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HomeMy WebLinkAboutBOS 06/06/2018Minutes of Board of Selectmen Meeting June 6,, 2018 Present: Mr. Michael Trowbridge, Chairman; Mr. Jess Aptowitz, Vice -Chairman; Mr. Steve Schoonveld, Clerk, Mr. Frank DelVecchio and Mr. Neil Rhein. RECEIVED .17 1 Li W N G L E K S 0 F F I C E ­ Mr. Kevin Dumas was not present. Mr. John Stanbrook was present on behalf of the Town Manager. JUN 2 1 A 0 11 1. Call To Order Board of Selectmen Meeting F! D Chairman Trowbridge called the meeting to order at 7:15PM. A C F -1-k-SETTIS 2. Presentation of Proclamation for Michael Forbes Chairman Trowbridge invited Mr. Kevin Doyle to come forward to recognize the Director of the Housing Authority Mr. Michael Forbes. Mr. Doyle stated that Mr. Forbes has been one of the best employees of the Town and one of the best directors in the state of Massachusetts. Mr. Doyle also introduced the current Housing Authority Board and Ms. Andrea McDougall the new Director. Mr. Schoonveld then read a Proclamation for Michael Forbes. Senator Paul Feeney was also present and read an Official State Citation. Mr. DelVecchio stated that it is hard to stand out in a large community, but Mr. Forbes had and -the outpouring of support here tonight spoke volumes. Mr. Aptowitz stated that everything he has heard has been compliments for all his hard work and he wished him the best. Mr. Schoonveld stated he appreciated reading the proclamation and that he has had a great thirty three years and wished him the best. Mr. Rhein stated all the people present tonight for Mr. Forbes was a great testament to his service and congratulated him. Chairman Trowbridge stated that Mr. Forbes has been a great employee of the Town and he has not heard one negative comment and wished him well in his retirement. Mr. Forbes thanked the previous Board members that he has worked for and stated that he has had great employees to work with, noting that he couldn't have run the Housing Authority without them. He further added that he wouldn't be standing here today if it wasn't for Bill Harlor and all his support. 3. Consideration of Non -Profit Gift Fund Committee's Recommendation for 2018 Grants Ms. Nancy Wall and Ms. Lorilee Fish were present from the Non -Profit Gift Fund Committee (NPGF). Ms. Wall explained the categories into Town Organizations, School Organizations and Other. There were ten organizations receiving grants totaling $45,273. Mr. Rhein asked where the funds come from and Ms. Wall answered that Dell Technologies Golf Tournament donated $25,,000 and Plainridge Park Casino donated $15,315. Mr. Rhein asked if the Plainridge Casino funding would run out and Chairman Trowbridge answered that the Town requests money each year, but is unsure if the Town would continue to receive it. Mr. Rhein commented that a lot of organizations depend on this funding and hopes that it will continue. Mr. Aptowitz commented that the biggest donation comes from the golf event and explained they will be there at least another year. Mr. Schoonveld asked if an organization receives partial funding does that threaten the possibility of the whole project being built for example the girls softball had requests for a batting machine and then other improvements. Ms. Wall answered that in this case the batting machine will proceed in many groups they will seek additional fund raising. Mr. Schoonveld asked if they do not use the funds what happens. Ms. Fish answered it comes back to the fund and that organizations have a nine month period for the grant, may request an extension of the grant. Ms. Wall added the group does need to show receipts of how the money is spent. Mr. Aptowitz and Mr. DelVecchio had no questions. Chairman Trowbridge stated there are a wide variety of groups being awarded grants. Ms. Wall encouraged all non -profits to apply. Motion: To approve the recommendations by the Non -Profit Gift Fund Committee. (Schoonveld/Aptowitz) Passes 5:0 Meeting Minutes Board of Selectmen June 6, 2018 Page 1 4. Annual Report of the Audit Committee to the Selectmen Mr. DelVecchio updated the Board that the Audit Committee met three times this year in October, December and May. The Committee has established a timeline for next year and plan to have this report given to the Board sooner. Mr. DelVecchio stated that the CAFRA was recognized by the Governmental Accounting Standards Board and that there were no negative findings in the audit completed by Powers and Sullivan. Mr. Stanbrook stated there were seven management letters this year and given the constraints of the budget it is difficult to address some of the items. Mr. Stanbrook stated that consultants may be helpful in addressing some of the concerns, like additional support for the accounting and finance office. Mr. Stanbrook further explained some of the other management letters and it was recommended that the Town conduct a fraud risk assessment. Mr. DelVecchio added that the Audit Committee knows these items need to be addressed and will work with Mr. Stanbrook to address them further. Mr. Aptowitz commented that the fraud assessment is a standard item and that Town is doing the best they can with making improvements every year and putting things in place. Mr. Schoonveld stated that these issues have been around for a long time and many are interconnected and a strong control approach could help especially in reducing the number of journal entries, noting that 5,000 journal entries a year was a large amount. Mr. Schoonveld asked Mr. Stanbrook if a COSO framework would help and he answered if a policy is put in place it needs to be implemented and not just put on a shelf. Mr. Schoonveld highly encouraged Mr. Stanbrook to make use of the Audit Committee as much as possible, noting that journal entries may go down and some of the fraud concerns may also go away. Mr. Schoonveld also noted that some of these items are major and he may consider giving funding for them. Mr. Rhein asked about time sheets and how employees track their time. Mr. Stanbrook answered it is a weekly sheet filled out by the employees and given to the accounting and treasurer's office, he added that it is touched three or four times before entering in the computer and errors can happen as well as every department has a different form they use it is not standardized. Mr. DelVecchio stated that he served on the Audit Committee and will miss being on the Committee. Chairman Trowbridge asked if Mr. Stanbrook could see what a consultant would cost to address some of the items. S. Approval and Signing of Short Term Note Documents Mr. DelVecchio recused himself and left the room. Motion: To approve and sign the short term note documents. (Schoonveld/Aptowitz) Mr. Schoonveld asked Mr. Stanbrook to explain what the borrowing was for so the audience could understand. Mr. Stanbrook explained that the borrowing was for last year's road projects of $2 million and $500,000 for the Albertini Well main repair project and was authorized at May Town Meeting. Mr. Schoonveld stated it was temporary borrowing for one year at 1.95% interest rate and asked what happens after the one year. Mr. Stanbrook answered that they would be paid off by a long term borrowing after the one year. Passes 4:0:1 (DelVecchio Abstained) Mr. DelVecchio returned to the room. Ms. Staples also was present to witness the Selectmen signing the documents 6. Review an Sign Updated Live Nation Worldwide, Inc. License (Change due to approved All Alcohol License from the ABCQ Motion: To approve and sign the revised Live Nation Worldwide, Inc. Entertainment License. (Schoonveld/Aptowitz) Passes 5:0 7. SEMRECC Update from Town Manager There was no update. Meeting Minutes Board of Selectmen June 6, 2018 Page 2 V 8. Resident Questions and Comments There were no resident questions and comments. 9. Review and Approve Consent Agenda All items on the Consent Agenda may be adopted with a single motion. Any member of the Board of Selectmen may request that an item be withdrawn from the Consent Agenda for separate consideration in which case that item will be voted on separately from the remainder of the Consent Agenda. All licenses have been routed through Town Hall Departments and any conditions have been noted below. a) Approval of Board of Selectmen Meeting Minutes for: • May 9, 2018 b) Vote To Approve Warrants: • Town Vendor Warrant No. 18048T in the amount of $1,385,395.73 • Electric Vendor Warrant No. 18048E in the amount of $41,,351.70 • School Vendor Warrant No. 180485 in the amount of $602,542.59 • Town Vendor Warrant No. 18049T in the amount of $123,755.73 • Electric Vendor Warrant No. 18049E in the amount of $34,424.09 c) Permits and License: • Consideration of 2018 Water Installers License for C. Naughton Corp. d) Proclamations Motion: To approve the consent agenda. (Schoonveld/Aptowitz) Passes 5:0 10. Consideration and Approval of Town Payroll Warrants: • Town Payroll/Town Medicaid Payroll 18048PT in the amount of $440,753.92. Motion: To Approve Town Payroll/Town Medicaid Payroll 18048PT in the amount of $440,753.92. (Schoonveld/Aptowitz) Passes 5:0 • Town Deductions Vendor Payroll 18048TV in the amount of $141,806.39. Motion: To Approve Town Deductions Vendor Payroll 18048TV in the amount of $141,806.39. (Schoonveld/Aptowitz) Passes 5:0 • School Payroll/School Medicaid Payroll 18048PS in the amount of 1,956,890.20. Motion: To Approve School Payroll/School Medicaid Payroll 18048PS in the amount of 1,956,890.20. (Schoonveld/Aptowitz) Passes 5:0 • School Deductions Vendor Payroll 18048SV in the amount of $626,142.77. Motion: To Approve School Deductions Vendor Payroll 18048SV in the amount of $626,142.77. (Schoonveld/Aptowitz) Passes 5:0 • Town Payroll/Town Medicaid Payroll 18049PT in the amount of $486,359.96. Motion: To Approve Town Payroll/Town Medicaid Payroll 18049PT in the amount of $486,359.96. (Schoonveld/Aptowitz) Passes 5:0 • Town Deductions Vendor Payroll 18049TV in the amount of $139,539.25. Motion: To Approve Town Deductions Vendor Payroll 18049TV in the amount of $139,539.25. (Schoonveld/Aptowitz) Passes 5:0 11. Correspondence There were no correspondence items. 12. Town Manager's Report There was no update with the absence of the Town Manager. 13. Selectmen's Questions and Comments Mr. Rhein stated the design for Old Colony Way was discussed at the Downtown Committee last night. Mr. Rhein stated that Keep Mansfield Beautiful is having a Litter Busters Swat Team who will be going out year Meeting Minutes Board of Selectmen June 6,2018 Page 3 i round in addition to the annual clean-up. If anyone is interested they were meeting at the Winthrop Street parking lot meeting on Saturday at Sam where individuals will be assigned a route. Mr. Rhein invited residents to call the Mansfield Water Department to have a water audit completed to test for water leaks to save on water consumption and use water more wisely. Mr. Schoonveld stated that he was talking with business owners on North Main Street and asked what the rules were for employee parking in that area. He believed the parking spots should be for customers of the businesses on North Main Street and not the employees. He asked if the Board could do something to enforce these employees to park on the side streets or in a designated parking area. Mr. Rhein commented that this was talked about at the Downtown Meeting and consultants were going to be used to evaluate the parking of the Downtown area. Mr. Schoonveld then asked when the first meeting of Town Manager Strategic Development Committee would be. Mr. Aptowitz commented that cell phone coverage in East Mansfield is getting worse and wanted an update on when the boosters around Town were going to be installed and the status of the proposed cell tower. He then commented that the Branch Street Solar Farm looks awful and would like Mr. Sollecito or Mr. Dumas to work with them to clean the area up. Mr. Aptowitz stated there were cost issues at the new DPW Complex problem and wants to make sure the Municipal Building Committee is aware of this. Chairman Trowbridge stated someone may want to make a motion to direct the Town Manager to formally reach out to them and due to some things not being allocated that there should be no further owner generated change orders unless it is an emergency or unforeseen site conditions. Chairman Trowbridge did note that the project is on schedule and on budget, but the contingency may be higher and that things should be done that were part of the original scope of the project. Motion: To instruct the Town Manager to notify the Municipal Building Committee that there will be no owner generated change orders for the projects unless it is an emergency or unforeseen site conditions. (Aptowitz/Schoonveld) Passes 5:0 Mr. Aptowitz lastly noted that there will be a breakfast with key accounts of the Electric Department at the Holiday Inn tomorrow and Secretary Ash will be attending. Mr. DelVecchio stated that he was excited to see something done with the Municipal parking lot and asked if there was anything the Board needed to do to help get the parking signs installed Downtown. Mr. Rhein answered that it was a topic at the Downtown Committee meeting and progress was made and they should be installed by July 1st. Chairman Trowbridge stated that Xfinity has concerts the next four nights so be patient as the Town makes adjustments when they can. He stated he was at the School Committee meeting to present proclamations and 375 years of experience amongst those retiring from long time positions. 14. Any items not anticipated by the Chairman 48 hours prior to this meeting There were no items. 15. Adjourn Motion: To adjourn the June 6, 2018 Board of Selectmen meeting at 8:1713M. (DelVecchio/Aptowitz) Passes .0 Sign ure Date Minutes prepared by Carrie Champagne Meeting Minutes Board of Selectmen June 6, 2018 Page 4