Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutSELECTMENminutes09242008-20081203113812 Town of Mansfield Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 24, 2008 Present: Chairman Sandra Levine, Vice Chairman Ann Baldwin, Clerk Kevin Moran, Selectman George Dentino, Selectman Jess Aptowitz, John D'Agostino, Town Manager The Board of Selectmen's meeting was called to order at 7:00pm followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Public hearing notice read into record by Clerk Moran. Motion: To open public hearing. (Aptowitz/Moran) 4:0 passes Verizon representative Jim McGrail gave a brief overview of their business history and license application history. Cable advisory committee members in addition to Attorney August were present. Lou Amoruso, Chairman of the Cable Committee made a brief statement about the cable negotiations and introduced the cable committee members. (Mike Healey, Patrick Collins, Richard Mahoney, Kevin Moran and Lou Costa) Atty. August also thanked the cable committee, staff and Selectman Moran for assisting him in drafting a comprehensive cable license agreement. Atty. August gave a brief overview of the work done by the committee and Verizon cable service should be available all throughout town by next spring. It will go in stages though and some parts of town will receive service before others. Verizon will have a regional franchise manager assigned to Mansfield during the installation and service process. Direct connect service will also be installed at the Mansfield Cable Access studio in addition to several municipal buildings. Verizon does not offer an official senior discount to their subscribers however there are avenues of which seniors can request assistance. The contract will offer all the services that the town receives through Comcast. Selectman Dentino also wanted to thank the Cable Advisory Committee and Verizon for crafting such a well thought out and comprehensive contract. Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 24, 2008 Selectman Baldwin asked if any changes were made from the last draft to the final document. She also thanked the committee for all their hard work. Selectman Moran stated that he enjoyed being a part of the cable advisory committee and also working with Verizon. Selectman Aptowitz thanked the committee as well and asked that the Verizon representatives state "for the record" that Boston HD channels will be available to Mansfield subscribers. Mr. McGrail stated that was indeed a fact. Chairman Levine asked about Verizon's policy on providing grants to 50lC3 organizations. They do provide some funding to non profit organizations. Motion: To close hearing. (Aptowitz/Baldwin) 5:0 passes Motion: To accept cable contract as presented this date. (Aptowitz/Moran) 5:0 passes Chairman Levine asked Lou Amoruso if the cable advisory board will disband now that the contract is signed. Mr. Amoruso stated that it usually would but doesn't have to. Police Chief Arthur O'Neill introduced Joshua Ellender, the newest member of the Mansfield Police Dept. Officer Ellender has lived in Mansfield since he was a small child and has recently returned from 4 years of United States Marine Corps service (including two tours of duty in Iraq). He then completed 26 weeks at the police academy and won the leadership aware before returning to Mansfield and joining the police force. Town Clerk Helen Christian swore in Officer Ellender and he was pinned with badge #27 by his wife Heather. Mr. D'Agostino introduced the first candidate Eric Hart. He currently works in the Town of Rockland and would like to move up to a large community such as Mansfield. Selectman Moran asked Mr. Hart how he handles public pressure. Mr. Hart has been in municipal accounting for 11 years and tries to treat all personnel and the public alike with respect. Selectman Baldwin asked what attracted Mr. Hart to Mansfield. The management team is strong here in Mansfield and the town used enterprise accounts; that is in part what attracted Mr. Hart to the Town of Mansfield. Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 24, 2008 2 Mr. Hart provided a brief statement about his management style. (Team leadership) Chairman Levine also asked Mr. Hart about how he handles work/life balance issues. Mr. Hart is very dedicated to his profession as an accountant and spends extra time on the job as needed. However, his father recently passed away and did take time away from work to be with his family. Chairman Levine concluded with asking Mr. Hart what his questions for the board are. Mr. Hart asked: What are the town's largest upcoming capital needs? Town Manager D'Agostino stated that repairing and upgrading town infrastructure is a priority. A debt exclusion was recently passed however Mr. D'Agostino does not support prop. 2 t overrides to pay for expenses. Mr. Hart also had additional questions regarding the school system that were briefly addressed by the board and the town manager. The second candidate Arti Mehta was then introduced to the board. Mrs. Mehta has worked as a municipal accountant for over 20 years and has worked in the towns of Dedham and Walpole. She was in the banking industry prior to coming to America and becoming an accountant. Selectman Moran asked about her management style and working with the public. Mrs. Mehta believes in an open door policy and encourages input from other staff members. Selectman Baldwin asked what drew Mrs. Mehta to a career as an accountant. Mrs. Mehta loves to work with numbers. She relishes the task of a challenge. Mrs. Mehta is a certified municipal accountant and is well versed in Munis. Selectman Dentino asked Mrs. Mehta about her knowledge of Mass. General Law. Mrs. Mehta is quite versed in the laws of the Commonwealth and follows the advice of DOR when anything is in question. Chairman Levine asked Mrs. Mehta how she sees the position of town accountant. The town accountant handles the money and makes sure that all financial laws and regulations are compiled with. She feels the town accountant should guide other employees through financial documents. Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 24, 2008 3 Chairman Levine asked Mrs. Mehta how she handles a work/life balance. Mrs. Mehta's children are grown and she is involved in her church. But when she is at work, she is focused on work. When asked; Mrs. Mehta stated that she is the candidate for the job as she is the perfect package. All of her questions for the board have been previously answered by the search committee. Mr. D'Agostino stated that this is a final interview and hopefully the board will make a decision this evening on selecting a candidate. Both candidates are quite proficient in their field and will make an excellent town accountant. While they are both excellent candidates who would be fine work, Chairman Levine has difficulty starting a candidate off at the top of the salary grade. Mrs. Mehta has expressed interest in that she would want to come in at the top of the grade. Motion: To extend meeting to 11pm. (Moran/Dentino) 5:0 passes After much deliberation the board voted to offer Eric Hart the position of town accountant. Motion: To offer Eric Hart the position of town accountant with a starting salary between 81-85 thousand dollars. (Baldwin/Moran) 5:0 passes . Sick leave buyback for Bea Kearney at 135.17 days @25'Yo will be $11,817.00 by union contract. Accumulated vacation days is at 51.9 or $18,146.00 . Mark Cuddy, our insurance rep. is reviewing repair bill coverage for reimbursement. . Gift account for Beautification Committee needs to be set up in order for them to receive donations. Motion: To establish a gift account for this committee. (Baldwin/ Aptowitz) 5:0 passes . Oct 26th two events are taking place. The Fire Dept. will be having a ceremony at 9am followed by the annual Halloween parade. · Warrant No. 13 in the amount of $317,064.73 (payroll warrant) Motion: To approve warrant # 13. (Baldwin/ Aptowitz) 4:0:1 passes (Dentino abstains) · Minutes of September 3, 2008 meeting Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 24, 2008 4 Motion: To approve with changes from the board. (Aptowitz/Moran) 4:0:1 passes (Baldwin abstain) · Drainlayers License application from Methuen Construction Co. The Town Engineer recommends approval. Motion: To approve. (Aptowitz/Baldwin) 5:0 passes · Application for parade permit from MHS Band on October 26th from 2pm to 3pm. Public Safety approves. Motion: To approve. (Baldwin/Moran) 5:0 passes · Application for Change of Clerk, Board of Directors, NE Sportservice. Motion: To approve. (Baldwin/Moran) 5:0 passes . Resignation from Annette Shaw from the Board of Registrars. Motion: To accept letter of resignation with letter of regret. (Baldwin/Moran) 5:0 passes. The board will send Mrs. Shaw a citation to thank her for her many years of service. (20 plus) . Invitation to attend and participate in Park and Rec Halloween parade on Sunday, October 26th at 2pm. Selectman Aptowitz will participate as a judge. . Memo from Lt. Crickard regarding overage at the Farm Aid Concert at the Comcast Center. (Over 11 minutes) Motion: To waive overage fee. (Dentino/Moran) 5:0 passes . Letter of introduction from Attorney Douglas Louison, he is representing Mr. D'Agostino. The letter was read into record by Clerk Moran. . Grand Opening celebration announcement for West Village apartment complex on Thursday, the 25th from 5pm to 9pm. . Email from Sandy Hill Rd resident that received parking ticket while attending parent/teacher conference last Tuesday. The school had scheduled these the same day of the primary so the parking was quite limited and many people parked illegally. Selectman Dentino suggested that the tickets should be waived with the exception of fire lanes, cross walks and handicapped violations. While Selectmen Baldwin and Aptowitz sympathize with parents, as they have children in the system as well, people cannot be encouraged to park illegally up and"down the street. Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 24, 2008 5 Chairman Levine suggested that the schools make every attempt to coordinate events at the schools with other large town/state events. Parking is limited in this area on a good day and combining events made it even worse. School Committee Chairman Michael Trowbridge spoke to the board about the parking troubles at the schools. Even without the primary election going on one evening the parking was still tight the next night with just as many tickets issued. Messages regarding the parking situation are broadcast during school, evening sessions, meetings and on the electronic message board outside the schools. · Email from Mike Small, Boy Scouts, Troop 17 regarding the retirement of Scoutmaster Rich Kelly. There will be a Court of Honor held for him on Monday, October 6th at 7pm at the OCC Church. They would be honored if bos members could attend. . Memo from Helen Christian, please vote to appoint election workers for a one year term from September 1, 2008 through September 1, 2009. Motion: To appoint election workers as listed. (Moran/ Aptowitz) 5:0 passes · None . Old business from Chairman Levine: Board and committee's need to come in for meeting soon. Start with the zoning board on October 1st if possible. . Old business from Selectman Dentino: It is still his belief that the board must ratify union contracts. Mr. D'Agostino stated that he acts as the boards' agent and signs the contracts not the board. The contracts are ratified by town meeting vote. Mr. D'Agostino will get a legal opinion on who ratifies union contracts if necessary. 1981 vehicle use policy was missing out of Selectmen's binder. Selectman Dentino had a copy and gave it to the board. · Old business for Selectman Moran: None Old business from Selectman Aptowitz: Shawmut Ave RFP still needs to be discussed. Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 24,2008 6 · New business from Selectman Baldwin: None · New business from Selectman Aptowitz: Do we know when free cash will be certified? And town meeting date? No, it is still in progress. Traffic issues at School St. and Rt. 140 again. The lights are so quick only a couple of cars can get through at a time. Selectman Aptowitz will be having office hours posted for October soon. He would like to not have meeting on October 8th due to Yon Kippur. The board may have to skip that week as the other days of the week do not work for a majority. Thank you's to the town accountant search committee. Everyone did a great job. · New business from Selectman Dentino: None . New business from Selectman Moran: MMAS art show had a great showing at the art festival this past weekend. · New business from Chairman Levine: Haunted Hallows has released their display dates in October. . Leaf raking meeting. Chairman Levine and Lee Azinheira attended and encourage residents to participate in this upcoming event. . Animal Celebration will be now held October 18th instead of Sept. 27th due to weather conditions. Motion: To adjourn at 11:04 PM (Aptowitz) 5-0 Passes I:er~ ~-t-~ tPdOk 2~ 2~~t? Signature of Clerk Date of Approval Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 24, 2008 7