BOARD OF SELECTMEN

MINUTES

APRIL 20, 2010

Present:          Ted Goodwin, Chair

Thomas Creamer

Mary Blanchard

Scott Garieri

Shaun Suhoski, Town Administrator

Mary Dowling was absent.

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

Approval of Minutes

MOTION:       To accept the work session minutes of March 8, 2010 as amended, by M. Blanchard.

2nd:     T. Creamer

Vote:  All in favor.

MOTION:       To accept the April 5, 2010 minutes as amended, by T. Creamer.

2nd:     M. Blanchard

Vote:  Three in favor; S. Garieri opposed.

Sam’s Food Store – New Liquor License

Attorney George Hammond appeared before the Board.  S. Suhoski read the legal ad into the record.  The managing partners of 392 Main Street LLC, Salman Anwar and Farrukh Chaudhry were also present.  G. Hammond indicated that the hours of operation would be 6:30 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.  T. Creamer pointed out a few sections in their application which should be addressed as a housekeeping issue as required information was missing.

A.Chaudhry said that everyone who is going to work in the store will be TIPS certified.  He noted that most of them are family members, with outside help only working 20 hours/week.

MOTION:       To close the public hearing, by M. Blanchard.

2nd:     T. Creamer

Vote:  All in favor.

MOTION:       To grant a Beer and Wine Package Store liquor license to 392 Main Street LLC d/b/a Sam’s Food Store, by M. Blanchard.

2nd:     S. Garieri

Vote:  All in favor.

Tom Chamberland, Tree Warden – Arbor Day Activities

Tom Chamberland, Tree Warden, reviewed the upcoming Arbor Day activities in the Town of Sturbridge.  He said that the Tree Warden Advisory Committee has been helpful in defining the purposes and responsibilities of the office of Tree Warden.  They decided to try something new this year, and planted 33 bare root trees.  He said that they were much easier to plant, with less disturbance to the planting site, and no need for heavy equipment to plant them.

T. Chamberland said that trees will be saved during the Burgess Elementary School construction process.  He noted that there are over 40 different species of trees planted at Burgess.  The Burgess School Building Committee has allocated some funds and Northern Tree Service will bring in their tree spade to dig up approximately 15 trees this week.  Some of the trees will be moved to permanent locations, others to a holding location, to be moved back to Burgess at a later date, at a cost of $4,998.

T. Chamberland said that seedlings will be distributed to Burgess Elementary School students, a donation from Yankee Spirits and the Sturbridge Tourist Association.  On Arbor Day Tantasqua High School students will plant a tree as a school project.

T. Goodwin read the Arbor Day Proclamation.

MOTION:       To declare April 30, 2010 Arbor Day in the Town of Sturbridge, by M. Blanchard.

2nd:     T. Creamer

Vote:  All in favor.

Lee Upton – Request for Sewer Connection

Tony Grossi appeared before the Board to represent Lee Upton, who could not be present.  His request was for connection to town sewer for 5 Haynes Street, at the intersection of Haynes Street and Route 131.  There have been Title 5 issues at the property.

S. Suhoski said that G. Morse, DPW Director, had inspected the site and felt that it was a good candidate for connection to town sewer.  The property is on the fringe of the Phase 2 sewer project, and all of the surrounding properties are connected.

T. Creamer said that it is consistent with the spirit and intent of the bylaw, and he would support it.  M. Blanchard and S. Garieri said that they had no problem with it.  T. Goodwin said that he had no problem allowing it, but expressed concern about the flow figures and that there should be policy for it.  He felt that the Board was going about it arbitrarily.  He suggested that the Board have policy discussions.  T. Creamer agreed and suggested scheduling a policy discussion for an upcoming work session.

S. Garieri asked about the timeframe for the Route 131 project, and whether this sewer connection would disrupt it.  S. Suhoski said that the DPW Director could be consulted relative to the timing of it.

MOTION:       To approve the sewer connection request for 5 Haynes Street according to Assessor’s map Book 8623, page 31, by T. Creamer.

2nd:     M. Blanchard

Vote:  All in favor.

Craig Moran, Sturbridge Realty Co. Inc. – Request for Sewer Connection

Craig Moran appeared before the Board.  S. Suhoski explained that Mr. Moran is looking for a connection to the gravity manhole within the Hall Street/Main Street intersection.  He suggested that the Board make their approval conditional upon Mass. Highway approval.

C. Moran expressed concern about keeping the maximum amount of curb cut that he currently has, so that his trucks would be able to pull into his property.  T. Creamer stated that this – similar to the previous request – was a clear example of the intent of the Bylaw provisions for the use of reserve allocation for areas within the Sewer Service Area, particularly where an on-site system has demonstrated failure.  T. Creamer said that he would support a motion to grant a sewer connection.  He suggested that C. Moran talk to Greg Morse, DPW Director, and Mass. Highway to address his other issues.

MOTION:       To approve a sewer connection for 241/245 Main Street according to the document provided by the Town Administrator, Book 8067 page 92, by T. Creamer.

2nd:     M. Blanchard

Vote:  All in favor.

Charles Kady – Request for a Sewer Connection

Charles Kady appeared before the Board.  S. Garieri noted that C. Kady had been before the Board several times for a sewer connection for 83 Fairview Park Road since December 2009.  S. Garieri said that he is still talking with the Assessor to review sewer services to some of the lots.  He is looking for granted sewer connections for building lots that had never materialized, and were being held in reserve.  He noted that some lots of the lots had been combined.

T. Creamer asked whether the Board would be agreeable to granting C. Kady’s request, then immediately entertain a motion to hold on any future sewer requests until the Board has had the opportunity to establish a policy.  M. Blanchard said that she was uncomfortable going forward with C. Kady’s request, because it was not an existing lot as of December 31, 2001, as opposed to the other two, and said that the Board should not continue making decisions until there is a policy.  T. Goodwin noted that the previous two cases were for existing lots with failed septic systems.  He said that there should be a set policy, and Greg Morse, DPW Director, should provide his input regarding this case.

S. Suhoski said that he had been talking to G. Morse about it, and suggested that the Board discuss sewer policy at the next work session on May 10th.  The Board agreed.

Casino Discussion

S. Suhoski said that there is a link to the chronology of the casino issue on the Town’s website dating back to 2001.  T. Goodwin said that the local town governments including Sturbridge, Monson, Palmer and Brimfield had gotten together as a non-partisan group and had agreed to not support the casino bill.  Their goal had been to get a better deal for the local communities.  M. Blanchard said that Palmer had a non-binding referendum regarding a proposed casino in their town.  She said that the Sturbridge Board of Selectmen had concerns about the impact of a casino on the local infrastructure, traffic, tourism and schools.

S. Garieri said that a casino would have an adverse effect on local businesses and restaurants in the area.  He noted that it has been proven that when a casino comes in, there is no overflow to other businesses in the town.  T. Creamer said that the House demonstrated that they had little regard for the concerns or input from their constituents on this matter.  T. Goodwin suggested making a statement to Senator Brewer that the Board doesn’t view this as a positive way to fund government in Massachusetts.  He agreed with S. Garieri, that a casino would adversely affect local businesses and the local economy.  T. Creamer suggested indicating the reasons why the Board does not consider casino revenues as a viable solution to offsetting budgetary deficiencies.  He suggested that the Selectmen send their thoughts and concerns to the Town Administrator, then S. Suhoski would draft them into a list, then the Board could turn it into a formal statement.  It was the consensus of the Board that the Town Administrator draft a statement regarding the casino issue.

Town Administrator’s Update

Annual Town Meeting:

S. Suhoski informed the Board that Town Counsel has completed review of the Annual Town Meeting warrant.  Two articles (#3 and #18) will require revised language when moved at Town Meeting.

Article 3:  The change to Article 3 is merely to properly state the purpose of the CPA funding through the Sturbridge Trails Committee to be “for the purpose of preserving and/or restoring land acquired with CPA funds for recreational use” as required by statute.

Article 18:  The language in the printed warrant was only a placeholder.  The formal motion for Article 18 was required to clear title to an “owner unknown” parcel needed for the Burgess Elementary School project through an eminent domain taking.

MOTION:       To support the motion as revised by Town Counsel, by T. Creamer.

2nd:     M. Blanchard

Vote:  All in favor.

Surplus Wastewater Equipment Bid Award:

MOTION:       To award the bid for removal of surplus wastewater equipment to the low bidder, J. Little Mercer Co., for the package bid price of $2,850.00 for Items #1-5, by M. Blanchard.

2nd:     S. Garieri

Vote:  All in favor.

Appropriation of Wetland Protection Act Funds:

S. Suhoski submitted to the Board the request of the Conservation Commission to access $5,000 from the Wetlands Protection Fund for the purpose of partially supplementing the salary of the Conservation Commission’s recording secretary.  This is a continuation of the funding process utilized last year and is recommended and allows the operating budget to fund 7.5 hours per week of support towards the open space and trails assistant.

MOTION:       To approve the appropriation of $5,000 from the Wetlands Protection Act Fund to supplement the salary of the Conservation Commission’s recording secretary, by M. Blanchard.

2nd:     T. Creamer

Vote:  All in favor.

Mass. School Building Assistance Program:

S. Suhoski noted that the Town makes ongoing payments associated with the Burgess School project.  The MSBA Pro-Pay system requires an authorized signatory on behalf of the Board in order to request the reimbursements.  Currently, the former chair is listed with MSBA.  This should be updated to the current chairman and/or the Town Administrator to ensure administrative efficiency.

MOTION:       To authorize Shaun A. Suhoski, Town Administrator, as signatory for MSBA documentation related to the Burgess Elementary School project, by M. Blanchard.

2nd:     T. Creamer

Vote:  All in favor.

Miscellaneous:

Over the past week, S. Suhoski had the opportunity to meet at length with various department heads, received briefings and attended construction meetings for the Town Hall/Center Office Building project and discussed the scope of work for the Burgess School project.  He was very impressed with the level of professionalism and customer service oriented perspective of Town staff, and looks forward to getting fully involved in the operations of the Town.

Correspondence:

S. Garieri said that he had received correspondence from Vincent and Joan Venzone of 484 Main Street, who have a new business opening up in their building.  They went to get a sign permit and were told that they could not get a sign permit because they had to redo their sign.  In the meantime, they are unable to put up a sign.  S. Suhoski said that he received a letter from them, and he will check with the Building Inspector and review the sign bylaw and respond to them.  T. Creamer said that the zoning bylaw was passed by a 2/3 majority vote at Town Meeting, and did not think that the Board of Selectmen had any statutory authority or the right to supersede the will of the voters.  He noted that there have been some changes relative to uniformity.  He suggested that it be discussed by the Planning Board.  T. Goodwin suggested that S. Suhoski address it and keep the Board informed of the situation.  T. Creamer noted that last year, on an unrelated matter, the Board of Selectmen had approved a temporary sign holiday, and suggested the Board consider it as a policy for temporary signs only for those businesses on Route 131 due to the hardships imposed on them by the Route 131 project.

M. Blanchard said that people have been asking where the Route 131 project will start.  T. Creamer asked whether it will be done all at once or in sections.  S. Garieri requested a full email address list of all businesses on Route 131 that will be affected by the project.  He suggested posting his email address so the business owners could contact him and give him their email addresses.  He will then try to keep them informed of the construction progress.  S. Suhoski said that he had received a complaint from a business owner that the state is not giving out any information about the project.  S. Garieri said that the state is still formulating their plans.

Old Business

M. Blanchard noted that when the Board had approved the appointment of Richard Volpe to the Historical Commission, there was no such vacancy.  Joseph Ouellette requested reappointment to the Commission.

MOTION:       To rescind the appointment of Richard Volpe to the Historical Commission, by error, by M. Blanchard.

2nd:     T. Creamer

Vote:  All in favor.

T. Goodwin suggested sending a letter of apology to Richard Volpe.

T. Goodwin said that he had talked to Greg Morse, DPW Director, about the Publick House water bill issue, and he said that he would discuss the scheduling of the test with Veolia.

New Business

M. Blanchard noted that this is the year that the Board should appoint the Charter Review Committee of five members.

T. Goodwin asked the Board whether they would like to schedule an off-site meeting, and noted that there is no money to hire a facilitator.  T. Creamer said that it would still be an open meeting, but an informal discussion in a more social setting, regarding the direction of the Board.  T. Goodwin added that the Board would not discuss issues before the Town, but talk about the process.  He requested that newspaper reporters not attend, although it is an open meeting.  S. Suhoski said that it would be a chance for the member of the Board to interact with each other and discuss how to conduct their meetings.  T. Creamer offered to reach out to several local establishments to find a place to hold the meeting.  It would be held on a Saturday morning.

M. Blanchard announced that on Thursday, April 22nd a tea will be held at the Joshua Hyde Library for the new Library Director, Becky Plimpton.

T. Goodwin asked S. Suhoski whether he would like to meet with residents at a “meet and greet” event.  S. Suhoski agreed.

Citizens’ Forum

No one appeared.

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 M. Blanchard.

2nd:     T. Creamer

Roll call vote:          T. Creamer in favor; T. Goodwin in favor; S. Garieri in favor; M. Blanchard in favor.

The Board convened in executive session at 8:50 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Judy Knowles

_____________________________

BOS Clerk                 Date