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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1996-11-19 Board of Selectmen Minutes Board of Selectmen Meeting November 19, 1996 The meeting was convened at 7:30 p.m. in the Selectmen's Meeting Room, 16 Lowell Street, Reading, Massachusetts. Present were Chairman George Hines, Vice Chairman Camille Anthony, Secretary Bruce MacDonald, Selectman Sally Hoyt. Selectman Dan Ensminger-joined the meeting at 7:40 p.m. Also present were Town Manager Peter Hechenbleikner and the following list of interested parties: Jane Fiore, Joni Skinner, Anne Baumgartner, Sarah Meehan, Meaghan Hardy, Amy Pandolfo, Christine Griesmer, Michelle Maloney, Michael Manville and Maurice Carroll. On motion by MacDonald seconded by Hoyt, the Board of Selectmen approved a Proclamation declaring December 2, 1996 as "Aids Awareness Day" in Reading. The motion was approved by a vote of 5-0-0. Jane Fiore and representatives of the Peer Leadership Program at Reading Memorial High School were present. Michelle Maloney spoke for the group. Approval of Minutes On motion by MacDonald seconded by Hoyt, the Board approved the minutes of their meeting of November 2, 1996 as amended by a vote of 3-0-1, with Hoyt abstaining. On motion by MacDonald seconded by Hoyt, the Board voted to approve the minutes of their meeting of November 13, 1996 by a vote of 4-0-1, with Ensminger abstaining. Reports and Comments Selectmen Liaison Reports and Comments Sally Hoyt noted that she had attended the Municipal Forum run by the Attorney General's Office and the MMA. She picked up information regarding the neighborhood revitalization programs, conflict of interest, Downtown revitalization and electric system restructuring pians. She also picked up information on municipal employee liability, worker's comp and disability retirement fraud and other items. She also noted that cars are not stopping at the Washington/Lincoln/Minot Street stop sign. Bruce MacDonald received comments from residents that the High and Middlesex Ave. intersection should be considered for a four way stop. There is a poor site line in this location. The Town Manager will evaluate this with the Parking, Traffic and Transportation Task Force. He also noted that the Board of Selectmen has put together an ad hoc committee for legal services review, and a Town Meeting Member would be welcome. George Hines suggested possibly Paul O'Donnel or Bill Crowley, and MacDonald will follow up with them. He also noted that we need to make sure that the wishes of the Board of Selectmen relative to the PRD process should be communicated to CPDC. He wanted to make sure that we were following up with the Mass Highway Department regarding containment on I-93. Board of Selectmen Meeting-November 19, 1996 - page 2 Camille Anthony had noted that the RMLD has given some dates in December for a tour of their facilities. The sense of the Board was to defer this to January. She went to the School Committee regarding the Schools Capital Plan, and this was approved by a 4-2-0 vote. It assumes expenditures of 7.50% of the budget for capital and debt service. She also asked the Board members for comments on the Town Manager's evaluation form. Comments should be made to Paula by Thursday. Dan Ensminger noted that Capital Improvements should be a regular item on the Budget Council's Agenda. He noted that the School Committee voted to support the Superintendent's Capital Improvements Program by a 4-2 vote, and was critical that the program did not include fully addressing the Reading Memorial High School needs. He provided an Election Day retrospective noting that he's not sure that the move to a single voting place was successful. He's concerned about the customer friendliness of the election process at that location and that between now and the next Presidential Election, we should investigate how the central election place is working and what options might be available. George Hines noted that if we continue the Election at the Fieldhouse, we should alternate the physical location of the precinct voting places so that Precinct 8 is not always the longest distance from the information table. Sally Hoyt felt that the central voting place represents inconvenience for many residents. Bruce MacDonald noted that he never liked voting in the Fieldhouse - he likes the neighborhood voting place. George Hines had no report. The Board asked the Town Manager to make sure that Parker Middle School Principal, Jack Delaney, makes an announcement to the middle school students for setting an example for using the new School Crossing Guard. Dan Ensminger noted that with increased funerals going through Town, particularly from the St. Agnes Church area to the cemeteries in Town, that better management of traffic is needed. Bruce MacDonald asked about constructing a piece of sidewalk on the southerly side of King Street where people had walked and worn a rut in the grass area. Dan Ensminger asked that the Adult Zoning Enforcement be brought back to the Board of Selectmen for full hearing, if court action is to take place. Town Manager's Report The Town Manager noted that the School Crossing Guard started work today at the intersection of High Street and Middlesex Avenue. The Crossing Guard will be there for Middle and Elementary School students. The cost will be approximately $5,000 for the remainder of the year. The Woburn Street railroad crossing is complete, tested and operational. Some line striping and signing has been done and this location will be evaluated to determine how well it's working. The stop sign at Lincoln and Washington Street has been installed, and it needs some further work including line striping. The Opticom System is being installed in the Square and has been installed on fire vehicles. The installation should be completed within the next week Board of Selectmen Meeting-November 19, 1996 -page 3 Curbing and sidewalk construction are mostly done for the year at King Street and Summer Avenue; Haverhill Street at the Killam School, Arthur B. Lord Drive at the Birch Meadow School and Edgemont Avenue at the Barrows School. We are scheduling the staff hearing on lower Summer Avenue improvements for the week of December 9 (it's been set for December 12) and will notify abutters. The tentative design is a 27 foot pavement width with curbs on both sides of the road and sidewalks on the north side. The Town's position on a Keno License application has been upheld by the Lottery Commission. Our two State Representatives have sent us copies of the notice of availability of grant monies for underground storage tank reimbursement, and Chief Wood is pursuing this. The Town Manager is looking for a Reading representative on the MBTA Advisory Board. A recount of Precincts 1 and 8B for the Sixth Congressional District race will be taking place on Friday. On December 2, the Town Manager will be meeting with Reading Public Library neighbors and staff to talk about neighbor issues and parking. The Board of Selectmen is meeting with the RMLD Board on the 25th. The Board of Selectmen is also having a public hearing on the Police Station siting on December 11. FEMA notices have gone out to all residents that we know of, who may be eligible. The FY '97 tax rate has been set by the Board of Assessors and approved by the State. The rate is $16.62 per $1,000 of assessed valuation, up 1.47% from the 1996 tax rate. Staff was congratulated on an excellent job on setting the tax rate. The new Adult Zoning sections of the Zoning By-Law go into effect today, following the second publication of approval. The existing Adult Use in Reading has 90 days to apply for a Special Permit with the Board of Appeals, or it will be in violation of the Town's Zoning By-Law. The Board of Selectmen is invited to a Ham and Bean Supper put on by the Reading Police Department at the Senior Center. Discussion/Action Items Public Hearing Re: Revision of Fee Schedule - The Secretary read the notice of the Public Hearing for the revision of the fee schedule for the Community Development Department. The Town Manager and Community Development Director reviewed the existing fees. The proposal is to establish an index for figuring valuations for building permit costs. The Board had some discussion with regard to the level of fees and whether Reading's fees are competitive. Dan Ensminger noted that the site plan review fee should be evaluated and perhaps set lower - at a more appropriate level. He's concerned that the fees for site plan review at the landfill may be a discouragement to development of this site. This item will be transmitted to CPDC as a sense of the Board of Selectmen. The Town Manager noted that our fees to date are close to $300,000 for calendar year 1996. However, this includes fees for two big projects - the Bear Hill Condominium Development and the Pearl Street School project. He also noted that some of the costs of the development review process include engineering costs which are outside the department budget. Board of Selectmen Meeting-November 19, 1996 - page 4 Dan Ensminger noted that some of the fees should perhaps be indexed to CPI or other index. The issue will be reviewed for possible action by Town Meeting in the Spring. There were no public comments or questions. On motion by Ensminger seconded by Anthony, the Board voted to close the hearing on revision of the fee schedule- Community Development Department by a vote of 5-0-0. On motion by Ensminger seconded by Hoyt, the Board voted to approve a revision of the fee schedule by adopting an index for figuring the valuations for building permits for the Community Development Department as amended. The motion was approved by a vote of 5-0-0. Approval of Agreement North Main Street - The Town Manager reviewed the proposed agreement for North Main Street whereby the Town will receive the grant on a reimbursement basis for up to $100,000 for sidewalk construction on the west side of Main Street. The Town will have the maintenance responsibility for the sidewalks. On motion by Anthony seconded by Hoyt, the Board approved the agreement between the Town of Reading and the Massachusetts Highway Department relative to the construction and maintenance of sidewalks on North Main Street. The motion was approved by a vote of 5-0-0. Public Hearing, - Approving,Policy on Open Space Administrative Structure - The Secretary read the notice of the public hearing. The Town Manager reviewed the history. The Open Space Plan was approved in January of 1996. During the Summer of'96, the Town Manager met with the five Boards, Committees and Commissions involved in this issue and developed a draft plan that was previously reviewed by the Board of Selectmen. The Board made several changes to the proposed plan. There was no public comment. On motion by MacDonald seconded by Anthony, the Board voted to close the hearing on the policy establishing an Open Space Administrative Structure by a vote of 5-0-0. On motion by MacDonald seconded by Anthony, the Board voted to approve as Section 2.9 of its policies the policy establishing an "Ad hoc Open Space Advisory Committee" as amended. The motion was approved by a vote of 5-0-0. Discussion of Decision Making Process- Bandstand - The Board discussed the process of making a decision on the Bandstand. The Town Manager recommended deferring any action until the essential parts of the Downtown streetscape plan were completed enough to be able to make an evaluation of the Common as a site for the Bandstand. This would then put the Common on equal footing with Memorial Park in terms of the knowledge available to make a decision. The Town Manager estimated that this work would be done by the Spring of 1997. Board of Selectmen Meeting-November 19 1996 - page 5 The Town Manager will communicate that information to the Bandstand Committee. The consensus of the Board of Selectmen was to accept the Town Manager's proposed decision- making process. Dan Ensminger asked that we do a full evaluation of the closing of Lowell Street, including a trial period. The Town Manager noted that this could not be done until Route 129 work in this part of Town was completed. Sally Hoyt noted that she has heard opposition to the closing-of this part of Lowell and it will require a hearing. She also noted that residents abutting Memorial Park were opposed to using that site for the Bandstand. Licenses, Permits and Approvals Renewal of Liquor Licenses - The Board reviewed the liquor license renewals. There was a concern expressed by Dan Ensminger that the Package Store licenses should not be issued unless they meet all of the requirements of the Sign Bylaw. He, therefore, indicated that he would abstain on those votes. On motion by Anthony seconded by Ensminger, the Board voted to approve the issuance of a Club Liquor License to Reading Veterans Association, Inc. d/b/a American Legion Post 62; 37 Ash Street, Reading, Massachusetts for a term beginning January 1, 1997 and expiring December 31, 1997, subject to the following conditions: 1. All Bylaws, Rules and Regulations of the Town of Reading and of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts shall be followed; 2. All employees of the establishment involved in the serving of alcoholic beverages shall be trained in TIPS or an equivalent program on the effective date of this license, and new employees shall be trained within 3 months of being hired; 3. There shall be no video gambling machines on the premises. The motion was approved by a vote of 5-0-0. On motion by Ensminger seconded by Hoyt, the Board voted to approve the issuance of a Club Liquor License to the Reading Overseas Veterans, Inc.,575 Main Street, Reading, Massachusetts for a term beginning January 1, 1997 and expiring December 31, 1997, subject to the following conditions: 1. All Bylaws, Rules and Regulations of the Town of Reading and of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts shall be followed; 2. All employees of the establishment involved in the serving of alcoholic beverages shall be trained in TIPS or an equivalent program on the effective date of this license, and new employees shall be trained within 3 months of being hired; 3. There shall be no video gambling machines on the premises. The motion was approved by a vote of 5-0-0. Board of Selectmen Meeting-November 19, 1996 - page 6 On motion by MacDonald seconded by Sally Hoyt, the Board approved the issuance of a Club Liquor License to Home Building Corp., Inc. d/b/a Knights of Columbus, 11 Sanborn Street, Reading, Massachusetts for a term beginning January 1, 1997 and expiring December 31, 1997, subject to the following conditions: I. All Bylaws, Rules and Regulations of the Town of Reading and of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts shall be followed; 2. All employees of the establishment involved in the serving of alcoholic beverages shall be trained in TIPS or an equivalent program on the effective date of this license, and new employees shall be trained within 3 months of being hired; 3. There shall be no video gambling machines on the premises. The motion was approved by a vote of 5-0-0. On motion by Hoyt seconded by Ensminger, the Board voted to approve the issuance of a Club Liquor License to Meadow Brook Golf Club, 292 Grove Street, Reading, Massachusetts for a term beginning January 1, 1997 and expiring December 31, 1997, subject to the following conditions: 1. All Bylaws, Rules and Regulations of the Town of Reading and of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts shall be followed, 2. All employees of the establishment involved in the serving of alcoholic beverages shall be trained in TIPS or an equivalent program on the effective date of this license, and new employees shall be trained within 3 months of being hired; 3. There shall be no video gambling machines on the premises. The motion was approved by a vote of 5-0-0. On motion by Anthony seconded by MacDonald, the Board voted to approve a Restaurant Liquor License to Emperor's Choice Restaurant, 530 Main Street, Reading, Massachusetts for a term beginning January 1, 1997 and expiring December 31, 1997, subject to the following conditions: 1. All Bylaws, rules and regulations of the Town of Reading and of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts shall be followed; 2. All employees of the establishment involved in the serving of alcoholic beverages shall be trained in TIPS or an equivalent program on the effective date of this license, and new employees shall be trained within 3 months of being hired. The motion was approved by a vote of 5-0-0. On motion by MacDonald seconded by Hoyt, the Board voted to approve a Restaurant Liquor License to Lok Restaurant, 32 Lincoln Street, Reading, Massachusetts for a term beginning January 1, 1997 and expiring December 31, 1997, subject to the following conditions: Board of Selectmen Meeting;-November 19, 1996- page 7 1. All Bylaws, Rules and Regulations of the Town of Reading and of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts shall be followed; 2. All employees of the establishment involved in the serving of alcoholic beverages shall be trained in TIPS or an equivalent program on the effective date of this license, and new employees shall be trained within 3 months of being hired. The motion was approved by a vote of 5-0-0. On motion by Ensminger seconded by Anthony, the Board voted to approve a Restaurant Liquor License to Harrow's Poultry Products, Inc., 126 Main Street, Reading, Massachusetts for a term beginning January 1, 1997 and expiring December 31, 1997, subject to the following conditions: 1. All Bylaws, Rules and Regulations of the Town of Reading and of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts shall be followed; 2. All employees of the establishment involved in the serving of alcoholic beverages shall be trained in TIPS or an equivalent program on the effective date of this license, and new employees shall be trained within 3 months of being hired. The motion was approved by a vote of 5-0-0. On motion by Hoyt seconded by Anthony, the Board voted to approve the issuance of a Restaurant Liquor License to Mecom, Inc. d/b/a Cafe Capri, 355 Main Street, Reading, Massachusetts for a term beginning January 1, 1997 and expiring December 31, 1997, subject to - the following conditions: 1. All Bylaws, Rules and Regulations of the Town of Reading and of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts shall be followed; 2. All employees of the establishment involved in the serving of alcoholic beverages shall be trained in TIPS or an equivalent program on the effective date of this license, and new employees shall be trained within 3 months of being hired. The motion was approved by a vote of 5-0-0. On motion by Anthony seconded by MacDonald, the Board voted to approve the issuance of an All Alcoholic Package Store Liquor License to Reading Liquors, Inc., 345 Main Street, Reading, Massachusetts for a term beginning January 1, 1997 and expiring December 31, 1997, subject to the following conditions: 1. All Bylaws, Rules and Regulations of the Town of Reading and of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts shall be followed; 2. All employees of the establishment involved in the selling of alcoholic beverages shall be trained in TAMS or an equivalent program on the effective date of this license, and new employees shall be trained within 3 months of being hired. Board of Selectmen Meeting-November 19, 1996 -page 8 The motion was approved by a vote of 4-0-1, with Ensminger abstaining. On motion by Hoyt seconded by MacDonald, the Board voted to approve the issuance of an All Alcoholic Package Store Liquor License to Athens Liquors, Inc. d/b/a Square Liquors, 607 Main Street, Reading, Massachusetts for a term beginning January 1, 1997 and expiring December 31, 1997, subject to the following conditions: 1. All Bylaws, Rules and Regulations of the Town of Reading and of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts shall be followed; 2. All employees of the establishment involved in the selling of alcoholic beverages shall be trained in TAMS or an equivalent program on the effective date of this license, and new employees shall be trained within 3 months of being hired. The motion was approved by a vote of 4-0-1, with Ensminger abstaining. On motion by MacDonald seconded by Anthony, the Board voted to approve the issuance of an All Alcoholic Package Store Liquor License to Tarin, Inc. d/b/a Uptown Liquors, 1349 Main Street, Reading, Massachusetts for a term beginning January 1, 1997 and expiring December 31, 1997, subject to the following conditions: 1. All Bylaws, Rules and Regulations of the Town of Reading and of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts shall be followed; 2. All employees of the establishment involved in the selling of alcoholic beverages shall be trained in TAMS or an equivalent program on the effective date of this license, and new employees shall be trained within 3 months of being hired, and that the Board approve the Pledge of License to Reading Co-operative Bank. The motion was approved by a vote of 4-0-1, with Ensminger abstaining. Bruce MacDonald asked to schedule on the Agenda discussion of the possibility of separate beer and wine licenses such as Arlington has. On motion by Anthony seconded by Ensminger, the Board voted to adjourn their meeting at 10:00 p.m. by a vote of 5-0-0. Respectfully submitted, Secretary INDEX FOR FIGURING VALUATIONS 1 Story Dwelling $55.00 per sq. foot of footprint 1 1/2 Story Dwelling (expansion cape, split, etc.) $65.00 per sq. foot of footprint 2 Story(Gar., Col,. etc.) $75.00 per sq. foot of footprint Basement Garage - Single add $3,000.00 Double add $6,000.00 Triple add $9,000.00 Attached or detached garage - Single $10,000.00 Double $15,000.00 Triple $25,000.00 Commercial & Industrial Buildings $70.00 per sq. foot (including over 3 unit apartment buildings) Residential Additions $40.00 per sq. foot Approved 11/19/96