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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2017-05-16 Board of Selectmen Minutes k Town of Reading Meeting Minutes TO Board - Committee - Commission - Council: Board of Selectmen loll `' ' 3 -9 P Date: 2017-05-16 Time: 7:00 PM Building: Reading Town Hall Location: Selectmen Meeting Room Address: 16 Lowell Street Session: Purpose: General Business Version: Attendees: Members - Present: Chair John Arena, Barry Berman, Dan Ensminger, John Halsey Members - Not Present: Andrew Friedmann Others Present: Town Manager Bob LeLacheur, Town Accountant Sharon Angstrom, Human Resources Director Judi Perkins, Administrative Services Director Matt Kraunelis, Police Chief Segalla, Deputy Chief Clark, DPW Director Jeff Zager, Superintendent of Schools John Doherty, School Committee Chair Jeanne Borawski, Executive Assistant Caitlin Saunders, Bill Brown, Virginia and Everett Blodgett, Kaitlyn Mercurio, Virginia Adams, Kathryn Crook, Stephen Crook, Nancy Docktor, Dan Dewar Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Topics of Discussion: Chairman Arena called the meeting to order. Mr. Arena noted he was alerted by email last week about a drawing of a swastika at the high school. After receiving that email he immediately alerted town officials to further look into the matter. The police investigated, multiple meetings were had with many groups including the schools, HRAC and other town officials. Mr. Arena then read a statement condoning the acts of hate/ graffiti in Reading. Superintendent of Schools John Doherty also noted he was made aware of the incident thru an email from Linda Snow Dockser who had heard of it from a parent. He immediately got in touch with Principal Bakr who noted he had been talking with students to try and figure out what happened and which students were involved. Dr. Doherty noted there is a protocol in place for when these things happen. Mr. Berman explained this is a good time for the Town to speak loudly that we do accept or tolerate acts of hate. Mr. Halsey asked what happened between Friday and Monday before the schools decided to get the police involved. Dr. Doherty noted they were gathering more information before they went to the police with it. Chief Segalla noted the schools have a lot more freedom when investigating incidents in their own buildings. Once police get involved Miranda rights, warrants, and parents have to Page 1 1 May 16, 2017 Board of Selectmen Minutes-Page 2 be involved and it gets a lot harder so the schools tend to gather as much information as they can before calling police. Kaitlyn Mercurio passed out a handout of a "pyramid of hate" which shows biased behaviors growing in complexity. She also thanked Mr. Arena for his words at the beginning of the meeting. Talia Shore, student at RMHS who found the swastika explained all students should feel safe and accepted at school. She noted she did not feel safe at school after finding that graffiti. One of her goals is to show people this is a big deal and not to be taken lightly. Linda Snow Dockser noted she sent in her comments in writing not expecting to be able to make it however she just wanted to thank the students who found the swastika for coming forward and especially for coming to the meeting tonight to speak about it. She also explained her thoughts as using this as a good teaching moment and having some information community meetings. Selectmen's Liaison Reports Mr. Berman noted he attended the Trust Fund Commissioners meeting and they voted to increase contributions for transportation to the elderly. He also mentioned The Globe did a piece on Reading this week with some fun statistics. Mr. Ensminger attended the RMLD meeting where they discussed the history of the payment to the Town. He said is willing to be the Town representative on the new subcommittee forming regarding the payment to the Town. The rest of the Board agreed. Mr. Ensminger made a motion to appoint himself as the Town of Reading member on the Payment to Reading committee, second by Mr. Berman and approved with a 4-0-0 vote. Mr. Halsey attended the Conservation Commission meeting. He also attended the Public Safety Open House at the Police Station over the weekend. He noted the place was packed with families, officers and local businesses providing refreshments. The event was a huge success and thank you to DPW and Facilities for helping with it. Mr. Arena attended the Historical District Commission meeting regarding 186 Summer Ave and their ongoing plans. Public Comment Virginia Blodgett wanted to remind everyone that this weekend is Walkable Reading. Please be active this weekend and report it back to the Walkable Reading group so they can track how far we go. Bill Brown asked about the status of Memorial Park and Mr. LeLacheur noted he and Town Counsel are still working on it and researching. Town Manager's Report Mr. LeLacheur also noted that the Garden Club's plant sale is this weekend. He asked the board to start coming up with ideas for a future "service day" for the town. Page 1 2 May 16, 2017 Board of Selectmen Minutes-Page 3 Personnel &Appointments Police Week Mr. Ensminger made a motion to proclaim May 15 — 21St, 2017 Police Week, second by Mr. Halsey and approved with a 4-0-0 vote. Police Chief Mark Segalla thanked the Board for this proclamation and noted he has a wonderful, hardworking department. Public Works Week Mr. Ensminger made a motion to proclaim May 21 — 27th, 2017 Public Works Week, second by Mr. Berman and approved with a 4-0-0 vote. Mr. Ensminger noted, although not recognized enough, Public Works is one of the most widely used departments and he thanked them for everything they do. Mr. Halsey also thanked DPW for doing things most people don't realize they do. For example, cleaning up the baseball field after an ambulance got stuck helping a kid. Bill Brown wanted to remind everyone of the Memorial Day services happening at Laurel Hill Cemetery with the unveiling of a new plaque. Discussion/ Action Items Camp Rice Moody Attorney Brad Latham explained they are looking to convey ownership of Camp Rice Moody to the town with exclusive use for girls' camp, under control of the Girl Scouts. The Girl Scouts would assume all expenses as they do now. Mr. Berman asked why they want to turn this over to the town. Mr. Latham explained the organization who owns it is finding it hard to find board members to participate. Mr. Halsey noted concern for maintenance with things like this and wants to make sure there is a checks and balances if this gets handed over to the town. Mr. Ensminger asked if this has to go before Town Meeting and it was noted yes. Mr. LeLacheur explained we need to think about how to structure this properly. For examples, with the ice arena the town is hands off but with the mattera cabin the town is hands on. We need to figure out what we want with this. Town Accountant Quarterly Report Sharon Angstrom noted as of today we have collected 96% of our projected revenues. We have spent about 83% of our budget. She does not feel we are in danger of any revenue deficit. The Water Department has collected 104% of their projected revenues which means consumption is up. Sewer we have collected 110%. The finance department is currently in the middle of hiring a new treasurer. Amend FY17 Non Union Classification and Compensation Plans Mr. Ensminger read the hearing notice. Mr. Ensminger made a motion to close the hearing, second by Mr. Berman and approved with a 4-0-0 vote. Mr. Ensminger made a motion to approve amending the FY17 Non Union Classification and Compensation Plan as proposed, second by Mr. Halsey and approved with a 4-0-0 vote. Page 1 3 May 16, 2017 Board of Selectmen Minutes -Page 4 Mr. Ensminger made a motion to approve the FY18 Non Union Classification and Compensation Plans as shown, second by Mr. Berman and approved with a 4-0-0 vote. Town Personnel Policies Human Resources Director Judi Perkins explained that the policies have not been looked at in quite some time. There are a lot of new regulations that require this to be updated. She went thru and noted the larger changes due to state regulation changes. Mr. Berman noted he thought it would be a good idea to reference the whistle blower' law in there somewhere. The group discussed contracts and personnel policies and it was noted if it came down to it, a contract trumps the personnel policies. Board of Selectmen Policies Administrative Services Director Matt Kraunelis was present to discuss these with the board. He noted when it comes to the volunteers not too much has changed but Human Resources will need to also take a look at the policies because technically they are employees. Mr. Kraunelis noted what they have done so far is mostly house-keeping on the policies. Mr. Halsey expressed a need for clarification on what actions can be taken when boards and their members do not comply with the policies. Mr. Arena agreed that compliance enforcement is something that needs to be looked into and further explained so the Selectmen know what they can do. Board of Selectmen/ Town Manager Goals Town Manager Bob LeLacheur went thru the goals and updated the board. He made note that they should consider doing a State training on open/public meeting laws so they are always being followed. The group also discussed parking and believed it is time to officially bring that to the board in the fall and start community discussions on it. Community Projects Update Mr. LeLacheur asked the board to think about how we should arrive at what community projects should be done and how to prioritize them in the future. Minutes Mr. Ensminger made a motion to approve the May 2"d, 2017 minutes as written, second by Mr. Berman and approved with a 4-0-0 vote. Mr. Ensminger made a motion to adjourn at 10:15 PM, second by Mr. Berman and approved with a 4-0-0 vote. Page 1 4