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HomeMy WebLinkAboutmin brd of selectmen 04/06/05 c: '\VC~) OFF ICE / (" Present: Town of Mansfield Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 6, 2005 . '." i j.h . I 1\...\...;'; Chairman Steven MacCaffrie; Vice Chairman Rog~l.l\~lifh~te1~ri TJe1nard Dolan; Selectman Louis Amoruso and Selectman Michael McCue Town Manager John O. D' Agostino ,~PR I t~ IHl 9: 03 The Board of Selectmen's meeting was called to order at 7:30 p.m. Chairman MacCaffrie asked for a moment of silence for George Auld, VFW Commander, who passed away on April 2nd. The Pledge of Allegiance followed the moment of silence. . Warrant No. 41 in the amount of $4,736,669.07 Motion: To approve (McCue - Achille) 5-0 Passes . Regular Session Meeting Minutes of March 30, 2005 Motion: To approve (Amoruso - Achille) 4-0-1 Passes (with Selectman McCue abstaining) r Downtown Business Association's Downtown Sidewalk Sale Permit for their July 13th event Motion: To approve, having received approval by Police & Fire, & have Chairman sign (Amoruso - Dolan) 5-0 Passes Hackney Driver's License for Rochelle Keifer, Charles Dailey & Anatoly Zaharov Motion: To approve all three licenses (Amoruso - McCue) 5-0 Passes Correspondence addressed to Board: . Memorandum from Superintendent John Morretti received March 28th regarding Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 71, Section 37M, relative to consolidation of services. School Committee voted not to support. . Letter from Fred Grosso, Fred's Car & Truck Sales, dated March 28th, relative to Class II Auto Sales License, demonstrating access to repair facilities. r Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 6, 2005 1 ( . Letter from Joseph Ditchman/Colliers International dated March 28th regarding the proposed development planned for the Acme Cleveland and Clemmey sites contiguous to Hatheway- Patterson and the train station. . Bulletin from the Department of Revenue dated March 28th regarding the ranges of value for the various categories of land classified under Chapter 61 A as agricultural or horticultural use for fiscal year 2006. . Bulletin from the Massachusetts Municipal Association dated March 29th concerning the Governor's FY06local aid plan. . Letter from MassHighway District Director Bernard McCourt dated March 29th announcing that a pre-construction conference will be held for the Route 106/East Street project on Thursday, April 14th at 1 0:00am at the District 5 Office in Taunton. o Town Manager noted that this means we are almost ready to begin and Selectman Dolan said that he will try to attend along with the Town Manager. . Letter from Reps. Poirier, Coppola, Kafka & Travis, received March 29th, inviting the Board to a School Building Assistance Forum that will be held on April 12th at 7:00pm in Room 3AB with Katherine Craven, Executive Director of the Massachusetts School Building Authority. r . Letter from Chris Daniel, Mansfield Little League, dated March 30th requesting permission to hold their annual parade in honor of the start of the 2005 season. Parade would begin and end at the South Common on April 16th at I 0:00am. Motion: To approve parade, having received approval by Police & FIre (McCue - Amoruso) 5-0 Passes . Email from Dave Lederer of the EPA dated March 30th regarding the Hatheway-Patterson reuse. . Letter prepared by Town Manager on behalf of Selectmen to Dave Lederer of the EP A concerning the reasonably anticipated future use ofthe Hatheway-Patterson site. o Town Manager added that this letter encapsulates what the Town agreed on. Motion: To authorize Chairman to sign letter (Amoruso - Dolan) 5-0 Passes . Email from Lorilee Fish, Park & Recreation Director, dated March 31, listing the various recreation programs available. o Chairman MacCaffrie noted that this information is also available online. . Letter from Foundry LLC received April 1 st regarding the Mansfield Transit Oriented Property Development - Planning Process. r . Letter to Town Clerk from IDC Chairman dated April 1 st providing the minutes from 7 IDC meetings from 2004. Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 6, 2005 2 r . Agenda for the April 7th meeting and previous meeting minutes from the Canoe River Aquifer Advisory Committee meeting, received April 1 st. . Letter from Mansfield Elks dated April 4th regarding their fifteenth Annual Spring Carnival, which will be held April 28th through May 1 st. o Selectman Dolan noted that the Elks requested a special permit from the Board for their fireworks display - that permit comes from the Fire Department & is due to the Fire Department by April 15th; they requested a waiver of any and all fees associated with our sponsoring the Carnival- town's waiver policy was already sent to the Elks; and a bartner policy form prepared by the Light Department was already sent to the Elks. Motion: To waive the town's portion of the fees for the Carnival (Amoruso - Dolan) 5-0 Passes . Correspondence received April 5th announcing that Week 5 ofthe Auction is underway to benefit the Mansfield High School Senior All-Night Party. Email 2005allnightpartv@comcast.net to make a bid or receive more information. Correspondence from Town Manaeer & Staff: r . Letter from Town Manager to Robert Nicodemus of Bergmeyer Associates dated March 28th regarding a "no zoning initiative" for the Special Town Meeting Warrant. Selectman Dolan asked the Board if anyone knows about the skeleton that was found off of West Street on Tuesday. Town Manager noted that the medical examiner was down at the scene and that the State Police are heading the investigation. Chairman MacCaffrie asked the Town Manager if he has anything he can discuss prior to the opening of the charter change hearing. Town Manager informed the Board that the town has a tentative nF agreement with Medline. This tentative agreement will be presented to the Board on April 27th at 8:15pm. He noted that Town Meeting must vote to approve the nF and then it will be sent to the state. Selectman Achille asked about the number of employees that Medline has. Town Manager said that they will employ approximately 40 new positions. Selectman Dolan asked if all of those will go to Mansfield residents and the Town Manager replied that the town is going to asking that 50% of those jobs go to Mansfield residents and the other half to go to residents in the Economic Target Area (ETA). r Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 6, 2005 3 r Selectman Dolan read the public hearing notice as printed in the March 30th edition of The Sun Chronicle. Motion: To open public hearing at 7:45pm (Amoruso - McCue) 5-0 Passes Chairman MacCaffrie said that this is in conflict with a state law and this is a housekeeping issue and added that Town Counsel advised the Town that they need to eliminate the section from the Charter. Selectman Achille asked if there is a particular job description in Chapter 164 of the Mass. General Laws and the Town Manager replied that no, there is simply a conflict. Selectman McCue believes that this is simple and doesn't see any issues. Chairman MacCaffrie noted that the town voted it at last Town Meeting. Motion: To close the public hearing at 7:48pm (Achille - McCue) 5-0 Passes Motion: To support the light department charter change, Article 25 (McCue - Dolan) 5-0 Passes ~ Chairman MacCaffrie asked the Town Manager to continue updating the Board on various issues before the next hearing is scheduled to begin at 8:00pm The Town Manager spoke with Lou Masiello ofW/S Development Associates LLC, regarding the meeting that took place with MassHighway last week. Mr. Masiello believes that the "right in, right out" may not be a resolved issue with a MassHighway and the Town Manager believes that MassHighway will need to look at the safety issues surrounding it. Selectman Amoruso added that he believed the curb cut would be approved based on what Congressman Frank believed as well as the federal highway official. The Town Manager wrote a letter to Mr. Masiello as to what the Town understood and noted that he has not heard from MassHighway on this issue. The Town Manager noted that Chairman MacCaffrie asked for a list of buildable properties and reported that the list is being created and matching with GIS is taking place. There is a parcel of land within the Erick Road area that is town-owned and buildable and would be a good site for a building for affordable housing. He noted that it has a good infrastructure around it. Town Manager would urge the town and non-profits to look at that parcel as a do-able and buildable parcel. Chairman MacCaffrie stated that there are other means, other than the non-profits, to build affordable housing. Selectman Achille asked what those other methods are and suggested that the Board start talking about it. Town Manager said that an RFP could be created. Chairman MacCaffrie said that the town could put feelers out there to developers; builders could r-- apply for grants and noted that something like this was done in other communities. Selectman Achille said that he would support to move forward and discuss this issue in greater detail. The Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 6, 2005 4 r Town Manager said that once we have the list, we can separate the properties for future use. Town Manager asked if the Board believes we should meet with the affordable housing people. Chairman MacCaffrie said yes; get everyone on board. Selectman McCue believes the Board should discuss the issue first as a group and then meet with the others. Selectman Amoruso said that once we have specific sites, nearby residents should be invited to come to the meeting. Chairman MacCaffrie mentioned that some money has been put back into a fund, so we can use that for technical advice and expertise. Town Manager sent the Conservation Agent to look for vernal pools and wetlands at the Campbell Street property and she reported back that there is some buildable land. Selectman Dolan read the public hearing notice as printed in the March 30th edition of The Sun Chronicle. Motion: To open the public hearing at 8:00pm (Amoruso - Achille) 5-0 Passes r-- Chairman MacCaffrie said that this is happening because the Attorney General sent it back to the town and now we have described the Planning Board alternate's duties. He noted that the Planning Board supported it last year and will support it this year. He further added that there are times when people have to excuse themselves for various reasons and the alternates would help conduct business for the Board. Selectman McCue added that this is a reasonable article. Peter DeTrolio, 496 Elm Street: Asked the Board if the article mentions anything about having to attend a hearing to be able to vote on the issue at a future meeting. Chairman MacCaffrie said that it does not and noted that the Planning Board may fall under different rules than the Zoning Board of Appeals. Selectman McCue added that he believes this change will make things easier for the Planning Board. Motion: To close the public hearing at 8:07pm (McCue - Achille) 5-0 Passes Motion: To support Article 24 (McCue - Achille) 5-0 Passes The Town Manager reported to the Board that he and staff have begun budget reductions. When he reported to the Board last week, there was a $5.1 million shortfall. He is meeting with ".- Superintendent Moretti at 1 :OOpm tomorrow, Thursday, to discuss the budget. There is a $3.5 million shortfall right now, with an authorization to cut CIP. Selectman McCue asked if these Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 6, 2005 5 r r-- ".- cuts are baseline cuts and the Town Manager said that baseline cuts may need to happen, but right now, the cuts being made right now are not people or services. Town Manager said that the whole deficit includes increased expenses and prospective hires. Selectman Dolan said that Selectman McCue makes a good point about this and Chairman MacCajfrie added that we are not going below last year's budget. Selectman Achille noted that the rate of increase is less. The Town Manager is informing the Board that the town is moving in the right directions, usually, we are further apart at this time, so we are moving ahead and that he will balance the budget without the use of stabilization funds because those funds are at a critical level. He feels that the town needs to be weaned from using the funds. Selectman McCue spoke of the time a few years ago when the town dipped into stabilization, but mentioned that the revenue is getting better. Town Manager feels that the town should look for an approach to replenish the stabilization funds by taking a portion of free cash (40%) and putting it into stabilization until the levels get to approximately $4.5 million. He spoke of the over-extension of the snow and ice account, which will evaporate the availability of free cash. Selectman McCue noted that it is a goal to shoot for, but would hate to be married to one particular number but wants to strive to set some money away. The Town Manager noted that the percentage is arbitrary, but at least it is something. Selectman Dolan read the public hearing notice as printed in the March 30th edition of The Sun Chronicle. Motion: To open the public hearing at 8:15pm (Amoruso - McCue) 5-0 Passes Chairman MacCaffrie noted that the Board has received information from the Town Engineer and there is a punchlist of things that have to be done prior to Town Meeting and noted that if the things are not done by then, then this will not be approved. Michael McClanahan, 104 Cottage Street: Mr. McClanahan, the developer, noted that there is a small punchlist to do which will be done in the next few weeks, mostly winter-related issues. He noted that no neighbors have come to the hearing tonight. Motion: To close the public hearing at 8:19 (McCue - Amoruso) 5-0 Passes Motion: To support Article 36, Michael Lane street acceptance, subject to the completion of the punchlist and approval by the Town Engineer (McCue - Dolan) 5-0 Passes Chairman MacCaffrie called for a two minute recess. Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 6, 2005 6 r Finance Committee members present were Jess Aptowitz, Charlene Lavin, Jim Lazzara & Mike Sams. Mr. Lazzara said that as of a few days ago, there is over a $5 million deficit and said that the School Committee is scheduled to present their figures next week. There is a tentative agreement to a CIP bond of$1.34 million, which will reduce the deficit. Up until two years ago, the CIP was in the operating budget and he noted that the town isn't doing itself any favors by borrowing like this. Mr. Lazzara said by doing this, there is always a debt service. Mr. Sams noted that we agreed to that plan but we want to get it back into the budget. Selectman McCue said that it inhibits us from borrowingfor other things. Mr. Lazzara said that if you take out CIP and fixed payments, the budget is $41 million for schools (all costs) and $19 million for the town and said that if the budget needs to be cut, there would be a 2.6% cut for the schools and a 1.3% cut for the town- this was if we had to go to Town Meeting tomorrow and produce a balanced budget. He noted that we have been carrying a large deficit and we don't want to use stabilization funds either. Mr. Sams said that the stabilizations funds are getting lower and the Finance Committee doesn't support using stabilization funds. Selectman McCue hopes that we have become more stable. r-- Motion: To support the Town Manager's initiative to not use stabilization funds (Amoruso - Dolan) 5-0 Passes Selectman Dolan added that he doesn't support the use of stabilization funds either and feels it is up to the Superintendent and the Town Manager to fund ways to cut. Mr. Lazzara said that we are still over in expenditures and we can't control benefits and costs - it has to balance somewhere. Mr. Lazzara added that it is hard to ask people to take a cut and we have to come up with creative ways to keep services the way they are and maintain staffing. Chairman MacCaffrie said that people need to know how the cutes were made and how people sacrificed and the Town Manager noted that the school's projected increase is 11 %. Mr. Sams added that the Finance Committee wants to stay in touch more frequently so that things don't get tight just before Town Meeting. Chairman MacCaffrie said that he would be willing to block off at least 10 minutes at each Board meeting so that Finance Committee and the Selectmen can talk. Selectman Amoruso asked what revenue projections the Finance Committee is using and Mr. Lazzara replied that they are using the Governor's local aid figures and Mr. Sams said that the Finance Committee will have more to talk about after the School Committee meets on the 12th. Board members thanked the Finance Committee for coming to their meeting to discuss budget Issues. ".- Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 6, 2005 7 r Selectman McCue spoke about his inclusionary zoning articles and noted that he has spoken with the Town Manager and doesn't have any reservations about removing the article Motion: To withdraw the inclusionary zoning article (old Article 31) (McCue - Amoruso) 5-0 Passes Selectman McCue asked about the article relative to exemptions for elderly/disabled and the Town Manager noted that it is not required to be re-voted every year. ".- Article 33: Selectman Achille noted that this article wouldn't increase the tax bill- it would increase our cash flow and the Town Manager said that it might help to prevent borrowing. Selectman Dolan said that it is costing the town money the way it is being done now and believes quarterly tax billing is a good thing to do. Selectman Amoruso said that the voters have spoken several times that they do not want this, so that is why he could not support this and believes that it doesn't guarantee that the town won't borrow. He went to say that he doesn't see a great benefit and it was quite strongly not supported in the past and the real problem that the town has it that they haven't gotten the tax bill out on time. Selectman Dolan asked why the townspeople wouldn't support quarterly tax billing and Selectman Amoruso replied that people want the money in their pockets longer. The Town Manager added that we are borrowing because we aren't taking money from the Light Department and we can't take money from the enterprise accounts. Selectman Amoruso noted that he doesn't object to having this issue go before the voters and the Town Manager commented that if we are going to run the town like a business, you would want as good a cash flow as possible. Motion: To support Article 33 (Achille - Dolan) 4-1 Passes (with Selectman Amoruso opposing) Article 34: It was noted that if Article 33 passes at Town Meeting, then Article 34 is moot. Motion: To support Article 34 (McCue - Dolan) 5-0 Passes Article 32: Chairman MacCaffrie asked if the town is getting the drainage easement by gift, purchase or eminent domain and the Town Manager replied that if we have to purchase it, it won't cost a lot of money. The Town Manager said that the drainage pipe was installed by the developer but worked on by the town. Selectman Amoruso asked what we are draining and the Town Manager replied that it is a large area and if it clogs up, water gets into basements and on Tayna Drive. The Town Manager said that if we do nothing, it will drain onto town property. Chairman MacCaffrie asked to see a plan because he is confused and further added that if we are going to the backside of someone' s property, that is their issue but if it floods the street, then it becomes our issue. Selectman Amoruso suggested that the town acquire by gift only and Town Manager ".- commented that that language in the article is standard language that the town uses for land-type Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 6, 2005 8 ".- dealings. Selectman Amoruso asked the Town Manager who would have the power to accept the easement and the Town Manager replied that it is Town Meeting. Motion: To support Article 32 with the exception of the words "purchase, or eminent domain" (McCue - Dolan) 5-0 Passes Motion: To support Article 31 (Dolan - McCue) 5-0 Passes Article 30: Chairman MacCaffrie asked to see a plan concerning this article. The Town Manager said that this is the old roadway next to Mass Glass. Town Manager said that the town wants that back because people would be able to go down Mansfield Avenue quicker, both in and out - it would be a two-way street. Chairman MacCaffrie said that the Board would want to talk to the new owners of the old Mass Glass first. Selectman Dolan noted that the article would allow the town the right to acquire the land but Chairman MacCaffrie noted that there would be no parking for the business there. Motion: To support Article 30 (Dolan - Achille) 3-2 Passes (with Chairman MacCaffrie and Selectman McCue opposing) r Article 28: The Town Manager spoke with Lance about this article and he wants it. Selectman Dolan made a motion to support Article 28 but later withdrew it so the Board could get more information on this first. Selectman Amoruso wants to make sure the electric motors/engines are okay under this article because they are not mentioned. A discussion took place about whether a motion can be made on Town Meeting floor about this article, if things need to be removed. Selectman McCue noted that there is enough confusion to warrant a memo explanation from Lance about this article. ~ Chairman MacCaffrie asked Karl why he is applying for the Zoning Board of Appeals and Karl replied that the ZBA is lacking two associate members right now and he believes that no town board should be without its full service and added that if more people volunteer to be appointed to the ZBA, then he would step down. Mr. Clemmey further commented that he would be an asset to the ZBA. Selectman Achille asked for a clarification on Mr. Clemmey's response to application question #3. Mr. Clemmey replied that he would follow the zoning by-laws to the tee. Selectman Dolan noted that Mr. Clemmey is one of the biggest developers in town and Selectman Dolan feels that would prevent Mr. Clemmey from voting because he would have to recuse himself on many issues. Mr. Clemmey replied that he feels Selectman Dolan's comments are to the extreme and noted that he is retired and not big developers in the town. Selectman Dolan reiterated his concerns that Mr. Clemmey would have to recuse himself in too many instances and Chairman MacCaffrie noted that Mr. Clemmey is applying for an associate's position, and an associate would only fills in as necessary if someone cannot vote. Chairman Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 6, 2005 9 r- r-- r-- MacCaffrie asked Peter DeTrolio, a fun ZBA member, to confirm that. Mr. DeTrolio replied that yes, an associate member can do everything a full-time member can except vote and Chairman MacCaffrie asked if associate members have had to recuse themselves in the past and Mr. DeTrolio replied that that is true. Selectman Amoruso appreciates that Mr. Clemmey is applying and believes that he has experience and the background but has the same concerns that Selectman Dolan has. Selectman McCue commented that his concerns echo what has already been said. Chairman MacCaffrie said that over the years, the boards of Selectmen have made critical and crucial appointments and would probably take Karl at his word about stepping aside if others apply. He has concerns about what would happen if a 40B was to happen and one of the members had to recuse themselves, then they would need the associate members. Mr. Clemmey said that he wants to be treated like anyone else and noted that he was on the ZBA for three years. Selectman Dolan noted his appreciation of Mr. Clemmey's involvement in helping the town, but when he gets financial gain, Selectman Dolan believes it is an ethics problem and further added that he would be saying these things to anyone else that is in a similar situation. Mr. Clemmey said that he is trying to assist the ZBA and suggested the Selectman Dolan test having him on the ZBA for three months. Selectman Achille thanked Mr. Clemmey for coming forward and noted that there are two open associate member positions with one applicant and hopes that Mr. Clemmey would join the collegial atmosphere with the ZBA. Motion: To appoint Mr. Karl Clemmey as an Associate Member to the Zoning Board of Appeals (Achille - Dolan) 2-3 Fails (with Selectman Dolan, Selectman McCue and Selectman Amoruso opposing) Selectman McCue said that on Monday night, Congressman Barney Frank was here to address town employees from four area towns, including Mansfield, on the Social Security windfall and offset. He commented that it was a well-attended meeting and the attendees went away with a lot of information. Selectman Amoruso noted that a number of houses are pumping water out of their basements and asked the Town Manager if the town is doing an inventory of where flooding is occurring and what we are doing about it. The Town Manager replied that we had a more serious situation 4-5 years ago and noted that we are doing pretty well and will have Town Engineer John Sullivan put together a report on drainage. Chairman MacCaffrie asked if the Board has missed anything on the warrant that they can address now. Article 35: Board members discussed the issue of setting an exemption for small personal property accounts with low value. The Town Manager noted that the town is trying to establish a threshold as to Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 6, 2005 10 r- r ,-. what we can collect and this is on personal property. He further noted that this makes no impact on the tax rate. The Board took no action on this article. (Dolan) 5-0 Passes .Jlpri{ 13, 2005 Date of Approval Board of Selectmen Minutes of April 6, 2005 11