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HomeMy WebLinkAboutmin brd of selectmen 04/10/02 .. Present: Board of Selectmen Minutes of 02 f',¡PR 1 8 M1 8: l" 8 April 10, 2002 ,."è' \ELD Chairman Louis P. Amoruso; Vice Chairman BradM'~~:i.rwM~;E~~~k~' Michael W. McCue; Selectmen David W. McCarter and Daniel Donovan. Town Manager John O. D'Agostino !-O C. _ n 1",:- r: \ C' \. \,' ! "'- r The meeting was called to order at 7:30 p.m., followed by the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. Karl Clemmey of 750 South Main Street addressed the Selectmen, beginning with a comment on something the Town Manager said a few weeks ago regarding the growth of the town. Mr. Clemmey noted he is a team player and is proud of the development he's brought to the town. He noted the Village at Willow Crossings, that he brought to Mansfield, which added $200,000 to Mansfield's coffers last year. He's now in the process of bringing Erin Centre to Mansfield. He then r reviewed various assessments and appraisal firms, noting several in Boston who he believes know the true value of property. He noted he's disturbed about the assessment of 390 West Street, for which he's a spokesman. He stated Vision Appraisal is not qualified to do the appraisals and spoke of his property at 390 West Street going up 550'0. He spoke of going to the assessors and asking for the Chairman Paul Folkman, who said he couldn't discuss his properties with him due to a potential conflict of interest. He was told the "inside appraisers" would be handling his appraisals. Mr. Clemmey said he knows the value of real estate, pointing out that the other two assessors are not as qualified as either he or Mr. Folkman are. He then spoke to Ed O'Neil, Assistant Assessor/Office Manager, and asked for a copy of Vision Appraisal's report and was told they weren't allowed on his property. Mr. Clemmey reviewed the various industrial districts in Mansfield and he checked all the I-I land, with the assessment of $4.8 million for his property being far greater than others, bringing his bill up to $400,000. He compared that to others, noting Tweeter Center sold their property for $22 million, yet was assessed for $8,400,000. He was told his propertyvalue was set based on the location, with the assessors noting it's on a good corner. Other industrial parcels were assessed at ~ 40'0 and his was at 100'0. He was the only owner of industrial land that filed for an abatement. He believes the assessments of all the others are too low, and he Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 10, 2002 1 " (' believes the homes are also, based on assessments compared to sale prices. He suggested homeowners are now subsidizing businesses in Mansfield. Mr. Clemmey continued his review of assessments of other properties: Tighe Trucking at 390 Oakland Street is valued at $8,500,000 for 17 acres of land. He believes they're over-assessed. On Norfolk Street there's 14 acres at $8,900,000. Maple Street 10 acres - $4 million. National Lumber at 245 Oakland Street for $1 million. He asked that the Town either hire a new assessor or get someone who can do the job. He noted Mr. O'Neil does not go out and do the appraisals and asked who's doing the work. He stated Mr. O'Neil did a great job going after personal property, but believes the assessors are not doing their job. At 125 High Street - an industrial condo complex, of which the Town owns three units--he noted they all have 3,800 square feet, are not being taxed for second floors, and are assessed at $213,000 and $218,000, yet the Town paid $400,00 for a unit. He then cited assessments of $225,000 for Selectman McCarter's house and $185,000 for Selectman McCue's house. Mr. Clemmey noted a house nearby that's assessed at $240,000 that produces income of $50,000. (' He then spoke about the appraised value of 65 Crocker Street, owned by Paul Folkman, on which he got a $1,164 abatement. He noted another property across the street with nine apartments appraised at $513,000 and an abatement of $1,100 was received. He noted he will be taking them to court to get this resolved because he can't get any satisfaction from the Assessors. Mr. Clemmey stated there were 357 residents filing for abatements, with 137 getting them. Selectman McCarter noted there has been a trend over the past few years where residential has outpaced commercial properties in value. He suggested the possibility that commercial property should be looked at. Town Manager D'Agostino noted there is very little developable industrial land, while more homes being built. Mr. Clemmey concluded with the statement that everyone has to be treated equally. Frank Foss, AT&T Broadband's Manager of Government of Affairs, was present with a stenographer to prepare a transcript. The notice of public hearing was read by Clerk McCue on the application of AT&T r Broadband for the transfer of the cable television license to Comcast. Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 10, 2002 2 (' Motion: To open the public hearing at 8:00 p.m. (McCue-Wills) 5-0 Passes Town Manager D'Agostino noted there are four issues to be considered: The management, technical, legal and financial competencies of the operation. AT&T will focus on these four categories. Consideration of the competency of ComCast with respect to their ability of addressing the issues of AT&T is also in order. Exhibits to be included are: Exhibit 1 - Application 394 Form issued 3/1 Exhibit 2 - Stenographic transcript of tonight's hearing Exhibit 2A - ComCast Presentation Exhibit 2B Congressional Record Exhibit 2C ComCast Financial Considerations Exhibit 3 - Legal Notice Exhibit 3A - Any documents or supporting information Exhibit 4 - Letter of documentation from Mr. Foss r Issues to be discussed are: 1) Issues relating to telephone response and providing correct information - the responsiveness of ComCast to this community relative to logs to be kept and management concerns. 2) Signal quality and how ComCast will address those issues. 3) Comcast's financial ability to carry through on these issues 4) Any changes in operation that would result from the transfer of the license. Mr. Foss noted this is a merger of two existing franchises as opposed to past transfers when it was a new company purchasing the prior company. The structure of the merger was presented, December 18, 2001, creating AT&T ComCast who will be the parent corporation. He reviewed the merger structure chart, with MediaOne Group, Inc. as the final structure after the merger. He referred to the steps in the 394 Application. Mr. Foss noted any company holding the franchise will be obligated to honor anything agreed to in and under the current license of the existing franchise. He noted transfers do not trigger any negotiations and the State and Federal r Governments have made that very clear. With regard to legal qualifications, ComCast is a Philadelphia corporation authorized to operate in Massachusetts and Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 10, 2002 3 r must adhere to all State, Federal and local regulations. They would be assuming all obligations under the license. The assets of the combined companies will be $141 billion with $18 million annual revenue. AT&T has an 8/1 ration of debt to operating revenue cash flow, while Comcast has a 4/1 ratio. They will be near $1.9 billion in five years. His company will serve 41 states with 22 million subscribers. They are pledging $1.3 billion to upgrade their system, with ComCast pledging the same amount. Brian Roberts is President and CEO and will be responsible after the merger for the day-to-day operations. He has built the system from the ground up to its existing size. Digital and high speed data services will be maintained through the merger. ComCast is making a commitment to continue AT&rs desire to get into phone service. They are committing more resources on a local and regional basis for phones, staffing, technical and managerial purposes. They are also committing to continuing their community involvement in the communities wherein they operate. In closing, Mr. Foss reiterated that issues of non-compliance are not part of this process; however, they are willing to respond to issues raised in the process. It was agreed to keep the record open to give the Selectmen adequate time to digest the information presented prior to taking a vote on the application. r The importance of responding to issues raised was stated as being necessary in evaluating the competency of the entity. Mr. Foss noted in a recent Cambridge experience, the compliance issues were raised and a commitment was made to address them. There has been communication between Mansfield and AT&T Broadband regarding compliance issues. He stated again that they would comply with everything in their license. Selectman Donovan asked for something in writing stating Mr. Foss is authorized to act on this matter. Mr. Foss said he would provide that documentation. Mr. Foss then reviewed telephone response numbers over the last few quarters, noting a continual improvement, with an average meeting the 90/30 in the first quarter. Bill Gerber of 362 Central Street commended Mr. Foss on being a "kinder, gentler" individual than the gentlemen who has represented AT&T Broadband in the past. He noted ComCast's $19 billion savings from the merger that was announced at the same time AT&T announced a rate increase. He pointed out that ComCast is going to save a great deal of money and AT&T will be filling the coffers. He stated rates and the ability to chose programming are the number one subscriber complaint. He also spoke of management issues, parental controls with instructions on how to implement them have not been worked out, the number of subscribers from 1998 and 1999 have not been produced, although they show them going up. He also r pointed out that AT&TComcast has lost close to 1,000 subscribers in the last year in this area and questioned what they will do to turn that around. He questioned Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 10, 2002 4 r- the management commitment to Mansfield, stating the Advisory Committee just received a letter that was late as the result of the wrong zip code being used. He suggested AT&T learn Mansfield's zip code. He also suggested AT&TComCast put a meter on Channels 9 and 15 and see just how much people depend on local cable access, pointing out they would lose that if they go to satellite. Mr. Foss noted rates are regulated by DTE. They are given a maximum permitted rate, which they are at right now. Although this is beyond the scope of this proceeding, he noted the data provided now on items he did not fully respond to is due to the financial capability and commitment of these two companies. He spoke of the commitments made at the time of the transfer to AT&T, with their focus to build out their system. The management of ComCast is more indicative of a de- centralized system, with more oversight and control being delegated to the local level to make management decisions. Mr. Foss reviewed the operational changes as they relate to the reports, signal quality, and other issues raised in the past, noting ComCast's intent and ability to address them. Chairman Amoruso asked if there is anything in the works that Mr. Foss knows of (' that would adversely affect the current license or our subscribers. Mr. Foss stated all agreements would be standing. Mr. Foss noted he will fax his authorization and it could be made an exhibit. Richard Devine of 6 Morgan Road, President of Mansfield Cable Access,- asked customer service response time as addressed by Mr. Foss. He noted that in a private corporation that would not satisfy him, with a poor response for years and suddenly the promise of a better response. He suggested the current management team in existence is inadequate in their responsiveness and he recommended as part of the transfer agreement a new management team be put in place. He noted one quarter's response is not adequate and said Cable Access has had to spend its own money to fix cable equipment due to the past response time. They spent $1,200 of subscribers' money to go out and adequately appraise what equipment they would need in the next ten years. It came up to $800,000 - $900,000, yet that is not addressed in the contract. Chairman Amoruso noted this process is for the transfer of the license and not the review or renewal of the license. Mr. Devine also questioned what rates Foxboro is paying compared with Mansfield. Selectman Wills asked about the return of the "borrowed" station. It was noted this is a license issue that needs to be addressed separately. Selectman Wills also r asked about the provisions for the payment of repair services under the current license. Under the current license we are using equipment supplied by the licensee. Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 10, 2002 5 r It is likely that in the next license they will be turning over the equipment. He also asked about digital television. Mr. Foss noted all these issues are beyond the scope of the transfer. As a point of information he noted the FCC has set standards for the provision of HDTV for 2006. There are differences that need to be resolved between manufacturers and the industry, but all issues must be addressed in time for compliance with FCC standards. High speed data was considered a cable service. The FCC has since ruled that it is an information service, taking it out from the purview of cable. The result is cable service will no longer be a part of the franchise fee paid to the Town. Mr. Foss was asked to address in general what will be in place in terms of management changes and equipment. Mr. Foss noted operational decisions will follow the close of the merger, which they expect to be the end of the year. Selectman McCue noted his awareness of the intent and scope of the hearing, but said he did want to note the issues brought forth by Messrs. Gerber and Devine. He stated he would expect these matters to be addressed adequately during the renewal of the license. Chairman Amoruso noted the hearing will be held open and asked Mr. Foss if he r- feels the need to be present further. Mr. Foss noted most hearings are closed for public comment, with written comment being allowed for a couple weeks. The Selectmen have 120 days to make a decision and respond by June 30th. Motion: To close the hearing at 9:13 p.m., but to continue to accept written comments until May ¡st. (McCarter-McCue) Selectman Wills noted questions received will probably be relating to the license and will not fall under the four criteria noted for the transfer. He indicated he was ready to vote tonight. Chairman Amoruso pointed out that Selectman Donovan has rightfully asked for documentation as to Mr. Foss' authority to speak on behalf of the licensee. Mr. Foss introduced a letter of authority addressed to the Lexington Board of Selectmen, noting it's a carbon copy of what we'd be receiving. Vote: 4-1 with Selectman Wills opposed Passes · Minutes of April 3, 2002 Motion : To approve (McCue-Donovan) 5-0 Passes r · Warrant No. 42 in the amount of $3,131,909.13 Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 10, 2002 6 r Motion : To approve (Donovan-McCue) 5-0 with Selectman McCarter abstaining from Municipal Building Committee payroll · Commercial Parking Facility License of 875 South Main Street Realty Trust at 875 South Main Street (issues remain with Po/ice Chief approval) Motion: To approve the commercial parking facility license of 875 South Main Street Realty Trust (Karl Clemmey) at 875 South Main Street subject to the removal of the trailers from the licensed area, sight lines being maintained and access being granted per the request of the Police Chief. (Wills-Donovan) r Selectman McCarter stated the storage of trailers would create a mixed use. Selectman Wills noted the license is for the lot. If the trailers are put back on the dirt portion away from the street, they are just on his property and not part of the licensed parking area. Mr. D'Agostino noted the applicant intends to remove the trailers. Discussion ensued as to whether the trailers were to be removed from the site, or only from the commercial parking area. Mr. D'Agostino stated it is his understanding that the lot will be used for commercial parking during the concert season. The Chief's concern was that the sight distance would be obstructed from the property line. Discussion continued as to whether the license should be issued subject to no storage of trailers on the paved parking area. Questions were raised as to whether the trailers could go back in the area when it is not being used for concert parking. Selectman McCarter suggested the wording "no trailers would be parked in the licensed area during the concert season." The motion and second were ultimately withdrawn. Motion: To grant the license (Donovan-Wills) 4-1 with McCarter opposed Passes · Commercial Parking Facility License of AC Intermediate Co., a subsidiary of Acme-Cleveland Corporation (Joseph Ditchman) at 75 Chauncy Street (issues remain with Fire Chief approval) Motion: To approve the commercial parking facility license of AD Intermediate Co., a subsidiary of Acme-Cleveland Corporation (Joseph Ditchman) at 75 Chauncy Street subject to the issues of the fire extinguisher and first aid kit r being resolved (Donovan-McCue) 5-0 Passes Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 10, 2002 7 r · Memorandum from Board of Assessors declining the Selectmen's invitation to attend tonight's Selectmen's meeting · Copy of Fax from Attleboro Parking Clerk provided by Dave Alward, Mansfield Parking Clerk regarding change in Massachusetts General Laws increasing parking fines for vehicles parked illegally in restricted parking areas for veterans and handicapped persons. This is a by-law change that would have to be made at an Annual Town Meeting. . Motion: To close the Special Town Meeting Warrant (McCue-Donovan) Treasurer Boucher would like to add an article dealing with the acceptance of Chapter 60 Section 77C allowing the Town to foreclose on property through the acceptance of a deed in lieu of an actual foreclosure. This is less expensive for the Town to execute. f Motion and second withdrawn to allow for the addition of this article to the Special Town Meeting Warrant for a total of eight articles. Motion: To add the article (Wills-Donovan) 5-0 Passes Selectman Wills asked where Article 6 came from. The Town Manager stated it was submitted for early retirement purposes to get those on the higher end of the pay scale to retire and to replace them with a lower paid employee. This still has to be passed by the Legislature and it will expire the end of December. Mr. D'Agostino noted he has committed to the Police and Fire Unions that we would not reduce the level of staffing as the result of this bill. Motion: To close the Special Town Meeting Warrant (^^cCue-Donovan) 5-0 Passes Richard Devine of 6 Morgan Road - spoke of the memorandum of understanding with AT&T. No decision has been made and a copy was given to Cable Access as a courtesy prior to any action being taken on it. Mr. Devine asked to be on the r agenda next week as they have serious issues with this they would like to discuss in I greater detail. He will call for a time. Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 10, 2002 8 r Steve MacCaffrie of 236 Mill Street - just came up from downstairs Planning Board meeting and spoke of the zoning change being proposed to make the Board of Selectmen the granting authority for the Light Show amendment. He noted that as an administrative board, the Selectmen are getting beyond their scope. The procedure would require review of plans, traffic studies, MEPA approval, etc. Chairman Amoruso noted that is not necessarily how it's going to end up. George Wojtkiewicz of 1 Gladiola Terrace - raised a concern about the drought we're experiencing and questioned whether we should be taking more aggressive action to conserve our water supply. He noted we regularly pump more than we should be. It was noted Phase 1 of a water ban has already been put into place. It was also noted we do pump on a regulated basis, with the benefit of the SCADA system, and pump and rest our wells as indicated by the SCADA data. If the wells become an issue and we see a drop in our water levels, staff comes to the Board far earlier than they did in the past for further restrictions. Our system now provides many more safeguards than it ever has before. As a result, we're in far better shape than many surrounding towns. We may still have to go to greater restrictions, but flow levels are being monitored carefully. r Mr. Wojtkiewicz next spoke of the trash confract, noting it cost $500,000 because we missed timely notification. Legal action is st/Ï/ being pursued to recover that money for breach of contract. Mr. D'Agostino explained that the prior contractor was losing money and had no intentions of continuing service on any basis. The issue of timely renewal was what the contractor was using to get out of the contract. The $500,000 was not correct, as the prior contract had two renewal years and the new contract is for five years. The actual figure is $325,000. There has been an assignment of his receivables. Mr. Wojtkiewicz's next topic was a pizza dinner for the Fire Department. It wasn't a pizza dinner. It was a $72 order because the Fire Department was fighting a brush fire and could not leave the site. There was no need for disciplinary action because there was nothing wrong done. There is a line item amount for those services. In the development of the 2003 budget, 75% to 80'0 is comprised of salary and benefits. He asked if any effort has been made to reduce that. He noted many people are out of work and are having a hard time. He questioned how we can go to the people and say we've made a serious attempt to reduce our budget when we have not reduced that phase of the budget. Mr. D'Agostino noted the step increase r process has been slowed down and the biggest part of the increase is health insurance benefits. Increases have been held to 3%; however, health care Board of Selectmen Minutes of Apri/lO, 2002 9 r increased $900,000. representing and increase of 10.1%. Mr. D'Agostino noted we've gone to a three-tier drug program and Chapter 328 requires that he negotiate the impact of that with every union. At this point no reduction of personnel is anticipated Were proposing an '03 budget that is $213,000 less than the '02 budget. There may be some new hires in the School Department that may affect that. There are mechanisms in the budget that will enable us to make adjustments necessary in the fall The State has not yet set it's budget, and we are not able at this time to accurately figure what we'll be receiving from the State. r Mr. Wojtkiewicz noted $650,000 is being utilized from the Stabilization Fund to balance the budget. He stated we're taking it out to balance a higher budget rather than a level-funded budget. Under Proposition 2 -j, we have the ability to increase our tax levy to that extent. We also receive other funds from the State. Health care costs and the addition of new personnel have a tremendous impact as to the amount of money available from one year to the next. Mr. Wojtkiewicz asked that careful consideration be given to union negotiations to reduce this impact. He also asked how the funds taken from Stabilization would be replaced. It is hoped they will be replaced in the fall when we know how much we'll be receiving from the State. Mr. D 'Agostino noted we have funds available every year for emergency purposes. The Stabilization Fund is to stabilize levels of service and the State is penalizing those Towns who have a large amount in Stabilization. The decision has to be made if we want to reduce spending and subsequently reduce services. We have a scenario worked out in the event a 10% reduction is necessary. The Town Manager: · Apprised the Board there is a proposed water connection at 69 East Belcher Street in Foxboro. This should be added to the agenda for our Regional Water/Sewer meeting. · Our financial audit needs to be addressed soon. We've looked at some viable alternatives to R. E. Brown & Company and provided the Selectmen with the recommendation from Accountant Bea Kearney that we continue with Brown & Company. The main issue is GASB34 that has caused a shrinking supply of competent and cable auditors to select from. Costs will go up due to the added requirements of GASB34. r Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 10, 2002 10 (' · Scheduled tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. to meet with the COA Seniors. On April 30th Rotary will be hosting a senior luncheon at 12:15 p.m. at COA to show their appreciation for the seniors. · The resurfacing of Route 106 from Hope Street to Flint Farm is now scheduled on the Transportation Improvement Plan. The Regional Planning Board will assist us in fast-tracking the project. · Mansfield is sponsoring the Water Resource meeting "Drinking Water Day 2002" and it's scheduled for Tuesday, May 9th at 8:30 a.m. to noon in Mansfield. We hope to again be recognized for our water quality as we have in the past. Saturday, May 11th, is the dedication of the Mahana Well and rededication of the Morrison Well. · The RFP for a suitable contractor to run the housing program is due on April 24th. Within ten days of that date we expect to award the project to a competent, suitable contractor. · He and Selectman Amoruso are scheduled to do a cable television show with Dianne Royle on April 23rd to discuss warrant articles. (' · On May 1st he will be attending an important municipal forum on State budget issues and the retirement bill discussed earlier. If the bill changes, there will be an exposure and cost to the Town which we need to know before making a decision to support the bill on a local level. · The Williams Street bridge is scheduled to be advertised this spring and should be under construction by summer. The Elm Street bridge is scheduled to cost $1,904,000. It is earmarked for Federal aid and was read on April 9th. The Route 140 repaving has begun and $1,154,594 has been earmarked. The anticipated completion date is November 21st. The State has contracted with the University of Massachusetts to do a Phase 1 archeological study for the Williams Street bridge project. Selectman Donovan: · Asked if we could get Mr. Ditchman to clean up his parking lot. Town Manager D'Agostino noted there is still a dispute between Mr. Ditchman and Mr. Clemmey r over ownership of the property and he believes it is schedule to go to Court next month. Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 10, 2002 11 C' Selectman McCue: · Spoke with Selectman Moitoza in Norton regarding pursuing on-line voting and suggested a multi-town approach is something we should consider if we're going to look at it in the future. · Asked if the Gentek-Grainger contract has been signed. It's been sent back for corrections and will be returned for signature. · Asked if any departments have requested projects to be done by the Bristol County Sheriff's Department. Town Manager D'Agostino said he has not received any specific requests yet and will follow up on it. Selectman Wills: · Asked about the status of the Airport RFP. Town Manager D'Agostino reported he has sent a letter to the Airport Commission asking them for the additional information needed to complete the RFP and is waiting for their response. · The embankment in front of St. Mary's Cemetery needs to be raked and mowed and the scrub brush cut down. r · Asked if the trash has been picked up on Francis Avenue. Town Manager D 'Agostino will check on it. Selectman McCarter: · Asked if anything further has happened on the recommendation for membership of the Local Housing Partnership. A letter sent to Fair Housing asking for an update. Town Manager D'Agostnio will follow-up on it. Selectman McCarter: · Asked for list of out-of-state travel proposed in new budget and the reason for each proposed trip. Selectman McCue: · Reported he has been contacted by Rep. Louis Kafka who will be representing a portion of our district in November and asked if we should invite him in to get acquainted. Yes, and also other legislators at same time. tn " Chairman Amoruso: Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 10, 2002 12 -------...-. , . r · Suggested the Board discuss the salary increase for Town Manager since there has already been an article in the newspaper about it. He stated there was a workshop held where members of the Board met with the Town Manager and put aside a 7'Yo salary increase. There are no minutes from that meeting. When the payroll change was presented to him, he signed it based on his belief that it was approved at the workshop. Selectman McCarter noted the 7'0 increase was authorized for the FY'02 budget year when times were different than they are today. He pointed out the Town Manager has taken out any proposed increase for '03 for any non-union employees, including himself. The 7'0 would thus be over a 2-year period of time and that he might have been able to be implement in July rather than December. As a result he has not received the increase due him for the last six months. It's an administrative matter that we should correct by ratifying the vote and moving on. We all are aware that it was done at a workshop meeting on April 3,2001 at which there was no secretary, and it the report of the actions at the workshop meeting appeared in the newspaper on April 5, 2001, and were incorporated into the Town Manager's contract. Selectman Wills noted he cannot support it because he can't find it in the minutes. He stated he doesn't remember voting on it and referred to budget figures from 2001. Selectman McCarter suggested we act on the matter at this point. r Motion: To ratify the signature of the Chairman increasing the Town Manager's weekly salary to $2067.31 because it was discussed and approved (Donovan-McCarter) A roll call vote was taken at the request of Selectman Wills. Donovan, aye; McCue, abstain as he was not a Selectman at the time of the vote; Amoruso aye; Wills, nay; McCarter, aye 3-1 with 1 abstention Passes Motion: To adjourn at 10:58 p.m. (McCue-Donovan) 5-0 Passes ~JIfi (/ Signature of Clerk !f1:..:¡r 2m / D e of Approval r Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 10, 2002 13