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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2020-01-21 Select Board Minutes Town of Reading Meeting Minutes IJIV IF(OR � - 1 Board - committee - commission - council: e C i Select Board Date: 2020-01-21 Time: 7:00 PM Building: Reading Town Hall Location: Select Board Meeting Room Address: 16 Lowell Street Session: Open Session Purpose: General Business Version: Final Attendees: Members - Present: Vanessa Alvarado, John Halsey, Anne Landry, Mark Dockser, Andy Friedmann Members - Not Present: Others Present: Town Manager Bob LeLacheur, Matt Holmen, Karen Herrick, John Means, David DiGiammacino, Thomas Wise, Megan Fidler-Carey, Amy Lannon, Caroline Gauthier, John Weston Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Caitlin Saunders Topics of Discussion: Ms. Alvarado called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM. Liaison Reports Mr. Halsey noted he had his office hour at the Pleasant Street Center. The seniors love having someone there to talk to and they want to the board to ask them what they want when it comes to a new senior center. Mr. Friedmann noted he had questions about two of the proposed positions in the budget. He spoke with Mr. LeLacheur and his feelings are that the benefits coordinator is a need but maybe the tree climber is more of a want at this moment. Ms. Landry thanked the Human Relations Advisory Committee for putting on another great Martin Luther King Day Celebration on Monday. Ms. Alvarado wanted to talk about the RMLD payments discussion. She noted they had a consultant do a study but she felt the study has flaws and needs to be further assessed. The budget will be impacted if the payment goes lower which is what is being proposed at this time. Town Managers Report Mr. LeLacheur noted on January 30'" at the Library community room there will be a neighborhood meeting for the former Daniel's House. They have invited the building owner and the proposed tenant. He would like to let the public know, there is a letter being circulated by neighbors with a staff persons name on it, that letter did NOT come from staff. Someone outside of town hall and staff created that letter and is circulating it to look like a town letter but it is not from the town. He noted he has asked Matt Kraunelis, Page 1 1 Administrative Services Director, to help him staff the DRT meetings so that either himself or Matt will always be there so they can keep the board up to date as much as possible. Public Comment Town Clerk Laura Gemme noted she desperately needs election workers. Megan Fidler Carey noted the Cultural Council gave out all their grants this year and she wanted to thank the town for their continued support. John Brezenski wanted the board to look at small cell antenna policies because this will soon be popping up all over town. John Meanes wanted to note his concerns about safety regarding the Daniel's House. He noted the owners are sketchy and not friendly and he wants the board to take action to keep this residential area safe. Amy from 42 Grand Street agreed with Mr. Meanes and noted sober homes are not regulated by law. She explained we cannot trust these people who will be living there. Town Manager Bob LeLacheur informed those residents that there is a neighborhood meeting being held on January 30th at the library regarding this topic and they should come to that meeting and voice their concerns there. Approve Debt Sale Town Treasurer Endri Kume was present to explain the debt sale to the board. The memo with all the details is in the Select Board packet online. The board had no concerns. Mr. Dockser, the Clerk of the Select Board of the Town of Reading, Massachusetts (the "Town"), certify that at a meeting... Mr. Halsey moved to suspend the reading of the motion, with a second from Mr. Friedmann, motion approved 5-0. The board voted 5-0 to approve the debt sale. Vote to Dissolve RMLD Subcommittee The board noted the subcommittee is not needed anymore and Mr. Dockser will continue to be the liaison and point person for RMLD and the continuing payment discussion going forward. He will continue to go to the meetings and report back to the board as necessary. Mr. Dockser moved to dissolve the RMLD Dividend Subcommittee. The motion was seconded by Mr. Halsey and approved with a 5-0 vote. Building Security Proiect Update Mr. LeLacheur noted this is a collaborative effort with all parts of the town, schools, facilities, etc. Most important thing is student's safety. There's a project scope based on what needs to be done immediately vs. what can wait. The Dispatch center is a key part of this project and estimated to be about $800,000. They will hire and OPM for help with management on this project. The second component is improving access control to every school and town building with new policies. New security cameras and wiring will be put in but this has to go hand in hand with the dispatch center project because that's where they will be linked to. The whole project is expected to be $4.5 million. Economic Development Update Assistant Town Manager Jean Delios and Economic Development Director Erin Schaeffer were present to give the board an update. The presentation can be found online with the Select Board packet for this meeting date. Page 1 2 New Economic Development Committee Mr. Dockser explained their Ideas for the new EDC. He noted it would be set up similar to the Permanent Building Committee in the way of having certain professionals on the board. They have brought to the board a draft polity to create this new EDC. Ms. Alvarado wanted to make sure this committee doesn't step on the toes of any EDC staff because there seems to be a lot of overlap of what this committee would do. Mr. Halsey asked if this formation and committee plans have been discussed with the Economic Development Director. While the board seemed to agree an economic development committee would be good they are all concerned with stepping on the toes of the economic development director we just hired. They have concerns that the committee would be doing the same work we have hired someone to do. Downtown Parking Julie Mercier came to the board to present what staff has been working on in regards to downtown parking and the boards concerns last fall that something needs to change. Ms. Mercier explained their idea is to push employee parking to the outskirts of downtown and possibly make it free to really incentivize them to park in those spots. That would leave more spots in downtown for patrons. There's considerations for parking meters in the lots to also deter people from parking there all day. There're a few lots (i.e. Senior Center) they want to ban overnight parking due to the problems it causes when it snows and when the businesses open the next day. She showed them the results of the downtown parking survey and some comments from the downtown businesses. Too see the full presentation, supplemental information and maps; they are on the website with the Select Board packet for this meeting date. Future Agendas Discussion Mr. Halsey asked if the softball discussion could be added to a close future agenda. Mr. Friedmann asked if a quick budget discussion could be put on the next agenda for him to give feedback on a few things. Ms. Alvarado also discussed possibly having someone be a point person for the Daniels House project. Mr. Dockser moved to adjourn at 11:08 PM. The motion was seconded by Mr. Friedmann and approved with a 5-0 vote. Page 1 3