===OCR macOS Vision===
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Members present: Tom Alonzo, Chairman; Michael-Ray Jeffreys, Vice Chairman; Katey
Adams, Clerk; Todd Dwyer, Jim Marino
Also Present: Heather Lemieux, Town Manager
Chairman Alonzo called the meeting to order at 7:01 p.m. and announced in accordance with
the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being
recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg public access channel. In accordance with the
Governor's Order Suspending Certain Provisions of the Open Meeting Law, G. L. c. 30A, §
20, all public meetings are being conducted remotely. Mr. Alonzo read the remote meeting
information for anyone who would like to join the meeting. He asked if everyone was present
by roll call.
The meeting opened with the Pledge of Allegiance that was recited by Ms. Adams. Mr.
Alonzo announced Mr. Jeffreys was delayed due to traffic and would join the meeting soon.
PUBLIC COMMENT:
Mr. Alonzo hoped everyone had an enjoyable holiday season. Hopefully vaccinations for
Covid-19 will be coming out soon and everyone stayed safe as possible during these times.
He hoped all would have a better year this year.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Mr. Alonzo announced Flat Hill Road is being reduced to one lane where the bridge is located
until further notice due to inspections.
Ms. Lemieux announced there will be a Christmas tree chipping event sponsored by the
Lions' Club at the Ritter Building rear on Sunday, January 10 from 8 am to 12 Noon. They
will be accepting donations in exchange for the tree chipping. Lakeview Landscaping will be
doing the chipping.
The Police Chief has heard from MassDOT regarding the bridge project on Route 2A near
Maki Home Center and it has gone out to bid and anticipates work will begin mid-year.
APPOINTMENTS:
7:05 PM Common Victualler license hearing - KCM Donuts Inc. d/b/a Dunkin Donuts, 451
Mass. Ave.
John Nadreau and Joe Cadette were present for the license application. Mr. Nadreau stated for
some reason this license application was never submitted, but they have are making it right now.
Ms. Lemieux stated everything is in order on the application.
Motion: J. Marino
2n: T. Dwyer
To approve the license application for the common victualler license at 451 Mass. Ave. for
KCM Donuts d/b/a Dunkin Donuts
Vote: Mr. Dwyer-aye, Ms. Adams-aye, Mr. Marino-aye, Mr. Alonzo-aye
Mr. Nadreau and Mr. Cadette thanked the Board and exited the meeting.
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II. CURRENT BUSINESS
1. Vote to open the Annual Town Meeting warrant on January 12, 2021 and close
the warrant on March 15, 2021 at 4 PM
Ms. Lemieux has drawn up the schedule leading up to Annual Town Meeting according to the
Charter's requirements.
Motion: T. Dwyer
2n°: J. Marino
To open the Annual Town Meeting warrant on January 12, 2021 and close the warrant on
March 15, 2021 at 4 PM
Vote: Mr. Dwyer-aye, Ms. Adams- aye, Mr. Marino-aye, Mr. Jeffreys- aye, Mr. Alonzo-aye
2. Liaison for the meetings with Monty Tech for Old Primary School landscape
Mr. Alonzo stated the Town Manager is seeking a liaison to Monty Tech for the conceptual
rendering of the old Primary School site. Ms. Adams expressed interest in the position.
Motion: J. Marino
2nd: T. Dwyer
To appoint Katey Adams as liaison to Monty Tech for the old Primary School landscape
design
Vote: Ms. Adams-aye, Mr. Dwyer-aye, Mr. Marino-aye, Mr. Jeffreys-aye, Mr. Alonzo-aye
Ms. Adams will consult with Ms. Lemieux on the schedule for meeting with Monty Tech for this
project. Ms. Lemieux stated they had the initial meeting two weeks ago and did a preliminary
review. She had shared the minutes of the site walk on October 31s and provided a general
description of their vision to Monty Tech. There will be two senior students as well as the CAD
instructor working on this and there will be a meeting next week. She will be in touch with Ms.
Adams once the date/time is finalized.
3. Review Clearinghouse Policy
Ms. Lemieux reported this is a new requirement due to a change in federal law and coming from
the US Dept. of Transportation. It affects town personnel holding Commercial Driving Licenses
(CDLs) and Commercial Learners Permit holders regarding drug and alcohol violations. It also
provides a centralized location for employers to run queries on prospective and existing
employees. This will go into effect January 6th. The draft policy was provided by labor counsel.
Ms. Lemieux stated the policy has been provided to the DPW which would be an affected union.
Motion: J. Marino
2n: T. Dwyer
To approve the Clearinghouse Policy as presented
Discussion: Mr. Jeffreys regarding #7, Occurrences to be reported by the Town, asked if the
use of alcohol four hours before reporting to work would be enough time; are we going to
assume if someone is below .04, we are not going to report it. Mr. Alonzo stated he was
assuming this was accepted practice. Mr. Marino noted it was standard practice.
Vote: Ms. Adams-aye, Mr. Dwyer-aye, Mr. Marino-aye, Mr. Jetfreys-aye, Mr. Alonzo-aye
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The by-law review committee shall consist of the Town Clerk who shall serve by virtue of office, 2
persons appointed by the Town Moderator and 2 persons appointed by the Select Board.
The committee in its final, or in an interim report, shall include recommendations for such substantive
change in town by-laws as it deems necessary or advisable. The review of town by-laws shall be in
conjunction with the town counsel, or by special counsel retained for that purpose.
Subsequent to enactment by the town meeting, copies of the revised by-laws shall be forwarded to the
Attorney General of the Commonwealth for approval, and they shall be otherwise published, all as
required by General Laws. Copies of the revised by-laws shall be made available for distribution to the
public at a charge not to exceed the actual cost, per copy, of reproduction.
The bylaws have been codified, so are easier to work on. The committee would make
recommendations to the 2022 Annual Town Meeting. Mr. Alonzo asked for it to be advertised
for interested parties.
5. Discussion on approval process to discharge and carry weapons on town property
Mr. Alonzo stated due to the Conservation Commission reviewing their land use policy, this item
was placed on the agenda. According to legal counsel, Home Rule Charter gives this board the
ability to deny use of firearms on town property.
Discussion occurred around the legality of denying someone the right to possess a firearm on
public property and possibly violating their constitutional right to bear arms versus allowing
hunting on public property.
Mr. Alonzo suggested the Select Board adopt a policy regarding the process of granting
permission to hunt with firearms. He pointed out the Conservation Commission could allow
hunting on certain lands and then one would only have to come before the Select Board for
permission to discharge a firearm. It was noted by Mr. Jeffreys that it would be a waste of time
to make a policy if the majority of the Board is not going to approve any requests. Mr. Dwyer
agreed with Mr. Jeffreys and suggested taking each request on a case by case basis. Mr. Alonzo
pointed out that Town Counsel had advised last year in an email, "The Selectmen should
exercise their discretion to allow, or not, hunting on public land with fairness and consistency.
There are no criteria or guiding principles in the law. I'd recommend that the Selectmen consider
the public health, safety and welfare, as is their charge generally, and either grant, deny or
condition permission appropriately."
Mr. Alonzo stated we need to get an opinion from Town Counsel regarding possession of a
firearm on public land and that counsel should be present at a future meeting when this is
discussed.
6. Long term planning of parcels sought by the Conservation Commission and
Open Space Committee to transfer the care, custody and control of from Select
Board to Conservation Commission and Open Space
Ms. Lemieux referred to her Town Manager report:
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town owned properties is the Assessor's database and there is work to be done with the Assessor, Tax
Collector, and various town departments to clarify the status of vacant undeveloped properties that are
listed in the assessors database as tax title, "owner unknown", "last known owner", or as being assigned to
a town department such cemetery or public works.
The OSC is not interested in conveying town owned properties to the Open Space Committee, rather,
they are interested in evaluating town purchased properties, tax title properties, and owner
unknown properties in order to develop recommendations for the Select Board to consider. For
town purchased or tax title properties, these recommendations might include doing nothing,
transferring them to one of the various commissions or boards that supervise land such as
schools, cemetery, parks, or conservation, or even auctioning them off to return them to the tax
rolls. For "owner unknown" property, where the town does not have clear title, it is likely any
recommendation would be limited to transfer to the Conservation Commission or possibly the
Parks Commission.
If the Open Space Committee is going to recommend transfer of parcels to Boards or Commissions,
the Conservation Commission Chairman anticipates they would work first with the relevant board
or commission in order to develop well-reasoned and fully informed recommendations for the
Select Board to consider. However, that means members of the Select Board could read about
our interactions with such other Boards or Commissions in their agenda prior to the committee
approaching the Select Board.
In terms of managing the flow of information, I would suggest that the Chairman of both the
Conservation Commission and Open Space Committee update the Town Manager in advance of
the meeting that the topic will be discussed and any relevant documents so I can inform the Board
that land under the care, custody and control of the Board will be discussed at that upcoming
meeting."
Ms. Adams noted the Conservation Commission needs to list in detail which properties
they are going to discuss on their agenda so people are aware in advance. She asked
what the advantage was of placing land in conservation versus having nondescript town-
owned land. Mr. Alonzo stated it is very difficult to remove the land from conservation.
Ms. Lemieux will pass along the information to the pertinent chairmen.
7. Authorization for Chairman to sign Grant of Exclusive Parking Easement to
Historical Society
Motion: M. Jeffreys
2nd: K. Adams
To authorize the Chair to sign the grant of exclusive parking easement to the Historical
Society
Vote: Ms. Adams-aye, Mr. Dwyer-aye, Mr. Jeffreys-aye, Mr. Marino-aye, Mr. Alonzo-aye
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• Payroll Warrant #13P21, dated 12/24/2020, $914,586.46;
• Payroll Deduction Warrant #30 21, dated 12/23/2020, $199,842.67;
• Medicare Part B Reimbursement. Warrant #29 21, dated 12/22/2020, $108,797.00;
• Accounts Payable Warrant #28 21, dated 12/22/2020, $773,113.47
10. Action Items
Mr. Marino in regards to appointments asked if we have a procedure will it remain that or
become a policy. Mr. Alonzo stated it would still be a procedure. He reminded the board to
submit their suggestions for a procedure to him so he can compile them for a future discussion.
11. Committee Reports
Mr. Alonzo reported Capital Planning Committee met and prioritized all the submissions from
all the different departments. We submitted our recommendations to the Town Manager to use in
the Capital Plan presentation required by the Town Charter and budget planning.
Mr. Marino noted MRPC will be meeting Thursday night and he will be attending.
OLD BUSINESS
1. 2021 License Renewal- KB Agyeman d/b/a KB Cars LLC- 555 Chase Road- Class II
Auto Dealer
Motion: T. Dwyer
2nd: J. Marino
To approve the Class Il license renewal for KB Cars LLC
Vote: Ms. Adams-aye, Mr. Dwyer-aye, Mr. Jeffreys-aye, Mr. Marino-aye, Mr. Alonzo-
aye
TOWN MANAGER REPORT AND COVID-19 UPDATE
COVID-19 in Lunenburg:
The Board of Health issued their weekly update and the cumulative laboratory confirmed number of
COVID-19 cases reported to the Town was 381 as of January 1st. The State report shows 355 cases as of
December 29th. This is an increase of 49 cases since the previous week.
The Nashoba Associated Boards of Heath have taken advantage of an opportunity by the Dept. of Public
Health to hold a Covid-19 vaccination clinic for First Responders within the district. This is being rolled
out by the state for all First Responders. Approximately two hundred first responders will be able to get
vaccinated by the end of January at the Boxboro Regency.
Announcement on Existing Vacancies:
The following is a list of vacancies on the following committees:
• Architectural Preservation District Commission (1 vacancy)
• Cultural Council (1 vacancy)
• Historical Commission (1 vacancy)
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Encroachment on Town Parcels:
After it came to the attention of the Town that different town owned parcels were being encroached
upon by different property abutters, we have worked with town counsel on drafting No Trespass
Letters that have been sent to the property abutters that have their personal property on town land or
in one instance, paved an area of town owned land. The parcels that have encroachment issues
• 51 Parmenter Road
• 671 West Street
• Fire Road 12 (Parcel ID 137-0012-00)
• 1625 Mass Avenue (Cowdrey Conservation Area
We will continue to work with the abutters and town counsel to ensure that private property is
removed and the land is restored to the original condition.
North Cemetery ADA Parking Lot Improvement Grant:
lapplied for a grant through the Massachusetts Office on Disability to perform all the necessary
preparatory work, paving, and installation ofasidewalk with handicaprailingat North Cemetery
and received notification that we were awarded $32,000 forthis project. This was a pleasant
surprise, as I have applied for this grant three times. As part of the next steps for this project, the DP W
Director will be working with an architect on the design to ensure it meets all the ADA
requirements and the construction will commence in the spring.
Flat Hill Road Culvert:
The DPW Director contacted me after a follow-up inspection performed by MassDOT on the Flat
Hill Road culvert. Due to signs of settling and failure of the culvert on the south side of the
bridge, MassDOT asked us to close the south side lane of the bridge until they release their
written recommendations based on today's inspection. The DPW has put out barriers and signs
will be installed shortly. Jersey barriers have been ordered and will be installed when received.
The worst case scenario is that MassDOT requires the Town to shut down the bridge entirely; the
written report should be forthcoming with recommendations and any requirements. I will update
the Board with any new information.
Flat Hill Road Drainage Update:
As a follow-up to the discussion on the Flat Hill Road drainage issues, the DPW Director sought
a proposal from Brian Marchetti of McCarty Engineering to conduct a topographic, utility, and lot
line survey of Flat Hill Road and Page Street within the project limits defined on the Conceptual
Drainage Plan dated October 27th that was presented to the Board at the November 10th meeting.
Mr. Marchetti has been engaged to perform this work as the next step in addressing the drainage
issue on Flat Hill Road and our Conservation Administrator will perform the necessary wetland
flagging that will be included in the Existing Conditions Plan. The survey work will commence
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as our current contract with Casella expires on June 30, 2021. Based on recent webinars that both
the Assistant Town Manager and I have attended with industry experts, I expect our costs for this
service to increase exponentially.
Brooks House Request for Proposal:
In January of 2019 the Select Board met with the Architectural Preservation District Commission,
Historical Commission and Historical Society and came to an agreed upon future use of the
Brooks House, which was to sell the building, not the property, in order for it to be relocated while
maintaining this historical building in town. The Select Board put forth an article at the May 4,
2019 Annual Town Meeting (Article 23) to convey the building, which passed. I Will be asking the
Assistant Town Manager to proceed with putting together a Request for Proposals to carry this
out, unless the Board has an objection to this.
CARES Act funding update:
As part of the latest federal stimulus package, it has been relayed to us from the Executive Office
for Administration and Finance that the deadline to use our CARES Act funding has been
extended from December 30, 2020 until December 31, 2021. We have submitted roughly $555,000
of which we were eligible for reimbursement for approximately $434,000. Our total eligible
amount of CARES Act reimbursement funding for the Town is $1,027,771.
Pay As You Throw Bags- Supply at Retailers and Online Ordering:
As a follow-up to a public comment from a prior Select Board meeting about the lack of PAYT
bags at the various retailers in town and whether there was an option for online ordering, I
contacted our bag vendor, Waste Zero. They responded that there was one week that Hannaford
had taken themselves off auto delivery but this had been corrected and Waste Zero also sent an
order history and scheduled deliveries to retailers that indicated there should not be a shortage. I
would ask residents to contact our office or the DPW if they encounter a problem with getting
PAYT bags at the retailers that carry them.
Inregards to purchasing them online, Waste Zero was ableto set up an online bag ordering but
this program ("Safer At Home") is not designed for high volume and is geared towards
individuals that cannot get to the retail stores that sell bags. The packages are 2 Large bags
totaling $5.70 and there is a shipping fee of $2.75/pack and it takes 3-5 business days for
delivery. Please contact our office or the DPW for the web link.
Department Updates:
Land Use: The 20 year population study performed by the UMass Donahue Institute has been
completed. As part of their scope of services, Donahue will update the data once the 2020
census information is received. As a next step in the Master Planning process, the Planning
Board will be proceeding with putting out a RFP to do the Services and Facilities component of a
Master Plan next. This section identifies and analyzes existing and forecasted needs for facilities
===PAGE 8===
their budget. The COA has currently stopped indoor programming but is still busy doing their
Drive Thru events. PJ Keating donated 100 stockings with goodies for seniors which will be all
distributed before Christmas. The Sand for Seniors Program is going well.
PACC Manager: PACC has done some programming with local events and is currently filming
the Discovery Center for Citizen Engagement series and will be live streaming a LPS basketball
game on the educational channel. PACC recently upgraded their server software that failed during
a recent live meeting. PACC is also in the process of hiring a consultant to make recommendations
on the layout and materials they will need for the proposed renovated space at the TCP Building.
Library Director: The Library Directorreported that the Trustees have selected a consultant for
their Long Term Strategic Plan that is expected to be wrapped up by the end of June. Having a
long term strategic plan will make the Library eligible for grant opportunities through the State.
DPW Director: The DPW Director reported he has been busy since he started in November,
including some early season snowstorms. He and the Facilities Director are currently working
on getting a couple more quotes for the Senior Center and Ritter Kitchen Remodels. The Fuel
Tank project is underway but has been delayed due to a delay in getting the tank materials. The
tank is expected to be delivered in mid-January, barring any further delays. The contractor has
completed as much of the project as possible and will be ready to go once the materials are
delivered. The Pleasant Street Bridge project has been awarded to a contractor and he will notify
town officials in advance of the detour going into effect. The Director reported there are new
additions to the Capital Plan he requested, including the Page Street culvert, which they are
continuing to monitor to make sure it does not become anemergency repair.
Fire: The Fire Chief relayed he had received a $15,000 grant for Turnout Gear. Rescue 2 is
currently out of service as it was hit by another driver and is currently waiting to get fixed. The
estimated time that it will be out of service is unknown and will be dependent on the ability to get
parts due to delays from the pandemic. Fire Engine 5 also is currently out of service as an
electrical shortage in the chassis wiring occurred, but it was caught quickly but will be out of
service due to the electrical damage done. The truck will be towed to the dealership this week and
get an estimate for the repair at that time.
Assessors: The Principal Assessor reported that she is continuing to work with VISION on the
conversion from the old CAMA software. Property assessments increased 4 1/2% and will be
reflected in the 3rd quarter real estate bills. Forms of List for personal property accounts are
being generated and will be sent out shortly.
Town Clerk: The Town Clerkreported that the General Code provided their updates for all recent
town meeting votes that affected the Code, with the exception of the Stormwater article from the
Special Town Meeting, as that will need to be approved by the Attorney General first. The Town
Clerk is changing companies for census forms due to lack of timely response from the old
company and those forms will be sent out in January. They will include a notice for Dog Licenses,
which are due in April.
Meetings, Events and Other Announcements:
• The School Committee has a meeting on Zoom on Wednesday, January 6th at 6:30 p.m.
• The Conservation Commission has a meeting on Zoom on Wednesday, January 6th at 7:00
p.m.
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UPCOMING MEETING/EVENTS SCHEDULE
January 12 (Workshop), January 19, February 2, 2021
PUBLIC COMMENT
Bill Tyler, 5 Graham St., wished everybody a Happy New Year. As the Cemetery Chairman, he
thanked Ms. Lemieux for her persistence on the grant application and the DPW Director on his
forthcoming design of the project. He was very happy to see it coming to fruition.
Motion: M. Jeffreys
2nd:T. Dwyer
To adjourn the meeting at 8:47 p.m.
Vote: Mr. Dwyer-aye, Ms. Adams- aye, Mr. Marino-aye, Mr. Jeffreys- aye, Mr. Alonzo-aye
Respectfully submitted,
Elaine In. Peterson
Elaine M. Peterson
Executive Assistant to the Town Manager