Community Preservation Committee to attend the session; and to reconvene in open session, by T. Goodwin.

2nd:     W. Emrich

Roll call vote:  All in favor.

The Board reconvened in open session in 8:15 p.m.

Special Town Meeting Warrant

MOTION:       To authorize the Board of Selectmen to execute the purchase and sale agreements for 52 Stallion Hill Road, 51 Holland Road and 55 Holland Road as presented for $850,000, by A.Wilson.

2nd:     S. Halterman

Vote:  All in favor

MOTION:       To set a Special Town Meeting date of September 26, 2007 at 7:00 p.m. at Tantasqua Senior High School Auditorium, by A.Wilson.

2nd:     T. Goodwin

Vote:  All in favor.

Article #47 – Community Preservation – Land Acquisition – 52 Stallion Hill Road; 51 Holland Road and 55 Holland Road

MOTION:       To place Article #47 on the Special Town Meeting Warrant, by A.Wilson.

2nd:     T. Goodwin

Vote:  All in favor.

S. Halterman asked the Community Preservation Committee to update the Board regarding some of the uses, if there are restrictions for purchasing the land relative to use, and if they are using CPC money.  Penny Dumas, CPC, read the definition of active and passive recreational uses for open space into the record.  She said that they include, but are not limited to the use of land for community gardens, trails, non-commercial youth sports and adult sports, and the use as a park, playground, or athletic field; it does not include horse or dog racing or a stadium, gym or similar structure.  She noted that the CPC would like to be more specific in the future regarding intended uses of recreational land in Town Meeting articles, so that people at Town Meeting will know what they are voting for.

MOTION:       To close the Special Town Meeting Warrant for September 26, 2007, by A.Wilson.

2nd:     S. Halterman

Vote:  All in favor.

J. Malloy said that he would change the article to be posted, indicating that the Board of Selectmen’s recommendation will be provided at the Town Meeting.  P. Dumas thanked J. Malloy and the Board for their hard work.

J. Malloy recommended that the posting include:  the Board’s recommendation will be provided at Town Meeting; the land to be controlled by the Town of Sturbridge (then by default it would be under the control of the Town Administrator).

MOTION:       That the Board support Article #47 with the recommendation changed to:  “Said land to be held, managed and controlled by the Town of Sturbridge,” by A.Wilson.

2nd:     T. Goodwin

Vote:  All in favor.

Old Business

A.Wilson noted that the Board had suggested arranging a meeting with Dan O’Connell.  J. Malloy suggested including Senator Brewer and Rep. Smola, and suggested going through their offices to have them arrange it.

A.Wilson asked whether the Board thought that the towns of Southbridge, Charlton, Spencer should be included in the dialogue regarding casinos.  T. Goodwin suggested continuing the dialogue with the towns to the west of Sturbridge (that would be immediately affected by the proposed casino in Palmer) then later discuss the matter with other towns.

A.Wilson said that during the meeting in Holland regarding Tantasqua’s budget, they discussed the development of a regional bus route.  He said that Sturbridge is running its own buses and the rest of the district running their own buses through contract services.  He noted that since Sturbridge runs their bus service much cheaper and more efficiently, Sturbridge did not get its full share of transportation funds.

W. Emrich asked about the status of appointments.  J. Malloy said that the openings have been advertised, he needed to interview several more people, and he intended to bring it back before the Board on September 17th.

H. White informed the Board that he had met with Derek Frechette, who requested that the Frechette family be allowed to place a bench at the Cedar Lake Recreation Area on a concrete pad, with a bronze memorial plaque in memory of their son Christian, at no expense to the Town.  They also requested that the Town name that area “Christian’s Cove.”  H. White said that the plaque will have a profile of Christian, with his date of birth and date of death.  They requested that the Town place appropriate shrubs and other plantings on either side of the bench.  J. Malloy did not think that it would be appropriate, since the Town has not named any geographic sites after anyone, except the Roland Wilson Media Center at the High School, and the bridge named for Lt. Joshua Booth, which was done through an act of the state.  He said that it was a tragic occurrence at the Cedar Lake Recreation Area, and people would be reminded of that if the cove was named.  He said that he was not in favor of doing it.

New Business

T. Goodwin said that he has been doing some research on how municipalities make their towns a better place for small businesses through tax credits, etc.  He said that he would appreciate hearing any ideas and suggestions on the subject.  J. Malloy said that Jennifer Morrison had given him some information on it, and once the Economic Development Committee is in place, they could take a look at it.

CWMP Discussion

S. Halterman gave a recap of the Board’s discussion at the previous meeting regarding the CWMP.  He reminded the Board that the numbers that he had were the result of brainstorming at a previous work session.  He noted that the number used on the existing flows was 690,000 gallons.  He went back to the NPDES permit and they had used a 12 month average of monthly gpd.  He looked at flows pumped to Southbridge that were not being included in the flows to the Wastewater Treatment Plant.  He came up with a number of 617,000 instead of 690,000.  He said that he was not sure how the EPA looked at the flows.  He noted that in recent months, small amounts are being pumped to Southbridge.

H. White suggested reconciling the numbers from Tighe & Bond with S. Halterman’s numbers, and finding out whose responsibility it is to find out from the EPA what they are looking at, so that they can be provided with the proper information.  J. Malloy suggested that Tighe & Bond could answer that question.  He said that Tighe & Bond is in the process of setting up a meeting with the EPA and DEP.

S. Halterman suggested coming up with a realistic number for additional commercial and industrial flow, and noted that there should be a 20% buffer.  J. Malloy said that Tighe & Bond is putting together the final CWMP.

A.Wilson said that regarding industrial use, the company that he works for is 80,000 square feet with 125 employees, and uses 13.7 gallons per employee per day, which includes watering the lawn.  He presented the information to the Board as an example of “light industry,” of the low end of industrial use.

S. Halterman said that in order to estimate the expansion of the Wastewater Treatment Plant, it will be necessary to come up with a calculation of additional commercial and additional industrial usage.  He noted that it will also be necessary to look at the role of the Southbridge wastewater treatment plant.

J. Malloy said that based on the Board’s discussion, he would send an email to the Finance Department to identify commercial and industrial customers, and develop an analysis of consumption/use.

S. Halterman said that another thing to consider is how much flow will be discharged to the river, which is an issue with the DEP and the EPA.  He suggested that the Board discuss splitting flows between what is put into the river and what is put into the ground.  He noted that according to Pio Lombardo, there are some excellent places for groundwater discharge.  He suggested that the Board meet with the EPA and DEP to review the numbers.

J. Malloy said that it is being presented to the EPA as: the existing area of the Town that has sewer, areas of Town that are low, moderate and high need future potential sewer customers, based on failed septic systems, lot size, water table, soil types, existing zoning, and the rating criteria.  He said that the flow calculation would be based on the size of the property and the zoning in place.  He said that the map is the key to determine what size plant will be needed, and the key for the EPA to understand what the future potential need will be in the community.  He suggested that the Board look at the map to determine what areas of Town are to be part of the sewer shed.  T. Goodwin suggested doing the same thing for industrial.

H. White said that the Board needs to define the proposed sewer shed, and to develop a philosophy on the use of the Southbridge wastewater plant.  A.Wilson said that the whole idea of sending flow to Southbridge was to take all of the gravity flow off of the Fiske Hill area and let it flow naturally into Southbridge and outfit the Hobbs Brook pump station and pump up the hill in case of capacity problems at the Sturbridge wastewater treatment plant.  He said that it should have no bearing on the design of the facility.  H. White suggested scheduling a meeting with Tighe & Bond.

Comag/BioMag

J. Malloy said that he and Greg Morse, DPW Director, had taken a field trip to Saco, Maine to meet with representatives of Clean Water Technology and Tighe & Bond.  There was a three-hour presentation on their system, and they toured their pilot plant.  Comag is an alternative to sand filtration and other filtration systems to treat wastewater, and is cutting edge technology.  They’ve altered the process and put it at the front end of the plant, with tremendous success, and called it BioMag.  He indicated that CWT felt that the Sturbridge wastewater treatment plant would be a good candidate for BioMag.  He said that if the findings prove that it is a viable treatment process, then Tighe & Bond will present it as a potential process for treatment.  He said that Clean Water Technology will tour the Sturbridge wastewater treatment plant and then put together a summary proposal.

Ask the Selectmen

Tom Creamer asked why Conservation Commission meetings are not being televised, and why the Board had a concern with G. Peabody and P. Jeffries serving on the Housing Partnership Committee and M. Sosik serving on the Economic Development Committee.  H. White said that he was out of order, and noted that the people on the phone cannot hear his question.

T. Goodwin received a call about requesting work assistance from prison inmates.  J. Malloy said that under the former Sheriff, the inmate work program was used in painting Town Hall, with mixed results.  He noted that the Town had to pay for their meals while they worked, and they only got the job half done.

T. Goodwin received a call from a resident who suggested bringing the Cable Advisory Committee back for the next contract discussions with Charter Communications.  J. Malloy said that it is still in existence.

T. Goodwin said that a caller thought that having J. Malloy serve on many committees stifled and controlled the committees.  He thought that it keeps people from joining committees.

T. Goodwin said that a caller asked whether there has been any money received by the Town from oil companies for settlements on groundwater contamination.  J. Malloy said that the Town received $1.6 million three years ago for the Well #1 contamination.

T. Goodwin received a call from a resident who noted that J. Malloy has been applying for a lot of jobs at larger communities, and suggested that when his contract comes up for renewal that the Board should consider not renewing it.  J. Malloy said that his contract is for an indefinite term.

H. White said that the issue of televising Conservation Commission meetings was covered under correspondence.  He said that David Barnicle, Chairman of the Conservation Commission, had answered it by saying that the Conservation Commission is in compliance with the Open Meeting Law.  He said that a newspaper article was printed that indicated that a survey of area towns showed that only one town televised more meetings than Sturbridge.  He said that all town boards and committees must comply with state regulations, and the televising of meetings is not a state requirement.  He suggested that the subject be placed on the agenda for further discussion when the Town Hall and Center Office building renovations are nearing completion; at that time all of the boards and committees should meet to coordinate their meeting schedules and come up with a townwide approach to televising meetings.

H. White said that he did not think it was appropriate for the Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Zoning Board of Appeals to serve on a committee that may bring business before the ZBA.

H. White said that he would not discuss the qualifications of a specific individual to serve on a committee, and stated that since he had been on the Board, the Board never discussed the merits of the individual.  H. White had discussed it with Town Counsel, and they advised him that this was a good approach for the Board to continue to take.

H. White asked whether the Board should state the subject of the litigation to be discussed when it goes into executive session.  J. Malloy said that the Board has not done that in several years.

H. White noted that the Board had not voted to change the procedure for Ask the Selectmen as to how it was handled tonight.  He said that as he was chairing the meeting, he had chosen to handle it as he did.  He said that Ask the Selectmen is an opportunity for people to call in to ask questions of the Board.  He noted that the Board has not discussed adding a citizens’ forum or open mic.  A.Wilson suggested that anyone who wants to address the whole Board should contact Judy Knowles at the Selectmen’s office to be put on the agenda.

MOTION:       To convene in executive session under MGL Chapter 39, §23B, Paragraph 3:  To discuss strategy with respect to collective bargaining or litigation; not to reconvene in open session, by T. Goodwin.

2nd:     S. Halterman

Roll call vote:  All in favor.

Respectfully submitted,

Judy Knowles

_________________________________

BOS Clerk                             Date