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HomeMy WebLinkAboutmin brd of selectmen 02/04/04 ~ (' Board of Selectmen Minutes of February 4, 2004 '-~'t j ;", .. .." ~;" ...... ¡~ Present: Michael W. McCue, Chairman; Steven W. MacCaffrie, Vice Chairman; Roger S. Achille, Clerk; Selectman David W. McCarter. Selectman Louis P. Amoruso was attending a funeral out of town and unable to be present. 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. Ed Westhaver, President of Mansfield Midget Football, presented the Town with a check for $5,000 to be used for the maintenance of the athletic fields up town. He also thanked the Recreation Department and the Department of Public Works for their effort and support in maintaining the fields. Chairman McCue accepted the check and thanked Mansfield Midget Football on behalf of the Town. (' Selectman MacCaffrie thanked all the firefighters and police personnel from both Mansfield and Norton who responded to and assisted at the scene of an accident Friday morning involving one of our linemen who took a large hit of electricity while working. He was air-lifted to Boston and is now home and doing well. · Warrant No. 32 in the amount of $847,840.30 Motion: To approve and sign (Achille-MacCaffrie) 4-0 with Selectman McCarter abstaining from Municipal Building Committee payroll Passes · Minutes of January 28,2004 Selectmen's Meeting Motion: To approve as amended (MacCaffrie-Amoruso) 4-0 Passes · Class II Auto Dealer License - A-I Auto Body & Sales at 30 Mansfield Avenue The applicant formerly held a license at this address. There is currently a Class II license issued to another business at this address. The applicant has recently purchased the building and will be operating his business at this location. The use is r Board of Selectmen Minutes of February 4,2004 I · allowed by Special Permit and the outside display and sale of automobiles on the site is limited to no more than five at any given time and is so noted on the license. Motion: To approve and sign (McCarter-Achille) 4-0 Passes One Day Beer and Wine License to Tri-County Beagle Club for February 15th Members Game Dinner Motion: To approve and sign (MacCaffrie-McCarter) 4-0 Passes r Town Manager and Staff · Memorandum from DPW Director Lee Azinheira to Town Manager John D' Agostino regarding a request for a resident sticker from a Mansfield business Situations such as this are reviewed on a case-by-case basis. If a decision is made by a staff person and there is an appeal, the Town Manager said he would work out a resolution to the dispute. Boards and Committees · Memorandum to the Light Commissioners from the Finance Committee regarding the 2002 audited financial statements of the Light Department r Residents · Letter from Eleuterio Simonelli, President of Willowdale Golf Course, regarding his concern about increased water flow coming through the golf course property · Letter from a resident addressed to the Airport Commission regarding an airplane that flies low over their house every Sunday morning at 7:00 a.m. The authority in matters such as this rests with the Airport Commission to handle the complaint. Chairman McCue reported he was at a meeting of the Massachusetts Selectmen's Association in Westboro this afternoon. He is actively trying to get this year's annual meeting held at Bridgewater State College instead of UMass to eliminate the expense to the Town for overnight accommodations. He also spoke of a piece of correspondence from former Mansfield resident Robert Ross commenting on the quality of the Town website. Chairman McCue credited Lou Andrews who volunteers his time to maintain that web site and spends a great deal of time doing so at no cost to the Town. Selectman MacCaffrie acknowledged a memorandum received from Treasurer/Collector Richard Boucher in response to his request for additional information on the pension assessment communicated to the Board by memorandum. He noted it still doesn't completely answer his question as to how some towns got hit with and questioned if r we're paying more due to the early retirements granted by some towns within Bristol Board of Selectmen Minutes of February 4, 2004 2 (' r (' County. He pointed out the Sheriffs Department rose 28% and many of the early retirements came from the Corrections System. That does not explain why our increase is so high and he asked if someone within Bristol County is keeping on eye on PERAC's figures. The Town Manager suggested there may be other factors such as a decline in investment income. We also have to pay off our unfunded liability by a certain date. There are a number of factors. If additional iriformation is required, we can bring in someone from Bristol County. Motion: To bring someone in from the Bristol County Retirement Board to address the matter (MacCaffrie-McCarter) 4-0 Passes A public hearing was advertised on the application of Pizzeria Uno Chicago Grill for a new all alcoholic beverages license at 390 West Street. The notice of public hearing was read by Clerk Achille as it appeared on January 21, 2004. Motion: To open the public hearing at 8:00 p.m. (McCarter-MacCaffrie) 4-0 Passes Attorney Thomas Vangel, representing the applicant, presented the petition to the Board for an all alcoholic beverage license and a common victualler license for their proposed restaurant at Erin Centre. The application was filed on January 12,2004 and he met with Mary-Lou Cotton to review it to be sure it was in order. The applicant has notified the abutters and submitted the return receipts and green cards from the certified mailing to the Board, along with an affidavit of mailing to complete the application. Christopher Picard, the proposed manager on the alcohol license, was also present. Pizzeria Uno is a Boston-based corporation operating restaurants throughout the area. This will be a company-owned facility with a full-service bar if the license is approved. Uno's takes the service of alcohol very seriously and has a comprehensive training program sponsored by the National Restaurant Association. Anyone serving alcohol must pass this test. They also have a training program their employees are required to complete and they have a zero tolerance policy with regard to the service of alcohol to minors. There is a layout of the restaurant as Exhibit A of the application which shows the 177 seats, bar, lounge, kitchen, storage, restrooms. It is a $1.7 million investment that will provide 130 jobs. Hours of operation will be II a.m. to I a.m. seven days per week, with last call at 12:30 a.m. Mr. Clemmey, doing business as Clemco, is the landlord and they will have a 15-year ground lease with him. Only two exhibits need to be finalized and the lease will be signed within the week to be filed with the application to the ABCC. Selectman MacCaffrie noted it is not unusual to hold off signing a license until the building is complete and the lease is signed. Mr. Picard has been employed by Uno for ten years and has responsibility for five other restaurants. He is responsible for Bar Code certification of employees. Prior to his employment with Uno he worked in the Board of Selectmen Minutes of February 4,2004 3 ,- , restaurant industry for many years. Attorney Vangel noted one minor amendment to the application-"Schedule I" lists all the officers of the entity and the member was inaccurately listed as the parent corporation. He submitted an amended Schedule I indicating the LLC. The restaurant will be opened in late June or early July. Karl Clemmey noted the restaurant will be located in the lower part of the property near the entrance to Norfolk Street. Motion: To close the public hearing at 8:17 p.m. (MacCaffrie-McCarter) 4-0 Passes Motion: To grant the license contingent upon the receipt of the signed lease, a satisfactory CORl, and the issuance of the proper approvals from the Board of Health (MacCaffrie-Achille) 4-0 Passes Motion: To approve the common victualler license (MacCaffrie-Achille) 4-0 Passes r , The notice of public hearing as it appeared in The Sun Chronicle on January 21, 2004 was read into the record. Motion: To open the public hearing at 8:30 p.m. (MacCaffrie-McCarter) 4-0 Passes Mr. Azinheira noted it's the same policy that was discussed a couple of months back with the comments of the Selectmen incorporated into it. It provides a mechanism for neighborhoods in which residents who want to provide a sidewalk can do so and is modeled after the small sewer extension policy in effect since 1996. If there's a strong neighborhood desire to provide sidewalks, this allows it to be done with two-thirds approval and an assessment made to each property owner. They can still petition the Town at Town Meeting to appropriate the money, but if there is not support for it, this gives them an alternative means of getting sidewalks. Chairman McCue asked if we would still be able to undertake the construction of sidewalks if we believed there is a public safety issue. Town Manager D 'Agostino stated it would be his recommendation in the near future to do a debt exclusion bond authorization that would include sidewalks in areas where sidewalks need to be upgraded or extended for public safety purposes. Sidewalks requested in areas where there is not a public safety concern would not be included in the bond authorization and this policy provides them with a means to obtain them on their own. This does not affect new construction in subdivisions where sidewalks are required to be provided by the developer in the subdivision approval process. r Board of Selectmen Minutes of February 4,2004 4 ,- ., r r Public Comment: Peter DeTrolio, Elm Street - finds it interesting about people wanting to have sidewalks, yet nobody wants to shovel them in the winter when there's snow on them. He believes people should be responsible for shoveling the sidewalk in front of their house rather than the Town doing it. There are safety standards and the question as to who is responsible if there is a by-law was discussed. Downtown costs about $30,000-$40,000 to clear. It is done more as a policy than a by-law. There's no place to put the snow if it's shoveled by business owners. Mr. DeTrolio said he owned a business in West Mansfield, and the Town didn't come out and plow the sidewalk. Part ofit is we plow the sidewalks within a certain radius of the schools for public safety reasons with children walking to school. Downtown there is no place to put the snow and it prevents the roads from being narrowed with snow being put in the street. It was noted there are probably other policies that add to the costs of operating the town that may need to be looked at in light of budget shortfalls. Motion: To close the public hearing at 8:48 p.m. (Mac-McCarter) 4-0 Passes Motion: To accept the Sidewalk Extension Policy (MacCaffrie-McCarter) 4-0 Passes The Town Manager was directed to review snow removal regulations to see if there is a by-law that requires it. DPW Director Lee Azinheira and Water Operations Manager Kurt Gaffney followed up on the last time they were here when there were radical changes to the water connection policy in the area of commercial and industrial water connections. They have established a rate per gallon based on the Mahana, Morrison and Walsh wells built mainly to meet the peak demand of the water system. A charge was adopted for the single family residence and on the commercial industrial size it was established on meter size based on average water use for the various meter sizes. Back in December they reviewed capital charges and they seemed low. They see one part of the policy that is not consistent with what was adopted four years ago and are suggesting changes in that area. Selectman MacCaffrie asked if part of the fact the fees are going up is because of the increased meter size. The larger the meter, the less that's caught on the low-end. When they downsized this was caught. Chairman McCue asked who uses a % inch compared to 1 inch to 1 % inch. %- and 5/8-inch meters are used for homes; I-inch for larger buildings. Shaw's and Home Depot have 1 ~ inch. It was explained that the increases will not affect homes because those meters were already the correct size. The policy is only for new homes and the cost is a pass through when the house is built. The capital charge for Shaw's, Home Depot, and Uno's would Board of Selectmen Minutes of February 4, 2004 5 be a half million dollars. The significance of the impact did not justify that amount. r Connection fees are based on peak use. Additional wells had to be put in to meet the peak demand. The connection fee helps pay for the cost of the wells that were put in place to meet the demands. When the last rate study was done, this was factored in. Mr. Azinheira asked the Board to let him know what other issues they would like to see addressed in the policy. He noted the water capital charge has been in place since Randy Wilson's tenure. It was based on square footage of the building that had no relationship to water usage. They also added in the number of connections to the building. Selectman McCarter emphasized that any fee has to be justifiable and he assumes it's sound. He stated it's always troubled him when we went to an enterprise fund that we still maintained connection fees. Actual costs should be recovered in an enterprise fund. This captures capital costs which we're still paying for that people are benefiting from. Residential water rates are based on a certain amount of money coming into a capital account. Mr. Azinheira emphasized that in order to meet future needs, we must stay ahead of the curve. They will come back sometime in the next few weeks with their annual water update and can provide any additional information desired. A couple of examples with a mathematical analysis were requested by Selectman MacCaffrie. On another matter, Mr. Azinheira reported that he-mailed Verizon for an update and will follow-up with them. Selectman MacCaffrie suggested they be called back before the Board if we don't hear from them by Friday. r Peter DeTrolio, Elm Street - said he has a question and a comment on a meeting that took place about a month ago. He believes a month or so ago Mr. Montgomery was here and the issue of sound/noise from Tweeter Center was addressed. Mr. DeTrolio noted he personally has an incredible speaker system out on his patio and he can put them on, walk off his patio, walk 450 feet down his driveway and cross the street and still hear his stereo. He also knows he can walk back to his house and turn the knob and the sound goes down. He questioned why Tweeter Center can't do the same thing. He also asked about the status of the Elm Street Bridge, noting the last time he saw anyone working on it was December Sth or 7th when they were shoveling snow off it. Town Manager D 'Agostnio noted it is a State project and we can try to find out. The Town has no control over their construction schedule. They are obligated to the contract with the Commonwealth of Mass and the Mass Highway Department. (' George Dentino, Gladiola Terrace - thanked Mr. MacCaffrie for not allowing a free shot at him after he left a previous meeting. He referred to the sewerage spill that happened on which kudos were given out. He has since toured the plant and answered questions in his mind. Mr. Hackett runs a nice operation and he and Mr. Azinheira and Mr. Beliveau, Selectman MacCaffrie, and Norton Selectmen Kimball and Salvo should all be commended. He stated his desire to look at statements regarding events that occurred in Board of Selectmen Minutes of February 4,2004 6 r r (' the plant that lead to the spill. It was reported that the automated generator failed to turn on when power failed-that is not true. "The breaker in front jammed in open position." "the switch failed". He stated that also is not true. Mr. Dentino stated there was a spike in the system when power came back and it burned out a fuse, scorched a relay, etc. making utility power useless when it came on because it couldn't reach the pumps. The last statement-"discharge was unavoidable and not something we could test for or prevent." He stated they can test and the town does a monthly test. It should be tested weekly under a full load. Impossible to do down there. Mr. Dentino suggested a weekly test would have picked up the fact the governor was bad. He next addressed the state that the problem with it being "unavoidable", with Mr. Dentino stating it was totally preventable and he explained why. He believes the Town disconnected the transformer a number of years ago to save money-and in the end it cost us far more than was ever saved. He suggested the Selectmen should ask why we chose to disconnect the second end of the fail-safe system, noting the problem rests with the transformer being disconnected. Chairman McCue said he is sure there have been post-mortems done and lessons learned, but doesn't believe deceptive comments were made. Comments may have been made on a minimum amount of information available at that time. We will see what staff comes back with and make any adjustments necessary. Mr. Dentino continued, addressing other responses about updating and upgrading the plant at a cost of $500,000--noting the statement made that "this is the first spill in 23 years." He remembers the plant only being 18 years old and suggested there's nothing wrong with the switching system. There is no reason to replace equipment that has 30-40 year capability after only 18 years. He suggested only a manual be put in there, stating nothing wrong with the relay system. He also stated there is no need to add a generator as there is nothing wrong with it. Selectman MacCaffrie noted generators inside are not a good issue, suggesting a plug can be put outside. Mr. Dentino stated his recollection from several years ago that the Light Department was supposed to get three or four small generators. Town Manager D'Agostino reported: · Train Station ribbon cutting ceremony will take place Friday, February 6th, at 3:30 p.m. and he needs to know who will be attending to incorporate them into the speaking program. Chairman McCue noted his intent to be there and would only offer a brief statement. H suggested having a contingency plan in the event he does not get there on time due to a commuter rail delay. Selectman McCarter also said he will be there. GA TRA is handling the arrangements. · Addressed MacCaffrie's questions about Wellesley. Betty Amicone, Lee Azinheira and Mike Ahem are scheduled to meet with them Thursday morning. Wellesley does not have curb-side collection to his knowledge. They use Pay-As- Y ou- Throw- residents take it to a central location that makes it beneficial to have a staff because tonnage costs are reduced as a result. This was featured in a Beacon publication. Board of Selectmen Minutes of February 4,2004 7 r · Medco II plans an announcement event. It will take a marketing approach, with their introduction to the community of Mansfield. The event will be held at the Holiday Inn on February 26th at 5:30 and town officials are invited to participate and speak. Chairman McCue asked where we stand with getting members from other Boards for the TIF Committee. Town Manager D'Agostino said we haven't heard back and will have to send out another memorandum. Chairman McCue noted the need to get it in place, suggesting that perhaps we should collapse down to a smaller group. Town Manager D' Agostino stated he would send another notice, give them a deadline and reduce it to five if we can't get good representation. Motion: To have the committee in place two weeks from today (MacCaffrie-Achille) 3-0 with Selectmen McCarter out of the room momentarily at the time of the motion and vote · Scheduled a session with Filmore and Stems February 18th. Presented them with the Board's sentiments regarding the collection of outstanding receipts. Based on what we're hearing from the public, it may be worth having them come in and provide a frank discussion of what they're going to need from the Board to be able to make a reasonable attempt to collect. Appears from some of the comments by people using the service that they're not being billed properly. We get the information and send it to Comstar now and they do the billing. · On February 11th Women of Today plan to make a gift check presentation to the (' Town for the refurbishment of the Middle Common. They will be joined in the project by Rotary and Together We Can. We are also purchasing signage for the Mansfields of the world to go on the Middle Common. The unveiling of that and the clock and the refurbished monument will be a part of the project. · Had a meeting today with our State delegation on the explanation of the Regional Vocational Education formula attended by him and Andy Gazzolo. It was far better than the meeting held at the school. We have no choice but to support it. It takes into account our ability to pay and takes into account a growth factor and the foundation formula for our schools and what we're paying per pupil. Selectmen noted they don't take into account that the new growth means we have to provide for it in our community and not give it away. There is also an inflation factor attached to that number. The Department of Education made a mistake in their formula last year and will spend the next four years correcting it. Our Finance Committee Chairman is somewhat satisfied with the explanation received. We expect to have a budget from them by the middle of March, which also suggests the nee4 for a later Town Meeting. Will provide a recommendation next week on a more realistic Town Meeting date. · Will be providing the Board in the next week or two with an administrative recommendation of what we need to operate the town. A utility work-off program has been suggested and that will be proposed in the budget. There is going to be a need in bringing on new commercial projects for additional police and fire personnel. r It appears it will be a difficult budget year and we will need to establish priorities to Board of Selectmen Minutes of February 4,2004 8 r stay within the 2 ~ cap. We have not had a capital improvement budget in the last two years and cannot go another year without it. He would recommend a one-time revenue sources for that purpose. We're leading the charge with the Southeast Regional Health Group to purchase drugs from Canada. We represent 28,000 to 30,000 members and would be the second largest group to go in that direction, saving $1 to 1.5 million. The Town would pay the co-pay to provide drug purchases by mail through Canada. We're also working on a 70/30 healthcare split with our unions and perhaps adding 50/50 dental care. He hopes to have the majority of the unions on board by budget time. Selectman McCarter: · Asked if we're obligated to keep the parking on Old Colony Way in place. Believes it was wordedfor during construction of Train Station. Would like it kept and reserved for Mansfield residents only. Selectman MacCaffrie suggested we should first check with businesses as some of them were faced with problems with turning into driveways. It was noted that's been worked out. r · Asked about establishing a parking authority and what we would have to do. Create through Town Meeting and obtain authorization from the State. Tax base should never support something from which there is a Town-wide benefit. They would get involved with the collection of tickets and other aspects, or can be as limited as the Board desires them to be. The only way we can prevent becoming a regional parking center is by providing parking for Mansfield residents only. Chairman McCue suggested if the MBTA wants to purchase landfor parking that's all well and good, but it shouldn't be coming from Mansfield taxpayers. Parking Authority couldjloat a bond to be paid through the revenue generated by parking fees. Any authority created at the local level cannot go out independently and bond. The form of government here is far different that the City of Boston. Selectman Achille asked about having someone in to talk about a Redevelopment Authority. Needs thought and discussion to structure it properly. Selectman Achille: · Confirmed that we're discussing next week parking and towing policy/proposals with the Police Chief next week Selectman McCue: · Suggested the creation of a Redevelopment Authority be explored for a Fall Town Meeting. · Consider inc1usionary zoning for affordable housing. Can save a place for it, but there's a need for Selectmen to reach out to the Planning Board and have them work on it. Housing Task Force spent a considerable amount of time discussing options. r Charge of the Committee is to put a plan together so we can begin this process. Board of Selectmen Minutes of February 4,2004 9 r Selectman McCarter: · Asked if we ever heard from DEP or EPA on fine for discharging into the river. DEP has reviewed the situation and are far more supportive of the Town's position than we heard tonight. Don't know anythingfor certain. Selectman MacCaffrie: · Wants to remove the stipend for the Assessors on the warrant since we will be hiring a full-time assessor. Maybe achieving that within the operating budget anyway. · Appears to be a consensus that there will be no additional discussion or action on the issue of meals while plowing. Can be addressed by the appropriate department head during normal operating hours at Town Hall. Motion: To adjourn at 10:20 p.m. (Achille) 4-0 Passes r ( Board of Selectmen Minutes of February 4,2004 10