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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSelect Board 06/16/2021Select Board Meeting Minutes June 16, 2021 Present: Mr. Neil Rhein, Chairman; Mr. Michael Trowbridge, Vice -Chair; Mr. Frank DelVecchio, Clerk; and Mr. less Aptowitz. Mr. Kevin Dumas, Town Manager and Mr. Barry LaCasse, Assistant Town Manager/Finance Director were also present in meeting room 3A/B at Town Hall. Mr. Steve Schoonveld was not presentRECEIVED 11, ' CLERKS OFFLCE 1. Call To Order Select Board Meeting - Pledge of Allegiance Mr. Neil Rhein called the meeting to order at 5:3013M. He then asked those preseniWA AW62i12e AdRMAllegiance. He reminded everyone that the meeting was being broadcast live and taped for future P?ri�cpnMansfield Cable. p.'.'a.v 2. Town Manager's Report iaACHIII SETTS ➢ DPW -Highway Division Update ➢ Property and Causality Insurance ➢ Economic Development Update ➢ Miscellaneous Items Select Board Questions and Comments on Town Manager's Report Mr. Dumas began his report stating that the Governor has extended many of the executive orders including alcohol to -go sales which will be allowed through May 1, 2022, virtual/remote public meetings and outdoor seating will be allowed until April 1, 2022. Mr. Dumas stated that he has received quotes from two insurance companies and will be closely comparing the two policies and noted the price is close. Mr. Dumas then stated that he had a meeting with Sherri Gurnon from Parks and Rec and noted that she will be working through the final design for the Plymouth Street Playground project. Mr. Dumas then provided a detailed update on the DPW -Highway division projects and economic development. Mr. Dumas noted that he is working on a job description for an Economic Development Director and that over the next three years there are seven department heads that will be retiring which will take a significant amount of planning and transitioning. Mr. DelVecchio commented that it was rewarding to hear about the economic development items that Mr. Dumas is working on. He said it sounds like it is coming together and that there is strategy involved. Chairman Rhein asked if any other funding opportunities were available for the Plymouth Street Playground like corporate naming rights and Mr. Dumas commented that he will look into that as we get further into planning. Chairman Rhein asked if a list could be on the Town's website of available properties for lease or sale and Mr. LaCasse responded that it is proprietary information that is listed on Co -Stars website but our website could direct people to speak with himself or Mr. Dumas if they are looking for property. 3. Resident Questions and Comments Peter Wiggins came forward and stated that it is good to be back in person and Mansfield looks busier than last year at this time and it was great that everything was getting back to normal. 4. Discussion of the 2021 Concert Season Xfinity Center Manager Jason Sandoval Mr. Jason Sandoval, General Manager and Sara Shevlin, Operations Manager were present. Mr. Sandoval introduced himself and stated that he has worked in the industry for many years and worked at the Staples Center for the Lakers, Clippers and has worked global events like the Grammy and VMA Awards. He stated that he has been in Boston area at the Bank Pavilion since 2018 and now is overseeing Mansfield. He stated that there are lots of tenured staff who know the venue working this season. He said they are planning for 25 shows which is slightly lower than a normal season with 35 shows. Mr. Trowbridge asked if they are encountering any staffing challenges like many restaurants are reporting and he is concerned about the venue not having enough security and hopes that staff will be diligent with checking id's for alcohol service. Mr. Sandoval responded that they have been doing job fairs and they need approximately 200 staff and as of now they have 60 confirmed and asking many of the individuals for more commitment to expand the pool. Select Board Meeting Minutes June 16, 2021 Mr. DelVecchio welcomed them to Mansfield and stated that it was exciting to have live music back and wished them luck. Mr. Aptowitz thanked them for coming in and stated that Mr. Sandoval is the fourth manager he has worked with at Xfinity with his tenor here on the Board. He was happy to hear that Billy from Security was coming back and asked if the training has changed based on the things that have been happened with the police departments throughout the country. Mr. Aptowitz wanted to confirm that the number of securities would be the same as the last season. Mr. Sandoval responded that staffing levels would be the same. Mr. Sandoval also noted that Delaware North is still the food service vendor for the venue and there have been many meetings on responsible service of alcohol have an established mitigation plan. Chairman Rhein brought up the Waze App issue from 2019 and Mr. Sandoval was aware of that situation and will follow up with that if it becomes necessary, but he believed there has been success and a process in place with the apps to keep drivers on Route 495. Chairman Rhein also commented that it would be great to work with Downtown Businesses to get concert goers to visit the Downtown and Mr. Sandoval has worked at other venues where there were promotions of "Come Early Stay Late" to get people to visit local establishments. Chairman Rhein then asked if he would be at all the shows and Mr. Sandoval responded that there are some conflicts with the other venue and on those nights, Ms. Shevlin will be there. 5. Discussion and Consideration of Surplus Loan Proceeds to Apply Towards Outstanding Debt Mr. LaCasse stated that Mr. Dumas has the authority to do this so this item is for information purposes. Mr. Dumas will be using $21,000 left over from the borrowed amount to pay off the outstanding debt service. 6. Discussion of Dangerous Dog Complaint and Consideration to Schedule Public Hearing Mr. Dumas stated that Animal Control Officer Jeff Collins has submitted a dog complaint and is asking the Board to schedule a public hearing. Motion: To temporarily declare Piper the dog a nuisance dog and require that the dog be on a leash or physical restraint when outside the domicile and schedule the public hearing for July 7, 2021 at 6:1013M. (DelVecchio/Trowbridge) Passes 4:0 7. Continued Discussion of 50 West Street Property and Consideration to Retain or Make Property Available for Surplus Chairman Rhein stated that this property was the former police station located at 50 West Street. Mr. LaCasse stated that he has an internal meeting to discuss the property with various Town employees to recap and talk about the next steps and report back to the Select Board. Mr. Dumas noted that in the Boards packet was the appraisal of the property which is $450,000. Mr. Dumas stated that the Board should formally decide if it would like to keep the property as he is recommending or if the Board would want to make the property available for surplus. The Board was in consensus that there should be a joint meeting with members of the COA and Recreation Commission on August 4th. Mr. DelVecchio noted that there were two draft motions prepared, but did not believe the Board would need to vote either to retain or surplus the property at this time. Mr. Trowbridge commented that there has not been a formal vote, but everyone seems to agree that the property should be retained because to buy a property in the downtown area would be more expensive. Mr. LaCasse noted that it would be helpful for the Board to formally vote because it would be a different path and set of tasks that would need to be completed should they want to surplus the property instead of retaining it. Mr. DelVecchio commented that Mr. Schoonveld was not present to weigh in on the matter, but Chairman Rhein stated that Mr. Schoonveld had emailed him and was in favor of retaining the property. Motion: To retain the property located at 50 West Street. (DelVecchio/Aptowitz) Passes 4:0 8. Discussion and Update of FY21 Goals and Objectives and Discussion of FY22 Goals and Objectives Chairman Rhein echoed what Mr. Dumas stated earlier about all of the items going on within Town. Mr. Aptowitz also stated that the amount of people leaving within the next three years is a full-time job in itself and recommended sticking to a half dozen items. Chairman Rhein stated that items do not have to have rigid completion dates and items could span over different fiscal years. He also added that its important to have "an eye on the ball" but have to Select Board Meeting Minutes June 16, 2021 be mindful of unexpected items that can arise like a global pandemic or turnover of staff. Mr. DelVecchio stated that it is important for the Board to be on the same page and have a manageable amount of goals. Mr. LaCasse stated that the last version of the document that Chairman Rhein had was on March 101h and he stated that he moved some of the items to the completed tab of the spreadsheet. Mr. LaCasse made the updates yesterday and therefore they have not been seen by the entire Board and suggested that this gets edited and sent to Board by the next meeting to have a discussion. Mr. LaCasse did give a summary of the items that he moved to completed side. Chairman Rhein asked Mr. LaCasse to send out the updated sheet and then at the next meeting the Board can discuss the goals that have not had progress and re -prioritize the list. 9. Discussion and Consideration to Create the Volunteer Appointment Sub -Committee Motion: To create the volunteer appointment Sub -Committee. (DelVecchio/Aptowitz) Mr. Trowbridge suggested that this item should have been a warn to adopt on the agenda. Mr. Trowbridge stated the idea behind this is to have interviews conducted by two members of the Board and hopefully increase the number of people who want to volunteer if they do not have to interview during a meeting with all five members of the Board on television. He said that he took the policy and edited it from the Town of Reading to fit the Town of Mansfield. He stated that candidates would interview with two members of the Select Board and the Chair of the Committee they are applying for and Town Department staff if applicable. Then a recommendation would be given to the entire Board to consider the appointment(s). Chairman Rhein read comments submitted by Mr. Schoonveld, but it was unclear on one of the points that was made so it was decided that at the next meeting the agenda would read warn to adopt and further discussion could take place. Mr. DelVecchio withdrew his motion. 10. Resident Questions and Comments Mr. Mark Cristilo of West Street was present and stated that he had concerns with the Great Wood's conservation area that you can walk through to get to the Xfinity Center. He stated that there was lots of trash being left in the area and was not sure who would be responsible for cleaning that up. Mr. Aptowitz responded stating that he does know that there is policing done at the illegal entrances and the parking lots are cleaned and suggested that the Xfinity Center Manager should be made aware of this. 11. Review and Approve Consent Agenda All items on the Consent Agenda may be adopted with a single motion. Any member of the Select Board may request that an item be withdrawn from the Consent Agenda for separate consideration in which case that item will be voted on separately from the remainder of the Consent Agenda. All licenses have been routed through Town Hall Departments and any conditions have been noted below. a) Vote to Approve Meeting Minutes: • May 12, 2021 • June 2, 2021 b) Vote to Approve Warrants: • Town Vendor Warrant No. 21049T in the amount of $1,473,659.70 • Electric Vendor Warrant No. 21049E in the amount of $34,629.18 • School Vendor Warrant No. 21049S in the amount of $437,574.90 • Town Vendor Warrant No. 21050T in the amount of $258,915.85 • Electric Vendor Warrant No. 21050E in the amount of $1,318,505.59 c) Permits and Licenses: • Consideration of Special Events Application for Family Fun Night on July 13, 2021 • Consideration of Banner Request for the Rotary Club for August 2nd through August 16th • Consideration of 2021 Water Installers License for Rowean Construction LLC • Consideration of 2021 Water Installers License for Ralph Excavating • Consideration of 2021 Water Installers License J. Harding Co., Inc. • Consideration of Special Events Application for Shawmut Ave Block Party Select Board Meeting Minutes June 16, 2021 d) Proclamations: • Juneteenth Proclamation Motion: To approve the consent agenda. (DelVecchio/Aptowitz) Passes 4:0 Chairman Rhein read the full Proclamation for Juneteenth. 12. Consideration and Approval of Town Payroll Warrants: • Town Payroll/Town Medicaid Payroll 21049PT in the amount of $553,537.80 Motion: To approve Town Payroll/Town Medicaid Payroll 21049PT in the amount of $553,537.80. (DelVecchio/Aptowitz) Passes 4:0 • Town Deductions Vendor Payroll 21049TV in the amount of $200,356.07 Motion: To approve Town Deductions Vendor Payroll 21049TV in the amount of $200,356.07. (DelVecchio/Trowbridge) Passes 4:0 • School Payroll/School Medicaid Payroll 21049PS in the amount of $2,619,595.11 Motion: To approve School Payroll/School Medicaid Payroll 21049PS in the amount of $2,619,595.11. (De lVecchio/Trowbridge) Passes 3:0:1 (Trowbridge Abstained) • School Deductions Vendor Payroll 21049SV in the amount of $633,374.77 Motion: To approve School Deductions Vendor Payroll 21049SV in the amount of $633,374.77. (DelVecchio/Trowbridge) Passes 4:0 • Town Payroll/Town Medicaid Payroll 21050PT in the amount of $464,058.33 Motion: To approve Town Payroll/Town Medicaid Payroll 21050PT in the amount of $464,058.33. (DelVecchio/Trowbridge) Passes 4:0 • Town Deductions Vendor Payroll 21050TV in the amount of $154,719.98 Motion: To approve Town Deductions Vendor Payroll 21050TV in the amount of $154,719.98. (DelVecchio/Trowbridge) Passes 4:0 13. Correspondence Letter from Attorney Albert DeNapoli for TGI Fridays Inc. stating that the Board will be receiving a change of manager application. Mr. Aptowitz commented that he had concerns about how frequently they have changed the manager. 14. Select Board Member's Comments and Questions Mr. Aptowitz asked about payroll being processed in house with MUNIS. Mr. LaCasse stated that yes eventually we could process payroll in house with MUNIS. Mr. Aptowitz stated it was a huge responsibility and he was worried about that being taken care of internally. Mr. Aptowitz then asked about the contract for the Town Manager. Mr. Trowbridge stated that Mr. Dumas will be working on a draft and Mr. Dumas commented that he will be working on it, but other items have taken priority. Mr. Aptowitz then noted that Family Fun Night has been scheduled and Mr. Dumas confirmed that it was approved under the consent agenda and it will be held on July 13tn Mr. Trowbridge asked about the railroad crossing at County Street because he would hate for that to get put aside and the Town is then waiting additional time for it to be approved. Mr. Dumas responded that it is part of the one stop grant process and with no one parking at the train station. The TOD zoning also needs to take place. Mr. Dumas further clarified that the relocation of it is approved. Mr. DelVecchio commented that it was a great meeting and the Board has done a great job recruiting volunteers and getting more diversity in our volunteers and believes the new subcommittee process could help that. He also was pleased with the goals and objectives discussion and how that process has been working. He also noted the progress with economic development and stated that these were items that the Board should be proud of. Chairman Rhein asked what openings were there on Boards and Committees and Mr. DelVecchio responded with Conservation, IDC, Audit Committee and others. Chairman Rhein directed interested residents to visit the Town's website for the list and process. Chairman Rhein then noted an article that was in AARP Magazine that discussed age Select Board Meeting Minutes June 16, 2021 friendly states and communities and Salem, Massachusetts was noted as one. He believed this article may be useful information to the COA and the aging population in Mansfield. Mr. Dumas noted that Josephine Madrazo the Director of the COA is working on that. Chairman Rhein then noted some recent MMA webinars on policing and the challenges police departments are facing. Chairman Rhein then talked about the potential for the bottle bill to be extended to include nip bottles and water bottles and he may seek the Boards support on that as well as legislation that would incentivize companies so their products are more recyclable and less packaging which would help towns have less expense in trash. Chairman Rhein also complemented DPW on how great the Town looks and how good it was to see people out and using Memorial Park this week. 15. Any items not anticipated by the Chair 48 hours prior to this meeting There were no items. 16. Enter into Executive Session and Not Return to Open Session under Exemption No. 2 and No. 6, M.G.L. Chapter 30A, Section 21- a.) To discuss strategy sessions in preparation for negotiations with non -union personnel or to conduct collective bargaining sessions or contract negotiations with non -union personnel. b.) To consider the purchase, exchange, lease or value of real estate, if the chair declares that an open meeting will have a detrimental effect on the negotiating position of the public body c.) Approve Executive Session Meeting Minutes of May 19, 2021 Motion: To enter into Executive Session and not return to open session under exemption number two and six, M.G.L Chapter 30A, Section 21 to discuss strategy sessions in preparation for negotiations with non -union personnel or to conduct collective bargaining sessions or contract negotiations with non -union personnel and to consider the purchase, exchange, lease or value of real estate, if the chair declares that an open meeting will have a detrimental effect on the negotiating position of the public body and to approve Executive Session Meeting Minutes of May 19, 2021 at 7:38PM. (De lVecchio/Trowbridge) Roll Call Vote: Trowbridge — Yes Aptowitz- Yes Passes 4:0 Signature Minutes prepared by Carrie Champagne DelVecchio—Yes Rhein —Yes Select Board Meeting Minutes June 16, 2021