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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2015-12-01 Board Of Selectmen Minutes �� ur Town of Reading 0�a f� Meeting Minutes Board - Committee - Commission - Council: Board of Selectmen Date: 2015-12-01 Time: 7:00 PM Building: Reading Town Hall Location: Selectmen Meeting Room Address: 16 Lowell Street Purpose: General Business Session: Open Session Attendees: Members - Present: Chairman Dan Ensminger, Kevin Sexton, John Arena, John Halsey and Barry Berman. Members - Not Present: Others Present: Town Manager Bob LeLacheur, Assistant Town Manager Jean Delios, Town Accountant Sharon Angstrom, Administrative Assistant Caitlin Saunders, RMLD General Manager Coleen O'Brien, MAPC Project Manager Jennifer Erickson Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Secretary Topics of Discussion: Reports and Comments Selectmen's Liaison Reports and Comments - Mr. Halsey noted there is a conference on opioid use on Thursday at 6PM and he encourages everyone to come out and learn. Town Managers Report - Mr. LeLacheur noted the Tree Lighting on Sunday looked very successful and busy. He noted the town is currently In discussion with North Reading to allow them to join the MWRA. One of the pros to having them join is we would have emergency access to their supply and there would be two connections Into Reading. Mr. Berman asked if there were any downsides. Mr. LeLacheur answered no unless something was to go wrong. Mr. Berman commented this may build the relationship between the two towns and open doors to future projects together. Mr. LeLacheur noted we currently have a regional housing contract with North Reading and we are talking about regionalizing animal control with them as well. Discussion/ Action Items Chief Procurement Officer Designation - The Chief Procurement Officer is the Town Manager according to the Charter but this is a formality for the State that we need to fill out when we get a new Town Manager. This allows Mr. LeLacheur to delegate procurement to someone else and will not change anything. The Town is currently trying to hire a procurement agent. Kevin Sexton move that the Board of Selectmen appoint the Town Manager as the Chief Procurement Officer for the Town of Reading. second by Barry Berman and approved with a 5-0-0 vote. Page I ] Board of Selectmen Minutes - December 1. 2015 - page 2 MAPC Presentation on Economic Development Opportunities - Jen Erickson from MAPC was , attending to do the presentation. She noted this report fits into the menu of the EDSAT the town had previously done. This plan focuses on 4 Priority Development Areas (PDAs). There were many project elements that went into this report including public engagement, residential market analysis and visual preferences. MAPC and the Town held three public meetings which were all well attended. There was a public comment period on the draft and they used past planning efforts as well. PDA #1 is the downtown area. PDA #2 is South Main Street. PDA #3 is New Crossing Road (behind RMLD). PDA #4 is 1 General Way. Ms. Delios commented, we don't think of these four parcels being connected but they could be and we should be thinking of that. Ms. Erickson noted all these areas are walking distance from the train and we should be promoting that. Retail analysis findings showed a lot of small business/ office potential. Residential analysis findings showed Reading is very well located with a great school system. Housing prices in Reading are at an all-time high right now and there is strong demand for housing in/near the downtown area. For preferences on uses, the community seemed to like mixed use for PDA #1, commercial for PDA #2 and there was difficulty picturing PDA #3's potential. The plan then has six strategies for developing each PDA. Strategy 1 is to adopt local policies and practices that will facilitate compact development and mixed use in the transit- accessible PDAs. ' Mr. Ensminger asked if we will need more help to accomplish this. Ms. Delios answered yes we will absolutely need more staff and resources to continue it's just where are we going to get those resources is the next question. Mr. Berman commented that zoning says what we want so he asked if it would make more sense to do all the zoning at the same time Instead of piecemeal._ Mr. Arena agreed that it might be easier to do all the zoning so they are all connected and the community can see the zoning for all the PDAs at one time instead of just one or two PDAs at a time. Mr. Halsey asked if MAPC has access to developers to help us connect with them when we are ready to. Ms. Erickson noted MAPC is currently working on that. They are In touch with developers and are hopefully going to be able to link them to towns in need. Action IC is to develop and implement a comprehensive parking strategy and Mr. Arena noted that may be a bigger discussion. Strategy 2 is enhancing walkability and connectivity within and between the PDAs. Strategy 3 is branding and marketing the PDAs to attract interest from the developers, commercial establishments and potential customers. Mr. Arena noted the website is a good outreach without being personal. , Mr. Halsey said this comes back to needing more staff to work on the website. He personally thinks that's a full time job in itself. Mr. Arena commented we also need to find someone who has done this before. Paye 12 Board of Selectmen Minutes - December 1. 2015 - pace 3 ' Strategy 4 is to support existing businesses. Strategy 5 is to promote public/private partnerships and collaboration to maximize redevelopment potential. Action SC is to facilitate redevelopment opportunities that require parcel consolidation with multiple owners. Ms. Delios noted there is a project going before CPDC that is combing two properties to develop one larger commercial property. Action SA is to consider public/private partnerships with developers to help address gaps in financing redevelopment projects. Mr. Ensminger asked if MAPC Is talking specifically about a certain infrastructure. Ms. Erickson said they have a list of potential parcels that could be developed. Mr. Halsey commented we should think about how many housing units we place, we tend to do a lot of housing and minimal commercial. Mr. Berman noted it is good to do a mix like with Haven Street. The units above the commercial space are bringing more traffic down that way now. Strategy 6 is to build the community and activate the public realm in downtown Reading through cultural economic development and place making initiatives. What's next Is funding, staffing and establishing public/private partnerships. ' Mr. Berman commented there is a clear need for us to help existing businesses as well. Mr. Ensminger asked Ms. Delios how the board can help. Ms. Delios noted we should be prioritizing what we can accomplish and how. Mr. LeLacheur noted that there are other areas that could possibly be developed that aren't in this plan. Ms. Delios noted Main Street has 20,000 cars that pass through Reading on a daily basis and some better signage could maybe attract some of those cars to places around town. Mr. Ensminger thanked MAPC and Ms. Delios for their outstanding work. RMLD Update - General Manager Coleen O'Brien was present to give the board the update. She noted some highlights were the cost of service study, the LED Street Light Grant and their paperless billing. Capacity costs are expected to increase significantly. Seventy five percent of the budget is supply costs which are a pass-through. RMLD is looking at grid modernization which would save a lot of time and be more accurate. Mr. Berman asked how much this costs? Ms. O'Brien stated they are doing it piece by piece over twenty years. Mr. Ensminger asked if RMLD has any plans if an ERP happens. Ms. O'Brien answered yes they are legally required to do so. ' Mr. Arena asked about the cost of the modernization and Ms. O'Brien stated it is about half a million every year and about $25 million total. She stated everything is being done in- house to save money. Ms. O'Brien noted the LED streetlight replacement program has started and full implementation will be over three years ending in FY18. Page 1 3 Board of Selectmen Minutes - December 1. 2015 - Daae 4 Mr. Arena asked if she sees any change in demand or efficiency and Ms. O'Brien noted it is pretty flat but RMLD wants people to use lights on off-peak hours. ' Mr. Halsey asked how Ms. O'Brien felt about new development in the space behind RMLD and asked if RMLD were to relocate, would they need more or less space than they currently have. Ms. O'Brien said it is hard to say exactly what they would need for space. She noted she would love to develop that area because there's a lot of potential there. RMLD is willing to move and consolidate as much as they can to make that happen; they just need a space that is big enough to handle large trucks coming through all the time. Ms. O'Brien commented that RMLD is actively implementing new proactive maintenance programs as well as career development and training for the employees. Mr. LeLacheur noted Ms. O'Brien has been very flexiblewithMs. Delios and MAPC on the development plans with her space. Mr. Ensminger thanked Ms. O'Brien for updating the Board. Hearing - Amend FY16 Non-Union Classification Plan - Mr. Sexton read the hearing notice. There are two changes. The Collector and Assistant Treasurer positions are asking to be upgraded one step. It was waited on initially because of a pending retirement. Mr. Sexton moved to close the hearing on amending the FY16 Non-Union Classification Plan, second by Mr. Arena and approved with a 5-0-0 vote Mr. Sexton moved that the Board of Selectmen approve the amendments to the ' FY16 Non-Union Classification Plan as presented, second by Mr. Arena and approved with a 5-0-0 vote. Mr. LeLacheur noted there is a new agenda for next meeting. The Town is asking for a renewal of three years for the assessing agreement we have with Wakefield. He noted it is a good arrangement and he would like to keep it. Mr. Sexton move that the Board of Selectmen adiourn the meeting at 9:35 PM, second by Mr. Berman and approved with a 5-0-0 vote. Respectfully Submitted, Secretary Page 1 4