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HomeMy WebLinkAboutmin brd of selectmen 09/26/01 '"1') ,. ~..', RECEIVED r:rHfC: Q':'-F ICE 1..., ~ ,\oJ .; ;; r Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 26, 2001 o I OCT - £; At1 8: 57 t"'· . ; I n i· · 'L 0 . ¡ J.J¡ 11ì::> r t.. MASS¡I)..CHUSETTS Present: Chairman Louis P. Amoruso; Vice Chairman Wills; and Selectmen David W. McCarter, Acting Clerk; and Daniel Donovan. Clerk McCue arrived at 9:45 p.m. after attending the Southeastern Regional Planning and Economic Development District (SRPEDD) meeting. Town Manager John O. D'Agostino The meeting was called to order at 7:30 p.m. followed by the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag. r · Warrant No. 13 in the amount of $2,067,986.18 Motion : To approve (Wills-Donovan) 4-0 with Selectman McCarter abstaining from Municipal Building Committee payroll Passes · Warrant No. 14 in the amount of $3,462,770.57 Motion : To approve · (McCarter-Wills) 4-0 with Selectman McCarter abstaining from Municipal Building Committee payroll Passes · Executive Session Minutes of September 12,2001 Board of Selectmen/Light Commissioners meeting Motion: To approve as amended but not release (Wills-Donovan) 4-0 Passes · Minutes of September 12, 2001 Board of Selectmen/Light Commissioners meeting Motion : To approve (Wills-Donovan) 4-0 Passes r · Drainlayer's Licenses for: Plainville Pump & Excavating, Inc., of 77 School Street, Plainville, MA Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 26, 2001 1 (' R. P. Rowean Excavating Contractors of 840 Main Street, #104, Millis, MA 02054 Shufelt & Sons Contracting, 172 Kendall St., Walpole, MA All have been recommended for approval by Town Engineer John Sullivan. Motion: To approve the license of Plainville Pump & Excavating (Donovan-Wills) 4-0 Passes Motion: To approve the license of R. P. Rowean Excavating Contractors (Donovan-McCarter) 4-0 Passes Motion: To approve the license of Shufelt & Sons Contracting (Wills-Donovan) 4-0 Passes Town Manager and Staff · Memorandum from John D. Sullivan, Jr., Town Engineer, updating the Board on the Route 106 Reconstruction Project r Residents · Letter from Joseph Del Grosso of 26 Webb Place requesting "no parking" signs in addition to the yellow curb painting at the intersection of Webb Place and South Main Street The Town Manager suggested enforcement of the yellow curb would help, but suggested signs are warranted He will ask the Chief for stepped up enforcement and a recommendation on the signs. Motion: To ask the Police Chief for enforcement of the no parking in the yellow curb areas and to put up no parking signs if warranted (McCarter-Wills) 4-0 Passes r · Letter form Doris Monett of 226 Willow Street suggesting that instead of white lights on the Christmas trees that red, white and blue lights be used this year The Town Manager has spoken with Jack Beliveau. The lights are already in place on the Common, but they do not have the time to undo all the lights and replace them without contracting the job out. There are lights usually hung over West Street and Copeland Drive and they would be able to do patriotic lights over the main thoroughfares this year. We are in need of replacement flags for those at the North and South Commons used for Veterans Day, Memorial Day, and other patriotic holidays if anyone is interested in contributing to this project. The conduit on the North Common will be discussed at the next Light Commissioners meeting. Motion: To hang patriotic lights over the intersections this year Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 26, 2001 2 ( (Wills-Donovan) 4-0 Passes Ms. Monett will be advised of the action taken. Other · Letter on behalf of the Mansfield Branch of the Hockomock Area YMCA requesting permission to hold their annual road race on Sunday, November 4th at 11:00 a.m. starting at Doranco, Inc. on Gilbert Street to Balcom Street, onto Otis Street, and finishing at Doranco Police and Fire have reviewed and approved the request Motion : To approve (Donovan-McCarter) 4-0 Passes · Letter from Kevin J. Doyle, Exalted Ruler of Mansfield Elks, re: fund raiser to be held on friday, October 12th at the Elks Lodge for the "Elks September 11th Disaster Relief fund" ( · Memo from Town Clerk with certified petition for a Special Town Meeting to amend the Mansfield Zoning By-law to allow the Selectmen as licensing authority to issue a special temporary permit to allow for events of up to 45 days for a festival or entertainment event. The Town Manager noted there may be another provision of the Zoning By-law that would have to be changed to allow the Selectmen to grant such permits. The Planning Board will be holding their public hearing on October 17h at 9:00 p.m. The earliest date the Special Town Meeting can be held is November 6th. The Warrant would have to be opened next week and closed the following week A discussion followed as to sending out estimated tax bills instead of borrowing in the event the State does not finalize their budget prior to the Special Town Meeting. The Town Accountant, Treasurer/Collector, and Assistant Assessor will be asked to come in next week to discuss the matter further. The Ad Hoc Committee to Review Town Meeting procedures may also have additional information. Motion: To schedule the Special Town Meeting for November 6th. (Donovan-Wills) 4-0 Passes (' Town Engineer John Sullivan reported that we submitted a letter to MassHighway and they have asked for full replacement of the bridge. We've advised them we don't believe it's necessary and, if it is, that it be done as a separate project. We're proposing some minor modifications to the bridge with the repaving project and are trying to get a 100 percent design done this year. It's uncertain as to when the funding will be in place, but our chances of getting it are better if we have a Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 26, 2001 3 (' 100 percent design in place. Another alternative is an intermediate fix that we believe is an appropriate solution. If the bridge is included in the repaving project, it will probably delay the repaving for several years. They previously asked for a design load study, which we did and sent to them a year and a half ago. The Board noted their support of Mr. Sullivan's letter. Lee Azinheira and Kurt Gaffney were present to review several DPW matters: · The securing of our public water source -Mr. Gaffney noted all the locks have been changed; an emergency plan for employees has been established; the SCADA system has been alarmed and will sound if an illegal entry occurs; all gates and tanks have been secured; chemical monitoring is being done daily. He assured the residents that everything possible is being done to safeguard our water system. The Town Manager noted he is setting up a meeting with Police, Fire, and Emergency Management to educate them about the operation of the water system. Mr. Gaffney noted the fBI has recommended SCADA systems as a top priority; we have had one for three years. r · Articles for Special Town Meeting - $45,858.41 to pay a prior year bill to the Mansfield Municipal Electric Company for the Walsh Well site; to transfer $111,000 from the Water Division Capital Account to a Water Capital Account to fund the improvements at the Mahana Well #6; to appropriate from Water Division free Cash a sum of money to fund prior years FLSA wage adjustments. The requests wJ1l be put in draft form for possible inclusion in the Special Town Meeting Warrant. · Job descriptions for the Water Distribution foreman, Water Treatment foreman and Water Chief Operator. Currently there are three men each operating independently of the other. The reorganization will add responsibility and make the operation more efficient. The impact to the fY2002 budget will be an increase of $1,658.40; fY 2003 it will be $2,953.60. Motion: To approve the draft job descriptions as recommended (Donovan-McCarter) 4-0 Passes r · Curb Cut request of Ti Tang of 4 Mary Alice Way for 139-141 Union Street property. The property was purchased approximately one month ago and the Town previously allowed the parcel to be subdivided into two parcels. They now have an easement to get onto the property at corner of Spring and Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 26, 2001 4 ,--. I Union Streets. The subdivided parcels are each only 7,000 sq. ft. which makes it difficult to use the easement to get onto the property. He requested the street cut moratorium be waived eight months prior to its expiration due to the hardship involved. Only one foot of the pavement will be disturbed in doing the curb cut. Due to problems with the resident of the neighboring property, a fence will be erected, making the curb cut necessary. Lee Azinheira noted most of the work will be done on the sidewalk and Highway Operations Manager Mark Cook would oversee the project to be sure the work is done to our standards. The asphalt would have to be saw cut and be infrared afterwards. Motion: To grant the waiver to allow the road surface to be disturbed to accommodate the curb cut (Donovan-Wills) 4-0 Passes Town Manager D'Agostino noted a staff meeting was held with Kendall prior to this meeting and some recommendations were made, which they've met. ( I Joyce E. Hastings, P.L.S. of GLM Engineering Consultants, Inc. was present to review the request of Kendall Corporation to install a sidewalk, crosswalk and traffic signal on Hampshire Drive, where Kendall Corporation owns three buildings. Two of the buildings are on the westerly side and one on the easterly side of Hampshire Drive, with employees moving among the buildings throughout the day. A plan entitled "Existing Conditions Plan "5, 15 &100 Hampshire Street" Mansfield Massachusetts prepared for I Design & Associates of Holliston, MA, dated July 26, 2001, last revised September 21, 2001. Will Brown of Kendall and Inga Hanks, architect with I Design & Associates, were also present to answer questions. ,--. Ms. Hastings reviewed the proposed plan with the Board, noting each facility stands on its own; however, they want to have safe access for their employees when going to each of the buildings. The crosswalk would be centrally located between the two buildings. The crosswalk is requested on a Town-owned road and requires approval of the Selectmen as road commissioners. Because private funds are being used, the Board could grant permission for a pedestrian light. She pointed out revisions that were made following staff review. The site distance from the hotel entrance is more than adequate. The pedestrian light would be mounted on a post on each side of the roadway and will have to go back to the Town Engineer for further approval. The project has been recommended for approval by Town Engineer John Sullivan, Planning Director Shaun Burke, and DPW Director Lee Azinheira. The plan was reviewed in detail by staff and all revisions suggested have been made to the plan. Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 26, 2001 5 (' Motion: To approve, with the understanding that if Kendall moves they will restore the road to its current condition (Wills-Donovan) 4-0 Passes r DPW Director Lee Azinheira updated the Selectmen on discussions held with various trash collection companies. Waste Management will be contracted for five years to do curbside trash pickup at a cost of $74.60 a ton. An analysis and cost breakdown of the various tipping fees of the companies contacted was reviewed. A comparison of tipping rates in neighboring communities was also presented and reviewed. Residents can expect to have their trash picked up without interruption. Waste Management's hours of operation are 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and although trash will be picked up on the same day as it is currently being picked up, it may be picked up at a different time of the day. Recycling bins will be available. Mr. D'Agostino noted the Millbury incinerator facility was chosen because bulky items picked up curbside can go right into it. White goods will be picked up in the same way as they were previously. A warrant article will be submitted at the Special Town Meeting to cover the additional cost. Selectman McCarter noted it was apparent to him that N.E.E.D. was looking to end the contract because they were losing money. Selectman Donovan noted N.E.E.D. was also creating the same problem in Rhode Island towns that had contracted with them. Condominium trash pickup is not included in the Waste Management contract for this year, but they are providing us with prices for other trash pick up next year. r George Dentino of Gladiola Terrace - asked what we're being charged by Waste Management to haul the trash to Millbury ($433,278). To haul it to SEMASS would be $404,622. To have N.E.E.D. haul was $437,751 for 12 months. The new contract with Waste Management is for nine months to coincide with the fiscal year. The cost at Millbury is $70/ton plus transportation of $4.60 per ton which is included in the $433,278. Millbury was chosen over SEMASS because some of the bulky items residents leave at curbside were not going to be accepted at SEMASS without additional cost. Mr. Dentino noted he is tired of hearing about the change in law and then reviewed the issue in detail. He stated N.E.E.D.'s position is they're ending the contract because the Town was tardy in giving them notification. Therefore he believes the change of law issue is not valid. Chairman Amoruso and Town Manager D'Agostino disagreed. Selectman McCarter pointed out N.E.E.D. told us that if they couldn't get us on the notification issue, they'd get us on the change Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 26, 2001 6 r' of law issue. Their intent was clearly not to extend the contract into the option years. Selectman McCue arrived at the meeting at this point (9:45 p.m.) after representing the Town at the SRPEDD meeting. The intention of the Town is to sue N.E.E.D. for breach of contract and recover the difference in our costs for the next two years in damages. Mr. Dentino asked who is responsible for implementing the contract (the Town Manager) and who is responsible for making sure the contract is upheld (DPW). The contract is reviewed by Town Counsel before it is executed. He asked if the Town held a performance bond for the first three years of the contract (we did). Mr. Dentino stated the contract calls for a performance bond for the entire length of the contract, including the two option years. He asked what we paid for a tipping fee for August and September. We paid the contract price of $62/ton, although they b1'lled us for more than that. He asked where N.E.E.D. took the trash (his certified scale). r' Steve MacCaffrie, 236 Mill Street - noted "verbal" doesn't mean anything and he hopes we've learned to get things in writing. He agreed with Mr. Dentino that we should have filed an injunction and acknowledged that Louis Vinagro doesn't mind spending time in jail and has done so on many occasions. He offered to apologize if the verbal notification stands up, and stated he hoped town officials would do the same if he's right. ( Mr. MacCaffrie noted he has spoken with School Superintendent Moretti regarding the expenses on the locker room. He noted the Town, acting as a contractor, marked Mill Street for drains. The work has not been done yet, and the paint has washed off. He further criticized the cost of the work being done by the Town and suggested money may not end up being saved. With regard to the East Street fields/high school track and practice field renovations-he stated his belief that the figures presented were the amount for which the work could be done. He felt mislead because of statements made that if there was money left over "we could do this or that." He questioned why $47,000 has been left in an account since 1995 when it could have been better used. It's a capital account and the money stays in the account until the project is done. Mr. MacCaffrie suggested that money is being left in accounts to be used for other items. Mr. D'Agostino noted it was a school sponsored article and Mr. MacCaffrie has spoken with Mr. Moretti who has offered to give him an accounting. He commended the guys who have done some of the projects and the creativity they've used in getting the work done. He then reiterated his concern about the Town doing projects for time and materials and questioned their ability to assume risk and disagreed with the practice being used to avoid paying prevailing wage to hire a contractor, which he is, to perform the Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 26, 2001 7 ( work. He questioned whether other projects are being neglected while DPW employees are acting as contractors. DPW Director Lee Azinheira defended the practice and addressed concerns raised by Mr. MacCaffrie. He noted the weeding and brush cutting have continued and Mark Cook wi/I be coming before the Selectmen to go over in detail what is being done. Mr. D'Agostino noted any overtime is being charged to the projects themselves, and not to DPW salary. Selectman McCue asked Mr. MacCaffrie if he has any idea when the Ad Hoc Committee to Review Town Meeting Procedures would have a recommendation or a summary of their findings. Mr. MacCaffrie said they would have it tomorrow night. It was noted that no minutes have been received from their meetings. Selectman Donovan - noted Mr. Smith and his attorney were here two weeks ago asking for an apology for a statement made by a board member. He stated he does not feel it is the responsibility of the Board to apologize for a statement made by an individual and as a member of the Board he would not do so. r The Town Manager reported: . He and staff will be addressing Tri- Town Chamber of Commerce on Thursday regarding the use of purple pipe water. In the afternoon he will be participating in the Bristol County Domestic Violence Roundtable Discussion at the Taunton Superior Courthouse. On Friday he will be attending the "What's New in Municipal Law" Seminar in framingham. ,--. . Asked if the Board is interested in funding repairs to the Hartwell School used by the Uncommon Theater. Annette Shaw was present to discuss this with the Board. Mr. D'Agostino noted an Request for Proposals (RfP) would be necessary, and how it is structured will be determined by the action of the Selectmen. It would also have to be voted as surplus property if it is decided to release the property. The Finance Committee desires to put as much free Cash as possible into Stabilization in light of the economic forecasts. Mrs. Shaw presented a list of the things the Uncommon Theater has been doing to maintain the property. Mr. D'Agostino outlined the work that needs to be done to the building. Mrs. Shaw reviewed the history of how they came to use the building for the Uncommon Theatre Company. Selectman Wills asked if the Uncommon Theatre could afford to lease the property if we did the repairs. Mrs. Shaw said they have been doing the interior upkeep, but she does not have the figures on what they've spent. Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 26, 2001 8 (' Head Start previously used the property but had to vacate because of lead paint. If we vinyl side the building, the lead would be encapsulated. We would be responsible for removing any lead in the ground. Mr. D'Agostino asked for the direction of the Board on how they desire the Town proceed. Mr. McCarter noted he's an advocate for providing activities other than athletics for the youth of the town. Mrs. Shaw noted the Hartwell School was built in 1870 as a one-room school house. The basic structure is sound, but will only remain usable if the necessary repairs are made. Selectmen asked about the availability of grant money for arts and cultural uses and as a historical building. Mrs. Shaw noted the building has never officially received that designation and must go through a process to be designated as such. There are generally 200 children that show up for auditions and there are 60 children involved in their current production. Royalties and salaries for production directors are their major expenses. The building is used between three and five days per week, depending if a production is going on. When set building is taking place, they are using the entire area. At other times, they have some space available for other groups to use. They would be able to do the upkeep if the Town would fund the necessary repairs to the property. (' Mr. D'Agostino noted the Board needs to decide first of all if they will put the request for funds on the warrant and also take two votes: not to sell the property; and to declare the building as surplus property and then to lease the building to a qualified non-profit group as described in the draft RFP presented. Motion: To continue the meeting (at 11:00 p.m.) for an additional 15 minutes (Donovan-Wills) 5-0 Passes Selectmen discussed philosophically the wisdom of continually spending money on projects in light of the current bleak economic forecasts. It was suggested we go forward with an RfP with cost breakdown and a list of work to be done. Motion: To declare the Hartwell School surplus property (McCue-McCarter) 5-0 Passes Motion: To lease the building to a qualified non-profit group as described in the draft Request for Proposals (McCue-McCarter) 5-0 Passes ( . Bill Flannery has indicated we will get $15,000 refund from the Southeastern Regional School District on the Town's assessment Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 26, 2001 9 (' · North Attleboro has invited us to a cable meeting · We have been successful in getting EPA to list Hatheway Patterson as a superfund site. There's a public hearing set for mid-October · The flagpole on East Mansfield Common may cost $2,000. Vinny Tighe has worked tirelessly getting it restored. The base was rotted by years of mulching at the base. · Appears we will be getting the grants for the fisher Richardson House and the Essex Street parcel Selectmen Donovan reported receiving a call that at 2 Jewell Street and 58 Jewell Street the hydrants sinking and blacktop breaking up. The Town Manager will check into it. r Motion: To adjourn at 11:15 p.m. (Donovan-) 5-0 Passes ~l1Iæ v Signature of Clerk .3 o~7 0/ Date of Approval r Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 26, 2001 10