===OCR macOS Vision===
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Members present: Tom Alonzo, Chairman; Michael-Kay Jettreys, Vice Chairman; Katey
Adams, Clerk; Todd Dwyer, Jim Marino
Also Present: Town Manager Heather Lemieux, ACO Kathy Comeau, Mike Kennefick, Town
Counsel; Officer John Morreale Jr., Acting Police Chief Gammel, James Hazel, George Emond
Jr., Megan Huckins, Katelynn Newton
Chairman Alonzo called the meeting to order at 7:02 p.m. and announced in accordance with
the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting will be
broadcast live through local access cable, and will be able to be found on the Lunenburg
Access YouTube channel within 24 hours after the meeting.
Mr. Alonzo read the remote meeting information and asked if everyone was present and could be
heard. The meeting opened with the Pledge of Allegiance that was recited by Ms. Adams
PUBLIC COMMENT:
Dave Passios, 56 Whiting Street, following up on a conversation with Town Moderator Tim
Murphy, stated the member at large position for the Capital Planning Committee has been
posted.
Matt Allison, 188 Flat Hill Road, commenting on the dangerous dog hearing this evening,
stated to hold a dog responsible for protecting its owner in its mind and my mind is ridiculous.
There was nothing done besides being somewhere they weren't supposed to be..it's
unfortunate, but aside from that I do not see where there should be any blame or punishment
towards the dog.
APPOINTMENT:
Personnel Committee- Donna Fortune- 50 Hemlock Drive-term to expire June 30, 2023
Ms. Fortune a resident for 36 years, is retired and has been in involved in many community
organizations over the years. She has experience in writing job descriptions, the hiring process
and interviewing candidates in her professional background. She looked forward to supporting
the town and working with the Select Board, Town Manager and Asst. Town Manager, if
appointed.
Motion: K. Adams
2n°: J. Marino
To appoint Donna Fortune to the Personnel Committee with a term to expire June 30, 2023
Vote: Mr. Dwyer-aye, Ms. Adams- aye, Mr. Marino-aye, MIr. Jeffreys-aye, Mr. Alonzo -aye
Ms. Fortune thanked the BOS and exited the meeting.
===PAGE 2===
he went to the grocery store. When he came back he noticed the white car had a New York
license plate, so he put his groceries away and started his grill and went over to tell the two girls
that dogs were not allowed on the beach. "The dog Ace spun around and growled at me. I said
is this dog going to attack me and Ms. Newton said no, he just doesn't know you. So I extended
my hand a little bit to let him smell my hand and the next thing I know he jumped up around
my neck and I swung with my left hand to get him off me. I felt his jaws release and
immediately clutched my throat thinking okay, I survived this. Now how bad am I? I asked the
girls if they could see anything. They could not, so I went over to ask my mother. She said no
she could not. From my window I could see the beach and the car and I thought the girls were
heading towards the car to leave. I came out and I called 911and Ms. Newton was saying,
please don't call the Police. I said the Police and an ambulance are on the way. A neighbor
passed by and I asked is this bad and he said you better call the Police, I said I already had. The
paramedics showed up and said I needed to get in the stretcher right away. Ms. Newton said
Ace was up to date on his shots. I said great, show that to the Police officers. When I got to the
hospital the doctor looked at my neck and asked me what happened. I told him and I was on an
antibiotic drip for a couple of hours and basically that's my story."
Mr. Marino asked, "You said you came home from the grocery store and you walked over to the
beach to tell them or ask them what they were doing there?" Mr. Hazel confirmed, "Yes, I did
after I put my groceries away, I started my grill to make a sandwich. I decided to go over and let
them know that it's private property and that there are no dogs allowed on the beach. Ilive
right across the street."
Mr. Marino asked, "At any time did you park in front of the beach for 20 minutes?" Mr. Hazel
stated, "No, I did not." Mr. Marino asked," Have you read the Police report?" Hazel stated, "I
do have a police report." Marino asked," When did you get the Police report?" Hazel stated,
"The following day I came up and one of your officers took a picture of my neck and I got the
report. "
Mr. Jeffreys asked how many stitches did you receive? Hazel replied, "The doctor made a
ground stitch and he said it was so deep he could not tell me how many he was going to give me
because he had to give them to me in my muscle in my throat too. There were plenty. "
Mr. Jeffreys asked,
, "After the incident occurred, please walk me through your interaction with
Katelynn Newton and Ms. Huckins in terms of what was said and how they reacted to the
situation." Hazel stated, "When I was asking if they could see anything on my neck, Ms.
Newton was yelling it was all my fault. All I wanted to know was am I bleeding badly. I had a
little bandage on my neck and it wasn't bleeding badly. I walked over to my house and I knew I
had to stay calm through this. I asked my mother, she said I can't see what happened. I said a pit
bull just bit me in the neck, I walked over to the beach and they were going towards their car,
which made me nervous because I don't know if this dog was up to date. I came over and Ms.
Newton was saying she has all the vet paperwork on her phone. I told her please just show the
===PAGE 3===
vat usuall
sorry, I did not hear it. I was more worried about my neck. To this day I never saw what it
looked like."
Mr. Jeffreys asked, "During all this do you recall seeing any other people at the beach?" Mr.
Hazel said, "No."
Ms. Adams stated to Mr. Hazel, "I am imagining at one point in time the dog and yourself were
in separate spaces. Do you feel like the dog approached you or did you approach the dog?"
Hazel replied, "When the dog growled at me I stopped and Ms. Newton said this dog doesn't
know you. He won't hurt you. I extended my hand to let the dog smell my hand and the next
thing I know, he had me right by the throat." Ms. Adams asked, "And the dog was on a leash
being held by the owner?" Mr. Hazel stated, "Yes." Ms. Adams asked, "And you did move
towards the dog?" Hazel stated, "No, when the dog growled I stopped right there and I asked
Ms. Newton is this dog going to attack me? She said, "No he just doesn't know you." She
extended the leash a little bit, not much and I extended my hand out to let him smell it and the
next thing I knew, he's on my neck and I just hit him in the head and I felt his jaws release."
Ms. Adams stated," I am certainly not minimizing the bite because that must be a very scary
thing, but I feel like you expressed fear and that there could be an attack and then did not
remove yourself from the dog; you went closer. I am just trying to understand in terms of
putting my mind into the dog's mindset. We are ultimately deciding the fate of the dog. The dog
if it was approached when it already was expressing hate... there does seem to be fear that you
expressed and could there be an attack and yet you did not flee the situation which I think could
have been minimized ..thank you."
Mr. Marino asked, "At any time did you antagonize the dog?" Mr. Hazel said, "Absolutely
not." Mr. Marino asked, "Did you tease it?" Hazel, "No." Marino asked, "Did you do something
to entice it?" Hazel, "Absolutely not."
Mr. Alonzo asked, "How long would you say from the time was that you put your hand out to
let the dog sniff you until the time you say you hit it and it released?"
Hazel, " Less than five seconds, it happened so fast, he grabbed, I reacted, like I said I felt his
jaws release and I said to myself, I have a chance."
Alonzo asked "At that point were you able to determine what the demeanor of the dog was right
after it happened?" Hazel, "They put him in the car and the dog was going absolutely nuts."
Alonzo asked" At no point was the dog off the lead or pulling the owner towards you, she was
able to get the dog into the car?" Hazel, "Yes, because I had gone next door because I wanted to
know how badly I was bitten. I moved briskly, I knew I needed to stay calm because I did not
know how bad it was and I thought they might leave and I wanted to make sure the dog was up
to date on its shots before I went anywhere."
Ms. Adams asked," Did you sense the dog owner tried to leave or did they stay put?" Hazel, "I
just sensed because they were heading towards the car, I didn't know if they were going to put
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and I actually worked in an animal hospital for two years in Belmont and the first thing they tell
you is never put your face near a dog's face." Marino asked, "Have you ever been bitten by a
dog?" Hazel, "No."
Attorney Kennefick asked,
"You said that you had come from the grocery store, so when you
approached Ms. Newton, did you get out of the car and approach her or did you go in the house
Hazel, "I went in the house first, I brought the groceries in and put them away, I started my
grill, and then started heading over there towards them to let them know it was a private beach
and no animals are allowed."
Kennefick asked, "How high off the ground were you when the dog bit your neck? Were you
kneeling down?" Hazel stated, "no, absolutely not. I am a tall man, I'm six foot, three inches
and I did not put my face anywhere near that dog's face." Kennefick asked, "Did the dog get up
on its hind legs?" Hazel replied, "No, he leaped."
Mr. Dwyer asked, "You said the dog leaped at you and you are 6'3", the dog is roughly around
80 pounds, so did they record any other abrasions on your body from the dog's claws or
anything like that? For a dog to leap at you like that is quite a distance." Hazel, "Like I said, I
extended my hand and he jumped up and my reaction was to take my left hand and knock him
off, and no, he did not leave any other mark."
Mr. Alonzo asked Ms. Newton if she would like to add anything further. She stated," After the
ambulance and police arrived I had no further conversation with Mr. Hazel at that time so
I do want to say when he said I was trying to show my paperwork as he was getting into the
ambulance, that was not the case. I was speaking to an officer and at that time I did have
officers around me. My dog was laying down in the back seat of the car, he was not barking. I
heard the police officer when speaking to the ACO, stating he is just lying in the back of the car.
He continued to just lay there after the incident. "
Mr. Alonzo asked Officer Morreale if that was what he observed. Morreale stated," Yes, we
asked where the dog was and it was in the back seat, quiet and it did not make a noise or do
anything when we approached the window to confirm it was in the back seat."
ACO Comeau stated she was not there, "so it is hard for me to say anything. I was called after
the fact. I just know what Mr. Hazel and the girls told me."
Mr. Alonzo stated he was under the impression that Ms. Huckins was going to be here this
evening. Ms. Newton stated she was too.
Mr. Jeffreys asked Officer Morreale and ACO Comeau the testimony you are hearing today
from Mr. Hazel and Ms. Newton and the testimony we heard last week from Ms. Newton. Is
that consistent with what you heard on the day of the incident?
Officer Morreale stated, "Obviously emotions are a little bit higher with people. Ms. Newton
was very excited, it took some calming her down to get some answers. As for the testimony last
week, Ms. Newton had stated that she saw the bite mark on the side of his neck. It was in fact in
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a quick thing, he did kneel down like I showed you last week; he knelt towards my dog. There
was no other attack wise or viciousness towards Mr. Hazel. I just want to say that in defense of
what he said because he did put his face in my dog's face."
Ms. Adams asked Ms. Newton if you feel that the dog approached Mr. Hazel or Mr. Hazel left
his space and approached the dog? Ms. Newton stated her dog would have never gone near Mr.
Hazel. "Like I explained to you last week Ace has a double-handled leash as well as on his
harness, so I had full control of my dog. I had him in two places and I never loosened up on my
hold, so I never gave any room. Ace was approached as well as me and Ms. Huckins were."
Ms. Adams asked if she recalled the comment where Mr. Hazel asked if he was going to be
attacked. Ms. Newton stated, "He did not say that, he just asked like is he okay or is he nice, in
that respect."
Mr. Jeffreys asked Newton," On or about the 16" of July the ACO delivered to you a quarantine
letter. Do you recall getting that letter?" She stated she got one in Leominster and Dean
(Mangiacotti) got one hand delivered in Lunenburg. Jeffreys asked" Do you recall the date you
red in Lunenburs, Jef
got it?" She replied she was not 100% on the date. "But when I spoke to Ms. Comeau on the
phone she gave me guidelines." Jeffreys asked did you have access to the ACO after you
received the letter to ask any questions. Ms. Newton stated she did not. Mr. Jeffreys asked
during the quarantine period did your dog ever leave Lunenburg. Ms. Newton replied no, he
was on his electric fence and was muzzled when he went outside. When asked how old the dog
was, she replied five years old.
Mr. Marino asked Officer Morreale, it states in the incident report, "As he did so, Ace began
barking and growling at him. It was noted that Ace almost pulled away from Megan." Is
that what she told you? Morreale stated that is what we were told, yes.
Marino stated he assumed this is Hazel approaching the dog and she says according to your
report what she's telling you is that he has never bitten anybody and then it says he almost
pulled away from Megan (Huckins). Morreale stated yes, Megan Huckins was holding the
dog is what we were told.
Mr. Jeffreys asked Morreale, Comeau and Chief Gammel to the best of your knowledge since
July, has the dog left Lunenburg? Ms. Comeau stated, "No, I delivered the quarantine letter the
night of the incident; I delivered it to Ms. Mangiacotti and then I checked on the dog and spoke
to the neighbors." Acting Chief Gammel to Mr. Jeffreys, "I think you are referring to a report
that the dog left the state and went to Maine. We sent an officer to verify that information and
initially we were told a couple of different stories by people at Flat Hill Road residence. We
were contacted later and verified that the dog did not leave. We had no evidence that the dog
had left the area."
Mr. Alonzo closed the testimony portion of the hearing and thanked everyone for providing it.
Mr. Hazel asked if the Select Board has seen photos of his neck before and after the steri-strips
were removed. Mr. Alonzo confirmed they were in the report.
===PAGE 6===
a blanket by the swing set and the man drove by very slowly and was looking at us weird and
that is when I first noticed him. "He pulled into his house and then came over very awkwardly
to us. I had Ace and he had kind of dragged me a little bit when he saw the guy, but I pulled him
back and handed him over to Ms. Newton because it's her dog. When we were over there he
was asking us is he dangerous? We were like no, he just gets excited when he's around people.
So when we were talking Ms. Newton had the leash and he was standing about 6 feet way from
us and he had moved closer to us after he had asked us if the dog was dangerous. Then he had
leaned down like he was going to pet the dog and Ace just got him for a second and the guy
backed up, stood up and started yelling and ended up going back into his house for a little bit. I
put the dog in my car so we could figure out what was going on."
Mr. Alonzo do you remember specifically what Mr. Hazel asked? Huckins stated, " He had
asked is the dog dangerous?" We said no he just gets excited. That's when he moved more
forward and leaned down like he was going to pet the dog and that's when everything
happened. He had gone back into his house and the Police were called. The guy was in there for
10 -15 minutes and came back outside and the Police had shown up at that point." Alonzo asked
"How was Ace was reacting at that point?"' Huckins stated, "He was fine, he was just sitting in
my car just staring at us. I don't even think he realized what happened. Even after he bit him, he
was not growling at him or trying to like break off his leash."
Ms. Adams asked her if the dog crossed into Mr. Hazels' space or did Mr. Hazel go into the
dog's space? Huckins stated," The dog was standing there still in the same position, he wasn't
pulling at the leash hard trying to get at the guy. There was a little slack in the leash. You know
how dogs get excited, he was just moving around. The dog was standing there, we had the
leash, the man walked forward and he leaned down to go pet the dog. I don't know, I thought it
was pretty dumb."
Ms. Adams asked, "At what level did the bite take place, low to the ground or at a standing
height?" Huckins replied, "Low to the ground, he was crouching and leaned down to pet the
dog. Ace was level to his face, it's not like Ace jumped up and attacked him. He came down to
his level and kind of had his face near to the dog."
Mr. Dwyer asked, "When Mr. Hazel had initially driven by, how long after the incident did it
take for Ms. Newton to call Ms. Mangiacotti to come pick her up?" Ms. Huckins stated, "It was
right before. That's why I had Ace, I was sitting on the blanket on the sand and I thought she
was calling her then." Mr. Alonzo thanked her for her testimony.
The Board returned to deliberation. Discussion ensued on whether the dog was dangerous or if
the dog thought it was defending itself.
Motion: M, Jeffreys
2n: T. Dwyer
To designate Ace, owned by Ms. Newton, a dangerous dog
Vote: Mr. Dwyer-aye, Ms. Adams- aye, Mr. Jeffreys- aye, Mr. Marino-aye, Mr. Alonzo-
nay
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2.
That the owner or keeper of Ace provide proof of insurance in an amount not
less than $250,000 insuring the owner or keeper against any claim, loss,
damage or injury to persons, domestic animals or property resulting from the
acts, whether intentional or unintentional, of the dog; or proof of reasonable
efforts were made to obtain insurance and if it is obtained, to provide proof
upon request of coverage or the efforts to obtain the insurance.
That the owner or keeper of Ace provide to the Board of Selectmen, or the
Town's Animal Control Officer, information by which Ace may be identified,
throughout its lifetime including, but not limited to, photographs, videos,
veterinary examination, tattooing or microchip implantations, or a
combination of any such methods of identification.
Discussion: Mr. Alonzo asked if the dog is licensed in Leominster and if relocated to Leominster, what is
the enforceability of this? Attorney Kennefick stated the order follows the dog anywhere in
Massachusetts.
Vote: Mr. Dwyer-aye, Ms. Adams-aye, Mr. Marino-aye, Mr. Jeffreys-aye, Mr. Alonzo -
aye
A written order will be drafted and served to Ms. Newton. She has 10 days to appeal this order
upon receipt. Mr. Alonzo to Ms. Newton stated if the dog is remaining in Lunenburg, you need
to license the dog in town. He thanked everyone for their participation.
I. CURRENT BUSINESS
Letter to MassDOT re: Night time Heavy Vehicle Exclusion
• Main Street
•
Highland Street
• West Townsend Road from its intersection with Northfield Road to Route
13 (Chase Road)
• Northfield Road from its intersection with Highland Street to Route 13 (Chase
Road)
Mr. Marino stated as Police Chief he initiated this process a while ago due to increased heavy
vehicle traffic, extreme noise and vibration from commercial trucks using brakes, excessive
speed, danger to children, and severely damaged roads. These are just some of the complaints set
forth by the residents of these streets.
Mr. Alonzo stated before we approve this we should find out what are the hours of exclusion.
Mr. Jeffreys stated he had researched the law and it states one hour after sunset on one day to one
hour before sunrise the following day. Based on that definition it would cover business hours the
entire year. Mr. Marino noted this exclusion has nothing to do with delivery trucks. This is
strictly trucks that are using these roads to pass through as a shortcut.
===PAGE 8===
creation of a special committee; that is was under the purview of the Select Board through the
Charter as far as appointing multiple member bodies. Section 3-2 states, "members of other
multiple member bodies the functions of which do not involve direct operating responsibilities,
but, which are, primarily, policymaking or advisory in nature."
Ms. Adams thought 300 years was a pretty big deal. She wanted this committee formed early
because we need to define what turning 300 means for the Town, what is our vision, capital
items, projects etc.
Mr. Alonzo started with a charge for the committee. Ms. Adams suggested the composition of
the committee should be determined as well. Ms. Adams will draft something up and present it at
a future meeting.
3. Discussion about Reinstating Liaisons
Mr. Alonzo stated he was in favor of having liaisons in order to provide an ear for the Select
Board to what is going on in other boards' meetings. Mr. Dwyer, also a Conservation
Commissioner, was happy to report on their meetings to the board. He thought it made sense and
supported it. It adds value because people have limited time. Ms. Adams thought it was a good
idea and volunteered to cover School Committee meetings. Mr. Marino thought it was a great
idea. Mr. Jeffreys stated he already does it for Council on Aging and the Library, but we only
have so much time. He asked how Mr. Alonzo envisioned this. Mr. Alonzo stated we should
start with a list of who we would like to hear about. It's not about getting involved in the
meeting, just providing a summary of what is going on. Mr. Dwyer suggested asking Chairs to
come in once a month or quarterly to provide brief updates. Further discussion ensued about the
options. Mr. Alonzo suggested members provide a list of suggested groups to him to compile for
another meeting.
Dave Passios, 56 Whiting Street, cautioned about Select Board members trying to impose
themselves into any meetings. Ms. Adams stated offering to be a liaison does not mean I am
sacrificing my ability to participate as a citizen. I would always state I was speaking as a citizen.
Matt Allison, Planning Board Chairman, suggested if liaisons do attend that they are there due to
questions brought to them but not as participants in the meeting.
4. Discussion on TCP Building Design Committee Charge
Mr. Alonzo believed the 2019 annual town meeting article defined the charge:
ARTICLE 24. To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate or transfer from available funds a
sum of money for the design and engineering to consolidate town offices, school uses and community
space at the building and land known as the TC Passios, located at 1079 Massachusetts Avenue, shown on
Assessor's Map 060, Lot 055, and any and all incidental and related costs, including but not limited to,
site evaluation, engineering and final design services: or take any other action relative thereto.
Mr. Jeffreys stated the committee also views their charge to include site evaluation, engineering
and final design services. Right now they are at the site evaluation phase.
===PAGE 9===
Jeffreys, Select Board; Brian Lehtinen, School Committee; David Passios, Finance Committee
and Tanner Cole, Planning Board.
Mr. Alonzo asked Mr. Passios and Mr. Roy, who were signed in to the meeting, what their
perspective was on the charge of the committee. Chairman Greg Roy stated we are appreciative
to hear your interpretation of our charge is what we thought it was. We have placed the article
wording right on our agenda. He stated the lack of minutes was weighing heavily on him as well.
Although this does not substitute our responsibility for minutes, we have made certain that our
meetings are all recorded to ensure transparency. We are working to get caught up.
Mr. Passios noted they did address the issue at our last meeting. He asked for clarification on
whether the article he had should state school "offices" or school "uses". Ms. Lemieux stated
school uses was the correct wording.
5. Minutes for Approval: May 19, 2020, June 2, 2020
Motion: J. Marino
2'°: M. Jeffreys
To approve the minutes of May 19 and June 2, 2020 as presented
Vote: Mr. Dwyer-aye, Ms. Adams-aye, Mr. Marino-aye, Mr. Jeffreys- aye, M., Alonzo-
aye
6. Warrants
Mr. Alonzo reported he signed the following warrants last week:
• Payroll Warrant #3P21, dated 8/6/2020, in the amount of $651,248.31
• Accounts Payable Warrant #6 21, dated 8/4/2020, in the amount of $449,936.40
• Accounts Payable Warrant #7 21, dated 8/4/2020, in the amount of $7,723.46 (Reissue
of old A/P checks)
• Payroll Deduction Warrant #8 21, dated 8/4/2020, in the amount of $24,792.33
7. Action Items- there were none
8. Committee Reports -there were none
WORKSHOP: ANNUAL REVIEW OF BOARD OF SELECTMEN POLICIES
Ms. Lemieux reviewed the blue lined changes to the policies. The first was the Table of
Contents: it denotes what was changed last year and where they were placed. Page 5 shows the
change to the number of days from 42 to 47 for the deadline for filing warrant articles.
On Page 15 Ms. Lemieux was recommending adding the following wording to the permissible
reasons someone can participate remotely, "or illness of person board if caring for."
===PAGE 10===
Mr. Alonzo suggested holding a September workshop on the following: placing a ballot question
on the election ballot, reasons for denying a tollbooth fundraiser event, and a sign policy for
requests by non-profits to place signs on town property.
Mr. Alonzo noted their next meeting is August 18'h
PUBLIC COMMENT:
There was none.
Motion: K. Adams
2nd: M. Jeffreys
To adjourn the meeting at 9:45 p.m.
Vote: Mr. Dwyer-aye, Ms. Adams-aye, Mr. Marino-aye, Mr. Jeffreys- aye, Mr. Alonzo-
aye
Respectfully submitted,
Claim Peterson
Elaine M. Peterson
Executive Assistant to the Town Manager