HomeMy WebLinkAbout1994-12-21 ad Hoc Haven Street Task Force Minutes1.
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3 COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS
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25 HAVEN STREET SALE
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TASK FORCE
S
MEETING MINUTES
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10 Wednesday, December 21, 1994
230 Ash Street
11 Reading, Massachusetts
Commence: 7:43 p.m.
12 Pages 1 to 60
Reporter: Tracy D. Helms
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DORIS M. JONES & ASSOCIATES, INC.
19 Prof=essional Shorthand Reporters
59 Temple Place
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(617) 542-0039
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APPEARANCES:
NAME
Philip Pacino,
as Chairman
William C. Brown
Willard Burditt
Fred Van Magness
Mollie Ziegler
Hartness Bartlett
Leonard D. Rucker
Also Present:
Bruce McDonald
Larry Hodson
AFFILIATION
Reading Municipal
Light Department
Citizen at Large
Selectman
FinCom
Board of Assessors
RMLD CAB
RMLD
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1 P R O C E E D I N G S
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3 MR. VAN MAGNESS: This meeting is
4 called to order at 7:43 p.m. Is there any business
5 to come before the committee before we start, since
6 I didn't even get an agenda from the chairman?
7 MR. RUCKER: The chairman surprised
8 us and said please call the task force members and
9 set up a meeting.
10 MR. VAN MAGNESS: I think it's
11 probably appropriate to discuss the bidding that has
1.2___ c. ccurred bete and to really to try and provide I
13 would assume _ ci r c c t i a_r~ a t o .___w h Q..r c o3 e go Jn the
1.4 future on this particular piece of property.
15 MR. BROWN: Mr. Chairman, would it be
16 appropriate to make a motion for the sake of
17 discussion, even though I want to defeat the
18 motion?
1.9 MS. ZIEGLER: For what?
20 MR. VAN MAGNESS: What would be the
21 motion? I think it's kind of interesting to
22 probably have some discussion before we take any
23 motions but
24 MR. BROWN: No problem. My motion
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would be to accept the bids and then suggest that we
reject them only because they aren't sufficient for
the sake of opening up the argument.
MS. ZIEGLER: We don't really need to
do that, do we?
MR. VAN MAGNESS: Let's hold the
discussion, but hold that in abeyance.
MR. BROWN: Okay.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: I think first of
all there are two bids that came in. On the surface
it would appear that both bids did not meet the
specifications as crere outlined in the Article 16 of
the a-n:ri.uil town meeting from April 11 of 1994 where
the guidance was given by town meeting not to accept
any bids for an amount less than the appraised
value.
From this one person looking at the bids
when we got the bids, I'm not satisfied that I
understand in depth at least the high bidder on this
particular project. And where it is somewhat close
to the appraised value, at least from my
perspective, I would like to hear some more
information about that high bid., higher bid before
we make any recommendations.
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1 Now, I had talked to Phil Pacino and
2 suggested that it would probably be a good idea to
3 make have Mr. Hodson come down this evening, and
4 I notice that he is present at the meeting. And I
5 guess I would like to maybe open the discussion; and
6 if the committee is agreeable to that, I'd like to
7 recognize Mr. Hodson and ask if he could provide a
8 more detailed amplification in terms of his bid.
9 Some of the things I'm thinking about,
10 just so that we can go through some of the important
11 things, is that when we met as a committee and we
12 made our presentation to the Board of Selectmen, we
-13 had outlined a process to define, you know, what was
14 the best acceptable bid if in fact the bids at least
15 met the initial criteria here. And we had talked
16 about the tax revenue amount that is could be
17 received from the property, the impacts of off-site
18 improvements, the town infrastructure impacts, the
19 fact that the bid must meet or exceed the appraised
20 value, the dollar impact of this particular bid on
21 neighborhoods and businesses, potential impact on
22 the town budget, the financial viability of the
23 bidder, the quality of use, the impact on parking,
24 desired restrictions, you know, there was a whole
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1 host of -things that we were looking at to evaluate a
2 bid at a more global nature.
3 And when I looked at the bid documents
4 that I received from the department, there seemed to
5 me to be a tremendous amount of that information
6 that I was really looking for absent.
7 So with that as an introduction if the
8 committee is again, I think if the committee is
9 agreeable to that, I'd like to introduce Mr. Hodson
10 and ask him to make whatever presentation or remarks
11 he would, like to make for the committee for our
12----- ~ -T a_l u a t i o n
13 MR HODSON: You would like to know
14 how I -came - up with the bid?
1:5 MR. VAN MAGNESS: Well, I think in
16 general knowing how you might have approached the
17 bid, if you feel you would like to disclose that;
18 but also some more information in terms of what your
19 plans would be for the property.
20 MR. HODSON: Okay.
21 MR. VAN MAGNESS: How this would fit
22 within the ambiance of the lower Haven Street
23 district, how it would benefit the town and that
24 type of information I think would be important from
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my perspective.
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MR. BURDITT: Maybe one point we
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should consider
here first, I certainly don't object
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to listening to
the bidder; but if in fact we
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ultimately dete
rmine it doesn't conform because it
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doesn't meet th
e price requirements, are we putting
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this bidder at
a disadvantage if in fact we go out
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to bid again or
any of these bidders by asking
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them
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MR. HODSON: I think you've put me at
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a disadvantage
already by putting my name in the
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paper, my appra
isal and bid, which I wasn't pleased
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with any of.-
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MS.ZIEGLER: That's public
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information.
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MR. HODSON: But you asked me to bid
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without any of
that and now you put it out.
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MR. VAN MAGNESS: Right, and this
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particular comm
ittee didn't do that.
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MR. HODSON: Obviously, I
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understand.
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MR. BURDITT: I just bring that as a
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point. I have
no problems listening to anything he
24 has to say; but if in fact we ultimately may reject
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them all, are we putting them at a further
disadvantage?
MR. BARTLETT: We tried to be
objective that we did not even know the appraised
value.
MR. BROWN: That's right.
MR.. BARTLETT: Which is hindsight.
MR. BURDITT: That's right, I didn't
know want to know that.
MR. BARTLETT: But at this point does
it meet the requirements of the town meeting vote?
And if in fact it did be interpreted it does, fine;
if i _ocsn't,=are weputting them at a
disadvantage?
MR. BURDITT: That's a good point
because it does not meet the town meeting criteria.
Town meeting criteria was the minimum appraised
value, and it does not meet the minimum appraised
value.
MR. BARTLETT: I have a couple
questions on that too. It appears it may not.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: It appears it may
not. That's why I would like to understand some of
the aspects of the bid.
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1 question you have is you know, because I don't
2 think we really understand enough about this bid,
3 first of all, before I'm willing to say it passes or
4 doesn't pass.
5 MS. ZIEGLER: We ought to know more
6 about it and then we go fight the town meeting and
7 get the appraisal taken off.
8 MR. VAN MAGNESS: One might conclude
9 their bid may in fact meet the minimum appraised
10 value, which I'm not I don't really want to get
11 into what's floating in my mind yet until I
12 understand what the bid is.
13 MS. ZIEGLER: Do you have copies of
14 the_ap-praisal we can look at?
15 MR. RUCKER: I'll make copies.
16 MS. ZIEGLER: Okay.
17 MR. RUCKER: Do you want it all or
18 there is a lot of
19 MS. ZIEGLER: I'd like to see the
20 MR. RUCKER: I can make up the whole
21 thing.
22 MS. ZIEGLER: I would like to see the
23 backup data. I would like to have somebody on my
24 board too. Did we get a clear meaning on vacant
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1 board that you would like to hear more information
2 about this bid recognizing that the information in
3 this committee is in fact public and obviously Mr.
4 Hodson
5 MS. ZIEGLER: Why can't we go
6 executive session?
7 MR. VAN MAGNESS: We're not posted
8 for executive session, and we could be on discussion
9 property transactions.
10 MS. ZIEGLER: That's one
11 MR. VAN MAGNESS: We're not in
12 negotiation. We're trying to understand the bid,
13 and-Mrs Hodson has to recognize whatever he says
14 here would be public information; and it's, you
15 know, with that risk of disclosure or whatever that
16 anything that would come out that could in fact
17 prejudice or influence his chances on this
18 property. But I think from my position I would like
19 to know more.
20 I guess I would like to get consensus from
21 the committee as to what direction to go.
22 MR. BROWN: I also would and the
23 reason I say that, quite frankly, is I don't think
24 we're that far off. If we lose a couple of months'
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taxes in rebidding, we're at the price of what, you
know
MR. VAN MAGNESS: So that's why I
would like to get more information. Mr. Chairman.
MR.. PACINO: I apologize. I was in
traffic.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: We decided to jump
s'art this. The discussion we're having right at
the present time is whether we should go ahead with
having a discussion from Mr. Hodson who is
represented here tonight.
MR. PACINO: Right.
MR. VAN MAGNESS:= About more details
relative to his specific bid before we make,any
decisions on accepting or rejecting bids. And the
question that has come before the committee is
whether this discussion could in fact unduly
prejudice his bid or impact negatively against his
bid. And I think we more or less have come to a
conclusion, correct me if someone doesn't feel that,
that it would probably be appropriate to go ahead
and have some input from Mr. Hodson at this point.
Is there any
MR. BARTLETT: I only raised, so long
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1 as they agree
2 MR. PACINO: Could I ask Len to
3 address the question too.
4 MR. VAN MAGNESS: So I'll turn the
5 reins over to you.
6 MR. PACINO< Thank you. But I'm sure
7 you did a fine job while I was away.
8 MR. BROWN: He did.
9 MR. RUCKER: When we sat back and
10 looked at this let me go back over a couple
11 things. One is, and it's not it couldn't be
1.2 cha.ngedo -this-is just the way it was and what the
13 --ru_Les__we _were, told to._- fol- ow:
14 When th°e various town boards got together,
15 they created a flow chart and agreed to a process.
16 And it said for the RMLD to reject all inadequate
17 bids. And that the task force would deal with only
18 those bids that were not deemed to be inadequate,
19 and from those would make a recommendation; and the
20 two boards of the selectmen and of the light
21 commission had to both vote in the affirmative. And
22 then it would move through the process to be
23 bought.
24 When we sat back and looked at it, the
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appraisal was pretty clear cut. It was done by
standard commercial methods and in all the
appraisals the details were we used a known
qualified commercial appraisal company using
standard methods, nothing is unusual or different in
there. When we looked at it, it some of the
things that from a sealed bid point of view I don't
know, I wish town counsel was here, because the way
Reading Light we would interpret the bids is to
keep these bids and go back and get the town meeting
to change the criteria. It would not be
appropriate.
It would be like here if we had a bid and
di dn' J_- like the outcome and go back and change the
acceptance criteria. Other bidders who did
didn't bid could cry foul legitimately, and it would
likely cause problems. And so I think you've got a
problem there.
When we looked at it just going through
RML process, we were told to use our normal
process. Our normal process is unfortunately,
it's pretty clear cut. Town meeting didn't give any
room to move on it. We followed the processes and
the unfortunate conclusion at the end is that it
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causes all the bids to have to be rejected, and the
only viable way we can see that is clear cut, black
and white. Recognizing at Reading Light we don't
get into the gray areas. We stay with black and
white. It says rebid and with the assumption you
would ask us what does that cost. We're going
actually it's minimal at this point. Some cost is
already done now. It's just frankly some Xeroxing,
the cost of legal notices. That's pretty much it.
All the hard work is already out of the way, and
then you go through the process again. We pick a
time. Wego through exactly the same process.
MS. ZIEGLER: Except they have to
i s over the appraisal :price and what the
appraisal price is.
MR. RUCKER: Using the Uniform
Procurement Act is not to the RMLD but to the town.
What we were told to do is that the town has to use
the Uniform Procurement Act. You didn't have a
choice. In other words, we had a choice. We were
directed: to use it under that criteria. We went the
approach we went the statute doesn't seem to
anticipate 'this type of situation.
All I know Mr. Hodson said earlier it's
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now all out -there. It's public information. We had
no choice but to release it. It was very
straightforward information. There was no way of
holding it back and not releasing it legally.
Now you have to deal with the fact it's
out there; but, in fact, I'm not sure how bad that
is one way or the other because almost anybody that
knows an appraisal company could have gotten a
guesstimate. It isn't really terribly mystical.
It's a pretty straightforward process. This
appraisal is very consistent in methodology to the
prior appraisal done in '.90 I believe.
MR. PACINO,: 1990.
MR. RUCKER: And very consistent in
the process we used when we bought this property.
It's pretty normal stuff.
MS. ZIEGLER: Didn't have to do a lot
of digging because there aren't that many sales
around, yeah.
MR. RUCKER: They do two types and
for the comparable sale that takes digging but the
other part is pretty straightforward stuff not real
hard. That's where we unfortunately see it.
MR. PACINO: Your feeling is if we go
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forward, we may potentially taint the process.
MR. RUCKER: No. No. I think the
only way you can avoid tainting the process
MS. ZIEGLER: Go out for bids again.
MR. RUCKER: Is the bids get
rejected, go through that process, anything other
than that opens gray areas. I'm not saying use the
term gray area. Let me define that. I don't mean
it's illegal. All I mean is that our board always
told us is when you're looking at the statute or
dealing with this issue always stay in the clear-cut
side, the black and white. This falls into the area
in which I'm not sure totally of the answer, so I
call it a gray area.
It may turn out you may be able to come up
with something and the attorneys sit back and look
at it and say that fits. We don't know that. We're
not attorneys. We always operate on the bids
straightforward, black and white. We've just as an
operating practice found out it works better, so
we're trying to apply plus and minus for selling a
building.
MS.
ZIEGLER: I think
we'
ve got
our
hands tied when the
town meeting sets
a
limit.
They
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did it, they locked it.
MR. RUCKER: We couldn't see any room
to move. They locked it. They didn't say plus or
minus ten percent or as another party may decide to
interpret it, they made it black and white. I don't
remember who it was that made the several people
at town meeting made the specific point and it was
driven home.
MR. BROWN: Not me.
MR. RUCKER: But it was voted very
tightly.
MS. ZIEGLER: It wasn't amended as
that, it said _that definitely.
MR. RUCKER: The way the process
actually started as I remember it is that the
parties at first made the comment very strongly was
FinCom..
MR. VAN MAGNESS: I think that was
my you have to go back and research the records.
I'm sure it was stirring in that way.
MR, RUCKER: FinCom sets the tone,
followed through are the selectmen, and followed
through are town meeting.
MR. PACINO: And the commission, I
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1. think we all came to an agreement on that.
2 MR. RUCKER: Yeah, and the
3 commission; and the bottom line is when it all got
4 done, there was no room at all to move. So,
5 frankly, from a bid evaluation point of view some of
6 them take us a while. This one was pretty
7 straightforward. When I saw it, I went mm-hmm. Not
8 often you get this clear cut.
9 MR. PACINO: So the question we're
10 deciding here was what again that you started?
11 MR. VAN MAGNESS: The question I had
12 asked for should we find out-any more information
1.3 _l)out this bid. If the committee feels that the
1
14 only threshold. that we should evaluate_ is more than
15 $450,000, then we should have a short meeting or
16 more, you know
17 MR. BURDITT: The other issue is if
18 we do reject all bids because it's not 450, should
19 we go out for rebid. I think that's the next thing.
20 MR. PACINO: That's the next step.
21 If we do, we take step one.
22 MR. BURDITT: I think we should
23 discuss that.
24 MS. ZIEGLER: What do we do with
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Larry, talk to him or
MR. MCDONALD: If I were he, I'm not
his advisor, I wouldn't say anything.
MR. BURDITT: I wouldn't either.
MR. MCDONALD: Unless you're saying
the bids are open. If you're going to reject his
bid, why should he give you any information?
MR. BARTLETT: That's what I was
suggesting. I wouldn't.
MR. BURDITT: Yeah.
MS. ZIEGLER: Weren't we asking what
they wei_-e go_i_n-g to do about the building when they
(lot the bids?
- Ni R. R-UC-K E R: I'm a-o,,r Y
MS. ZIEGLER: Weren't we asking what
they were going to do about the building when they
got the bids?
MR. RUCKER: You did. That was going
to be part of your evaluation criteria for
recommending a high bidder. They never passed the
issue of threshold. Had the bid been $450,000 and
450 and one dollar, then all the criteria that you
constructed would have come into play.
MS. ZIEGLER: You would have had to
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1 answer.
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- 2 MR. RUCKER: Right, but it never got
3 to that point unfortunately.
4 MR. MCDONALD: It seems to me it
5 might be up to Fred. Fred, if you want to hear, I
6 mean, under what scenario is a less than an
7 appraised bid possibly conforming? I mean, I don't
8 understand as a just as an observer, I don't
9 understand how a bid that in dollar value doesn't
10 conform.
11 MR. BURDITT: As a town meeting
"1.2, member, what would you say?
13 MR. MCDONALD : I'm remembering the
14 town meeting vote and it was clear the -town meeting_
15 didn't want it to be sold for less than the
16 appraised value. That was the bottom line. There
17 was nothing very complicated about that.
18 MR. BURDITT: I know.
19 MR. BROWN: I think that goes back to
20 my question about Bill earlier that throw it out a
21 second time. If it gets rejected, we have an
22 opportunity to go back to town meeting and let them
23 change the rules.
24 MR. MCDONALD: Seems to me you have
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1 every opportunity to sort of
2 back out to bid and see what
3 MR. BURDITT:
4 out and everything is blind
5 evaluation was and trying to
6 submit a bid submits at 450.
7 scenarios and about
S MR. BARTLETT:
0 put in the specifications.
10 MS. ZIEGLER:
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1.1 all
clear the decks, go
happens next.
The first time we went
and not knowing what the
submit bids any anybody
I think we have two
In fact that could be
If we got no bids at
MR.
BURDTTT:
We may not. We may _
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1kot; but
you're ri
ght, that
may be part of the bid.
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NR.
PACITIO:
There may be a risk on
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the bid,
if nobody
comes for
ward.
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MR.
BURDITT:
That's what we're
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saying a
nd now we
go back to
town meeting and say
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hey, guy
s, what
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MR.
BARTLETT:
In fact, you go back
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and ask
that it be
remarkete
d.
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MR.
BURDITT:
Assessed value was 450,
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we went
out the se
cond time,
everybody knew that the
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minimum
acceptable
was 450 a
nd there were no bids.
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MR.
BARTLETT:
So you ask to remove
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that rF~striction and market it or whatever the case
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may be.
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MS. ZIEGLER: And it could go for
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zilch too.
5
MR. PACINO: What's the cost of
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maintaining that building on a monthly basis as it
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now stands, Len?
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MR. RUCKER: $65,000 roughly a year.
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That divided by twelve, five thousand a month.
1.0
MR. BROWN: I figure taxes and
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maintenance it's about ten thousand a month.
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MR. RUCKER:----I can only talk about
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the liability.
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MR. BURDITT: Taxes- are losing. When
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we talk about closing and time and the we've been
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trying to close on Bear Hill.
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MR. BROWN: I know, but I'm saying
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Bill Phil was asking figures. So that's why I
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ask.
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MR. RUCKER: One of the big
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difference in going out for a bid before the RMLD
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sunk a. variety of costs, we had to develop a bid, do
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an appraisal. That's all done. The cost that's
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left on that is now just Xeroxing cost and some
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clerical time.
MR. BURDITT: But the point is when
you're talking about the monthly cost, first of all,
in my opinion we don't have a viable
MR. BROWN: No. No. No.
MR. BURDITT: buyer, and we can't
do anything with it. The sooner we can go out for a
rebid we don't want to wait around til March,
April for the next town meeting. We need to do
something to be proactive.
MR. BROWN: I agree with you. I
would have liked_t.o have it done before cutoff for
town me-eti-n.g, °-so-we can say okay.
MR. BURDITT: Be it cutoff_ date or be
it
like this was.
MR. BROWN: Instructional motion.
MR. BURDITT: Instructional motion
There was
MS. ZIEGLER:
MR. PACINO:
MR. MCDONALD:
MR. BURDITT:
MR, PACINO:
MR. .BURDITT :
This is an article.
This is an article.
It's in Article 16.
Okay. You're right.
Yeah.
Certainly whatever we
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MS. ZIEGLER: How can we do that when
it's not recommended to us?
MR. BURDITT: Because we make
motions.
MS. ZIEGLER: No. No. No. But it
was not recommended. We were only going to act on
something that was recommended by the Light
Department management.
MR. BURDITT: Take a stand.
MS. ZIEGLER: I think it's a no
reason 'to have it.
MR. PACING: I honestly believe
Mullie is right.- It clearly did note qualify under
the guidance give-n- to use I think any motion
MR. BROWN: I will withdraw my
motion.
MR. BURDITT: I will withdraw my
second.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: The committee is at
a point we can take no action because we have
nothing before us to take a motion on.
MR. BARTLETT There is a motion in
the last paragraph.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: That's already been
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MR. RUCKER° That was unclear.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: Do we?
MR. PACINO: Let
MR. RUCKER: If I can, we never
bothered to look at this. We didn't know this
scenario would arise, otherwise, we would have taken
a look at this. Within the bid laws, as an example,
general manager has a substantial authority in a
whole bunch of other areas. With sealed bids the
awarding authority is the commission, but the
commissio_n_ doesn't, p _ay _any, particular role
I'm in the really awkward position where I
made a decision basedon the criteria given to me.
Technically we're not the awarding authority, but
yet they can't make a vote; and yet it doesn't come
to you. So we didn't know what to do. So I said in
this case I'm going to punt. We wrote this up as
exactly as it would go to our board.
The other thing that kind of fits in is
your task force, but you're not a body either. So
it's
MR. PACINO: I think
MR. RUCKER: It's questionable.
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MR. PACINO: I remember the flow
chart, we have to make a. recommendation.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: No. We can only
review. We can only deal with only successful
proposals and they are
MR. BURDITT: Okay.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: The staff was to
review proposals, reject inadequate proposals.
MS. ZIEGLER: Which they did.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: Nothing can flow up
that pipeline to us if they reject it at their
level.
MR. BARTL_E`J'T: So, in essence, as no
p. oposals have been referred to u.-,, ire need a motion
to go out to rebid.
MR. RUCKER: Yeah, that would have
the same effect ultimately.
MR. BARTLETT: So moved.
MR. BURDITT: Second.
MR. PACINO: It's been moved and
seconded we rebid.
MR. BURDITT: With
MR. PACINO: Any discussion? Bill.
MR. BARTLETT: I think with the
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MS. ZIEGLER: I don't know. I
don't 'town meeting is there's eight weeks
before town meeting.
MR. BARTLETT: You especially want to
put something in your town meeting.
MS. ZIEGLER: If we could, we could
call a special.
MR. BURDITT: We're not going to have
a special.
MR. PACINO: Second item we recommend
an article be placed on the warrant. We state that
up front. Let them let Ted write a generic
article. Let them write -a generic article to put
that on the warrant.
MR. BURDITT: It won't be until April
until we have a town meeting.
MR. PACINO: In case it's needed. In
case it's needed.
MS. ZIEGLER: We need to talk to Ted
about that.
MR. PACINO: Right.
MR. BARTLETT: That can be further
discussed.
MR. PACINO: Let's the first
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department, not in the town; and secondly, I'm not
an attorney.
MR. BURDITT< Almost.
MR. RUCKER: Though some days I feel
like one. From what we could see we couldn't figure
out any way legitimately to do that. When I say
legitimately, that doesn't mean it couldn't be done;
and if the challenge occurred and successfully one
from what we could see challenges could certainly be
raised. And there is a pretty good chance
challenges would be successful because, remember, a
bid p ores ; cr:~n be challenged.
For instance, Mr. Hodson, and I'm not
yoti w~~u1d, but Mr. Hodson or Mr. Rubin could
~ J .
challenge the bid. People who elected not to bid
could challenge the bid. Depends it depends on
actions that are taken finally. Or they could elect
not to do any of those, but there is a variety of
bases that they could go.
MR. HODSON: On what grounds could
they challenge?
MR. RUCKER: Almost anything. It's
like being sued.
MS. ZIEGLER: Then we back off our
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1 requirements is what happens.
2 MR. RUCKER: Well, I think the
3 challenge would be successful ultimately held up as
4 being successful. For instance, somebody sitting
5 out there for a scenario, I have no idea if it's
6 true, just to make a point, somebody out there could
7 be sitting back saying I'm not going to make a bid
8 since I'm bidding against myself. I don't know what
9 the appraised value is. Property values have
10 changed quite a bit during the course of time. I'm
11 not going to the first rounds. I'm betting no one
12 sa_ l I meet the c ri Leria .
13 MS ZI'EG'LER: We're going to have to
14 lower it.
15 MR. RUCKER: Either the value will be
16 lower or when I do go in and bid I'll know the
17 amount.
18 MR. BURDITT: Yeah.
19 MR. RUCKER: So somebody might say
20 I'll just wait, sit back, wait and see. What's the
21 risk. Depends on their perception of risk.
22 MR. BARTLETT: Then if we considered
23 one of these bids and say, gee, if I thought you
24 were going to waive the criteria, I would have bid.
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MR. RUCKER: Is that going to be
successful, and I_ have seen Phil on the commission,
we have been challenged on bids. Bill, you've been
on the commission, and there are times we get
challenged for doing the darnedest things. And
challenges typically tie up the bid process for
typically three, four months. It will tie it up.
Now, ultimately, it usually gets rejected unless
they have a pretty valid basis, but it does tie up
the process.
MR. BROWN: See, on the schools wnen
bias have been changed
MR. RUCKER_:Some bidders do that.
came bi -dde_rs my _~z~,~ peculation it's °a technique
in some cases. You gum up the works then you work
behind the scenes to try to get the thing to go, but
you buy time by doing that. That's why I speculate
some people do it, to buy time.
In this case from what I can see it's,
gosh, awful clear cut.
MR. BURDITT: Mm-hmm.
MR. RUCKER; There didn't seem to be
any room to move or maneuver_ at all. A very long
answer to your question.
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second motion?
MR. BROWN: Are you ready for a
MR. PACINO: Vote on the first one
just informally talking to the commission and it's
just informal, it has not been official. Informally
they would if there were a legal way to get to
the 404, they would like me to pursue it; but from
what I'm hearing there really isn't a way to get to
the 404.
MR. BURDITT: If I we have six
members that probably all voted for the minimum
assessed value, and I certainly wouldn't want to go
against it, as much as I would like to sell the
property..
MR. BROWN: Personally at town
meeting I'd take anything.
MR. VAN MACNESS: But we've seen the
reason we put the reason FinCom was so adamant in
this particular thing is that we have seen things
that may have had prices that are not equal to what
the appraised values might have been; and there is
concern about that. So we said, you know, we have
no facts, but we said let's kind of draw a line in
the sand: going forward.
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MR. BURDITT: Yeah.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: We're going to sell
something. Let's get an appraisal.
MS. ZIEGLER: Town meeting along with
what you all wanted so
MR, VAN MAGNESS:
they listen.
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MS. ZIEGLER: It's nice when they do.
MR. BURDITT: I think it depends what
you're selling. We went out on Pearl Street, for
I instance, just selectmen's decision on what to sell
Z at; andwe absolutely totally rejected the only
3 legiti.,mate: bid had two and a half years ago. It
1 ,T<- s a.bsolul-ely L.utally, you know, without appraisal,
3 just found that, you know, not probable it went out
S again and we got something we found we thought was
7 very much acceptable. So we just quit shopping.
3 MR. MCDONALD: There's very very
little public land left or public structures left,
particularly in the heart of town, and people don't
L want to see the those town assets given away.
Because there is the you know, there is, of
3 course, as a representative also of another
potentially interested bidder in this thing, the
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arts association. You know, we were we had a
vision of how it could be something that would be,
you know, a cultural or community asset as well
which is another thing that needs to be considered.
I think all in all we also understand, you know, the
monetary value of things.
MR. BURDITT: I just had an idea for
the arts counsel.
MR. MCDONALD: Hmm?
MR. BURDITT: I just had an idea for
the arts counsel. METRO is closing.
MR. MCDONALD: I know. That's
actua,l_ly one_o'f -the things that we're looking_ at,
METRO closing and
MR. PACING: As a matter of fact,
Mr. Kennedy who is on this committee has I'm not
sure he is going to be around for this committee
anymore.
MR. BURDITT:
MR. PACINO:
MR. BURDITT:
me for the arts counsel.
MR. PACINO:
MR. BURDITT:
That's closing.
It closed as of Sunday.
But it just dawned on
Let's
Sorry.
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1 MR. PACINO: Any further discussion?
2 (Discussion off record)
3 MR. PACINO: Any further discussion?
4 All those in favor say I.
5 (All members respond by saying I)
6 MR. PACINO< Opposed? That motion
7 carries. Second motion.
8 MR. BROWN: Move that the task force
9 recommend to the Board of Selectmen and/or Municipal
10 Light Board to insert an article in the annual town
11 warrant to amend the warrant to say
12 MR. PACINO: Say it amends Article 16
1.3 _taken at the April 11,-.1994 annual town meeting.
14 MR. BROWN:- Right. That's fine. In
15 the event that a second bidding process fails, only
16 on that event.
17 MR. BARTLETT: Leave that off,
18 though, because you got to get the article in first.
19 MR. BROWN: You've got to get the
20 article in, okay.
21 MS. ZIEGLER: Put it in
22 MR. BURDITT: I think the article
23 should be just place an article about the sale.
24 MR. .PACING: Board of Selectmen
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MR. BROWN: And/or.
MR. PACINO: And/or.
MR. BROWN: Yeah, because they can do
it separately, whichever.
MR. BARTLETT: Kind of a generic
wording.
MR. RUCKER: May I ask a question?
MR. PACINO: Yes.
MR. RUCKER: I would assume that that
motion then when we go out for a bid, we are
we're required to put into the bid document the
bpi s i ? for -evaluating the bid.
MR. BURDITT: Mm-hmm.
MR. RUCKER: Since it would be
changing the potentially changing we would not go
out to bid until after that town meeting happened.
MR. BURDITT: No. No. Town meeting,
we won't have town meeting until April.
MR. RUCKER: The problem is
MS. ZIEGLER: He can't
MR. RUCKER: I don't know what
criteria to put into it.
MS. ZIEGLER: This Article 16.
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I MR. BARTLETT: Is there a problem?
2 MR. RUCKER: That we still require
3 the appraised value and the specs, I think what
4 we're looking to is to have an article prepared.
5 MR. BARTLETT: An article regarding
5 the sale, just say an article regarding the sale of
7 25 Haven Street.
MS. ZIEGLER: Town meeting to accept
9 and have them do that.
MR. RUCKER: We can put that in. I
L just need to kind of understand as I
MR. BARTLETT: If we had to go out to
3__ L)id a third time, we want more latitude is what
we' re . ay.ing
S MS. ZIEGLER: I think we're
MR. BARTLETT: Len is saying we can't
have it both ways on the second bidding.
MR. RUCKER: Perhaps on the second
bidding what I'm trying what the statute requires
us to do or excuse me, what the Attorney General's
interpretation of the statute requires us to do is
' put in the bid documents the basis that will be used
to evaluate the bid. That was in this last big
document. It says here's all the process and Mr.
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Hodson saw that as well as the other bidders, and we
knew all those things were it was the results of
the task force. It was the town meeting vote, that
sort of thing that was all put in there.
When we go out for bid again, we have to
state whatever it is now. If.it's not changed, we
would simply Xerox what was there before, change the
dates and
MR. HODSON: Then you're asking for a
blind appraisal again?
MR. RUCKER: No. The appraisal would
stand. It doesn't have to be redone. It had to be
rodolie last time because--the prier appraisal was way
out of date. It no longer applied.
MS. ZIEGLER: Maybe we should go out
for bids again. Say, okay, this is town meeting,
this is what happened. What do you want us to do.
MR. BURDITT: I think we should go
out to bid with something in the document saying the
appraisal is $450,000, and that's the minimum
acceptable bid. Now, what I think we should say for
the motion that Bill is attempting to make now is
MS. ZIEGLER: But we can't.
MR. BURDITT: Is that we request that
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MR. PACINO: Commission.
MR. BURDITT: commissioners of the
light board to have an article regarding the sale of
25 Haven Street. End of discussion. Don't say what
it means, what you're going to ask.
MR. BARTLETT: Right. Right.
MR. BURDITT: I think we do what we
do until the sometime in February when it comes
time to wording the documents, but I think this
board's instruction is that get something on
MR. BARTLETT: Get an article in.
MR BROWN: We do have two articles,
one rescinding this and the second one creating a
new one.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: I don't want to
rescind this. I don't want to rescind this.
MR. BURDITT: I think we need
something to remind everybody we want something on
the warrant saying we've got to talk about 25 Haven
Street.
MR. BARTLETT: I don't think you can
rescind this one because you're going out to bid on
this one.
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MR. MCDONALD: Why couldn't you do
your own?
MS. ZIEGLER: We can get the
selectmen to put in for us.
MR. MCDONALD: I'm saying you don't
have to let me tell you my concern as a citizen,
and I'm two ways because in a way, you know, the
only way the art center is going to get in is some
orthodox fashion going out to rebid isn't going to
help us, and because it's the price is going even
higher than where the bids came in before. Right.
So I'm saying this completely objectively, and as a
town meeting member and as a citizen of Reading, if
yon put an article like Bill just suggested or,
hence, there is an article in the oven, why would
anybody on the second bid make a bid because they'd
wait to see. They'd wait, either low ball it again
or wait to see what would happen. So that it would
go back to town meeting and try to get town meeting
to take the restrictions off.
MR. BURDITT: Why?
MR. MCDONALD: Bill Brown, the only
thing we could do is what you're doing more generic,
why even publicize what your intent on that is
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MR. VAN MAGNESS: I think that what
you have, you have a situation that, you know, you
can't get past the point to discuss a bid. You
know, you kind of held off at the pass because of
the town meeting vote. And there may have been
people that decided not to bid because maybe their
appraisal came in at 600,000 or 650, and they
were maybe there's that possibility they might
have had a higher appraised value.
MR. HODSON: Why didn't they bid it?
MR. VAN MAGNESS: They may.
MR. HODSON: They had the right to
slid. They didn t 11_now what the bid was.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: They may have
elet-p~,~ not to bid because it was more than they
wanted to spend for the property. When they got
their appraisal, they said maybe not. I think there
is a whole host of scenarios
MR. BURDITT: Yeah.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: that could play
out here, and I think that from the finance
committee's standpoint at least in this sale there
is going to be a lot of direction to go for a
minimum bid equal to the appraised value or not go
DORIS M. JONES & ASSOCIATES, INC.
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I for a sale. I mean, that could be at least from the
2 finance committee's position, I don't know where
3 that
4 MS. ZIEGLER: Costing the light
5 department money.
6 MR. VAN MAGNESS: But, you know, it's
7 also costing ratepayers are also potentially
8 going to lose if in fact it doesn't go for the
9 appraised value. We have to watch out, we have no
10 interested that we're watching out for the
11. ratepayers. The ratepayers are a very important
1.2 f part of this. process. So, I mean, after all this
13 ia.ic3 aj 3 fa%i y close I mean, unfortunately, I
1.4 think the way Jie bi_ddinc 1a-w and the things
15 that _ what we would do in the industry, okay,
16 would be a long way further along on this thing
17 than what we're tripping over ourselves in the
18 public domain; and that's really what we're doing
19 here. That's why government is bureaucratical. So
20 I'm for rebidding and putting the minimum bid in the
21 thing, and let's go.
22 MR. BURDITT: I agree.
23 MR. VAN MAGNESS: And if we get a
24 minimum bid, let's really go for an evaluation; and
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i.f we don't get a minimum bid, then we'll have to
come back as a committee and plan some further
course of action to recommend back to the RMLD,
Board of Commissioners and the Board of Selectmen.
And if that means that we don't hit town meeting
until
MS. ZIEGLER: Next fall.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: fall, so be it.
MR. BURDITT: I think we can hit town
meeting in April, an instructional motion or some
kind of a motion. I think we can do it in April.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: I don't think an
instructional motion has any bearing on this thing.
MR. BURDITT: We
MS. ZIEGLER: Can you have a
special?
MR. VAN MAGNESS: Can you have a
special?
MR. BURDITT: I think we can press on
and look for the next bid and then see what we get
and then evaluate at that point.
MR. BARTLETT: When did you say the
bids would be in, Len? What did you say?
MR. RUCKER: Four weeks to do the
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Central Register notice. The other notice my guess
is things can be out on the street in about five
weeks.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: First week in
February, mid-February.
MR. RUCKER: Maybe six.
MS. ZIEGLER: Due back the end of
February.
MR. RUCKER: From an administrative
point of view on the street tomorrow, but with all
the things the state requires.
MR. BARTLETT: So your opening dates
would be the end of February?
MR. RUCKER: Most likely, yeah.
MR. BARTLETT: And when did you say
your town meeting was?
MR. BURDITT: Town meeting is April
but the warrant closes.
MS. ZIEGLER: Sometime mid
MR. BARTLETT: Stick with that.
MR. BROWN: Can it be done as an
instructional motion?
MR. BURDITT: No. I think we can get
some kind of a feel by the time the warrants closes
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whether the -
- 2
MS. ZIEGLER: If the article is
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written right,
it would cover what we want to do,
4
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have to make it until the night
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6
MR. BARTLETT: It's very generic,
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8
MR. BURDITT: As long as it covers
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the four corners. Is the term four corners
10
MS. ZIEGLER: It covers the subject
11
matter.
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MR. BURDITT: Yeah.
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INTR. MCDONALD: I have a question if I
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might enter irlco the discussion here. Was any =sort
1`5
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this is not anything I'm personally
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m just asking in other words.
1.8
MS. ZIEGLER: Town meeting won't go
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MR. PACINO: Want to address the
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legal opinion
on that?
22
MR. RUCKER: As a matter of fact,
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it's kind of r
icochetting. The parking lot is
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closed. That
might explain why the parking lot is
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closed. The property technically is town property
and deeded to the town. It was turned over for
special municipal purpose municipal purposes. It
comes under the control of the commission and the
commission has not taken the final vote to
relinquish the final control over it.
So what and the reasons for all that
had mainly to do with the town was not bearing the
cost of the vacant building. And so that's the way
all that worked. Now, the result of this all
this, though, is a different set of statutes come
into-play. We come under Chapter 164 and so our
-ar~1_.ho:riiy comes solely from that. We operate so
dif.f-e,rcoi LIy. As all the statutes apply to the t-own
don't apply to us and vice versa.
Under our statutes we are allowed to do
anything with real estate so long as it's consistent
with light purposes. So as an example we could
lease that property, to say NEPA, Northeast Power
Association, for a training center. That would be
something in our area, we could use it as an energy
store or we could
MR. MCDONALD: Has to be consistent
with your mission.
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MR. RUCKER: It has to be consistent
with our mission. Anything outside of consistent
with our mission is something we probably don't have
the authority to do. And so that's for instance,
that's what's happened with the parking lot. The
problem was we were never supposed to be allowing
public parking, but we were there watching it, doing
it for a number of years. Once we moved away the
lawyers said you were in gray area before, now
you've fallen off the edge of the cliff here.
You're not in the business of providing public
parking; and if you get sued, you're going to lose
and it's unlikely if you will recover by the tort
liability, _clakras act because you're operating
completely outside of your authority. You know,
you're dead in the water.
MR. MCDONALD: Anyway, the question I
had in mind the if you don't get, you know,
adequate bids, either by the measure of this article
or by any other measure, the town meeting would
accept I wonder if leasing is potentially an
option. I'm curious to know if that's
MR. VAN MAGNESS: Doesn't it also go
against what town meeting the bonding article?
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MR.
PACINO: Right.
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MR.
VAN MAGNESS: It came before too
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because it
was the
bond for this and then sell that
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to offset
the
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MCDONALD: Physically you can
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offset the
bonds wi
th monies coming in from leases.
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MR.
VAN MAGNESS: Sure, but the town
B
obviously
owns, you
know, some linkage there. The
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town would
like to
get some revenue out of that
1)
property.
If it st
icks with the RMLD, what's the
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gown going
to see o
ut of that?
MR.
MCDONALD: Right. There is a
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I MR. VAN MAGNESS: Nothing. Nothing.
} MR. BARTLETT: Which, however, is a
point with the generic articles, depending what
7 happens with the bids all kinds of things can be
3 considered.
MR. BURDITT: Yeah.
MR. RUCKER: Motion detectors.
(Discussion off record)
MR. BARTLETT: Do we have a second to
the motion?
MR. PACING: There was not a second
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to the motion.
we -
MR. BARTLETT: I'll second it.
MR. BURDITT: Which?
MR. PACINO: The motion was that
MR. BARTLETT: Generic.
MR. BURDITT: What's the motion?
Bill made one and I recommended another one.
MR. BARTLETT: I'm sorry.
MR. PACINO: The one I have on the
floor is that the recommendation be made to the
Board of Selectmen and/or the commission that a
~_eneric article be placed on the annual town meeting
warrant.
MR. BROWN: I think we are noun on
the same boat. Bill, we can put
MR. PACINO: Is that going to affect
the bid? Is that going to have to go on the bid
document?
MR. RUCKER: Where did that wording
that generally let me ask you
MS. ZIEGLER: Not make it until
February.
MR. BURDITT: We can make it to
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accept the motion can be to accept the bid. It
can be that generic.
MR. RUCKER: Let me ask you a
question, then I can perhaps answer yours.
MR. PACINO: Okay.
MR. RUCKER; Let's assume we go out
for bid and the bid documents what I would put
right now, the only thing I have that counts is what
town meeting has done. You're not a body. I don't
mean to offend you, but you're not a body. So
that's what we put in. So will that be under
whatever you're contemplating here, the criteria
that will be used if the answer is no for this
particular bid; if the answer is...no,_then I'm not
quite sure what you're doing:
MS. ZIEGLER: Yes, it is this bid
because we want to get that.
MR. RUCKER; Right.
MS. ZIEGLER: But
MR. RUCKER° If what you're doing is
laying ground work, so if this particular bid
process the second bid process does not work, you
laid ground work.
MS. ZIEGLER: For town meeting to do
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something.
MR. RUCKER: For town meeting to do
something for your third bid process and it's fine.
MR. PACINO: But we laid a ground for
the third bid process.
MR. RUCKER: If we go out for bid, we
would take exactly the same package that went out
this time without change except changing the dates
and send it out.
MR.
something about wh
MR.
MR.
ais.sessment and the
to put that in?
BURDITT: Would you not put in
at the minimum
BARTLETT: Bid is
BURDITT: Now we have opened the
assessment is 450. Don't we need
MR. RUCKER: Could you update it,
sure.
MR. BURDITT: That's the only thing.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: That makes
absolutely perfect sense, put the bid in and go.
MR. PACINO: So it's up front.
MR. BARTLETT: I would see this
article and the town meeting to see what action the
town meeting will take as it relates to the sale of
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the property assuming the bid process has failed at
that point. No. No, I just added that..
MR. VAN MAGNESS: I don't want to
assume anything.
MR. BARTLETT: I amended that as an
after, not part of the article.
MR. PA.CINO: .Let's let the lawyers
write the article.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: What you just said
I agree with that, to see what action the town will
take. If it's that generic, if that's what the
-T would accept that.
MR. BARTLETT: That comes after.
MS. ZIEGLER: We don't have to make
that motion until. January or February.
MR. BARTLETT: Or March.
MS. ZIEGLER: No. We have to do it
to get on the warrant.
MR. BURDITT: We don't know how many
meetings we're going to have between now and then.
I suspect the only thing was to remind the selectmen
to remember to do something.
MR. BROWN: That was my intent.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: I'm not looking for
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any more meetings on this until we get the next
round of bids in because we're going into budget
sessions. I don't need this meeting for nothing.
MR. PACINO: Love to have you.
MR. VAN MAGNESS: We're not doing
anything so
MR. BROWN: There is no second round
of bids, we had the motion already made for town
meeting; and we don't have to meet. As Len says if
nobody meets the criteria of bids, let the
commission and selectmen do
MR. RUCKER: I'm sorry, I was
reacting. I wanted to make sure we could clearly
modify the documents with no problem and we can. We
already say it's page D2 bid evaluation and in there
for information purposes the following additional is
provided to all bidders. One of the things is we
give the 1994 tax appraisal, we that's item one,
two is November 27, 1989 appraisal value, we would
simply now add a third being the 1994 appraisal
value.
MR. BURDITT: Or delete the '89.
MR. RUCKER: We'd leave it all in
here. It is they can see that. So we just add a
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three to page D2, change the dates, and go through
the whole notice process again and send it back out.
MR. PACINO: Okay. The motion on the
floor is to recommend to the Board of Selectmen
and/or the RMLD board that a generic article be
placed on the annual town meeting warrant relating
to 25 Haven Street. Any further discussion? All
those in favor say I.
(All members respond by saying I)
MR. PACINO: Opposed? Motion
carried. Anything else? Meeting is adjourned. Is
that seconded.?
MR. BURDITT: Second.
MR. PACINO: Moved and seconded that
the meeting be adjourned. All those in favor say
I.
(All members respond by saying I)
MR. PACINO: Meeting is adjourned..
(Whereupon the meeting was adjourned
at 8:40 p.m.)
DORIS M. JONES & ASSOCIATES, INC.