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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSELECTMENminutes08262009-20091019142615 Town of Mansfield Board of Selectmen Minutes of August .26, 2009 Present: Chairman Baldwin, Vice Chairman Moran, Clerk Jess Aptowitz, Selectman Sandra Levine, Selectman Dentino, Nick Riccio, Interim Town Manager Chairman Baldwin asked Mr. MacCaffrie to come up and join the Board of Selectmen. She then read a statement regarding Mr. MacCaffrie service to the town. "So many times in life we do not get the chance to recognize and say thank you to those who truly deserve our thanks. Tonight we are here to do just that. The Town of Mansfield would like to publicly recognize and thank Steven MacCaffrie for all his years of dedication and service to our town. Steve has been active in our town for over 30 years, during that time he served on the municipal building committee to 10 years, served on the Ad Hoc Committee to review the process for town meeting and served as a Selectman from 2002 to 2005 ending his term as the Chairman." Veteran Agent, John Hogan came to the podium and read a short speech. "I looked up the word "character" in the dictionary and I found a couple of definitions." One definition was "moral or ethical strength", a second definition given was "an unusual or singular person"; both of these definitions could not only have cited Steve as an example, but THE example. Mr. Hogan recapped their history of service to our country in addition to the Town of Mansfield and concluded by stating "Steve, you are not only an unforgettable character, but a man of character, and someone I am proud to call a friend. The highest compliment one soldier or sailor can give another is a salute, so with pride, I salute you." Town Moderator Robert Saquet then came to the podium and recalled their times together on the MBC and recounted how the committee flourished upon his leadership. Mr. Saquet then appointed Mr. MacCaffrie to the position of Assistant Moderator. He was sworn then in to service by Town Clerk Helen Christian. . Mr. MacCaffrie thanked everyone for there kind words and stated that he is proud of all the development and buildings in Mansfield that have been put in place while he was on boards and committees and equally proud to be a part of it. Board of Selectmen Minutes of August 26, 2009 Representative Jay Barrows then presented Mr. MacCaffrie a proclamation from the State House of Representatives thanking him for all he has done for Mansfield. Selectman Dentino also said a few touching words at the podium about their years of friendship and presented Mr. MacCaffrie with a plaque from the Board of Selectmen for all his town service. Selectman Moran then read a quote from Theodore Roosevelt regarding the courage and character of a man. That man is Steven MacCaffrie. Selectman Aptowitz thanked Mr. MacCaffrie for his friendship and dedication to the town. He always noticed that Steve saluted the flag during parades and loved not only his town but his country. Selectman Levine also thanked Steve and promised to push forward his mission to have affordable housing and the committee back in action to make Mansfield a truly affordable community. Former Selectmen Amoruso and McCarter then came to the podium and thanked Mr. MacCaffrie for his service to the town and passion for the causes he believed in. Selectman Amoruso also believes in affordable Mansfield; he shares Steve's vision and will do his best to assist Selectman Levine in carrying it out. Mr. Riccio also offered up his thanks for Mr. MacCaffrie's guidance and assistance through the years. Chairman Baldwin also pledged her help in bring back the affordable housing committee. Jason Porter interviewed before the bos and school committee in a joint session. School Committee Chairman Miller thanked Mr. Porter for his volunteering to help the town. · Selectman Levine asked Mr. Porter if he had done any municipal auditing in the past. No. He has not, however he does realize that there are differences between corporate auditing and municipal auditing. There are also standards that are universal in auditing that don't change from industry to industry. Board of Selectmen Minutes of August 26, 2009 2 · Selectman Aptowitz thanked Mr. Porter for coming and stated that the committee won't probably meet more than 4-5 times a year but that it is an important board. · School Committee member Frank DelVecchio asked Mr. Porter about his education as an accountant and asked how he could apply those principles towards municipal accounting. Mr. Porter has a BS in Accounting from Bentley College in addition to being a certified public accountant. He further stated that many accounting procedures and principles translate from private to public entities. · Selectman Moran thanked Mr. Porter for his application for town service and looked forward to working with him. · Selectman Dentino thanked Mr. Porter as well and does not think there are all that much difference between the private sector and municipalities. He wishes the town could be run more like a business and is sure that Mr. Porter will bring his business sense to the committee. Motion: To appoint Jason Porter to Audit Committee. (Trowbridge/Moran) 8:0 passes (joint vote by bos and school committee: DelVecchio, Miller, Dentino, Baldwin, Aptowitz, Levine) Amendment: To appoint Mr. Porter to a 2 year appointment so the members are staggered. A short discussion ensued about the retention of Brown and Company as the towns auditors. Motion: To adjourn to executive session to discuss contract negotiations with union personnel. (Aptowitz/Levine) 5:0 passes Roll call vote: Chairman Baldwin, Vice Chairman Moran Selectman Dentino aye, Selectman Aptowitz aye, Selectman Levine aye. 5:0 passes Board of Selectmen meeting resumed at 8:30pm Hong Qi Yang, Manager and Attorney Andrea Kor were present for meeting. They are proposing opening a Japanese Steakhouse in the former Blockbuster site at 242 Chauncy St. Board of Selectmen Minutes of August 26, 2009 3 Selectman Dentino asked Mr. Yang about the hours he planned on working and if he was tips certified. Mr. Yang will be on premises for 40-50 hours and will also have all his servers certified as well. Selectman Moran asked how many people then planned to serve at peak time as the parking lot is rather small. Seating is for 80 however a normal dinner rush would most likely be around 50-60 people. Selectman Aptowitz mentioned that he saw a sign by the premises that advertised for a bar there. Mr. Yang stated that he was advertising for his sushi bar. Selectman Levine noted that they only have one public entrance and exit so they may need another form of egress. She was also concerned about the limited parking at the site as well. Mr. Riccio assured the board that the fire and building depts. will review all plans before issuing any permits. Atty. Kor clarified what they plan on utilizing for parking and how the other business should not be affected. Selectman Dentino also had questions about the parking arrangements and possible egress issues. Mr. Riccio stated that all plans will be reviewed thoroughly before any occupancy permit is issued. Motion: To close public hearing. (Levine/ Aptowitz) 5:0 passes Motion: To approve license for Kyoto Japanese Steakhouse pending building and fire approval. (Dentino/ Aptowitz) 5:0 passes Atty. Valanzola and Mr. Richards are present for meeting and stated how they planned to utilize the parking area at 905 South Main St. for Comcast Center concert parking. Board of Selectmen Minutes of August 26, 2009 4 Selectman Dentino stated that he remembers that when this parking lot was permitted that there was a condition that there would be no additional concert parking. Attorney Valanzola is not aware of this but will certainly check into it. I -I Chief O'Neill has gone on record as opposing additional parking for the Comcast Center and Mr. Richards will be appearing before the planning board next week for a special permit. Chairman Baldwin asked if they are planning on trying to utilize this parking area this season. The response was: No, most likely for next season. The Board of Selectmen would like a specific objection from Chief O'Neill about this parking lot, not just a general objection to parking in the area. Selectman Levine does not believe we need additional information from Chief O'Neill. She suggested that Chief O'Neill might walk the site with the applicant. However, the rest of the board would like Chief O'Neill to talk with them instead of the applicant and then they/the town manager will inform the applicant of any concerns. Selectman Levine also had questions about the business utilizing their parking lot for their primary business in addition to Comcast parking on certain days. Atty. Valanzola stated that the parking will be marked to avoid any confusion. None · Signed but not voted last week: Warrant No. 10007PT in the amount of $311,485.20 Motion: To approve. (Aptowitz/Levine) 5:0 passes Warrant No. 10007TV in the amount of $85,118.95 Motion: To approve. (Levine/ Aptowitz) 4:0:1 passes (Dentino abstain) Board of Selectmen Minutes of August 26, 2009 5 Warrant No. 10007PS in the amount of $869,390.72 Motion: To approve. (Levine/Dentino) 5:0 passes Warrant No. 10007SV in the amount of $236,673.36 Motion: To approve. (Levine/Moran) 4:0:1 passes (Dentino abstain) Warrant No. 10007T in the amount of $366,728.92 Motion: To approve. (Levine/ Aptowitz) 5:0 passes Warrant No. 10007E in the amount of $126,256.94 Motion: To approve. (Levine/Moran) 5:0 passes This week: · Warrant No. 10008T in the amount of $766,837.11 Motion: To approve. (Levine/ Aptowitz) 5:0 passes · Warrant No. 10008E in the amount of $438,917.98 Motion: To approve. (Levine/ Moran) 5:0 passes · Warrant No. 100085 in the amount of $427,614.11 Motion: To approve. (Levine/ Aptowitz) 5:0 passes · Warrant No. 10008PT in the amount of $308,298.39 Motion: To approve. (Levine/ Aptowitz) 5:0 passes · Warrant No. 10008TV in the amount of $85,777.52 Motion: To approve. (Levine/ Aptowitz) 5:0 passes · Warrant No. 10008PS in the amount of $519.42 Motion: To approve. (Levine/Moran) 5:0 passes · Warrant No. 10008SV in the amount of $92.40 Motion: To approve. (Levine/Moran) 5:0 passes · Minutes of bos meeting on June 3, 2009 Motion: Motion: To approve. (Levine/ Aptowitz) 5:0 passes · Minutes of bos meeting on June 10, 2009 Motion: To approve. (Levine/ Aptowitz) 5:0 passes · Minutes of bos meeting on June 24, 2009 Motion: To approve. (Levine/ Aptowitz) 5:0 passes Board of Selectmen Minutes of August 26, 2009 6 · Request from Neal Rhein, Mansfield Beautification Committee. They would like to come to a meeting in October to provide an activities recap. · Invitation to regional summit of communities held at Dartmouth town hall on September 10th at 7pm.. · Letter from Stearns Ave residents requesting assistance from the board regarding issues with the Judge Rotenberg Center on Stearns Ave. (pictures are in file). Selectman Dentino asked that the letter be read as there appears to be serious issues that may need to be addressed. Selectman Dentino had questions about trash pickup times and parking issues at the center. He would like Mr. Riccio to contact the center owner to discuss this. · Email from Village Rd. resident detailing frustration in getting around the road work in town. · Letter of request from the Mansfield Animal Shelter. They would like to erect a 4x4 sign on the south common for the month of September to show funding progress and need. Photos of the animal shelter construction can be seen at www.mansfieldshelter.org Motion: To approve sign request. (Moran/Levine) 5:0 passes · Request from Mill St. resident asking for assistance from bos in regards to exercising at the Gilbert St. Water Department Building. Mr. Riccio gave a brief summary of the situation. He will speak to the Police Chief about this issue. · Letter from DA Sutter regarding release of Mr. D'Agostino's last performance review. The performance review and relating correspondence were released to the Sun Chronicle and interested parties. · Email from Keith Purrier, Ware St. resident requesting that his letter be read. He would like the release of both Mr. D'Agostino's last performance review and Attorney Torres report. · Memo from Michele Grenier, Conservation Agent advising the bos on the proposed name change at the Maple Park Conservation Area. They had requested that the park be named: Corporal Robert Francis Hardy Memorial Park - Conservation Area. Motion: To approve name change of park. (Aptowitz/Moran) 5:0 passes Board of Selectmen Minutes of August 26, 2009 7 · Letter from Eric Baldwin, Deutsche Bank Championship Director requesting wavier of fees for building permit (tents) at Comcast Center and one time per vehicle parking charge. (This is an annual request.) Parking plan is attached in file. Motion: To approve. (Dentino/Moran) 5:0 passes · Mr. Riccio attending his first health insurance consortium meeting with Sandy LaRosee this afternoon and it was well attended by our surrounding towns. · Gary Babin asked about putting electrical service for the new animal shelter in the town's name. The current shelter's electricity is paid through the town as a municipal building. The board does not object to this and instructed the town manager to proceed. · Thank you to Mini Warehouse and Old Colony Motors for their donation to the fire dept. · Old business from Selectman Levine: None · Old business from Selectman Dentino: Requesting update on Shawmut Ave property. DPW staff has been keeping up with repairs to the property but people have been breaking in and it is a policing issue. Update on HOMS guardrail situation. Mr. Riccio indicated that the guardrail system does meet full Mass Highway designs and it should be installed within a week or two. Selectman Dentino would like to see the plans before anything is installed. He believes that there should be a curved return piece at the ends, not just a straight run. Mr. Riccio will talk with Ms. Miller tomorrow. · Old business from Selectman Aptowitz: None · New business from Selectman Moran: He missed last meeting due to vacation last week. There may be additional 5C cuts to the FYlO budget already so please prepare the dept. heads for possible reductions. Selectman Moran requested that we look into registering Mansfield with the MA Bio Counsel. We need to continue to market Mansfield as a place to locate business. Commercial revenue is important to the town, especially now. Board of Selectmen Minutes of August 26, 2009 8 · Old business from Chairman Baldwin: None · New business from Chairman Baldwin: None · New business from Selectman Aptowitz: Monday is a light commissioners meeting. He would like to make sure that he gets an updated insurance certificate from HaMS. He went to the Town Accountant interviews and will hopefully be interviewing soon. The town manager search is also under way and 40 applicants have been received. Mangia Bene has not paid taxes and does not have a common Victuallers license so he would like Mr. Riccio to look into options for enforcement. · New business from Selectman Dentino: Washout areas on rails to trails need to be addressed. · New business from Selectman Moran: None · New business from Selectman Levine: There is another piece of mail missing from the reading file. She would like to know where the mail is going. The secretary will work on finding a better way to track and keep the mail. She has received calls from residents that are interested in being on the health insurance advisory board. After a lengthy conversation among the bos and the town manager it was decided that Mr. Riccio will compile the information for the board. Motion: Adjourn at 1O:28pm (Aptowitz) 5-0 Passes /~ ~U/Pfft Signature of Clerk tPdiJk ?: 2~~~ Date of Approval Board of Selectmen Minutes of August 26, 2009 9