Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2015-04-14 Board of Selectmen Minutes OFR i s Town of Reading b Meeting Minutes INCO Board - Committee - Commission - Council: Board of Selectmen Date: 2015-04-14 Time: 7:00 PM Building: Reading Town Hall Location: Selectmen Meeting Room Address: 16 Lowell Street Purpose: General Business Attendees: Members - Present: John Arena, Daniel Ensminger, John Halsey, Kevin Sexton, Barry Berman Members - Not Present: Others Present: Town Manager Bob LeLacheur, Jean Delios, Jessie Wilson, Deputy Police Chief Mark Segalla, Vicki Avery, Paula Schena, Bill Brown, Stephen Crook, David Williams, Ron D'Addario, Jack Russell, John Doherty, Jeanne Borawski, Denise McCarthy, Ron and Caroline Ranere Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Secretary Topics of Discussion: The Town Clerk swore in newly elected Barry Berman before the meeting. Reports and Comments Selectmen's Liaison Reports and Comments - Daniel Ensminger noted that John Doherty and Jeanne Borawski will be in later for an agenda item. He took a field trip to the Edge Indoor Recreational Facility in Bedford. The facility rents out for $600/hour which is the cost of daily operation. He attended the MAPC Forum on April 1 at the Pleasant Street Center. He also attended the CPCD zoning workshop last evening. John Halsey noted that he attended the RCASA meeting at which they did an exercise by dividing the Board of Directors by discipline and then intermixed them to create awareness of what they do. RCASA is working on mental health and wellbeing and creating partnerships. They sponsored an event at the schools by bringing in speaker Chris Heron. This event had 400 in the audience and the kids would not stop asking him questions. He talked about mental health. Mr. Halsey noted that he has heard from many people who wanted to thank whoever was responsible for putting the event together. Kevin Sexton noted that two ballot counting machines went down on Election Day so the ballots had to be hand counted. The Town Clerk handled it well by explaining the process and the volunteers were great. He offered congratulations to staff and volunteers on a good job done. John Arena indicated he wanted to personally thank Officers Drauschke, Lavita and Santasky for their assistance earlier in the day. Public Comment - Bill Brown noted that the Cemetery Board wants the Board of Selectmen to endorse their Article on the Town Meeting Warrant to give the Cemetery Garage project to the Building Committee to decide the location. Page 1 1 Board of Selectmen Minutes - April 14, 2015 - page 2 Town Manager's Report - The Town Manager noted that the Town Clerk helped out with ballot counting in Lawrence a while back so she had experience in the process. The Board will have to approve a motion soon for new machines that are needed for November. The Town Manager also noted that although the Charter Committee was the least unanimous group he has ever worked with, they did a lot of work on the Charter. The House passed the Charter. The Senate wanted two changes and the Selectmen approved so the Senate approved it and sent it to the Governor. The Governor noticed the Senate approved the version that did not have the changes. The Governor will make four amendments, send it back to the House and Senate and then he will sign. We are operating under the new Charter now. Proclamations/Certificates of Appreciation National Telecommunicators Week - Fire Chief Burns thanked Vicki Avery and all the Dispatchers for their hard work. He noted they had three 911 calls come in at the same time today and Dispatch did a great job handling it. Deputy Police Chief Mark Segalla noted that the Dispatchers sometimes go unnoticed. They have been short staffed this year and they still did a great job. Vicki Avery noted that having more staff will make a big difference. The Town Manager noted that he has been interviewing for new Dispatchers and this job is highly technical and requires a great deal of medical knowledge. A motion by Ensminger seconded by Halsey to proclaim the week of April 12 - 18 2015 as Public Safety Telecommunications Week in Reading was approved by a vote of 5-0-0. Arbor Day - A motion by Ensminger seconded by Sexton to proclaim April 24 2015 —� as Arbor Day in Reading was approved by a vote of 5-0-0. Discussion/Action Items Board Re-Organization - John.Arena turned the Chairmanship over to the Town Manager to take nominations for Chairman of the Board of Selectmen. Halsey moved and Sexton seconded to place the name of Daniel Ensminger into nomination as Chairman of the Board of Selectmen. Halsey moved and Sexton seconded to close the nominations for Chairman of the Board of Selectmen and Daniel Ensminger was elected Chairman by a vote of 4-0-1 with Ensminger abstaining. Arena moved and Sexton seconded to place the name of John Halsey into nomination as Vice Chairman of the Board of Selectmen Ensminger moved and Sexton seconded to close the nominations and John Halsey was elected Vice Chairman by a vote of 4-0-1 with Halsey abstaining. Ensminger moved and Berman seconded to place the name of Kevin Sexton into nomination for Secretary of the Board of Selectmen. Halsey moved and Arena seconded to close the nominations and Kevin Sexton was elected Secretary by a vote of 4-0-1 with Sexton abstaining. Daniel Ensminger asked everyone to look at the liaison list and number according to which ones they want and email it to the Town Manager. Dunkin Donuts/Walkers Brook Hours of Operation - The Regional Manager and the District Manager for Dunkin Donuts were present. They indicated they were not able to build enough business for overnight so they plan to close at 10:00 p.m. and open at 4:00 a.m. Page 1 2 Board of Selectmen Minutes - April 14, 2015 - page 3 The Town Manager noted that the CPDC original requirement was for gasoline 24 hours per day. A motion by Sexton seconded by Berman to allow the reduced hours for Dunkin Donuts at 87 Walkers Brook Drive as requested was approved by a vote of 5-0-0. Hearing - Driveway Variance - 74 Edgemont Avenue - The Secretary read the hearing notice. Homeowners Ron and Caroline Ranere were present. Ron Ranere indicated he is asking for a variance to have two driveways on the same street without the minimum requirement of 120 feet frontage. Mr. Ranere noted that the issue is Edgemont Avenue is a school route but Arcadia is not. If they close the driveway on Arcadia then they have to back out onto Edgemont into school traffic. The Town Manager noted that Public Safety agrees with this request. John Arena asked if he would entertain closing the Edgemont Avenue opening and Mr. Ranere indicated he would rather not because he does use it in the afternoons. John Arena asked if he needed prior approval for the U shaped driveway and Mr.Ranere indicated he did not. John Arena indicated he had concerns about setting a precedent. Barry Berman indicated that not backing up onto Edgemont is a good idea. He also noted that this property is unique because it is on a curve and there are not many houses on that type of a lot. John Halsey noted that the abutters were all notified and there is no public comment. He noted this is an unusual setting. Kevin Sexton noted that he understands John Arena's concerns but he supports this. A motion by Sexton seconded by Arena to close the hearing on the driveway variance at 74 Edgemont Avenue was approved by a vote of 5-0-0. A motion by Halsey seconded by Berman to allow the applicant to keep the second curb cut on Arcadia Avenue as indicated on the site plan C1 prepared by Ranere Associates Inc. was approved by a vote of 5-0-0. Climate Advisory Committee - David Williams noted that the RMLD is exploring community shared solar project. They are looking at the cost and a working group has been formed. John Arena asked how large of a project are they looking at and David Williams indicated 50KW. Ron Daddario noted this is still in the planning stages. Daniel Ensminger indicated he likes this a lot because people can buy shares in it. Barry Berman noted he thinks this is an awesome idea and asked if they have talked with the schools and if the RMLD is offering to finance. Jessie Wilson, Community Services Director, noted that they have worked with MAPC for a couple of years. They met with the RMLD, Schools and MAPC this week. They did google searches to look at parcels. Viable options are schools, municipal buildings and the Ice Arena. Barry Berman asked about the feasibility of buying instead of leasing and Jessie Wilson noted we would have the chance to purchase after 10 years but we would get a lease payment from a developer. Page 1 3 Board of Selectmen Minutes - April 14, 2015 - page 4 John Halsey noted he has had experience with this with Boy Scout properties and it is important that there be a buyer. We need to understand what, where and how. There needs to be green lights all the way down the line. The Town Manager noted that this discussion has been going on for 10 years. The Board of Assessors says this is a value to be taxed. This involves extremely complex finances. John Arena noted this is the closest we will get to money from the sky. Ron Daddario noted that the General Manager of the Light Department is for this and the state might make it financially feasible. He will come back when they have more information. Daniel Ensminger asked for any examples and the Town Manager noted that the state is using panels off of the highways. Ron Daddario noted that Earth Day is on April 25th from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Reading Municipal Light Department. There will be 12 - 14 presenters, car chargers, home, presenters, LED bulbs will be sold at a reduced price, Chevy, Stoneham Ford, Toyota and Nissan will all be present. Reading Garden Club and Reading Cultural Organizations - Working Group - May 16 Community Event - Demetra Tseckares, President of the Reading Garden Club and Vice President Denise McCarthy were present. Ms. Tseckares noted that their goal is to teach about gardening. There are over 100 adopt an islands in Reading. The Civic Beauty Committee moved the Library garden to the back of Town Hall. They will be doing the front of Town Hall within a few weeks. There Annual Plant Sale will be May 16th from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on the Town Common. There will be booths set up for education, a bake sale, musicians, artists and singers. Ms. Tseckares noted that 90% of the Monarch butterflies are dead due to the lack of milkweed and the use of pesticides. She reviewed an extensive list of plants to grow to attract butterflies and encourage people to ban pesticides. Daniel Ensminger asked when the annual judging of the islands is scheduled for and Ms. Tseckares noted in July. She also noted that May 15th is "plant something day" and they will be planting a tree at all of the schools. Jessie Wilson noted that she is working with a cultural group on infusing cultural events in downtown Reading. A working group has established an inventory of over 20 organizations in Reading and issued a survey to find out their interests. Ms. Wilson noted that the next steps are to get the group organized and increase event programming and entertainment in downtown. They are also working with John Feudo. John Halsey noted this is an exciting concept and this group will become a nonprofit organization not a public committee. The Town Manager noted that the Garden Club plant sale will be on the Town Common for the next two years due to the Library renovations. MAPC Member Report - Steven Sadwick noted that the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) has 12 planning organizations in the state. Reading belongs to the North Suburban Planning Council (NSPC). The winter council meeting focused on long range transportation planning, complete streets and downtown initiatives. Mr. Sadwick noted that Reading has done well gaining access to grants and the Reading 2020 and Economic Strategy Plan Page 1 4 Board of Selectmen Minutes - April 14, 2015 - page 5 received a great turnout. The President of the Mass Planning Directors had a lot of good things to say about the Town's staff and Board of Selectmen. MAPC Service Inventory - Assistant Town Manager Jean Delios introduced Mark Fine from the MAPC. Mr. Fine noted that they did a service inventory and the Town needs to consider how service delivery can be made more efficient and less costly. The Departments were surveyed and asked them to look at what can be eliminated, what is necessary and what can be regionalized. Findings include pressures to make records accessible to outside parties; enabling more payments online; more use of See Click Fix; cultural events and discretionary services i.e. health, library and elder services. Other findings include the Police suggesting outsourcing fingerprinting; and coordinate elder volunteer services with schools. There is also a recommendation to change the fees for building inspector; elder van and tennis court online registration fee. Regionalize zoning/code enforcement is another option. Mr. Fine noted that See Click Fix is a partnership service in Reading. The Town Manager noted that we receive See Click Fix for free for one year and have to determine by December if we want to continue it. Currently, only DPW is using it. John Arena asked if there are more costs to turn on more modules and the Town Manager indicated there is and there is also a need for staff to manage it. Daniel Ensminger asked if the Schools are interested in any of these issues and Jeanne Borawski indicated they are. John Arena noted technology and Human Resources are a good match for the schools. Barry Berman asked if we can expand this to a community discussion. The Town Manager noted that this is step 1. Step 2 will be to meet on Saturdays to discuss. Then we will ask the community what they want to give up. Mark Fine noted that the Town does partnerships well citing the schools and elder services. Bylaw Discussion on Associate Members - Daniel Ensminger noted that the new Charter does not allow associates unless the Board of Selectmen appoints them. Town Counsel Ray Miyares noted that the Charter allows for a bylaw to expand on "all appointed Boards or Committees authorized by Article 4 of the Charter." All Boards must be appointed by the Board of Selectmen. John Arena noted that it would be helpful to have a "how to guide." One area of question is the number of associates and the term. Ray Miyares noted that the number shall not exceed 2/3 and that can be rounded down. The Board also specify when terms. Barry Berman asked how the Chairman of the Committee would determine who to appoint to vote - i.e. is it the associate with the longest tenure? John Arena noted that associates only vote in the absence of a quorum. Daniel Ensminger indicated he felt 2/3 was excessive. Ray Miyares noted that the Selectmen can choose the amount that they want. Daniel Ensminger asked about the rules for formal hearings and Ray Miyares noted that Reading adopted a local action that if someone misses one meeting he can vote if he puts in writing that they watched a tape of the missed meeting. Page 1 5 Board of Selectmen Minutes - April 14, 2015 - page 6 Johnathan Barnes, member of the Historical Commission, noted that the Historical Commission doesn't have recorded meetings. Sharlene Santo noted that Historical Commission hearings are usually recorded. Kevin Sexton asked if it could be a private taping and Town Counsel indicated it can as long as it is announced. Barry Berman noted that 2/3 seems high but the Town struggles to fill positions that it is nice to have people involved. The Town Manager noted that the last sentence indicates that the Board of Selectmen is authorized to appoint associates to any board, committee or commission..... Town Counsel noted that can be taken out and reworded so that whichever Board is appointing the committee is the Board that appoints the associates. Approval of Minutes A motion by Sexton seconded by Halsey to approve the minutes of March 24 2015 as amended was approved by a vote of 4-0-1 with Berman abstaining. A motion by Sexton seconded by Arena that the Board of Selectmen go into Executive Session to discuss strategy with respect to litigation and that the Chair declares that an open meeting may have a detrimental effect on the litigating position of the body and to reconvene into Open Session was approved on a roll call vote with all five members voting in the affirmative. Respectfully submitted, Secretary Page 1 6