HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019-09-24 Select Board Packet³±³±³±! !!!
Town of Reading
Meeting Minutes
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2016-09-22 LAG Board - Committee - Commission - Council:
Select Board
Date: 2019-07-09 Time: 7:00 PM
Building: Reading Town Hall Location: Select Board Meeting Room
Address: 16 Lowell Street Session: Open Session
Purpose: General Business Version: Draft
Attendees: Members - Present:
Anne Landry, Mark Dockser, Vanessa Alvarado, John Halsey, Andrew
Friedmann
Members - Not Present:
Others Present:
Town Manager Bob LeLacheur, Executive Assistant Caitlin Saunders, Ivria
Fried, Tony D'Arezzo, Bill Brown, Nancy Docktor, Kristyn Kaupas, Jonathan
Barnes, Elizabeth Gomez
Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Caitlin Saunders
Topics of Discussion:
The meeting was called to order at 7 PM.
Liaison Reports
Ms. Landry noted the Tarrant Lane project is moving forward. HRAC is looking for more
members. The Superintendent of Schools is taking a leave of absence. The school space
study is moving forward.
Mr. Dockser noted he attended the RMLD ribbon cutting for a battery energy storage
system. Fellow board member John Halsey was recognized by the Rotary and congratulated
him.
Town Managers Report
Mr. LeLacheur noted the depot painting agenda item tonight will not be happening.
Jonathan Barnes is working with the applicant before they come to the board.
Reading Coop will be honoring Camille Anthony and the board will get more information on
that in the upcoming weeks. He also noted we will try and get more advanced notice out to
the town when they will be spraying for mosquitos.
Public Comment
Bill Brown noted he went to Fall River to see the ground breaking for a new memorial war
wall they are building.
Nancy Docktor wants the board to keep in mind all these liquor violations when they start
discussing allowing gas stations to sell beer.
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Hearing – Alleged Liquor Violations
The hearing notice was read. The alleged violations took place at Baystate Liquors Ms.
Alvarado entered the police reports into the record.
She then swore in Deputy Chief Clark and Lieutenant Detective Abate that their statements
are accurate and true.
Lt. Detective Abate then explained the events that occurred with both the vi olations as
depicted in the police reports. After the first violation, the underage kids noted Baystate is
known for selling to minors and they go there frequently because they never card them.
After the first violation, Deputy Chief Clark asked patrol officers to keep an eye on that
establishment to see if there seems to be a lot of young kids going in there. During the
events Detective Abate noted there two clerks in the store during the second violation and
one of them was uncooperative refusing to give his name and other information after trying
to hide from them.
Ms. Alvarado asked if these are frequent violations and Detective Abate noted not really.
There are violations every now and then but he would not say frequently.
Ms. Alvarado then swore in Mr. Patel, owner of Baystate Liquors. With Mr. Patel was his
Attorney Jim DiGulio out of Wakefield.
Mr. DiGuilo noted this is a family run store with 5 employees. The two main employees are
tips certified. There have been no allegations at this store un til now. He also noted the girl
did not look young. He also mentioned that the young adult in the first violation told officers
had a used a fake ID at the store before noting that if he continued to go there after using
his fake ID, the clerks stopped IDi ng him after that because they thought they knew him.
The store has been spot checked by the ABCC and was never found in violation. The clerk in
the store at the time of the violation was only there helping out and Mr. Patel fired him after
the incident. Mr. Patel realized the seriousness of this but there was no intention to sell to a
minor. He has since purchased a machine to read ID’s to try and catch fake ones. He also
noted they have a new working policy to ID anyone that looks under 35.
Mr. Patel spoke noting he really cares about this community and our future. He is willing to
spend more time and effort in more training and hopes the new machine will stop any
further fake IDs.
Mr. Dockser asked Mr. Patel how many of his employees are tips certified. Mr. Patel
answered 2 out of 5.
Mr. Halsey explained how problematic that is noting 100% of his employees should be
certified. Any person that touches alcohol, no matter if they are only covering for a day or
an hour, must be tips certified. He noted he was the Chair when Mr. Patel opened Baystate
liquors and he explicitly told him they do not take selling to minors lightly and that every
employee must be properly trained. He then asked Mr. Patel his reasoning for only 2 of his
employees being trained.
Mr. Patel noted he thought he could train them.
Mr. Friedmann asked if either of the clerks on duty the night of the violation were certified
and it was noted no, neither of them were.
Mr. Halsey also noted he finds it a problem that they just allow an y family member to cover
the desk when they need help. There is a reason people need to be certified to sell alcohol
and not anyone can just cover a desk at a liquor store. He also explained the judging people
by how they look to decide if you are going to card them or not, does not work. Some
people look older than they are, some look younger than they are, you have to card
everyone because things like this happen when you make a judgment call off of someone’s
appearance and it is very concerning to him that is how they decide who to ID or not.
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Mr. Giulia argued that Mr. Patel did not intentionally sell to a minor and that they cannot
find him in violation because it was not his intent.
The board had mixed opinions on how to proceed and also asked about finding him in
violation of their policies which states all employees must be tips certified. Town Counsel
noted if they wanted to discuss his violations of their policies they would have to post and
open a new hearing at a later date.
Mr. Dockser moved that the Board continue the hearing to August 27, 2019 at 8
PM. The motion was seconded by Mr. Friedmann and approved with a 5-0 vote.
Vote to approve Zanni Land Acquisition
Mr. Dockser moved that the board accept the Deed as presented. The motion was
seconded by Ms. Landry and approved with a 5-0 vote.
Mr. Dockser moved that the board execute the Order of Taking as presented. The
motion was seconded by Mr. Landry and approved with a 5-0 vote.
Mr. Dockser moved that the board authorize Town Counsel and the Town Manager
to act as agents for the Town and to close on the property and to execute and
record any additional documents necessary to effectuate the acquisition of the so
called ‘Zanni Property’ located off Symonds Way. The motion was seconded by M r.
Friedmann and approved with a 5-0 vote.
Vote to approve Affordable Housing Monitoring Agent
This monitoring agent will be for Reading Woods 40R only.
Lynne Sweet was present for any questions from the board.
Mr. Dockser asked her if she plans to staff up for this large project or if it will just be
herself. She noted all the units are sold at this point so it is just monitoring going forward.
Mr. Dockser moved that the board designate Lynne Sweet of LDS Consulting Group
as the Town of Reading’s Monitoring Agent for the Reading Woods 40R project.
The motion was seconded by Mr. Halsey and approved with a 5-0 vote.
Depot Renovations
Historical Commission Chair Jonathan Barnes was present to let the board know they are
working together to come up with a solution that works for both parties. They are not ready
to come to the board at this time and request to be taken off the agenda until they come
back with a new request.
Preview Zoning Bylaw Changes for Town Meeting
Community Development Director Juli e Mercier was present to give the board a preview of
what is proposed for November Town Meeting.
The first change will be to their definition of marijuana. This is because of the new laws and
things happening with CBD.
The board discussed how this would affect the CBD store in town. It was noted the state has
‘banned’ certain CBD projects but everything is a little unclear right now. There will be more
to come on this. This definition change will only be to clean up zoning. Board of Health will
have to get involved later on about products going forward. The rules of marijuana in town
will not change.
The second change will be to amend footnote 1 which is provision regarding turning a
single-family home into a town family depending on certain conditions. This new footnote
would now require this to go to ZBA instead of letting staff make the decisions. The reason
for this is because staff are having to make a lot of judgement calls as requests are getting
more difficult and unique.
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Change number three would allow mixed use in Bus A + C. Change number four would align
intensity regulations with mixed use.
Safety Improvements
Deputy Chief Clark and Lieutenant Christine Amendola were present to explain to the board
what they were asking for.
The first amendment would Enact Article 5.4.4.12 - No person shall park a vehicle from
7:30 AM - 8:30 AM on Monday through Friday from August 25th through June 30th on any
street or parts of the streets to which this Article has been applied as listed under Article 12.
The second amendment would add additional parking restrictions 7:30 am to 8:30 am
during school drop off on Summer Avenue.
The third amendment would make a right turn only from 7:30 am – 8:30 am on Oak Street.
The fourth amendment would Amend Article 12 to replace 6.17 to 6.17.2 - Northwest bound
drivers on Pearl Street shall make a right turn only onto Main Street from the northerly
terminus of Pearl Street by Mill Street.
The fifth and last amendment of the night would restrict parking on Temple Street between
23 and 25 Temple.
The board had no objections and agreed all the requests were reasonable.
Mr. Dockser moved that the Select Board approve Safety Amendment 2019-7 as
presented. The motion was seconded by Mr. Friedmann and approved with a 5-0
vote.
Mr. Dockser moved that the Select Board approve Safety Amendment 2019-8 as
presented. The motion was seconded by Mr. Halsey and approved with a 5-0 vote.
Mr. Dockser moved that the Select Board approve Safety Amendment 2019-9 as
presented. The motion was seconded by Mr. Halsey and approved with a 5-0 vote.
Mr. Dockser moved that the Select Board approve Safety Amendment 2019-10 as
presented. The motion was seconded by Mr. Halsey and approved with a 5-0 vote.
Mr. Dockser moved that the Select Board approve Safety Amendment 2019-11 as
presented. The motion was seconded by Mr. Halsey and approved with a 5-0 vote.
Before moving on Town Manager wanted to give a quick update about Haverhill Street
noting he sat down with MassDOT and others and the fact is that MassDOT controls the
speed limit on that road because of a decision the Select Board made 45 years ago. We are
looking into options to regain control of the road but right now MassDOT has ordered the
town to put the original speed limit signs back up because they did not approve the change.
One option the town could do is a home rule petition to try and regain control.
A couple of Haverhill Street neighbors came out to express their disappointment but
generally understood the issue at hand. They also agreed with attempting a home rule
petition to regain control of the road and suggested we start that as soon as possible.
FY20 Election Schedule
Town Clerk Laura Gemme was back in front of the board requesting again that they do not
combine the elections this year because of the amount of time, staff, training and
preparation that would be needed to handle both. Ms. Gemme noted she sent out an email
to a Massachusetts Town Clerks email group asking if they were combining their elections.
She showed the board the 32 responses she received back with 27 saying they are NOT
combining, 1 said yes, 2 were still thinking about it and 1 has not thought about it yet.
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While most members argued that more people turnout with a combine election, Mr. Halsey
was opposed to such.
Mr. Halsey explained to the board that our Town Clerk is asking us to please not combine
them, noting they are the ones doing all the work, and that the board really needs to
consider what our staff is asking of us.
Ms. Gemme also pointed out that if she does somehow find enough staff, they will all need
to be trained before then. She also reminded them that early voting is another high
probability that will require more staff and time.
Mr. Friedmann, Mr. Dockser and Ms. Alvarado were insistent that it is still best to have a
combine election solely because the turnout will be better. Ms. Landry noted the Secretary
does discourage combine elections but noted it is easier for people to only have to come out
once to vote.
Mr. Dockser moved that the board combine the Local Election and the Presidential
Primary on March 3rd, 2020. Ms. Landry seconded the motion and it passed with a
4-1 vote with Mr. Halsey opposing.
Ad-Hoc Human Rights Committee
Mr. Friedmann started off by giving a background on the committee and how it came to be.
The issue at hand now is members who are not Reading residents.
Ms. Landry noted she spoke with Town Counsel and came up with a solution that she would
be happy with but her and Mr. Friedmann have different approaches which is why they want
the board to weigh in.
Ms. Landry noted they could dissolve the committee and reform a new group that would
make it legal and inside the charter. It would be under the Town Manager but would operate
the same way with Anne and Andy still running the meetings as now.
Mr. Friedmann stated that he is not a fan of opening up boards and committees to non-
residents; however, in this case, because the board voted to appoint a METCO parent it
would be wrong to turn around and say that she can no longer be a full member.
Mr. Halsey agrees with Ms. Landry’s approach adding it seems to be a win -win. Everyone
can still participate and it won’t be violating the Charter.
Ms. Alvarado expressed her dislike with Town Counsels idea because it seems it is just a
workaround from what they created noting there’s no implications if we don’t follow our own
policy.
Mr. Friedmann saw an inconsistency with a similar situation two years ago. He noted in
September of 2017, people noted that the Board appointed Board of Health members in a
way that was not consistent with the Charter. At the time the Select Board decided to stick
with the appointments. Why is the answer different now?
Josh Goldlust noted we need those members to make the committee what it is supposed to
be.
The board could not agree on either approach so they decided to continue their discussion
to a future meeting to try and find an alternative solution.
The board did have one more matter to attend to regarding the Ad-Hoc Committee.
Superintendent John Doherty has taken a leave of absence so in his place they are asking
Assistant Superintendent Christine Kelley take his place until he returns. The board had no
issues with that.
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Mr. Dockser moved that the Select Board appoint Assistant Superintendent
Christine Kelley to the ad hoc Human Rights Committee to stand in for Dr. Doherty
during his leave of absence. The motion was seconded by Mr. Friedmann and
approved with a 5-0 vote.
Mr. Dockser moved to adjourn at 10:59 PM. The motion was seconded by Mr.
Friedmann and approved with a 5-0 vote.
Town of Reading
Meeting Minutes
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2016-09-22 LAG Board - Committee - Commission - Council:
Select Board
Date: 2019-08-06 Time: 7:00 PM
Building: Reading Town Hall Location: Select Board Meeting Room
Address: 16 Lowell Street Session: Open Session
Purpose: General Business Version: Draft
Attendees: Members - Present:
John Halsey, Andrew Friedmann, Mark Dockser, Anne Landry via telephone
Members - Not Present:
Vanessa Alvarado
Others Present:
Town Manager Bob LeLacheur, Executive Assistant Caitlin Saunders, Bill
Brown, Angela Binda, Al Sylvia
Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Caitlin Saunders
Topics of Discussion:
Acting Chair John Halsey called the meeting to order at 7 pm.
Liaison Reports
Mr. Friedmann noted at the last meeting he stated that the board should make an exception
to the Charter regarding non-resident members; he no longer thinks that and will not ask
the board to make an exception. He made a plea for election workers if anyone is interested
in helping out the Town Clerk during the upcoming elections. He noted some dead trees in
the town forest around the council ring have been removed as a part of their thinning
project.
Mr. Dockser noted RMLD’s battery storage system is now up and running.
Mr. Hasley noted Postmark Square project is coming right along. He also wanted to take a
minute to remember one of our volunteers who passed away over the weekend. Gloria
Hulse was not only a teacher in town but a long-time volunteer and election worker, she will
be greatly missed.
Mr. Friedmann wanted to remind the board that his office hours this month are this
Saturday at 10 am at Café Nero.
Town Managers Report
Mr. LeLacheur noted RCASA’s annual meeting is coming up. There will be a community
conversation September 26th at 7:30 Pm in the Library. We will share more details as it gets
closer. Mr. LeLacheur explained someone emailed the board upset they got a reverse 911
call about the 375th celebration and asked why we can’t use that for everything if we are
going to use it for that. He explained that the reverse 911 calls are for emergencies and
road closures. The cal l about the 375th was because parts of Main street and other streets
were being closed down and it was an informational call noting those streets would be
closed because of the 375th celebration; it was not a call advertising the 375th. He also
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mentioned an email that was sent to the board about concerns regarding the material used
at the playgrounds. He noted if a resident has concerns that the material is hazardous they
should take it to the Board of Health. He then gave a quick update on the ongoing Haverhill
Street speed limit issues. We were directed by MassDOT to put the old signs back up and let
them study the road. We are following that process because we have no other choice but to.
In the consultants opinion, based on the data, the speed limit should be 35- 40 mph;
however, it is MassDOT’s ultimate decision in the end.
Public Comment
Bill Brown stood up and thanked Andy for his new comments regarding the Charter.
Appoint Volunteers
The VASC had three applicants; two are current associate members on the Recreation
Committee that are asking to be appointed to full members to fill vacancies and the third is
a new applicant for the Climate Advisory Committee.
The board had no comments or concerns on the VASC’s recommendations.
Mr. Dockser moved that the board appoint Catherine Kaminer to a full position on
the Recreation Committee with a term ending June 30, 2021 and;
that the board appoint Mary-Ellen Killion to a full position on the Recreation
Committee with a term ending June 30, 2021 and;
that the board appoint Denise McCarthy to an associate position on the Climate
Advisory Committee with a term ending June 30, 2020.
The motion was seconded by Mr. Friedmann and approved with the following roll
call vote:
Dockser – Yes, Landry – Yes, Friedmann – yes, Halsey – yes.
Service is Timeless Clock Project
Megan Young and Angela Binda were present to explain this project to the board that will
honor the late Camille Anthony. Camille was a long serving Board of Selectmen member.
They want to design and build a large clock to place somewhere in town in her honor.
Anyone can make a tax-deductible donation to the Reading Rotary and that fund will be
used completely for this project. They are hoping to get the word out at the Fall Street Faire
and start vamping up fundraising efforts then.
Mr. Halsey asked if Camille’s family is involved in the project and they noted yes, the family
is heavily involved and will be throughout the entire project.
Approve Internal Borrowing
Town Treasurer Endri Kume was present to answer any questions from the board.
Mr. Dockser moved to approve the advance of funds in lieu of borrowing for the
following projects with the understanding that the Town will reimburse the
General Fund with proceeds from a note or bond within the fiscal year:
1. Turf 2 (Article 15 April’19) – 2.225 Million (entire amount)
2. Building Security Improvements (Article 16 April ’19) - $1.7 million (4
million authorized)
3. Auburn Street Water Tank (Article 17 April ’19) - $0.5 Million ($4.5 million
authorized)
4. Grove Street water main (Article 18 April ’19) - $1 million (entire amount)
The motion was seconded by Mr. Friedmann and approved with the following roll
call vote:
Dockser – Yes, Landry – Yes, Friedmann – yes, Halsey – yes.
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Approve Monitoring Agent for Postmark 40R
Mr. LeLacheur explained this is like the last monitoring agent they approved but for a
different project.
Ms. Landry asked if it was common practice for another Housing Authority to step in and
monitor a housing project in another town. Mr. LeLacheur noted this is the first time we
have done it but it does happen.
Mr. Dockser moved that the board approve Barnstable Housing Authority as the
Monitoring Agent for the Postmark 40R development. The motion was seconded by
Mr. Friedmann and approved with the following roll call vote:
Dockser – Yes, Landry – Yes, Friedmann – yes, Halsey – yes.
Senior Tax Relief Discussion
Town Assessor Victor Santaniello was present to explain and answer any questions from the
board. He noted the Home Rule Petition is entering its third and final year. He is only
suggestion one change the next time. He is suggesting a fixed 150% compensation level.
This alleviates uncertainty regarding the amount being granted and minimizes the risk of
being bumped out of the state credit circuit breaker. He noted 200% gave a little too much
and bumped some people out; 150% seems to be a sweet spot.
Ms. Landry noted she would like to talk to Victor more at another time about the senior
work off program at the Pleasant Street Center.
The board agreed with Victor on his suggested 150% noting they want to help the seniors
as much as possible but don’t want to give them too much to where they get bumped from
the state circuit breaker.
Mr. Dockser moved that the board support a factor of 1.5x the amount of the State
Circuit Breaker for local tax relief, as will be proposed in a Home Rule Petition to
November Town Meeting. The motion was seconded by Mr. Friedmann and
approved with the following roll call vote:
Ms. Landry explained she will be abstaining on this vote due to her job.
Dockser – Yes, Landry – abstained, Friedmann – yes, Halsey – yes.
The board then discussed for Victors presentation in a couple months, simple is better. They
are fine with him preparing a range of si mple numbers, nothing complicated.
Review SB Policies – Article 4 DPW Policies
DPW Director Jane Kinsella and Assistant Director Chris Cole were present to give a brief
overview of the changes they will be proposing once Town Counsel goes through it all .
They noted most of the changes are practices that are already in place but have never been
formally changed or updated in the policies.
The full draft policies of proposed changes are online for viewing in the meeting packet. This
will be back before the board after Town Counsel finishes reviewing and they have a
completed draft proposal.
Second Water Meters
Jane Kinsella gave a quick presentation of second water meters also know as sprinkler
meters. Sprinkler meter is a secondary meter that measures consumption of water that is
used exclusively outside of a building and does not enter a sanitary sewer system. Reading
currently has 138 sprinkler meters. About 71% of our peer communities who are also MWRA
allow them. There are currently no MWRA or DEP regulations banning them however in
2012 the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs and Water Resource
Commission, in conjunction with Mass DEP, released updated Water Conservation Standards
stating that we must meet or demonstrate steady progress toward meeting residential
water use of 65 gpcd including both indoor and outdoor use. Reading has an average of 44
gpcd. If we were to allow residents to do sprinkler meters there are a number of costs that
the resident would assume including plumbing permits, the cost of the actual meter and
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cost to have it installed. A second water meter is against conservation efforts unless the
second meter is charged at a higher rate and will adversely impact those who utilize non -
potable water for irrigation. The majority of communities that do allow sprinkler meters
have a tiered rate or a separate higher rate for that second meter and there are no
abatements for sprinkler meters. Reading would lose sewer revenue and residents that do
not install a second meter will pay a higher share of the increase in sewer user charges than
those that do install second meters.
The presentation is also located in the Select Board packet on the town website.
WasteZero Recycling Program
This program is a new option to reduce waste. It is a company that works with cities and
towns to reduce trash and increase recycling. They have a collection partner, Simple
Recycling. Simple Recycling is a leader in providing effective, convenient, no cost curbside
textiles collection. There i s no cost to the municipality or residents. Their vans follow
existing recycling routes and the Town will save on disposal costs. It is noted 85% of
textiles are discarded and textiles make up 11% of Massachusetts solid waste. If the town
were to decide to use the program, they would send postcards to all households three
weeks before collections begin. They would then mail a textiles recycling bag and brochure
after and send another postcard the week collections start. A resident simply places all
disposing textiles in the pink Simple Recycling bag and leave it out for collection near their
recycling bin. The collection personnel will pick up the full bag and leave a new replacement
bag behind for next week. Many communities are already using this program.
The board agreed this seems like a good idea and to why not give it a try! The more we
recycle, the better!
This presentation is also located in the Select Board packet on the town website.
Minutes
Mr. Dockser moved to approve the meeting minutes from June 25th, 2019 as
amended. The motion was seconded by Mr. Friedmann and approved with the
following roll call vote:
Dockser – Yes, Landry – Yes, Friedmann – yes, Halsey – yes.
The board discussed minutes from July 9th but wanted to go back and edit a portion. They
will vote on a revised version at their next meeting.
Mr. Dockser moved to adjourn at 10:00 PM. The motion was seconded by Mr.
Friedmann and approved with the following roll call vote:
Dockser – Yes, Landry – Yes, Friedmann – yes, Halsey – yes.
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