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HomeMy WebLinkAboutmin brd of selectmen 09/15/04 r r- ,--. Board of Selectmen Meeting Minutes September 15, 2004 ~~¡¡C C1-¡\/ E". ~ .d_ L \' ,¡ø ("\1(':', nF-F 1°. E ' '-" '.' \., OL. SEP Z tl AM 9: 52 Present: j!: :~, .\ "~.,, - ; - ~' / .,. ,·u....,.,jc d:lU ,..1.A,SSACHUSETTS Chairman Steven W. MacCaffrie; Vice Chairman Roger S. Achille; Clerk Bernard J. Dolan; Selectman Louis P. Amoruso and Town Manager John O. D' Agostino The meeting was called to order at 8:45 p.m. 8:30 p.m.: Petition for Fiber Optic Cable System - permission to excavate the public right of way on West St (southerly sideline, approximately 550 feet between the MBTA Railroad Right of Way and Copeland Drive. Selectman Dolan read the public hearing notice as advertised in the Sun Chronicle on September 1, 2004. Motion: To open the public hearing. (Amoruso/Achille) 4-0 Passes Lee Azinheira and Representative John Cournoyer from MCI presented. The location was described as being just beyond West/Copeland Drive; they would be tying onto existing conduit on railroad track and into the Verizon conduit system, which would be leased from Verizon. Chairman MacCaffrie asked if the project was part of the open competition regulation and was told yes. It will be all underground. The fee is $10,444 for this project and it has already been paid. Mr. Azinheira noted it is the first time this company has come through Mansfield and they have done everything in order. Lee positively recommends this project; the internal review committee has asked for changes and the company has complied. Selectman Dolan asked if Dig Safe will be called and was told they will. There was one question by resident Mr. Wally Gilbert, 186 West St. He asked how far in from the street would the cable run as he has a concrete walk that may be affected. The answer was four (4) feet from edge of pavement. Lee Azinheira thinks it could go right under the walk if there is only a small amount of concrete and he was assured the town would remedy any damage to his property. Motion: To approve the request for the granted location. (Amoruso/Achille) 4-0 Passes John D'Agostino introduced the new Veteran's Agent, John Hogan of Walpole, to the Board and noted that he has three Eagle Scouts. The Board of Selectmen was extremely impressed with his credentials and qualifications. Chairman MacCaffrie noted as a veteran himself, he was proud to have him. The start date is October 1 st. Mr. Hogan stated he is very happy and grateful that he was selected. He spoke on how he felt after Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 15,2004 1 r the interviews; wanting to work here and impressed with the support the Board and John D'Agostino showed to veterans. He is looking forward to starting the job. Chairman MacCaffrie mentioned that Mr. Hogan came out "on top" of most of the people he has ever interviewed. Selectman Amoruso said he looks forward to Mr. Hogan serving and that the Board oversees this position. Mr. Hogan is looking forward to it as a team effort. Selectman Dolan also felt Mr. Hogan shined a "little brighter". Selectman Achille relayed his congratulations. It was noted that several agents in neighboring towns have been helping with the veterans during the interim, such as Attleboro and Foxboro. Motion: To send a letter of thanks to neighboring towns' veteran's agents for their assistance during the interim. (Amoruso/Dolan) 4-0 Passes. · Warrant No. 12 in the amount of $3,240,594. 16 Motion: To approve (Achille/Dolan) 4-0 Passes · Minutes of September 8, 2004 Motion: To approve with corrections. (Amoruso/Achille) 4-0 Passes r- · Minutes of September 8, 2004 Executive Session Motion: To approve with amendments but not release. (Amoruso/Achille) 4-0 Passes · Notification of Release Abatement Measure (RAM) Plan Modification from Woodard & Curran dated September 2, 2004 · Massachusetts Municipal Assn: Passing of Peter Torigian, Mayor of Peabody ;- · Request for Mansfield endorsement from South Shore Housing for Federal Funded Loan Program for Baybrook Village and ability to participate in the lottery for Chapter 40B housing, letter dated August 12, 2004. John D'Agostino noted this is a federal home loan program for income eligible applicants, (at no cost to the town) for first time home buyers to obtain money for closing costs and down payment monies. It is a good program, there is no repayment of the loan if applicant lives in the home for five years. Motion: Based on recommendation of Town Manager to endorse the program for Participation for Mansfield residents. (Achille/Amoruso) 4-0 Passes Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 15,2004 2 r . Re: Bay State Gas & Excavation Permits -letter from Town Counsel dated September 7,2004. It was decided that an executive session is not required but rather Chairman MacCaffrie suggested a review of pricing for permits. All staff time spent by all departments to review permits should be computed and charged to the Bay State Gas Company. John D'Agostino noted that these charges would be actual time spent on permit review and the charges must be defensible in court. Lee Azinheira noted that most of these types of projects are small, but the company will be surprised to see the charges increased, but will comply with the Board's wishes. . Police Department - VFW - Violation of All Alcohol License. The Board voted to hear the violation upon resolution of the court case. John D'Agostino stated that notification of the violation came from Chief O'Neill and the policy is to inform him that the Board will have a hearing after the court decision. Motion: To send Chief a letter of notification after the violator has court date. (Dolan! Achille) 4-0 Passes. Town Manae:er and Staff r . Revenue Anticipation Notes: Memo from Richard Boucher, Treasurer/Collector For borrowing $4,000,000; no formal vote needed but the document needs to be signed by all. John D'Agostino noted this was short-term borrowing; cash flow shortage is noted earlier than last year as the Town is having class flow problems. Selectman Dolan would ask that we consider quarterly billing tax bills so that we can get better cash flow to try to avoid borrowing so much money for operating expenses. Chairman MacCaffrie noted that part of the problem is that the state money is slow in coming. Motion to sign the note. (Dolan! Amoruso) 4-0 Passes . John D'Agostino wanted to inform the Board and the Town about the memo received this past month regarding the DPW effort to reclaim roadways (which is a usual policy) and the storage at the Plymouth Street fields - DEP was called about the potential contamination (there is no definitive information indicating the material is hazardous or that the site is contaminated). The DPW followed the DEP recommendations to cover and test the material; the test results should be attainable shortly in order to determine the following action steps; - May include complete removal of material/ or not if they pose no imminent threat to public safety as they are covered. r Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 15,2004 3 r - Precautionary measures were taken to cover the material. - Hired a licensed site professional for handling the materials. Note: The fields are safe and are not affected in any way by the deposit near the tennis courts. Recreational users can continue to use the fields as they have, and may continue to do so in the future. - If contamination is found, any issues will be dealt with immediately. - Continue to work cooperatively w/ DEP and other licensed site professionals to address the issue. - Lee Azinheira and Gary Babin continue to be involved. - It is important to know that the public be aware that the town will take any action immediately if a contamination issue exists. Chairman MacCaffrie noted that if it is going to remain a storage area, it should be secured with a couple gates so that kids are not playing on or near it. He stated a double gate already at the end of Branch Street and if the owner could be found, we perhaps could store things there but John D'Agostino thought there were enough problems already. John D'Agostino said we are looking at the possibilities. .r' · John D'Agostino would like to schedule a Fall Town Meeting in mid/late October with a small warrant for small expenditures and a few line items. This is due to the free cash issue - Bea Kearney, Town Accountant, is concerned with the cash flow as the state monies will not be coming in as strong as they would need to be to sustain programs and services. Two expenditures are priorities: 1 )Ambulance fund that had been committed to for 50K 2)Replace a good amount back into stabilization funds. State monies (200K) will need to go into the unrestricted General Fund money and the additional money (750K) already received went to balance the budget. Selectman Achille asked what amount could be going into the stabilization fund? John D'Agostino replied that as soon as they know they will share it with the Finance Committee. MacCaffrie asked if they could get a rough idea by next week's meeting? John D'Agostino said yes, and the article recently in the Globe showed Mansfield was doing OK compared with other towns. · Issue was raised by the Superintendent Moretti was looking for funding regarding collective bargaining agreements. Bea Kearney, Town Accountant, will work on these figures. Charter clarification at Fall Town Meeting. The additional $200K state aide to be received may make up the bulk of funds. r' · Parking lot revenues and the parking lot issue: John D'Agostino would like to continue to work for an equitable solution and regarding the access issue: if it is decided to ever expand parking at the train station, we should Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 15,2004 4 r- buffer and protect the neighbors from through traffic (the community accepted the plan at an earlier town meeting to have access up to a signalized intersection at Winthrop). The real challenge is getting a grade crossing over the railroad tracks over County St. Selectman Amoruso said he liked what EP A had said: 'the right to cross the tracks lies with a landowner - that is us. MacCaffrie believes that P oundry LLC 1 has the same mind-set and we should extend the overall scheme to them and get some input. We owe them money but we could maybe use some of that money for demolition of the building and for remediation - if the bldg comes down there would be remediation issues if it is not paved. There would be parallel access at 106 Winthrop St. Chairman MacCaffrie feels it is an important piece of property and with some give and take it would help the developers and the town, maybe reconfigure the parking. John D'Agostino said everything is on hold He intends to strategize on how to proceed; if the Board wants, we can get started on the negotiations. Chairman MacCaffrie thinks it would help, also rezoning the area may be considered A positive recommendation from the Board could be beneficial to everyone. And to allow use thru the appeals process. MacCaffrie said it is under the town manager's purview to pursue this matter. John D'Agostino will contact Attorney Mangaratti to discuss an agreement. Steve noted that without all the attorneys and legal costs it would be fiscally beneficial. r · John D'Agostino discussed the meeting today with Mass Highway District V regarding access off Route 140, known as the 'golden triangle'. Attending the meeting with him were State Representative Coppola, State Representative Betty Poirier, Shaun Burke, Planning Board, Selectman Dolan and Bernie McCourt, Mass Highway. Prom the developers, there seemed to be a desire to be receptive. Selectman Dolan seemed to believe that Mass Highway has some interest in giving the developers access from Route 140 into the 'golden triangle', except for the "no access" comment. Chairman MacCaffrie noted that was "the usual". Selectman Dolan wanted the public to know there is a long way to go, but there is hope to move some of the traffic off School Street. Chairman MacCaffrie received a note that Lou Masiello, the developer for the 'golden triangle' would like to be on a future agenda, but he rejected this. He stated the Planning Board has been dealing with this issue. John D'Agostino also sees no reason to have them on the agenda. All were in agreement. r · Memo to Town Counsel on Parking Lot Rental (Clemmey Property) figures from Bea Kearney, dated Sept. 13,2004 noting the figures that have been determined. Based upon tax takings per memo of Richard Boucher dated September 13,2004, the rent is calculated at $1,543 per month for eight (8) months, which totals $58, 634. Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 15,2004 5 r · The Mansfield Police Dept. has been awarded $13,138 from the Bureau of Justice for a federal Local Law Enforcement Block Grant to be used for technology. Chairman MacCaffrie would encourage any residents to write in ideas to Lt. Crickard at Police Department, 50 West Street or call 508-261-7300. Selectman Achille asked if the requirement is to have public input and was told yes. The grant needs to be awarded at a future Board of Selectmen meeting. Chairman MacCaffrie spoke on the possibility of purchasing tracking technology for Alzheimers patients and asked the secretary to prepare a letter with said request. · John D'Agostino will get a committee together with Conservation Commission, Recreation Department, Little League and staff to review the current lease agreement with the Little League and to re-establish a new lease in accordance with procurement laws. · Lou Amoruso discussed the Tufts Horizon refund issue and stated he had the same correspondence at his place of business. He feels that Tufts is trying to corroborate the responsibility; first looking at private labs and then trying it out on towns to try to recoup money. He suggested ignore it and not offer to pay this. r · Selectman Dolan attended the Rotary Senior Luncheon on September 14th along with John D'Agostino and thanked the Rotary for a great function. It was his first time and had many people comment that they watch the Board meetings on the cable station. The Town Manager made great carrot cake! Regarding the Town Meeting - he would be unavailable for the last week in October. The High School Gym must be available and they cannot have it too close to the national election or they would get a poor turn-out. Motion To adjourn the meeting at 9:50 p.m. (Amoruso) 4-0 Passes ~~ ')- 2-);-OY Date of Approval r Board of Selectmen Minutes of September 15,2004 6