Wellfleet Finance Committee
Minutes of Meeting of September 27, 2007
Town Hall Hearing Room, 7:00 p.m.
Present: Patricia Foley, Chair; Nancy Bone, Berta Bruinooge, Robert Kelly, Arlene Kirsch, John Makely, Dennis Murphy, Sylvia Smith
Absent: Mac Hay
Also Attending: BOS Chair Jacqueline Wildes-Beebe, Police Chief Richard Rosenthal, Fire Chief Daniel Silverman, John O’Hara, Lee Spenadel, and Hugh Guilderson
Chair Patricia Foley called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
Minutes of 8/16/07 and 9/20/07
Kirsch moved to approve the amended minutes of August 16, 2007. Murphy seconded and the motion carried 8-0.
Kelly moved to approve the minutes of September 20, 2007. Smith seconded and the motion carried 8-0.
Housing Authority Request for Town-owned Property
Chair Patricia Foley reviewed the Housing Authority’s requests for two Town-owned properties. The request recommendation was tabled until the Housing Authority representatives could be present.
School Committee Report – Sylvia Smith
Sylvia Smith recapped her report on school enrollment. Makely explained how the Benchmark report broke down numbers. He also wanted to know about teacher-pupil ratio, something that will be discussed at the budget hearings. Smith also reported on the school’s broken water line that needed to be repaired.
Computerization
Chair Foley said that two events initiated FinCom’s further investigation of computerization in Town. One was the IT position that had been a Warrant Article at the April Annual Town Meeting. The second was the lightning strike at the communications tower. Foley said she had spoken to every department head and four other towns about computerization. The purpose of FinCom’s study was finding ways to reduce computerization costs.
Foley distributed responses from Wellfleet department heads and IT materials from Provincetown, Truro, Eastham and Brewster. Members of FinCom and other participants from the audience asked questions and reported on a number of computer situations not considered to be in the best interest of the Town. These included confidentiality issues, the aftermath of the lightning strike on computer equipment, response time to requests for computer services, billing practices, labor costs, disposal of computers, websites costs, computer security, lack of computer decision making by department heads, licensing of software and lack of administrative privileges in access to computer settings.
Examination and discussion of the information provided by the other towns included their computer replacement policies, use of additional consultants, and website choices and Internet servers.
Foley distributed the job description for a full time Information Technology position and definitions of an IT person. She said this was to demonstrate how interpretation of what an IT person does varies.
Further discussion concerned: planning for computerization at the new fire station, website alternatives, developing a policy for computerization that fits present needs, making recommendations to the Board of Selectmen for long term solutions for a computerization program that fits Town needs, the FY08 computerization budget, website plans, re-establishing a Computer Committee, an inventory of computer software and hardware, use of short term contractors, difficulties in obtaining information, and leaving decisions for the next Town Administrator
The Board agreed to seek answers to the list of questions raised in their discussion. The same packet of information will be sent in advance to the Board of Selectmen before a meeting with them on November 13, 2007. Rex Peterson will receive a copy of the memo to be sent to the BOS.
Mail
Kirsch announced a budget and finance subcommittee meeting of Nauset Regional School Committee to be held October 17, 2007 at 3 p.m. at the Nauset Central Office in Orleans.
Other Business
Three upcoming meetings were noted. Warrant voting and recommendations will be made at the next meeting October 11, 2007. The BOS meeting with FinCom is scheduled for November 13, 2007. The subcommittee will meet with Rex Peterson to go over vehicle rollover policy. The Board of Selectmen suggested that Peterson make the recommendation for BOS to consider the vehicle rollover policy.
Adjournment
Bone moved to adjourn. Kelly seconded and the motion carried 8-0. The meeting adjourned at 9:55 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
_______________________ _______________________
Mary Rogers, Committee Secretary Patricia Foley, Chair
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