# select-board — 18 documents, concatenated for reading and search # # This is a CONVENIENCE BUNDLE, not a source. Every document below is # published separately and byte-identically; cite the individual file, # whose path is given in each header, rather than this bundle. # Index of all boards: https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/minutes/INDEX.txt # The town's own scanned original is linked per document. ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2012-04-10-minutes-4801.txt BOARD : select-board DATE : 2012-04-10 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/select-board/2012-04-10-minutes-4801.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_04102012-4801 ======================================================================================== ===OCR macOS Vision=== ===PAGE 1=== Sunl BOARD OF SELECTMEN MEETING MINUTES 4/10/12 The Board of Selectmen met in the Joseph F. Bilotta Meeting Room, Town Hall as scheduled with David Matthews, Steven M. deBettencourt, Paula Bertram, Tom Alonzo, Carl "Ernie" Sund and Town Manager Kerry Speidel present. Regular Meeting opened at 7:00 PM with the Pledge of Allegiance. PUBLIC COMMENT Vir. Alonzo announced that the deadline to register to vote is Thursday, April 12 at 8 p.m. He also mentioned that fillin ›ut the census does register you to vote. He also announced that the Annual Teen Center Auction will be held on May 3 at 6 p.m. at the Bull Run Restaurant. All proceeds will go to benefit the Lunenburg Boys & Girls Club Chester Mossman Teen Center. ANNOUNCEMENTS Mr. Matthews announced that the Lunenburg Police Dept. will take part in the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Drug Take Back program on April 28'" between the hours of 10AM & 2PM. They will be collecting all expired/unused APPOINTMENTS 7:00 p.m. Douglas S. Duval, Sr., Candidate for Constable - Douglas S. Duval of Lancaster Ave came before the Board as a candidate for Constable. Mr. Duval is a retired Fitchburg Fire Fighter and considers himself to be a good candidate for this position. Although he has no prior experience the Constable from the City of Leominster has encouraged him to apply for this position and has also offered his experience and guidance to him if he is approved for this position. Mr. Alonzo moved that Douglas S. Duval Sr. be approved for the position of Constable. Mr. deBettencourt seconded. On vote, motion carried 5 in favor, O opposed. CURRENT BUSINESS 1. FY2013 Budget & Override; Review & Recommendations on Town Meeting Warrant Articles Before the FY13 Budget & Override was discussed Mr. Matthews commented on an article which was printed in the Fitchburg Sentinel & Enterprise concerning the override and how the tax bills have risen in Lunenburg due to building the primary school and the police and fire building, but yet Lunenburg has fallen lower in the rankings compared to its neighbors and other communities in the state, in terms of average tax bill. He also pointed out other towns, which are similar to Lunenburg, that are also having similar financial problems. He feels that Lunenburg is not out of control in spending but rather that it is a common issue and is a matter of inflation. Mr. Sund said that he had been contacted by individuals in town about their homeowners insurance rising if the override does not pass. He said that they were told by their insurance companies that if the town goes from a 4 to a 5 in rating it will not affect their insurance, but if they go to a 6 it will. He would like clarification on this from the Town Manager. The Board reviewed the articles on the Town Meeting Warrant and made the following recommendations. Special Town Meeting Articles: ARTICLE 1. Prior Year Expense: BOS to make recommendation at Town Meeting ARTICLE 2. Stabilization Fund: BOS to make recommendation at Town Meeting ARTICLE 3. FY12 Budget Adjustments: BOS to make recommendation at Town Meeting ARTICLE 4. Rescind Remaining Bond Authorization for Meadow Woods: Ms. Bertram moved to recommend approval. Mr. deBettencourt seconded. On vote motion carried 5 in favor, 0 opposed. ARTICLE 5. FY1I IBPO, Local 353, Police Officers Collective Bargaining Agreement: BOS to make recommendation at Town Meeting ARTICLE 6. FY12 Professional Firefighters Collective Bargaining Agreement: Mr. Alonzo moved to approve the Firefighters contract. Mr. Sund seconded. On vote motion carried 5 in favor, 0 opposed. ARTICLE 7. Fund Extraordinary Unemployment Costs: BOS to make recommendation at Town Meeting ===PAGE 2=== Annual Town Meeting Articles/Consent Calendar: The Consent calendar was voted on as a group. Ms. Speidel explained how the revolving funds work and said that these accounts require annual authorization. Mr. Alonzo moved to recommend the approval of the consent calendar. Ms. Bertram seconded. On vote motion carried 5 in favor, 0 opposed. ARTICLE 1. CC Reauthorize Revolving Fund - Ambulance Billing: BOS recommend approval 5-0 ARTICLE 2. CC Reauthorize Revolving Fund - Timber Rights: BOS recommend approval 5-0 ARTICLE 3. CC Reauthorize Revolving Fund - Custodial Special Details: BOS recommend approval 5-0 ARTICLE 4. CC Reauthorize Revolving Fund-Greenthumb Program: BOS recommend approval 5-0 ARTICLE 5. CC Reauthorize Revolving Fund-Library Revolving Fund: BOS recommend approval 5-0 ARTICLE 6. CC Reauthorize Revolving Fund -Transportation COA: BOS recommend approval 5-0 Annual Town Meeting Articles: ARTICLE 7. Accept / Hear Reports of Certain Committees: Mr. Alonzo moved to recommend approval. Mr. Sund seconded. On vote motion carried 5 in favor, 0 opposed. ARTICLE 8. FY13 Non-Override Budget: Ms. Bertram voiced her concerns about the combining the administrative staff within the land use departments. She would like to discuss it more in the override budget. Ms. Bertram moved to recommend approval of the balanced budget. Mr. Alonzo seconded. Discussion: At this time Mr. deBettencourt spoke of his concerns about the schools receiving a "windfall" of funds over the previous years while the library and senior center seem to suffer. Ms. Speidel explained to him that the only increase the schools are receiving is in Chapter 70 funds and that the town funding is the same as it is in the current fiscal year. Mr. Sund also commented in saying that he would like to see more of a breakdown of individual department's items in the budget so he-could-see-what each department is costing the town. Mr. Matthews told-him that this is the way the MUNIS software works. Ms. Speidel spoke and said that she would like to see a budget like that but this is the way the accounting system is set up to meet our legal requirements. Ms. Bertram spoke again of her concerns of combining the land use offices and would like to hear more of what the individual departments had to say on this matter. She is trying to understand the cost savings and what the rational was behind combining the two offices. Ms. Speidel informed her that the cost savings would be about $22,000 in salary and $15,000 in health insurance. She also highlighted where the staffing cuts came from in the past in other departments. She said that based upon her observation and her understanding of the operations it seemed that the next best cut would be to combine the two positions into one full time position. Ms. Speidel also mentioned that they could just as easily be looking at possibly combining the full time Building Dept. Administrative Assistant position with the other two part time land use positions to make them into two full time positions. Also discussed was expanding hours for the Assistant Tax Collector, which had previously been cut, from 27 hours to 32 hours a week at a lower grade with no increase in salary. Ms. Bertram stated that she was angered at statements made by some BOH members that they would resign if the cut was made to the hours of the administrative assistant. She hopes that this in not the case because there are statutory requirements that the citizens of Lunenburg need from a BOH. She said that as an elected official, even if you don't agree with a decision, you've been elected to that position and you need to stay in that position for the remainder of its term. At this time Mr. deBettencourt had concerns about the budget and stated that not a lot of this was put before the Board but rather just dropped on them. Mr. Matthews defended the process and said that the budget has been in front of him for months and has been discussed at length. A lengthy discussion ensued among the Board members concerning all aspects of the Town Manager's proposed budget cuts including the schools increased portion of the budget. The Board discussed having meetings with the land use departments. Dave Passios, 56 Whiting St and member of the BOH spoke to the Board to tell them that the BOH meeting scheduled for April 17th has been rescheduled to the 23°d due to the holiday. He was also concerned with if the override/budget ===PAGE 3=== passes will all of the revenues be reshuffled again. He wanted to make the point that it is not set in stone for 5 years but yet for 1 year. He was also concerned about the purchasing of a new truck with plow for the school department. He did not think it would be fully utilized considering DPW does most of the plowing. Mr. Matthews reassured him that it was a necessary item. At this time the motion on the floor made by Ms. Bertram was to recommend approval of the balanced budget and was seconded by Mr. Alonzo. Upon re-vote motion carried 5 in favor, 0 opposed. ARTICLE 9 FY13 Override Budget: Ms. Speidel informed the Board that a column has been added to this article to identify where the $2.2M would be allocated and that there have been no other changes made. Discussion began again concerning the land use office's cuts even if the override is passed and if it included money for a recording secretary in the budget. Ms. Speidel said that it includes $3000 for a recording secretary. Ms. Bertram continued to express concerns about this issue and does not believe that $3000 is enough to cover the hours that are needed for that position. Ms. Speidel suggested that $20,000 be used from the Reserve Fund to cover the extra expense. This leaves a balance of $8000. It was decided to reduce line item 13 by $8,000, add $10,000 to line item 39 and add $10,000 to line item 57. All members agree that this needs to be looked at again. Also discussed was the high number for the school budget and how they will stay within their budget. Ms. Bertram made a motion to recommend the revised article 9 override budget. Mr. Alonzo seconded the motion. On vote, motion carried, 3 in favor; 2 opposed (deBettencourt & Sund) ARTICLE 10. Stabilization Fund: Mr. Matthews clarified that this not money put aside for the Selectmen to spend, but rather for the towns people to allocate at a later date. Mr. Alonzo made the motion to recommend approval of $277,432 into the stabilization fund if Article 9 passes. Ms. Bertram seconded the motion. On vote motion, carried 5 in favor, 0 opposed ARTICLE 11. School Feasibility Study & Schematic Plan Design: Discussion on the preliminary feasibility study began. Mr. deBettencourt wanted to know why renovations to the High School aren't being proposed. Mr. Matthews explained that the MSBA does not want to put money into a small school. He also said that with the current four school buildings, this would take one off line, and if you add up maintenance and repairs to the four buildings it comes up to approximately $18M. The idea is to maximize the investment to get the MSBA involved and to get a bigger building to house more students. Mr. Sund wanted to know if a new school was built, what becomes of the old buildings. Mr. Matthews said that's a decision that has to be made as a town. Mr. Alonzo made the motion to recommend approval of Article 11. Ms. Bertram seconded the motion. On vote motion carried, 5 in favor, O opposed. ARTICLE 12. FY13 Public Employees, Local Union 39 Collective Bargaining Agreement: Ms. Speidel informed the Board that at this time there is no settlement with the Union although she does anticipate bringing something to them. BOS to make recommendation at Town Meeting. ARTICLE 13. FY13 Budget, Water Department Enterprise Fund: Ms. Bertram moved to recommend approval of Article 13. Mr. Alonzo seconded the motion. On vote, 5 in favor, 0 opposed. ARTICLE 14. FY13 Budget, Solid Waste Disposal Enterprise Fund: Mr. Alonzo moved to recommend approval of Article 14. Ms. Bertram seconded the motion. On vote, 5 in favor, 0 opposed. ARTICLE 15. FY13, Budget Sewer Department Enterprise Fund: Ms. Bertram moved to recommend approval of Article 15. Mr. deBettencourt seconded the motion. Questions ensued on whether or not the enterprise fund was self- sustaining yet, and it is not. Ms. Speidel will include the dollar amount in the article. After discussion the BOS decided to make a recommendation at Town Meeting. ARTICLE 16. FY13 Capital Improvements Plan: Discussion began on the snow plow truck for the school. Mr. Sund stated that town trucks are on the town roads trying to keep roads clear while the school department may have to plow numerous times to keep the parking lot clear for buses. The current truck is in complete disrepair and this is a much needed replacement. Ms. Bertram moved to recommend approval for Article 16. Mr. Alonzo seconded. On vote, 5 in favor, 0 opposed. Mr. Matthews spoke and said he was concerned with the painting and caulking at the Library that did not get funded in Capital Planning. He hopes that the town will get in front of that and not wait for capital planning. Ms. Speidel hopes that next year the Library gets onto the Capital Plan to address bigger maintenance issues there. ===PAGE 4=== ARTICLE 17. Amend Protective Bylaw, Add New Section 4.15, Solar Energy Systems: Discussion began when Mis. Bertram stated that she was worried with the concerns that were expressed, the prior evening, at the public meeting. She was also concerned with language in the Bylaw and would like to see adjustments. BOS to make recommendation at Town Meeting. ARTICLE 18. Petition Article: Amend Protective Bylaw, Add New Section 4.15, Solar Energy Systems: BOS to make recommendation at Town Meeting. ARTICLE 19. Delete Protective Bylaw Section 6.6.7, Solar Energy Systems: Ms. Speidel stated that if one of the revisions in article 17 or 18 passed then article 19 would be to delete the current Bylaw. BOS to make recommendation at Town Meeting. ARTICLE 20. Accept M.G.L. Chapter 59 §5, Clause 54, Min. Value for Personal Property: Ms. Speidel did not have the loss of revenue figure available for this meeting. Board agreed that more information is needed before this is passed. BOS to make recommendation at Town Meeting. ARTICLE 21 Funding for Summer Street Design: The Town Manager requested that the engineer provide her with a revised dollar amount of what the towns 25% share is. Senator Flanagan is trying to get $150,000 for this from the Transportation Bond Bill and the towns will make up the difference. BOS to make recommendation at Town Meeting. ARTICLE 22. Amend Town Bylaws, Article XXIV (B), Sewer Bylaw: The Town Manager asked that the board make a recommendation for this at Town Meeting. BOS to make recommendation at Town Meeting. ARTICLE 23. Grant Driveway Easement along a portion of Town-owned Property: Mr. Matthews explained that this easement was for the potential buyers of the Jones House to be able to use an existing driveway which runs over the Teen Center property. Ms. Bertram moved to recommend approval of Article 23. Mr. Alonzo seconded. On vote, motion passed, 5 in favor 0 opposed. ARTICLE 24. Authorize Revolving Fund- Off-Road Vehicle Fines: Ms. Speidel stated that this article will be withdrawn. BOS to make recommendation at Town Meeting ARTICLE 25. Amend Town Bylaws, Article XXV, Public Access Cable Committee: The Public Access Cable Committee will be invited to a BOS meeting to review the Bylaws. BOS to make recommendation at Town Meeting 2. Establishment of Memorial Day Committee - Not discussed. 3. Minutes/Warrants/Action File Issues - The following minutes and warrants were presented for approval. 1. Minutes: 4/3/12 & 3/13/12 2. Warrants - W #59-12 $333,280.64 W #21 P-12 $632,415.63 W# 60-12 $597,647.64 3. Action File Issues - None 4. Committee Report - Mr. Alonzo reported that he attended the Financial Committee's public hearing and that they did an excellent job with their presentations and discussions on the warrant articles. Mr. Matthews stated the School Building Committee meeting will be tomorrow night at 7PM at the Brooks House. 5. Department Reports - None 6. Town Manager Reports- None OLD BUSINESS APPOINTMENTS/RE-APPOINTMENTS/RESIGNATIONS - None EXECUTIVE SESSION - ===PAGE 5=== • 1. Under M.G. L. Chapter 39, Section 23B (3), to discuss strategy with respect to collective bargaining or litigation oadue strategy session in preparation or negotiations witnomini promine; to cainy cosic collectin induet strateov session in prepai bargaining and contract negotiations with non-union personnel. — No need for Executive Session this evening Public Discussion: Ms. Bertram stated that she had attended a Regional Trails Organizational meeting which is a compilation of different groups who are interested in forming a Regional Trails Organization to increase awareness and appreciation of existing recreational trails. They have some good ideas of how to spark ecotourism in surrounding communities. She hopes the Lunenburg Planning Board and Conservation Commission get involved in this group. Being no further business the board voted unanimously to adjourn the meeting at 9:45 p.m. UPCOMING MEETING SCHEDULE April 17, 2012 May 1, 2012 May 8, 2012 May 15, 2012 May 5, 2012 Annual Town Meeting May 22, 2012 Respectfully submitted, Susan Doherty, Recording Secretary Board of Selectmen ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2012-04-17-agenda-4802.txt BOARD : select-board DATE : 2012-04-17 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/select-board/2012-04-17-agenda-4802.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_04172012-4802 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== BOARD OF SELECTMEN April 17, 2012 7:00 PM – 2 ND FLOOR TOWN HALL JOSEPH F. BILOTTA MEETING ROOM AGENDA PUBLIC COMMENT ANNOUNCEMENTS APPOINTMENTS 7:00 p.m. Proclamation for State Trooper Daniel Jones, heroic service 7:00 p.m. Public Hearing, Pole Location, Leominster-Shirley Road, Pole No. 5 CURRENT BUSINESS 1. FY2013 Budget & Override; Review & Recommendatio ns on Town Meeting Warrant Articles 2. Establishment of Memorial Day Committee 3. Remote Participation Policy, continue to May 22, 2012 4. Request for Approval from Lions Club, for Road B lock, 05/12/12 5. Minutes/ Warrants/ Action File Issues 6. Committee Report 7. Department Reports 8. Town Manager Reports OLD BUSINESS APPOINTMENTS/ RE-APPOINTMENTS/ RESIGNATIONS EXECUTIVE SESSION 1. M.G.L. Chapter 39, Section 23B [3], to discuss s trategy with respect to collective bargaining or litigation if an open meeting may have a detrimental effect on the government’s bargaining or litigating position. Also, to conduct strategy session in preparation for negotiations with non- union personnel; to actually conduct collective bargaining and contract negotiations with non- union personnel. UPCOMING MEETING SCHEDULE May 1, 2012 May 5, 2012 Annual Town Meeting May 8, 2012 May 15, 2012 May 22, 2012 ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2012-04-17-minutes-4802.txt BOARD : select-board DATE : 2012-04-17 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/select-board/2012-04-17-minutes-4802.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_04172012-4802 ======================================================================================== ===OCR macOS Vision=== ===PAGE 1=== RECEIVED & FILED MAY 1 4 2012 BOARD OF SELECTMEN MEETING MINUTES 4/17/12 LUNENBURG TOWN CLEKA OFFICE The Board of Selectmen met in the Joseph F. Bilotta Meeting Room, Town Hall as scheduled with David Matthews Steven M. deBettencourt, Paula Bertram, Tom Alonzo, Carl "Ernie" Sund and Town Manager Kerry Speidel present. Regular Meeting opened at 7:00 PM with the Pledge of Allegiance. PUBLIC COMMENT Dave McDonald, Island Rd., began by congratulating Chief Bourgeois on his upcoming retirement. He stated that he is a member of the Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility in Lunenburg and he had a hand out which he provided to the Board. The handout consisted of information taken from news articles which were published in the Fitchburg Sentinel & Enterprise concerning the override in Lunenburg and identified other communities that are facing the same financial woes. He then had Ms. Bertram read one of the articles which was entitled "Vote No on Lunenburg Override". After Ms. Bertram read the article, which asked for a 3 year override rather than a 5 year, Mr. McDonald urged the author of the letter to come to Town Meeting to vote. Mr. McDonald went on to thank Mr. Sund for his concerns for the senior citizens in Lunenburg. He stated that that the Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility identified a solution for senior citizens, which is the Circuit Breaker Tax Credit from the state which allows up to a $980 refundable credit on state income taxes based upon the total amount of property taxes paid. He stated that it was our job to educate the elders on these programs that are available to them. He ended his comments by saying that he hoped that the Board, as a group, comes out to support the override. Milree Keeling, 324 Sunnyhill Rd., asked the Board what cuts in services, excluding the cuts in the school department, would she see as a taxpayer in Lunenburg if the override did not pass. Mr. Matthews told her that we would not be able to maintain services to the town such as road repair, staffing cuts and eventually there would be fewer police officers, no growth in the fire department, and less DPW personnel on the roads. Mr. Alonzo and Ms. Bertram also added to what the town would look like if the override did not pass which included comments about senior center and library cuts. Mr. Matthews clarified some confusing information which was published in the Lunenburg Ledger that stated that the taxes would go up 12.5% each year. He said that it was incorrect and that they would increase by about 11% one time, which would be the new base line for further increases down the road. ANNOUNCEMENTS APPOINTMENTS 7:00 p.m. Proclamation for State Trooper Daniel Jones, heroic service - Lunenburg Police Chief Dan Bourgeois spoke on behalf of the Lunenburg and Fitchburg Police and Fire Departments and he gave their personal thanks in way of a proclamation and commendation to State Trooper Daniel Jones for the heroic service he performed at the scene of an automobile accident on March 24, 2012. Trooper Jones was off duty at the time when he witnessed the accident and did not hesitate to come to the aide of the two passengers in the burning vehicle, without regard for his own personal safety. If he had not pulled the passenger from the vehicle, it is the opinion of all safety departments that were involved, that the passenger would not have survived this accident. He stated that Trooper Jones went beyond the call of duty in this act. On behalf of the Board, Mr. Matthews thanked Trooper Jones and read the proclamation into record which was followed by a standing ovation from the BOS and the people in attendance. The BOS signed the proclamation and it was then presented to Trooper Jones. ===PAGE 2=== 7:00 p.m. Public Hearing, Pole Location, Leominster-Shirley Road, Pole No. 5 - Mr. Matthews read the Notice to Abutters regarding the pole location for Pole No. 5 on Leominster-Shirley Rd. Paul Schneider, Manager-Rights of Way for Verizon New England, explained the purpose for the new pole which would be to "feed" the LaForge Company. The existing pole has been hit numerous times by trucks and is deteriorating. There were no abutters present nor was there any feedback received from them on this matter. Mr. Alonzo moved to approve the pole relocation as shown on the maps provided by Verizon. Ms. Bertram seconded. On vote, motion carried, 5 in favor, 0 opposed. It was then moved and seconded to close the public hearing. CURRENT BUSINESS 1. FY2013 Budget & Override; Review & Recommendations on Town Meeting Warrant Articles - STM Article 1: Ms. Speidel presented information on STM Article 1, Prior Year Unpaid Bills which are for six bills that are for medical services provided to a police officer who was injured on duty in May 2010. She presented a spread sheet which detailed the outstanding bills that exceeded the injured on duty insurance cap of $50,000, by a total of $6,595.98. The Town Manager's office was not made aware of these bills until after the December STM. All medical providers have been notified about what the town's policy is in regards to unpaid bills and they are aware that they need to go for approval at STM. This will be covered by a transfer of money which the Town Manager has not identified yet. Discussion ensued among the board members concerning the amount of time which has passed since the bills were submitted and the fact that we are charging ourselves for services provided. Members discussed whether or not the bill for the Town of Lunenburg Ambulance should be abated or waived. Ms. Speidel said she did not put this forward as an abatement because it does not meet the criteria for an abatement as identified in the Board's Abatement Policy. Ms. Bertram felt that a policy should be adopted to waive these types of bills where payment only goes back into the general funds of the town. Ms. Speidel said that she would have no problem if the BOS decided to waive that bill. Mr. Sund motioned to waive the $990.00 payment to the Town of Lunenburg Ambulance. Mr. deBettencourt seconded. Discussion: Mr. deBettencourt questioned the dates of the services provided that cover two fiscal years. His thought was that the services provided were in FY12. Ms. Speidel said that the services were actually provided in FY11 and that the dates on the spread sheet are of the latest statement bills, which she will make that change on the spread sheet for the BOS. On vote, 4 in favor, 1 opposed (Alonzo). Mr. Alonzo stated that he was not in favor of waiving the bill because he feels that they shouldn't adopt policies on the day that they have to make the policy enforce and use it. A new motion was then presented by Ms. Bertram to approve the revised amount on STM Article 1 by $990.00. Mr. deBettencourt seconded. On vote, motion carried, 5 in favor, O opposed. STM Article 20: This article was put forth by the Board of Assessors to adopt a local acceptance statute which would set the minimum value of personal property accounts at $2,500 in order to receive a bill. Ms. Speidel stated that the BOS had asked for more information from the Board of Assessors on what the lost revenue would be. Harald Scheid, Regional Tax Assessor for the Town of Lunenburg sent an email to the Town Manager showing the impact numbers on the personal property exemption. Ms. Speidel read the email to the BOS and said that the net loss would be approximately $3,000. Discussion ensued on why the $3,000 should be returned to the Assessors office for processing bills when there is no money to give back. This item was tabled until the next BOS meeting. The BOS had requested that a representative from the Sewer Commission and Public Access Television Commission attend this meeting for further clarification on STM Articles 22 & 25. Both groups will be represented at the May 1, 2012 meeting. ===PAGE 3=== Ms. Speidel reviewed the adjustment which was made at the last meeting to recommend to include $17,000 to partially restore one of the two Administrative Assistant positions that would be cut under the balanced budget. After reviewing the adjustment Ms. Speidel did not think that the vote they had taken would accomplish the Board's intent. She put together a spread sheet which proposes some alternative scenarios. Her concern is that the two positions are currently filled, and if the override were to pass and funding was restored for a full time position and then cut the other down to 19 hours non-benefit, then she believes the town would have liability for unemployment. She proposed that putting both positions at 27 or 25 hours for the same amount of money would avoid having to pay unemployment. Mr. Matthews said that he would be in favor of going to the 27 hour alternative with the long term view that they need to look at all the land use departments and get a better cohesive unit at the Ritter Building. Ms. Bertram agreed with Mr. Matthews and reminded the Board that she thinks it is important to have somebody in both of those offices to answer citizen's questions and concerns. She also questioned the no override decision of 36 vs. 40 hours for the combined position and said that if it was 40 hours then there would be no concerns about extra time for meetings. Ms. Bertram would like to eliminate the scenario of having a recording secretary at that office and then increase the hours to 40. She also would like to see the hours that the office is open to the public be adjusted to accommodate meetings, so as to not stretch the hourly limit of the Administrative Assistant. Another concern she had is that these two offices are "stand alone" offices and if the office is not open there will be no one else to refer questions to. She feels that the Building Department and Planning Boards Administrative Assistants have someone to report to and if they are not there then there is someone else to refer questions to. She agrees that there are going to be cuts but wants to re-look at all of the land use departments and reducing hours in other land use departments as well. Ms. Speidel informed the Board that the amendment will have to be made at town meeting and all of the spread sheets will also have to be updated as well. Discussion began about combining the Building Department and BOH rather than BOH and Conservation. Concerns were raised about making adjustments to the departments after a vote has been taken a Town Meeting and it was determined that if there were adjustments to be made then they would have to be done at STM in the fall. The BOS decided to have a workshop on April 24 at 6:00 p.m. to discuss this issue. The board members held a lengthy conversation about the override and the effects on all citizens whether it passes or not. There were comments regarding the senior citizen circuit breaker tax credit that was discussed earlier by Dave McDonald. Mr. Sund feels that we have to look after the seniors who are on a fixed income. Mr. Alonzo made a fervent plea concerning the support of the override and what will happen if it is not supported. Ms. Bertram commented in saying that she is sympathetic with the seniors and how the Senior Center was a life line for her when she needed help with family members. She said that she was not in favor of an override when she first ran for the Board but said that we have reached the end of the road and cannot continue to cut programs to seniors and children. She asked Mr. Sund which programs he would cut to the tune of $2.2M dollars to sustain us or the next five years to which he replied some of the road management funds, eliminate the Head Start Program that according to numerous studies is not effective. Ms. Bertram said she was interested in hearing more about that but she wished he had brought these ideas before now. She is concerned about the dialogue over the past few weeks about the override and that it is confusing people. Milree Keeling spoke to this discussion in saying that the pre-school program is required by law because they must service children with disabilities. She added that enrollment was opened to all people in the community but in order to participate they pay tuition from their own funds. There is no tax payer subsidized pre-school except for those who it is required by law to pay for, and therefore it is not an option to not provide that. Mr. Sund then rescinded his comment about the cut to the pre-school program. Ms. Keeling also touched on the senior circuit breaker tax credit and how the refund works. Ms. Bertram reminded people of the other options available to seniors such as the Lunenburg Senior Citizen Tax Work- Off program and encouraged people to contact the town hall and the senior center for more information on these programs. 2. Establishment of Memorial Day Committee - Ms. Speidel read the proposal for a Memorial Day Planning Committee which was brought forward by Mr. Sund. This is an Ad Hoc committee. Ms. Bertram motioned that the ===PAGE 4=== Town establish a Memorial Day Celebration Planning Committee in accordance with the guideline laid out by Selectmen Sund. Mr. deBettencourt seconded. On vote, motion carried, 5 in favor, O opposed. 3. Remote Participation Policy, continue to May 22, 2012 4. Request for Approval from Lions Club, for Road Block, 05/12/12 - There were no representatives in attendance from the Lions Club so Mr. Matthews explained what they were about and what they raise funds for. Mr. deBettencourt motioned for approval for the Lions Club Road Block. Mr. Alonzo seconded. On vote, motion carried, 4 in favor, 0 opposed, 1 recused (Bertram) 5. Minutes/Warrants/Action File Issues - The following minutes and warrants were presented for approval. 1. Minutes: None 2. Warrants - W # 61-12 $89,326.69 Warrant for Town Election Warrant for Town Meeting 3. Action File Issues - Mr. Alonzo asked for an update on the walkway at the Whalom rotary. Ms. Speidel told him that she had received a report from the Planning Director and that she needs to review it. Mr. Matthews wanted to know what was going on with the trash barrels in Whalom on the water front. Ms. Speidel replied that as far as she knows it is the same plan as always and that the Town collects the trash. Mr. Matthews commented about the accident which occurred on RTA that Trooper Jones assisted at and said that there is still debris there. Ms. Bertram requested copies be made of emails sent by town council concerning the changes in the Open Meeting Law which contains good information about email communication and detailed agenda items. Ms. Speidel has requested town council have a workshop on this matter but has not heard back from them yet. 6. Committee Report -Mr. Alonzo said that there will be an informational work shop from the Mass Broad Band Institute on May 22, 2012. Ms. Bertram attended the MMPO meeting on April 11" ! The next meeting on May 9" will be for discussion on establishing FY13 through FY16 target projects. She said that right now the Summer Street project is not slated in that tip. Her understanding is that without a minimum of the 25% engineering funded it will not be included in this tip. She is trying to get more information as to where we are with that funding. Ms. Spiedel commented and said that she was encouraged at comments which were made by Senator Flanagan about amending the state transportation bond bill but they were unable to do so and that there will not be any state money in this fiscal year for the Summer St. project. She reminded board members that there is a warrant article on STM for appropriation of funds which will cover the town's share of the 25%. Hopefully next year they will be ready to submit. Ms. Bertram said that this project is rated number 4 on the list and it is important to keep the MPO informed of whats going on so we don't get lost on that list. Also discussed at MMPO was a program from MRPC called "Mr. Mapper" which is a free GIS program available on their website and is available for citizens and town departinents. 7. Department Reports - None 8. Town Manager Reports- Ms. Speidel was a request to approve a Peddler's License and a Common Victualler License from Rick's Foods doing business as Harry's Road Side at 184 Lakefront Avenue. The BOS had already approved these licenses or 2011 but the Rick's Foods needed to obtain a food handler's permit from the BOH which they have just obtained. They did not operate the business in 2011 but are looking to operate in 2012. Mr. Alonzo moved that they approve the two licenses for Rick's Foods doing business as Harry's Road Side. Ms. Bertram seconded. On vote, motion carried, 5 in favor, 0 opposed. OLD BUSINESS APPOINTMENTS/RE-APPOINTMENTS/RESIGNATIONS - None ===PAGE 5=== Mr. Matthews asked for any further discussion from the board. Mr deBettencourt said he was glad that the accident debris on 2A was brought up and added that the control box in Whalom was hit and he would like the box be replaced or repaired. EXECUTIVE SESSION - 1. Under M.G. L. Chapter 39, Section 23B (3), to discuss strategy with respect to collective bargaining or litigation if an open meeting may have a detrimental effect on the government's bargaining or litigating position. Also to conduct strategy session in preparation for negotiations with non-union personnel; to actually conduct collective bargaining and contract negotiations with non-union personnel. - No need for Executive Session this evening Being no further business Mr. deBettencourt made a motion to adjourn. Ms. Bertram seconded. The board voted unanimously to adjourn the meeting at 9:03 p.m. UPCOMING MEETING SCHEDULE May 1, 2012 May 5, 2012 Annual Town Meeting May 15, 2012 May 22, 2012 Respectfully submitted, Susan Doherty, Recording Secretary Board of Selectmen May 8, 2012 June 5, 2012 ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2012-04-24-agenda-4803.txt BOARD : select-board DATE : 2012-04-24 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/select-board/2012-04-24-agenda-4803.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_04242012-4803 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== BOARD OF SELECTMEN April 24, 2012 6:00 PM – 2 ND FLOOR TOWN HALL JOSEPH F. BILOTTA MEETING ROOM AGENDA PUBLIC COMMENT ANNOUNCEMENTS APPOINTMENTS CURRENT BUSINESS 1. FY2013 Budget & Override; Review & Recommendatio ns on Town Meeting Warrant Articles 2. Establishment of Memorial Day Committee OLD BUSINESS APPOINTMENTS/ RE-APPOINTMENTS/ RESIGNATIONS EXECUTIVE SESSION UPCOMING MEETING SCHEDULE May 1, 2012 May 5, 2012 Annual Town Meeting May 8, 2012 May 15, 2012 May 22, 2012 ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2012-04-24-minutes-4803.txt BOARD : select-board DATE : 2012-04-24 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/select-board/2012-04-24-minutes-4803.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_04242012-4803 ======================================================================================== ===OCR macOS Vision=== ===PAGE 1=== BOARD OF SELECTMEN MEETING MINUTES 4/24/12 The Board of Selectmen met in the Joseph F. Bilotta Meeting Room, Town Hall as scheduled with David Matthews, Steven M. deBettencourt, Tom Alonzo, Carl "Ernie" Sund and Town Manager Kerry Speidel present. Absent was Paula Bertram Meeting opened at 6:00 PM with the Pledge of Allegiance. PUBLIC COMMENT - None ANNOUNCEMENTS - None APPOINTMENTS - None CURRENT BUSINESS 1. FX2013 Budget & Override; Review & Recommendations on Town Meeting Warrant Articles - The Town Manager informed the Board that she had met with the Board of Health (BOH) the previous evening and has developed three alternative scenarios to the Land Use Department Administrative Assistant position cut that may be more acceptable. (1) Increase the combined Conservation and BOS position to 40 hours per week and then reduce both Building and Planning Dept. Administrative Assistant hours to 34 per week. (Both the Building and Planning positions are currently 40 hr. per week positions and all 40 hour positions are being reduced across the board to 36 hrs. This would mean an additional 2 hours for each of those departments cut.) (2) Keep all four positions in the Land Use Dept. Building/Planning would be reduced to 35 hrs each. BOH and Conservation would be reduced to 20 hours each. (3) Reduce hours in all Land Use Depts. to 27.5 hrs. All three scenarios would amount to the same in savings as in the originally proposed balanced budget. Discussion ensued concerning the notification of all Land Use Departments about these scenarios and the concern of being able to keep all these departments open at the same time. Mr. Alonzo stated that he felt the Town Manager has done her job and that there was too much time being spent analyzing this issue. BOH member Dave Passios voiced his concern about all the positions being over-taxed. Jack Rodriquenz, DPW Director, spoke and said that as a Department Head he feels that the Town in not operating efficiently and that there is not enough money. He stated that with all due respect it was not the Board's decision to make on this issue and that they had hired a person to do this job, and they should let her do it. Mr. deBettencourt questioned the possibility of union bumping with these positions. Ms. Speidel said that all of the union positions have bumping rights but that it was not up for public discussion. Corine Scouten Spees repe had why auly on inpatient was being reuced and not all i hi putions cople reduced to 36 hrs. The Town Manager will discuss this matter further with all of the Land Use Departments. ===PAGE 2=== 2. Establishment of Memorial Day Committee - Not discussed 3. Minutes/Warrants/Action File Issues - The following minutes and warrants were presented for approval. 1. Minutes: None 2. Warrants - 62-12, 4/25/12, $654.909.86 22P-12, 4/26/12, $589,887.73 3. Action File Issues - Town Manager Reports- Ms. Speidel said that she had received more detail on the Senior Citizen Circuit Breaker rebate which is that applications will be taken throughout the year (2011) and if you are applying for a 2011 rebate, you can also apply for rebates for 2010 and 2009. Informational packets on the Circuit Breaker can be picked up at the Eagle House Senior Center. The Municipal Aggregation Program will be offering greatly reduced rates as of June 1, 2012 from 7.77 cents per KW to 5.85 cents per KW which amounts to a 25% reduction which gives Lunenburg the lowest rates in the state. The consultant suggests that the town look into a longer term contract the next time it goes out to bid due to the fact that within the next six months, the rates may bottom out. Ms. Speidel will have more information at the next BOS meeting. An Open Meeting Law complaint was filed against the Town Clerk's office and the Board by the Fitchburg Sentinel and Enterprise newspaper. A reporter from that paper claimed that when she checked the outside bulletin board on Friday April 13th for the April 17" BOS agenda, it was not there. Ms. Speidel said that she had submitted the agenda on April. 12" and that it was date stamped as such at about Noon. When asked, the Town Clerk told her that it was posted, outside in the bulletin board, at approximately 6PM on April 12th. Ms. Speidel told the Board that if they were concerned about the votes that were taken that evening relating to the FY13 Budget & Override and the Memorial Day Committee, then those items will be added again to the agenda for confirmation at the next BOS meeting. OLD BUSINESS APPOINTMENTS/RE-APPOINTMENTS/RESIGNATIONS -None EXECUTIVE SESSION - None Discussion: Mr. Matthews informed the BOS that he had drafted a letter to Representative Jen Benson, identifying two concerns. The first was concern regarding the State's attempt to clarify taxation of Solar Farm development. One proposal under review by the House would severely limit the Town ability to obtain a full and fair tax value on this type of development. The Town is opposed to approval of this legislation. The second item was regarding the Quinn Bill. Some Police Unions (excluding Lunenburg) are trying to force towns to pay the state's 50% share. Lunenburg's contract already addresses this issue and it was also decided by the Supreme Judicial Court that cities and towns can't be held responsible for the state's share. The Town is opposed to approval of any legislation that would attempt to override the SJC decision. Being no further business Mr. deBettencourt made a motion to adjourn. unanimously to adjourn the meeting at 6:41 p.m. Mr. Sund seconded. The board voted UPCOMING MEETING SCHEDULE May 1, 2012 May 15, 2012 Respectfully submitted, Susan Doherty, Recording Secretary Board of Selectmen May 5, 2012 Annual Town Meeting May 22, 2012 May 8, 2012 June 5, 2012 ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2012-05-01-agenda-4804.txt BOARD : select-board DATE : 2012-05-01 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/select-board/2012-05-01-agenda-4804.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_05012012-4804 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== BOARD OF SELECTMEN /g48/g68/g92/g3/g20/g15/g3/g21/g19/g20/g21 7:00 PM – 2 ND FLOOR TOWN HALL JOSEPH F. BILOTTA MEETING ROOM AGENDA PUBLIC COMMENT ANNOUNCEMENTS APPOINTMENTS 7:00 p.m. Candidates for Clockwinders: John Lynch; Thomas Mrowka 7:10 p.m. Sewer Commission to review warrant articles 7:20 p.m. PACC to review warrant article 8:00 p.m. Chief Bourgeois, Patrol Officer Appointm ent CURRENT BUSINESS 1. Review & Recommendations on Town Meeting Warrant Articles 2. Review/ Approve 1-Day Liquor License for St. Bon iface Church for Italian Festival, June 1, 2012 3. Review/ Approve Dual Representation Agreement, R eview of Town of Townsend Paramedic Service Agreement. 4. Confirmation of votes taken at April 17, 2012 BO S Meeting a. Pole Location, Leominster-Shirley Road, Pole No. 5 b. Waiver of Fee for Ambulance Service for transpor t of Municipal Personnel on May 5, 2010 c. Recommend approval of STM Article 1 d. Establishment of Memorial Day Committee e. Request for Road Block from Lions Club 05/12/12 f. Warrant #61; Town Meeting Warrant; Town Election Warrant g. Peddler’s License & Common Victualler’s License for Rick’s Foods d/b/a Harry’s Roadside OLD BUSINESS APPOINTMENTS/ RE-APPOINTMENTS/ RESIGNATIONS EXECUTIVE SESSION 1. M.G.L. Chapter 39, Section 23B [3], to discuss strategy with respect to collective bargaining or litigation if an open meeting may have a detrimental effect on the government’s bargaining or litigating position. Also, to conduct strategy session in preparation for negotiations with non-union personnel; to actually conduct collective bargaining and contract negotiations with non-union personnel . ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2012-05-01-minutes-4804.txt BOARD : select-board DATE : 2012-05-01 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/select-board/2012-05-01-minutes-4804.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_05012012-4804 ======================================================================================== ===OCR macOS Vision=== ===PAGE 1=== BOARD OF SELECTMEN MEETING MINUTES 5/1/12 A 15 The Board of Selectmen met in the Joseph F. Bilotta Meeting Room, Town Hall as scheduled with David Matthews, Steven M. deBettencourt, Paula Bertram, Tom Alonzo, and Town Manager Kerry Speidel present. Absent was Carl "Ernie" Sund. Regular Meeting opened at 7:00 PM with the Pledge of Allegiance. PUBLIC COMMENT Mr. Alonzo informed the public about the upcoming Lunenburg Boys & Girls Club/Teen Center Auction which will be held at the Bull Run Restaurant in Shirley MA, on May 3, 2012 at 6 p.m. Jackie Ramondelli, 599 Reservoir Rd., voiced her concerns about the automated phone calls which were sent out by the Superintendent's office informing residents, with students in the Lunenburg school system, about the upcoming Town Meeting and the importance of attending. She stated that she did not support the override and that using the phone system for anything other than school announcements for closings and emergencies was not the correct way to utilize this system. Her thoughts were that if it was being used for political purposes, then the opponents of the override should be able to use it also. She feels that people who are in support of the override can make donations to the town/school in order to support it. Ms. Speidel responded that this system can be used for municipal informational purposes but not by the general public. Loxi Jo Calmes, School Superintendent, said that she wanted to make it clear that it was not a political statement, and then read the announcement into record which was sent out via the automated phone call to residents. Carol Hatch, 41 Hilltop Lane, said that she has been laid off from the Lunenburg School System and is currently unemployed. She said that she is struggling with her vote decision but will still support the override because she has seen what happens when you don't spend the money to maintain the buildings and does not want to see the schools go without what is needed. Linda Vickery, 71 Arbor Street, asked Mr. deBettencourt "without the override and the budget being presented, how is that going to move Lunenburg forward?" Mr. deBettencourt responded that he was "not looking at moving Lunenburg forward with an override where ¾ of it will be going towards salaries." Discussion ensued about classroom size and the number of students who have left/entered the school system. Ms. Calmes referred people to the school's website and confirmed that enrollment is increasing then explained where the increases are coming from. She stated that this override is not driven by the salaries and that it is not accurate to point towards the salaries as being the budget busters. Mr. Alonzo stated that he could not speak to what amount of the override was going towards salaries but that it is not a surprise that in private corporations as well as municipal America salaries are the "lions share" of what you do because the people provide the services. He thinks the focus should be on the services that those people provide, who may or may not be there depending on how the override goes. He still would like to know if the override does not pass, does this take Lunenburg in a positive direction? Mr. deBettencourt stated that he has to run the numbers again and still questioned where a surplus of $1.4M is going after a 3% increase in salaries. He feels he has not gotten answers to that question. Mike Mackin, said that $300,000 of the $1.2M that will be going to salaries, which can be attributed to union contract increases. The deficit for the $1.2M is after the Chapter 70 monies have been figured in. ===PAGE 2=== Mr. Matthews read an update from the school department on where the monies have been spent and stated that the facts should drive this discussion. Greg Berthiuame, 1084 Mass Avenue,. stated that he is a school committee member and is concerned that people feel that the school budget has not been clearly explained. They have had budget hearings, discussions at a number of public recorded meetings and that the data is all on the school dept. website for anyone to see. He said that this has been a clear. open, transparent process that they have been working on since September of last year. He can't force people to read, listen or pay attention to what's been going on but he will not tolerate anyone saying that the process has not been open, public & clear. ANNOUNCEMENTS APPOINTMENTS 7:00 p.m. Candidates for Clock Winders: John Lynch; Thomas Mrowka - John Lynch, 453 Page St. stated that he is a watch maker and owns and watch and jewelry repair store and has been running that business in town for approximately 24 years. He would like to be one of the clock winders appointed this evening. Thomas Mrowka, Cross Rd., stated that he has been working on the clock with Mr. Dettenrider for the past two years. He then told the BOS that his background was in finance and that he thought the BOS had a lot to learn about budgeting. Mr. Alonzo told him that there were also openings on the Finance Committee and they would like someone with that kind of background on the finance committee. Mr. Mrowka also asked what happened to the procedure that was in place in 1969 that if you lived on a fixed income, your taxes would automatically be cut in half. He would like to see that be put back in place. Mr. Alonzo moved that the BOS appoint both John Lynch and Thomas Mrowka as clock winders. Mr. deBettencourt seconded. On vote, motion carried 4 in favor, 0 opposed STM Article 20 (Discussed out of order): Harold Scheid, Principal Assessor for the Town of Lunenburg spoke to this article to explain that the purpose of the article is to set a threshold for personal property taxation. He said that Lunenburg has a number of small businesses that have small collections of personal property such as desks & file cabinets which are assessed a tax. At this time Ms. Bertram recused herself from this discussion. He went onto say that the tax could be as little as $5 or less and tax payers were asking why such small taxes were levied upon this equipment when the cost of postage and collections exceed the revenue that is brought in. He said that this article, if passed, invokes a Mass General Law that allows the town to exempt property taxes where the valuation falls below the recommended threshold of $2500. Discussion began on why this article should be passed or not regarding loss of revenue to the town. Bob Ebersole, 94 Main Street, spoke and asked when they assess all the properties and set the tax rate, is it the same tax rate for personal property as is residential, to which Mr. Scheid replied yes. Mr. Ebersole then said that if you eliminate parcels, he thinks that you would redistribute this income across all the property and not lose the income. He said that you would not reduce taxes, just eliminate the administrative delivery of them and then the $3,000 would be spread across all properties in the entire town. Mr. Alonzo motioned to recommended disapproval of STM Article 20. Mr. deBettencourt seconded. Discussion: Mr. deBettencourt stated that he thinks there is validity to the idea of getting rid of the low end bills. On vote, motion passed, 2 in favor, 1 abstention (deBettencourt) 7:10 p.m. Sewer Commission to review warrant articles - Robert Ebersole, Chairman of the Sewer Commission, reviewed with the Board the context of the sewer commission article for the proposed bylaw regarding connectior eligibility. This article states that when a person requests to be connected to the sewer, the connection must come from that person's property, onto the sewered way, and will not connect through another property through means of an ===PAGE 3=== easement. Ms. Bertram moved to recommend approval. Mr. deBettencourt seconded. On vote, motion carried, 4 in tavor, 0 opposed. 8:00 p.m. (Taken out of order) Chief Bourgeois, Patrol Officer Appointment - Police Chief Dan Bourgeois spoke and asked for the Board consideration of Officer Josh Tocci to fill a vacant, full time position on the Lunenburg Police force. He gave a history of Officer Tocci's involvement with the department along with his education background. He stated that Officer Tocci was one of four candidates interviewed for the job by the Union President, Town Manager, Lt. Marino, and the two Police Sergeants. It was a unanimous decision that Officer Tocci was the number one candidate for the position. Officer Tocci spoke to the BOS and said that he has served on the Lunenburg Police Dept. for the past 8 years. He said that he grew up in Lunenburg and it has been an honor to serve the community. He is looking forward to the next 8 years and giving the best service he can offer. The BOS congratulated and thanked Officer Tocci which was followed by applause from the audience. Ms. Speidel asked the BOS to take a vote to ratify the appointment under section 4-2[d] of the Town Charter. Mr. Alonzo moved to ratify the appointment. Ms. Bertram seconded. On vote, motion carried, 4 in favor, 0 opposed. 7:20 p.m. PACC to review warrant article - Lance May, Chairman of PACC, explained to the Board why they were present this evening which was concerning article 25 on the STM warrant. He stated that the amendments were largely "house keeping" that were left over from a STM 12/5/07. He said that the Attorney General had given recommendations on the changes. Mr. May introduced PACC members, Fred Crellin and Rhonda Lisio and they explained the changes they were seeking to make. They would like to delete Article 4 section 3 of the PACC bylaws which concerns term limit policy and to change language in Article 5 section 1 which deals with set meeting times. Corrections to section 4 of the original PACC bylaw concerning the Open Meeting Law need to be corrected because it quotes the wrong chapter of Mass General law. Also language corrections needed to be made in Article 7 Amendments. Discussion ensued where Mir. Alonzo recommended that the word "monthly" be left in Article 5, section 1. He feels that there should be a definitive term as to when the meetings are held. Ms. Bertram motioned to recommend approval of article 25. Mr. Alonzo seconded. On vote, motion carried, 4 in favor, 0 opposed. CURRENT BUSINESS 1. FY2013 Budget & Override; Review & Recommendations on Town Meeting Warrant Articles - The Town Manager informed the BOS that they still need to make recommendations on STM articles 2, 3 & 7. Article 2 and Article 3 will be passed over. Ms. Speidel presented information and spreadsheets concerning Article 3 with budget adjustments that she wished to review with the BOS for current fiscal year. Under Mass General Law, These adjustments can be handled internally and will not need to be presented at the Annual Town Meeting. Ms. Speidel mentioned the Choice & Charter Tuitions which have had another increase of $49,532 due to another growth in enrollment as of April 15, 2012. She believes that due to a lower than projected enrollment in health insurance, this shortfall should be able to be covered and that these increases/adjustments are problematic. The spreadsheet which was distributed to the BOS detailing actions needed to close out FY2012 and any changes, increases, or savings in various line items was discussed. The Town Manager stated that if these numbers hold, and if revenues come in as projected, the Town can expect to see a small of amount of Free Cash certified at year end. Mr. Matthews requested that the snow and ice/October storm expenses be closed out as well. Ms. Speidel said that she is still working on reviewing the finalized submission for FEMA. She said the numbers presented on the spreadsheet assume that 75% of 100% the expenses incurred will be reimbursed by FEMA. STM Article 7 was discussed concerning the transfer from free cash a sum of money to fund extraordinary unemployment benefits incurred as a result of layoffs in FY10, FY11 or FY12. The unemployment expenses were lower than expected and upon investigation it was found that employees laid off in 2011 qualified for extended benefits funded by the federal government, which in turn made the employees disappear from the monthly invoices which are received from state unemployment. When the federal benefits of these employees were exhausted, they showed up again on the monthly state ===PAGE 4=== invoice. Due to this process the unemployment expenses in 2012 are more than what was anticipated. The expenses on the town side can be covered within existing appropriations due to lower than expected costs in health insurance however the schools cannot cover their deficit due to higher than expected special education costs. Ms. Bertram motioned to recommend approval of Article 7. Mr. Alonzo seconded. Discussion: Mr. Alonzo said that it makes sense that we appropriate this and that we are still well below the combined appropriations for unemployment benefits. On vote, motion carried, 4 in favor, 0 opposed. Ms. Speidel informed the Board that they had not made a recommendation on the Sewer Enterprise budget because they had not received the amounts to be appropriated. She referred them to page 7 of the motion sheet concerning Article 15 where the amounts are now included for a total amount of $643,726. Mr. Alonzo motioned to recommend approval for Article 15. Ms. Bertram seconded. On vote, motion carried, 4 in favor, 0 opposed. STM Article 21 which asks for the town to appropriate a sum of money from the Zoning Incentive Stabilization Fund to fund the Town's share of the 25% design fee ($138,700.) for the reconstruction of Summer St. was discussed. Ms. Bertram motioned to recommend approval of Article 21. Mr. Alonzo seconded. On vote, motion carried 4 in favor, O opposed. Discussion commenced concerning the Solar Bylaw Amendment. Ms. Bertram stated that there was a public hearing the previous night on the petitioner's article and some continued discussion on the Planning Board article. She said that the consensus was by both the petitioners and the Planning Board that if it were possible to present one complete bylaw at town meeting it would be in everyone's best interest. She said that there was some consensus to changes to the Planning Board article relative to security cameras and abandonment. Ms. Bertram felt that the meeting was very good but as a citizen herself she still has concerns about the special permit component of the planning board article. She believes that the Planning Board article, with changes, will be put forth on the floor at town meeting and the petitioner's article will be passed over. The Planning Board has a scheduled, posted, meeting planned at 8AM before the Town Meeting at the High School to discuss the special permit component of the bylaw. Mr. Alonzo stated that he also had discussions with the Planning Board Director along with another member of the Planning Board where he voiced his concerns about the special permitting in the bylaw. Mr. deBettencourt stated that in the warrant, concerning Article 9 and stabilization funds, it states that all that's needed is a simple majority vote for this to pass. He stated that he researched the internet and found information from DOR that says this would require a 2/3 vote in order to pass. He then distributed an information package to the members, which explains the process of overrides where stabilization money will be appropriated into certain funds and how the questions should be set up. He believes that Article 9 does not follow the outline of this guideline. Ms. Speidel said that the reason for having Town Counsel and the Moderator review the motions is to make sure that we identify the correct majority that is needed for a vote. They will be reviewing these tomorrow and will give final approval on Thursday and she will point out this issue to them to for review. Mr. Matthews suggested that this issue be tabled until Town Counsel and the Moderator have a chance to look at this information which was brought forward by Mr. deBettencourt. 2. Review/Approve 1-Day Liquor License for St. Boniface Church for Italian Festival, June 1, 2012 - Ms. Speidel explained that this is an annual event that has been reviewed and approved by the Police Chief and that there has never been an issue at any of the events. Ms. Bertram motioned to approve the 1 day liquor license for St. Boniface Church for the Italian Festival on June 1, 2012. Mr. deBettencourt seconded. On vote, motion carried, 4 in favor, opposed. 3. Review/Approve Dual Representation Agreement, Review of Town of Townsend Paramedic Service Agreement - Ms. Speidel explained that when Lunenburg's Town Counsel is asked to review an issue for another town which they represent, that involves us, they are required to disclose this issue to the BOS to ask permission to do so. In this case the Town of Townsend is looking at putting together an inter-municipal agreement for paramedic services. Ms. Bertram motioned to approve the Dual Representation Agreement as forwarded by Town Counsel for the Town of Townsend. Mr. deBettencourt seconded. On vote, motion carried, 4 in favor, 0 opposed. 4. Confirmation of votes taken a April 17, 2012 BOS Meeting a. Pole Location, Leominster-Shirley Road, Pole No. 5 ===PAGE 5=== b. Waiver of Fee for Ambulance Service for transport of Municipal Personnel on May 5, 2010 c. Recommend approval of STM Article 1 d. Establishment of Memorial Day Committee e. Request for Road Block from Lions Club 5/12/12 f. Warrant #61; Town Meeting Warrant; Town Election Warrant g. Peddler's License & Common Victualler's License for Rick's Foods d/b/a Harry's Roadside A complaint was made regarding the posting of the April 17, 2012 meeting by the Sentinel & Enterprise newspaper. Upon review of the posting with Town Counsel, their recommendation was that there is no need to take a confirmation vote if the BOS so chooses. The Town Manager reviewed the events leading up to this complaint and the BOS agreed that the agenda was duly posted and there is no reason to confirm these votes. 5. Minutes/Warrants/Action File Issues - The following minutes and warrants were presented for approval. 1. Minutes: 1/24/12, 4/17/12, & 4/24/12 2. Warrants - W # 63-12 $411,313.63 5/1/12 3. Action File Issues - None 6. Committee Report - None 7. Department Reports - None 8. Town Manager Reports- Ms. Speidel reported that she had two pieces of good news. The first being that the Town will be refunding the 2003 General Obligation Bond Issue which will provide significant savings to the town. This bond issue contains the Primary School and the Public Safety Complex and that the estimated net savings to the town will be $681,566.32. This is a 100% exempt issue, and it will reduce property taxes over the next 10 years remaining on that bond issue. The next item is in regards to the Municipal Electric Aggregation Program. Bids were taken last week for the next 6 month program and they had received very favorable rates. The rate which residential customers will be paying under this program will be 5.85 cents per K W which is a 25% reduction over the existing rate. With this rate Lunenburg will have the lowest supply rates within the state of Massachusetts. There are 4486 customers that are eligible. There were 69 customers that had opted out prior to enrollment, and another 16 opted out after enrollment which makes a 1.8% opt out rate. Fourteen of the opt outs were commercial and the rest were residential, which represents a 4% opt out for businesses. Most of the opt outs were farm customers and will receive the "farm rate" which is 90% of Unitil's standard rate. Ms. Speidel requested that when it is time to go out to bid again, the farm rate bid will also be looked at. A notice was received from the Mass Dept. of Agricultural Resources, Agriculture Preservation Restriction program (APk) Which Ms. Speidel read. The Alk is considering acquiring an interest in approximately 73 acres of land tor inclusion in the APR program. The property in question is located on assessors map 38 lot 17 and map 33 lot 6. Northfield at Chase and New West Townsend Rd. This is a private individual attempting to put his property under the APR restriction. OLD BUSINESS APPOINTMENTS/RE-APPOINTMENTS/RESIGNATIONS - None Mr. Matthew reminded the pubic that Town Meeting is Saturday May 5, 2012 beginning at 9AM at Lunenburg High School and that voting will take place on May 19, 2012 from 7AM-5PM at the Elementary School. Mr. Matthews commented that there has been a lot of discussion about the override and wanted to point out that the discussions from the supporters of the override have been about facts, figures and data about how the money is spent, where any additional money will go and how we got behind the eight ball as related to inflation concerns and reductions in state aide. He said that he has seen a lot of "Just Say No" signs and heard discussions about bad decisions being made years ago to get us to this point and would like to here from the people who don't support the override what their reasons are. He would like people to consider the facts, look at the data, and come to a conclusion their support of the override or not. He said that this problem does not go away and the sooner we can control it, the lower the cost will be. ===PAGE 6=== EXECUTIVE SESSION - 1. Under M.G. L. Chapter 39, Section 23B (3), Mr. Matthews moved that the BOS go into Executive Session, not to return, to discuss strategy with respect to collective bargaining or litigation if an open meeting may have a detrimental effect on the government's bargaining or litigating position. Also to conduct strategy session in preparation for negotiations with non-union personnel; to actually conduct collective bargaining and contract negotiations with non-union personnel. Also to consider the purchase, exchange or lease for value of real property. Mr. deBettencourt motioned to adjourn. Ms. Bertram seconded. On vote, motion carried, 4 in favor, 0 Meeting adjourned at 9:52 p.m. UPCOMING MEETING SCHEDULE May 5, 2012 Annual Town Meeting May 22, 2012 Respectfully submitted, Susan Doherty, Recording Secretary Board of Selectmen May 8, 2012 June 5, 2012 May 15, 2012 June 12, 2012 ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2012-05-05-agenda-4805.txt BOARD : select-board DATE : 2012-05-05 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/select-board/2012-05-05-agenda-4805.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_05052012-4805 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== BOARD OF SELECTMEN May 5, 2012 8:30 AM – Room 201 LUNENBURG HIGH SCHOOL AGENDA CURRENT BUSINESS 1. Review & Make Recommendations on Town Meeting Wa rrant Articles 2. Review Town Ballot Override Question ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2012-05-05-agenda-4927.txt BOARD : select-board DATE : 2012-05-05 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/select-board/2012-05-05-agenda-4927.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_05052012-4927 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== BOARD OF SELECTMEN May 5, 2015 7:00 PM – Town Hall Bilotta Meeting Room, Second Floor AGENDA In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meetings Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over Lunenburg Public Access. 7:00 PM PUBLIC COMMENT ANNOUNCEMENTS APPOINTMENTS CURRENT BUSINESS 1. Annual Town Meeting Follow-up 2. Proclamation for Teacher Appreciation Week 3. Proposal to dedicate Planning Board Meeting room to Marion Benson 4. Minutes/ Warrants/ Action File Issues 5. Committee Report: Board of Health; Building Reuse Committee; Capital Planning Committee; Finance Committee; Library Board of Trustees; MPO; Planning Board; PACC; School Committee; School Building Committee; Sewer Commission 6. Town Manager Reports or Department Reports: INTERVIEWS/ APPOINTMENTS/ RE-APPOINTMENTS/ RESIGNATIONS Resignation: Shelia Holt from Conservation Commission effective April 1, 2015. Appointment: Carl Luck to Conservation Commission with a term to expire June 30, 2015. UPCOMING MEETING SCHEDULE May 12, 2015 May 19, 2015 ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2012-05-08-agenda-4806.txt BOARD : select-board DATE : 2012-05-08 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/select-board/2012-05-08-agenda-4806.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_05082012-4806 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== BOARD OF SELECTMEN May 8, 2012 7:00 PM – 2 ND FLOOR TOWN HALL JOSEPH F. BILOTTA MEETING ROOM AGENDA PUBLIC COMMENT ANNOUNCEMENTS APPOINTMENTS CURRENT BUSINESS 1. Recap of May 5, 2012 Town Meeting 2. Appointments to Memorial Day Committee 3. Minutes/ Warrants/ Action File Issues 4. Committee Report 5. Department Reports 6. Town Manager Reports OLD BUSINESS APPOINTMENTS/ RE-APPOINTMENTS/ RESIGNATIONS EXECUTIVE SESSION UPCOMING MEETING SCHEDULE May 15, 2012 May 22, 2012 ===PAGE 2=== ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2012-05-08-minutes-4806.txt BOARD : select-board DATE : 2012-05-08 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/select-board/2012-05-08-minutes-4806.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_05082012-4806 ======================================================================================== ===OCR macOS Vision=== ===PAGE 1=== :" 1J0905D BOARD OF SELECTMEN MEETING MINUTES 5/8/12 The Board of Selectmen met in the Joseph F. Bilotta Meeting Room, Town Hall as scheduled with David Matthews, Steven M. deBettencourt, Paula Bertram, Tom Alonzo, Carl "Ernie" Sund and Town Manager Kerry Speidel present. Regular Meeting opened at 7:00 PM with the Pledge of Allegiance. PUBLIC COMMENT Mr. Matthews thanked everyone for coming to the Town Meeting on Saturday. John Baker, Chase Rd., spoke about the vote no/yes signs being stolen throughout the town. He feels it is not a "classy" thing to do and wanted to appeal to the public, and to whomever is watching, to "knock it off". Mr. Matthew said that he couldn't agree more and people who have their signs out there deserve to be respected. Lisa Fuellemann, 45 Cortland Circle, said that she has been a Lunenburg resident for 10 years and thanked the BOS for giving her the opportunity to address the board and to thank them all for their service to the town. She asked Mr. Matthews about an article in the May 4" Sentinel & Enterprise where he was quoted as saying the people who were for the override tend to be on the facts, data, and information and the people who were against it had more of an emotional type of response. She thought it was a powerful statement and that it needed more discussion and asked Mr. Matthews to explain the reasoning behind his statements further. Mr. Matthews explained that he has said a number of times that the BOS has been putting a lot of information, facts and figures about inflation rates and how it out runs the Proposition 2 ½ limit, state aide cuts, new growth and how the town benefits from it or breaks even. He said that its facts, figures and data that supports where we are going to. He understands that a lot of the opposition is based on anger which he understands as we all feel like we pay plenty of taxes. As much as we've tried to have a discussion about the facts and figures, we haven't seen it, We just see the "Just Say No" signs. He believes that they have to have a conversation about the facts and figures and where the money goes and how we are going to sustain the town in the future. Loxi Jo Calmes, School Superintendent informed the BOS that today is Teacher Appreciation Day and she hopes they all have had a chance to thank an educator in their life. She had just come from the Jazz Band practice and recognized Mrs. Wardwell for her passion and dedication to the students. She reminded everyone that the Pop's Concert will be coming up this Friday and how you can get tickets. She stated that the music program at the Primary School will be cut without funding from the override. She also reminded everyone that tomorrow is School Nurse Appreciation Day and said that our school nurses really serve our community so well. She then thanked the BOS for the support that they give them and said it was a pleasure to host the town meeting at the High School. Mr. Alonzo stated that if you have not attended a Pops Concert at the High School, he encourages you to do so. He also thanked the a capella group from the High School for singing the National Anthem at the town meeting. ANNOUNCEMENTS APPOINTMENTS CURRENT BUSINESS HIN 0 8 20012 LUMENBURG TOWN CLERK OFFICE ===PAGE 2=== 1. Recap of May 5, 2012 Town Meeting - Mr. Matthews recapped the events at town meeting which included the new solar bylaw, appropriation of the override, the school building feasibility study, and the Summer St. project. He encouraged all people, either for or against, the override to come out and vote. 2. Appointments to Memorial Day Committee - Mr. Sund stated that at the present time the only people that came orward to be on the committee were Loxi Jo Calmes and Chief Dan Bourgeois. He also apologized for not being a 'own Meeting due to recent surgery. Ms. Bertram moved to appoint Superintendent Calmes, Chief Bourgeois, and Mi Sund to the Memorial Day Committee. Mr. deBettencourt seconded. On vote, motion carried, 5 in favor, 0 opposed. 3. Minutes/Warrants/Action File Issues - Minutes: Warrants - 5/9/12 W65-12 $151,704.99 5/8/12 W64-12 $54,622.59 Action File Issues - Mr. Alonzo was concerned with the missing bench from the gazebo which had been damaged. He said that it was an Eagle Scout project and asked if anything was being done about the replacement. Ms. Speidel will follow up with the DPW on this issue. Mr. deBettencourt was concerned with the metering system which was wiped out on the Fitchburg/Lunenburg line. He said that a business owner in the area had questioned when it would be taken care of. Another concern was the control box meter in Whalom which had been damaged as well. Ms. Speidel will follow up on these matters. 4. Committee Report - Mr. Alonzo informed the BOS that the Finance Committee meets this Thursday. Mr. Matthews informed the BOS that the School Building Committee will meet tomorrow night and that they will tour High School. 5. Department Reports - None 6. Town Manager Reports - Ms. Speidel presented two licenses, that had been previously approved, but needed to be signed. An "All Alcohol" license for Elena's Gourmet Grocery was presented and Ms Speidel said that once Elena's Gourmet Grocery receives this license, she will return the Beer & Wine license which will be advertised for anyone in town that is interested. A "Base License Golf Driving Range" for Mark Testa doing business as Lakeview Driving Range. There were two licenses, one for the period that expired 4/30/12 and the other expiring 4/30/13. Mis. Speidel reported that she had received word from the DPW Director that he had heard from DEP that the land fill monitoring will now be done on an annual basis rather than a bi-annual basis. This will save the town approximately $5000 to $8000 per year and she is expecting an official letter from DEP soon on this matter. Ms. Speidel mentioned that when the new rate for the electric aggregation program goes in to effect on June 1°, it is estimated, based on average that homeowners will save between $15 and $20 per month which is significant OLD BUSINESS - None APPOINTMENTS/RE-APPOINTMENTS/RESIGNATIONS - None EXECUTIVE SESSION - None ===PAGE 3=== Being no further business, Mr. deBettencourt motioned to adjourn the meeting. Ms. Bertram seconded. On vote, motion carried, 5 in favor, O opposed. Meeting ended at 7:20 p.m. UPCOMING MEETING SCHEDULE May 15, 2012 May 22, 2012 Respectfully submitted, Susan Doherty, Recording Secretary Board of Selectmen ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2012-05-15-agenda-4807.txt BOARD : select-board DATE : 2012-05-15 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/select-board/2012-05-15-agenda-4807.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_05152012-4807 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== BOARD OF SELECTMEN /g48/g68/g92/g3/g20/g24/g15/g3/g21/g19/g20/g21 7:00 PM – 2 ND FLOOR TOWN HALL JOSEPH F. BILOTTA MEETING ROOM AGENDA PUBLIC COMMENT ANNOUNCEMENTS APPOINTMENTS CURRENT BUSINESS 1. Request for Abatement of Ambulance Bills, LB1217 39 & LBM11539 2. Purchase & Sales Agreement, Jones House 3. License Agreement, Tri-Town Landing 4. Remote Participation Policy 5. Town Manager’s Annual Evaluation 6. BOS Policies & Procedures 7. Minutes/ Warrants/ Action File Issues 8. Committee Report 9. Department Reports 10. Town Manager Reports OLD BUSINESS APPOINTMENTS/ RE-APPOINTMENTS/ RESIGNATIONS EXECUTIVE SESSION UPCOMING MEETING SCHEDULE May 22, 2012 June 5, 2012 June 12, 2012 June 19, 2012 ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2012-05-15-minutes-4807.txt BOARD : select-board DATE : 2012-05-15 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/select-board/2012-05-15-minutes-4807.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_05152012-4807 ======================================================================================== ===OCR macOS Vision=== ===PAGE 1=== RECEIVED & FILED MAY 2 3 2012 LUNENBURG TOWN BOARD OF SELECTMEN MEETING MINUTES 5/15/12 CLERK OFFICE The Board of Selectmen met in the Joseph F. Bilotta Meeting Room, Town Hall as scheduled with David Matthews, Steven M. deBettencourt, Carl "Ernie" Sund, Tom Alonzo, and Town Manager Kerry Speidel present. Absent: Paula Bertram Regular Meeting opened at 7:00 PM with the Pledge of Allegiance. PUBLIC COMMENT Mr. Alonzo congratulated the Lunenburg Pops Concert and everyone who was involved in the event this year. Dave McDonald, said he received a letter in his mailbox entitled "Lunenburg Residents Beware". He said that he agreed with the numbers that were printed in the letter regarding the override. He also thanked Mr. deBettencourt for having the foresight for knowing what the community needed when they built the Police/Fire station, Library, and Primary school several years ago. He stated that he is voting for the override because it is the right thing to do for the community. Jane DeNike, 347 Highland Street, wanted clarification on what the override percentage actually was going to be. It was determined to be a 14.2% increase in property tax for the years 2013 over 2012. Mrs. DeNike said that she was dismayed that she had heard that the Lunenburg Pops Concert at the High School had become some what politicized this year due to the fact that flyers were being handed out by proponents of the override outside of the school and were available at the ticket table inside of the school. She also stated that the Music Aide parent who was welcoming the people to the concert had eluded to the upcoming vote along with programs that will be cut if the override is not voted in. She stated that sometimes in our passion for speaking our opinions we forget the wisdom of being discreet depending on the event we are at. Mrs. DeNike also spoke about realizing that there is a sizeable group of people in the town who cannot see their way through a 14.2% increase in their property taxes, which could become close to a 25% increase by July 2016. She feels they are saying no to the override because they have found themselves in a serious financial situation. She pointed out the fact that there are over 90 homes for sale in Lunenburg and that since January, 30 of the 90 have had to lower the price of their homes in order to sell them. She feels that the home sale numbers reflect the fact that people are not moving to Lunenburg for what ever the town's asset's may be. Mr. Matthews said that 90 homes for sale is a consistent number and that this is a national situation. He also said that "saying no" for the last 30 years has led to years of buildings being in disrepair and that things do not get any cheaper down the road. Mr. Alonzo said that he has never taken other peoples situations lightly. He suggested that if you cannot afford the override then vote against it. The BOS thanked Mrs. DeNike for coming in this evening. ANNOUNCEMENTS APPOINTMENTS CURRENT BUSINESS 1. Request for Abatement of Ambulance Bills, LB121739 & LBM11539 - Ms. Speidel presented two requests for abatement of ambulance bills, LB121739 for $990.00 & LBM11539 for $1056.00. She stated that both applicants meet the guidelines for abatement. Mr. Alonzo moved to approve both abatements, LB121739 & LBM11539. Mr. Sund ===PAGE 2=== 2. Purchase & Sales Agreement, Jones House - Ms. Speidel presented the BOS with the request to sign the Purchase and Sales agreement for the Jones House. Approval was given at Town Meeting to put the Jones House up for sale. Request for proposals process was done twice and there was one bidder. The property will sell for $10,150.00 and there are several requirements placed on the sale of the property. The property will be restored in accordance with its historical significance, there will be a land development agreement, and a declaration of historical covenant. The Historical Commission will be monitoring the restoration of this project. Mr. Matthews stated that the low sale price was due to the limitations which were placed on the property with historical restrictions that impinged on the value that it could be sold for, along with the condition of the building which was not properly maintained. The intent of the sale is to get it back on the tax role. Mr. Alonzo said that is the opinion of the Historical Commission that this is a relevant property and was the home of the internationally known horticulturist Luther Burbank. He said that it was the BOS intention to save it so it could remain a historic site. Mr. Sund said it would be worthy of note that Luther Burbank developed the Russet potato on the grounds of this property. Mr. Alonzo motioned to approve the Purchase and Sale of the Jones House as listed before the BOS. Mr. deBettencourt seconded. Discussion on the driveway easement agreement ensued. On vote, motion passed, 4 in favor, 0 opposed. 3. License Agreement, Tri Town Landing - Bill Caselden, representing Great Bridges Properties, explained to the BOS that this License Agreement addresses the remainder of the fire lane behind Tri Town Landing. He said that when the development was originally approved by the Planning Board it depicted the fire lane being constructed and that this Llicense Agreement would give them the ability to build it. This fire road will continue to behind where the "proposed" building 3 will be built and when other buildings are built, the road will be extended to them also. It will be constructed of gravel and will require occasional maintenance to make it reasonably passable. Marion Benson, Planning Board Director, said that there has not been a problem with this plan by the DPW and the Fire Department and that it has not changed since they had originally reviewed it. She stated that the best thing for the BOS is to grant a license rather than an easement, which would require a vote at town meeting. Mr. Alonzo moved to approve the License for Tri Town as provided on the plan and as discussed. Mr. Sund seconded. On vote, motion carried, 4 in favor, 0 opposed. 4. Remote Participation Policy - Ms. Speidel stated that she had discussed the Remote Participation Policy with the I.T. department and with the Cable Commission and they neither had concerns with this policy, if adopted, and that it would not require a significant amount of money to be able to participate in this process. After discussion among the BOS it was decided to review this matter further and to vote on it at the next BOS meeting. 5. Town Manager's Annual Evaluation - Mr. Matthews stated that a timeline needed to be set on how the BOS will approach the Town Manager's evaluation. Goal sheets and the format will be distributed to the BOS within the next week. Mr. Matthews said that he would like everyone to fill out their own evaluation and would like them to meet with the Town Manager before submitting their evaluations. When the evaluations are turned in Mr. Matthews will compile a composite review. He feels that this process can be completed within the next 3-4 weeks. Discussion on goals for the new year can be begin after the evaluation in July. 6. BOS Policies & Procedures - Not discussed. 7. Minutes/Warrants/Action File Issues - The following minutes and warrants were presented for approval. 1. Minutes: 05/1/2012 & 04/24/2012 2. Warrants - 05/15/2012 #66-12 $42,600.72 05/10/2012 #23P12 $636,650.08 3. Action File Issues - Mr. Alonzo read a list of tax assistance programs for senior citizens which was provided by the Lunenburg Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility. He thanked that group for compiling this information. ===PAGE 3=== 8. Committee Report - Mr. Matthews said that the School Building Committee met last Wednesday and they have been compiling questions for interviewing the project manager. 9. Department Reports - None 10. Town Manager Reports- Ms. Speidel said that there had been a typo on a license which had already been granted for Robert C. and Michael R. Lovewell doing business as R.C. Motors, and requested the BOS to re-sign. OLD BUSINESS APPOINTMENTS/RE-APPOINTMENTS/RESIGNATIONS - None Mr. Matthews stated that he received an email from Barbara Reynolds informing him that she will be stepping down from the Finance & Personnel Committees at the end of the fiscal year. He said that anyone that would like to guide us forward, now would be the time to do so. Ms. Speidel told him that she has received three talent bank applications from people who are interested in serving on the Finance Committee and she is in the process of scheduling a meeting with the Finance Committee. Mr. deBettencourt informed the BOS that the Fire Department will be holding a "Meat Raffle" on 05/19/2012. Mr. Alonzo informed the public that absentee ballots for the upcoming election can be cast at the Town Clerks office up until noon on Friday. He also spoke of the override and how there was not one board or committee that did not vote in favor of the override except for the BOS. He spoke of the need for the override and said that he supports it because he believes it represents everything that is middle class value in America. He said that they are not looking for anything extravagant but rather the maintenance of the programs that are already in place and for the road program which has been severely neglected for over a decade. He said that there were a lot of generations that had built this town and have gotten it to where it is and that it is now our responsibility to support the future of our town. Mr. Matthews spoke and said that the Lunenburg tax bill is 10% lower then the state average. He said that we are working against national forces and its about things bigger then how much someone makes on some job in town and he they wanted to raise their children. He reminded everyone that the election is Saturday and hopes everyone comes out to let their voice be heard. Mr. Sund said that no matter what side you support, please come out and vote. Mr. deBettencourt motioned to adjourn. Mr. Sund seconded. On vote, motion carried, 4 in favor, 0 opposed. Meeting adjourned at 8:16 p.m. EXECUTIVE SESSION UPCOMING MEETING SCHEDULE May 22, 2012 June 5, 2012 June 12, 2012 June 19, 2012 Respectfully submitted, Susan Doherty, Recording Secretary Board of Selectmen RECEIVED & FILED MAY 2 3 2012 LUNENBURG TOWN CLERK OFFICE ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2012-05-22-agenda-4808.txt BOARD : select-board DATE : 2012-05-22 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/select-board/2012-05-22-agenda-4808.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_05222012-4808 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2012-05-22-minutes-4808.txt BOARD : select-board DATE : 2012-05-22 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/select-board/2012-05-22-minutes-4808.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_05222012-4808 ======================================================================================== ===OCR macOS Vision=== ===PAGE 1=== BOARD OF SELECTMEN MEETING MINUTES 5/22/12 The Board of Selectmen met in the Joseph F. Bilotta Meeting Room, Town Hall as scheduled with David Matthews, Steven M. deBettencourt, Paula Bertram, Tom Alonzo, Carl "Ernie" Sund and Town Manager Kerry Speidel present. Regular Meeting opened at 7:00 PM with the Pledge of Allegiance. PUBLIC COMMENT Mr. Matthews began the meeting by congratulating everyone who was elected in the previous Saturday's elections and thanked them for serving the town. Ms. Bertram thanked all who voted for her and said she looks forward to working with the BOS for the next 3 years. Mr. Sund also thanked the voters for coming out and informed the public that there will be a Memorial Day Service this coming Sunday at Veteran's Memorial Park at 11:45 a.m. If it rains the ceremony will be held in the Eagle House Senior Center. He also reminded people that due to a water shortage at the cemeteries, they should bring their own water if they are planting at the graves. Pat Slattery, Chairman of the Lunenburg Historical Commission thanked the BOS and the Town Manager on their efforts of seeing the Jones House project through. He said that the project started 3 years ago and they have gotten it to the point that they will be able to preserve a significant Lunenburg structure and return it to the tax rolls. The project was overseen by the Historical Commission and all of the professional services, except for advertising and legal, were donated. Mr. Matthews thanked the Historical Commission for all of their efforts on the project. Mr. Sund personally thanked Mr. Slattery for all of his work on the Jones House project. Loxi Calmes, Superintendent of Schools invited all to the School's Memorial Day celebrations. All three schools will have programs on Thursday May 24* at various times. Ms. Calmes also stated that the recent vote was disappointing but unchanged. She thanked the BOS for their continued support of the students. Mr. Matthews stated that the most important role they play as Selectmen is to get information out to the voters. He will continue to get information out to the public on how they operate, how they make decisions, and what the impact of the decisions they make are. He said that with the right to vote comes the responsibility of the outcome and they will continue working forward in making Lunenburg a town that people want to live in and stay in with all of the services they can muster. Mr. Matthews said that a positive outcome of Town Meeting was that people came forward to join various committees and that anything people can do to get involved with this town makes it better. ANNOUNCEMENTS APPOINTMENTS CURRENT BUSINESS RECEIVED & TEDED JUNG 8 2012 LEVENBURG TOWN CLERK OFFICE ===PAGE 2=== 1. Board Reorganization & Committee/Liaison Assignments - Mr. Alonzo motioned to nominate Dave Matthews to serve as the Chair of the BOS. Ms. Bertram seconded. On vote, motion carried, 5 in favor, 0 opposed. Mr. Matthews motioned to nominate Tom Alonzo as Vice Chair of the BOS. Mr. deBettencourt seconded. On vote, motion carried, 5 in favor, 0 opposed. Ms. Bertram motioned to nominate Ernie Sund as Clerk of the BOS. Mr. deBettencourt seconded. On vote, motion carried, 5 in favor, 0 opposed. Ms. Bertram will continue to represent the BOS at Planning Board and MRPC meetings. Mr. deBettencourt will continue to represent the BOS at Sewer Commission meetings. Mr. Sund Will continue to represent the BOS at Capital Planning Committee and PACC meetings. Mr. Alonzo will continue to represent the BOS at the Finance Committee meetings. Mr. Matthews will continue to represent the BOS at the School Committee and School Building Committee meetings. 2. Remote Participation Policy - Mr. Alonzo suggested an addition to the Remote Participation Policy which would be that remote participation may not always be available at all meeting locations at all times. Mr. Sund questioned the wording on pg. 2 under technology concerning acceptable media for remote participation. He said that he would like the word "shall" changed to "may be" because the word "shall" indicates that we must do it and it could be very costly for the town. Ms. Speidel would like to check that with Town Counsel before the board strikes this from the policy, due to ADA requirements. She believes you would be required to make that type of accommodation with the media, if it is required for an individual to participate in the meeting. Ms. Bertram motioned to accept the policy with the adjustments suggested by Mr. Alonzo and verification with the Town Counsel with adjustment made by Mr. Sund. Mr. Alonzo seconded. On vote, motion carried, 3 in favor, 2 opposed (Sund & deBettencourt) 3. Town Manager's Annual Evaluation - Ms. Speidel said that Mr. Matthews had indicated that all forms should be completed and BOS members meet with the Town Manager by June 12" and that he would compile the composite for the evaluation for the June 19" meeting. Mr. Alonzo questioned if the goals were attached to the forms to which Ms. Speidel said that it was her understanding that at last weeks meeting, Mr. Matthews wanted to do it separately. The BOS would like to have them in hand so they can do a thorough evaluation. Ms. Speidel will get them to the BOS by tomorrow. 4. BOS Policies & Procedures - Ms. Bertram has been working on revising the BOS policies and procedures and Mr. Matthews requested that a printed copy be given to each member to review. Ms. Bertram stated that a lot of the information that had been distributed previously seemed to contain a lot of office staff procedures vs. policy by the board. She attempted to edit the language to put it in more of a form of a policy vs. instructions for staff. She incorporated some additional policies and sent samples which she had borrowed from other communities based on the outline she had formulated several months ago. The Remote Participation policy will need to be incorporated as well. Mr. Alonzo suggested that as they go through the process of review, that they take one or two items at a time so that they are not overwhelmed. Mr. Matthews said he would like to have workshops on this in July and have this completed by the end of the summer. 5. Authorize to provide for the Sale and Issuance of Refunding Bonds, 2003 Bond Issue - Mr. Matthews stated that the Town Manager, Treasurer, and Financial advisor have found a way to refinance bonds from building projects from 2003 which will save some substantial money in interest payments. Projected savings will be approximately $600,000. over the next ten years. ===PAGE 3=== Ms. Speidel said that because this is an advanced refunding issue and the fact that it is combined with the regular general obligation bond issue together in one series of bonds the Financial Advisor suggested that the BOS should vote to authorize the advanced refunding ahead of time in case there was any reason that the Board was not interested in moving forward. This will only authorize them to go out to get bids, which will be done next week, and the results of the sale will be brought back to the BOS at the first meeting in June. If the savings are not significant the BOS can opt not to accept the bids. These bonds are all exempt, so the tax dollars raised to pay the debt service is done outside of Proposition 2 ½, therefore, a reduction in total debt service will reduce the amount of additional tax dollars needed to be raised Ms. Speidel stated that there is a Form of vote that is required to be read should the Board so choose to proceed. Mr. Matthews read the vote into record. Mr. deBetttencourt moved to accept the vote. Mr. Sund seconded. Mr. Alonzo questioned if the expected savings was over the life of the bond. Ms. Speidel said yes it would be for 10 years. On vote, motion carried, 5 in favor, 0 opposed. 6. Minutes/Warrants/Action File Issues - Minutes: 3/6/2012 & 5/15/2012 Warrants - 5/21/12 W24P12 $644,737.55 5/22/12 W67-12 $1,502,543.37 5/23/12 W68-12 $662,193.01 Action File Issues - 7. Committee Report - Mr. deBettencourt said that the Sewer Commission is working on trying to keep their budget in line and they are looking at some of the I & I changes that they will be making to get the water out. He has not received any information on the metering station in Fitchburg yet. Ms. Bertram said that she had attended the MPO meeting and it looks like the Summer St. project, although it scored high, Will not make it onto the next lll. She said that she received comments from MRPC that Lunenburg's consultant really needs to lobby for this project. She is concerned that if we are in the Appendix, because the project is so substantial, to move it out of the Appendix into one of the earlier years at a later date is going to be more difficult. She would like to contact VHB and find out when this project is going to be ready so she can relay the information. Ms. Speidel said that she speaks with the engineer from VHB weekly and she is sending the design contract to the town to be approved. The engineer thinks the timetable for approval would be 6-9 months. Ms. Speidel also spoke to the transportation planner at MRPC and gave him the timetable. She asked him if the time table would enable that project to be reviewed so it could be taken out of the appendix at the next opportunity and he thought it would be sufficient. Ms. Bertram is still concerned that the high dollar amount will consume all the funding and that once it is in the appendix and the TIP is set, it will be difficult to move it out of the appendix and in front of other projects. Ms. Bertram would like to see the engineer attend the MPO meetings and have the town lobby more for the project. 8. Department Reports - None 9. Town Manager Reports - Ms. Speidel checked with the DPW Director about debris which was left at an accident scene on the Fitchburg/Lunenburg line and he said that it was removed last week. The reason it was there for so long was because the insurance company had not come out to finish their work so the town took pictures and removed the debris. The cabinet at the intersection of Whalom and Electric, which was damaged ten years ago by an automobile accident, will not be replaced. According to the DPW Director the damage to the cabinet is not impacting the working of the lights and it's not worth replacing due to the cost. This will be looked at again and the DPW Director will get a repair estimate. ===PAGE 4=== Ms. Speidel checked into the bench repair at the lower common and believes that the Eagle Scout who originally made the bench wanted to do the work himself. If he is unable to do that, then the town will take care of it. Mr. Alonzo asked about the painted walkway around the Whalom rotary and Ms. Speidel said she has a report on that and will get it to the BOS. OLD BUSINESS - None APPOINTMENTS/RE-APPOINTMENTS/RESIGNATIONS - Mr. Matthews requested that a letter be sent to Barbara Reynolds thanking her for many years of service on the Personnel Board. Mr. Sund mentioned that the High School Pops concert is being shown on the cable channel and heard that it was very good. EXECUTIVE SESSION - None Being no further business, Mr. deBettencourt motioned to adjourn the meeting. Ms. Bertram seconded. On vote, motion carried, 5 in favor, 0 opposed. Meeting ended at 7:48 p.m. UPCOMING MEETING SCHEDULE June 5, 2012 June 12, 2012 June 19, 2012 Respectfully submitted, Susan Doherty, Recording Secretary Board of Selectmen ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2012-06-05-agenda-4809.txt BOARD : select-board DATE : 2012-06-05 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/select-board/2012-06-05-agenda-4809.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_06052012-4809 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== BOARD OF SELECTMEN June 5, 2012 7:00 PM – 2 ND FLOOR TOWN HALL JOSEPH F. BILOTTA MEETING ROOM AGENDA PUBLIC COMMENT ANNOUNCEMENTS APPOINTMENTS 7:15 p.m. JNJUHL & Associates; Eagle Heights Project CURRENT BUSINESS 1. Request for Voluntary Toll, Chester Mossman Teen Center 2. Notification, Bicycles Battling Cancer Event, Ju ne 10, 2012 3. Approval, Sale of Bonds, 2012 General Obligation & 2003 Advanced Refunding 4. FY2013 Budget; Schedule Change 5. BOS Policies & Procedures 6. Minutes/ Warrants/ Action File Issues 7. Committee Report 8. Department Reports 9. Town Manager Reports OLD BUSINESS APPOINTMENTS/ RE-APPOINTMENTS/ RESIGNATIONS EXECUTIVE SESSION UPCOMING MEETING SCHEDULE June 12, 2012 June 19, 2012 ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2012-06-05-minutes-4809.txt BOARD : select-board DATE : 2012-06-05 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/select-board/2012-06-05-minutes-4809.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_06052012-4809 ======================================================================================== ===OCR macOS Vision=== ===PAGE 1=== RECEIVED & FILED es lb smas AUG 27 2012 LUNENBURG TOWN CLERK OFFICE BOARD OF SELECTMEN MEETING MINUTES 6/5/12 The Board of Selectmen met in the Joseph F. Bilotta Meeting Room, Town Hall as scheduled with David Matthews, Steven M. deBettencourt, Paula Bertram, Tom Alonzo, Carl "Ernie" Sund and Town Manager Kerry Speidel present. Regular Meeting opened at 7:00 PM with the Pledge of Allegiance. PUBLIC COMMENT Mr. Matthews welcomed LSI (Life Skills Inc.) and the Yankee Consignment Store which had their grand opening yesterday at 5 Summer St in Lunenburg. He explained that this is an organization that funds housing & programs for adults with disabilities and said that in these days of diminishing state funding for these programs its good to see a group getting together through business and enterprise and creating their own funding. He recommended that the public stop in and visit their establishment. ANNOUNCEMENTS 7:15 p.m. JNJUHL & Associates; Eagle Heights Project - Jon Juhl representing JNJUHL & Associates and Paul Teixeria from RCAP Solutions came before the BOS to ask for an extension on the original agreement they had with the town on the Eagle Heights Project. They gave an update on the Eagle Heights Project and to ask for the BOS support in this project. Mr. Teixeria spoke and said that RCAP is acting as a non-profit sponsor for the Eagle Heights Program. He said that they have applied twice to HUD for funding and were not successful in either attempt. He feels that the second application scored very highly and there is a lot of support from the HUD staff for this project. Mr. Teixeria explained that they are in a holding pattern right now because the funding for these types of housing is challenging and they need to discuss with the BOS what can be done to strengthen the application. Some of the suggestions to build up the application were to have the project located close to services such as the senior center and stores, reaching out to minorities and families, and local support such as donation of land or buildings, waiver of water and sewer connection fees, or donation of grounds maintenance. The original agreement called for going through three funding rounds and he feels that the next time they will be able to apply will be next spring after elections. Mr. Juhl spoke and said that they received a positive attitude from the HUD staff for this project. He said that one of the challenges they face could be that depending on the budget and the resources available on the 202 they may have to change the structure in terms of financing. He explained that HUD is looking for state resources to become more of a factor in terms of how these projects get funded with tax credits, which could loosen up the income eligibility for senior citizens. Mr. Juhl said that they are also looking at state programs that mirror the federal ones. One in particular they are looking at is called Elder Mixed Income Housing Programs which comes from Mass Housing which is similar to the 202 from HUD. He asked for the BOS support while looking at both programs. Mr. Matthews spoke and said that one of the reasons the recent override failed was because of the elders concerns of being able to stay in their homes. He feels that this project is more important now then when it started BOS members all voiced their support for this project. Discussion ensued about funding for other projects in different communities and the need for this type of housing. Mr. Teixeria added that in the other communities that they have done these projects in they do not pay real estate taxes Ms. Bertram said that she thinks the BOS need to review the original agreement again before they extend the agreement and that it should be added to the agenda as soon as possible. ===PAGE 2=== APPOINTMENTS CURRENT BUSINESS 1. Request for Voluntary Toll, Chester Mossman Teen Center - Maureen Dupuis, Program Director at the Boys & Girls Club Chester Mossman Teen Center spoke requesting permission for a voluntary toll on June 23, 2012 and on September 8, 2012. Mr. Sund questioned whether or not there would be children in the road working the tolls. Ms. Dupuis answered no they would need to be 18 or older. At this time Mr. Alonzo recused himself from the vote. Ms. Bertram motioned to approve the request for the Voluntary Toll for the Chester Mossman Teen Center for June 23, 2012 & September 8, 2012. Mr. deBettencourt seconded. On vote, motion carried, 4 in favor, O opposed. 2. Notification, Bicycles Battling Cancer Event, June 10, 2012 - Ms. Speidel explained that this is a state wide event that will be taking place on Rt. 2A and goes through several towns. She said that this is a notification of the event which will be held on Sunday and that this request has been approved by the Chief of Police. There is no action required from the BOS on this matter. 3. Approval, Sale of Bonds, 2012 General Obligation & 2003 Advanced Refunding - Ms. Speidel explained that the purpose of the sale of the bonds is because the interest rates are so low at this time. She said that with a bond issue there are only certain opportunities/call when you can refund due to the fact that these are sold as investment tools so people are relying on the income. You can either refund at the call or in advance of the call and the Towns Financial Advisor has reviewed them and believes that this is an opportunity to do an advanced refund of the issue. Ms. Speidel said that originally it was thought that the town could save $600K but now realizes it will be less than that at $550K over the next 11 years, which will result in a net savings of about $30K per year to the town. Part of the bond issue includes the Primary School, which the town receives a reimbursement from MSBA, so part of the savings will need to be returned to the State. The other part of the bond issue is a combination of permanent financing of the DPW building and the last 2 years of the Capital Improvement Plan for which the town chose to borrow. The new borrowing is $1, 815,000. and the rest of the issue is refunding the 2003 issue. Bids were taken last week and 3 bids were received on the bonds. The best bid was from Robert W. Baird & Co. with a true interest cost of 2.284% for this issue. As part of this issue the town will receive a premium to cover the insurance cost which is a standard practice. The premium received is for $179K with a net premium to the town after all of the costs are accounted for at $137K which will come into the General Funds as a receipt for this year. Ms. Speidel pointed out that as part of this process the towns rating agency, Standard & Poor's needed to review the towns bond rating, which has retained at a AA- and there was no negative language included the rating review. This will have a positive impact on the interest rate which is paid on bonds. Ms. Speidel noted that the bonds are executed by the BOS and the Treasure/Collector and for this bond issue the Assistant Treasurer will be signing as the Treasurer because the acting Treasurer/Collector does not have the bond that she needs in order to sign on behalf of the Town. Mr. Matthews requested that the Standard & Poor's rating be posted on the town website. Mr. deBettencourt inquired about the acting Treasurer/Collectors position and asked if it was the intention of the Town Manager to get her bonded. He was also concerned about the position's salary being paid out of the BOS budget. Ms. Speidel responded that the statutory requirement is that the acting Treasurer/Collector provide a bond to the Town, it is the responsibility of that individual to provide it, which she has not done. The Town will pay the cost of the bond. Mr. deBettencourt asked if it was the Town Manager's intention to appoint the position of Treasurer/Collector to Ms. Gustus if she gets the bond. Ms. Speidel responded that the appointment of the Treasurer/Collector under the Town Charter is different then most of the appointments and that it is an appointment of the BOS. She added that under MGL Chapter 40 Section 41 which applies to the bonding issue, if the Treasurer or temporary Treasurer fails to provide the bond within 10 days, which is required by MGL, the BOS can declare the office vacant, so at this point in time her appointment is invalidated due to the fact that she did not provide the bond. ===PAGE 3=== Mr. deBettencourt asked if Ms. Gustus knew of this situation. Ms. Speidel said that she herself had only learned of this matter last week and that the paperwork had been provided to the individual to obtain the bond. She also stated that the individual had indicated an awareness of knowing that the bond was required back in January. Mr. deBettencourt stated that it is concerning that the Town has gone this long with an acting Treasurer/Collector and would like to move forward with this issue as soon as possible. He questioned the salary payment coming from the BOS again. Ms. Speidel said that it's where the Town Accountant has been drawing it from and before the end of the year is closed, she will have the Town Accountant do a journal entry and charge that salary to the Treasurer/Collectors office. Due to the length of the vote, Ms. Speidel requested that a board member read the vote and then sign the documents at the BOS leisure. Mr. Sund read the vote into record. Mr. Sund motioned to approve the Sale of Bonds, 2012 General Obligation & 2003 Advanced Refunding. Mr. Alonzo seconded. On vote, motion carried, 5 in favor, 0 opposed. 4. FX2013 Budget; Schedule Change - Ms. Bertram recused herself from this discussion. Ms. Speidel stated that there was some unfinished business in regards to the FY13 budget which she wanted to review. Notifications will be sent tomorrow to employees who will be seeing a reduction in hours and changes in schedules. She said that as proposed in the original budget the Chief Administrative Assistant position at the BOS will be eliminated The hours of the IT Assistant will be reduced from 40 to 15 hours per week which is based on the significant drop in the In regards to the combining part-time Administrative Assistant position at the Board of Health and Conservation office, Ms. Speidel said that she was contacted by the Chairs of both offices and they had stated their opposition to this move. She said that she reviewed this again and due to the concerns of the BOH and Conservation office she has decided to retain both part-time positions. The BOH Administrative Assistants hours will be reduced from 30 to 26 hours per week and the Conservation Administrative Assistants hours will be reduced from 32 to 28 hours per week. In order to due this Ms. Speidel stated that she needed to find funding for 14 hours per week. This will entail reducing the Payroll Coordinators hours from 40 to 36 hours per week, reducing funding for IT Coordinator from $10K to $SK, and Ms. Speidel will forego her Town Manager contractual raise for FY13. She stated that in making these adjustments she believes the town will still be approximately $2K. short but is hoping to make that up during the course of the year. She said that this is a "band aide" approach to give the town more time on of BOH & Conservation) These adjustments will be effective as of July 1, 2012 and Ms. Speidel would like to re-look at these hours again on August 31" to see if they are working out for the departments. Mr. Alonzo voiced his objection of the added budget change in saying that he felt that a lot of time was spent evaluating the original four budget scenarios, it was clear as to what was going to happen, and now its changed two weeks after the vote. He also was concerned with the Town Manager's forgoing a salary increase and said "this ain't no way to run a town". Ms. Speidel explained that none of the other four proposals were chosen because of a concern about which employees would be affected because of seniority. She didn't think it was fair or appropriate to select an alternative that would impact people that really had no notice of being impacted. She did not come up with this proposal before because she just recently looked at the situation with the IT assistant and did not expect that they would be able to further reduce that There was a concern about "bumping" by union employees and she chose it because it seemed to be the best alternative. Mr. Sund spoke and said that he feels Ms. Speidel has come up with another alternative which he thinks is good and he would like to support it. Mr. deBettencourt feels that this is a less painful way of going and does not create complications as the proposals would have done. Mr. Matthews stated that staffing throughout the town, especially at the Ritter Building will all be in play over the next year and every year will become increasingly painful. He said that they will be looking at more consolidation and cross training. He also said that when people talk about the Town Manager's raise they should put it into perspective that when ===PAGE 4=== you receive one raise in five years he hopes people will respect and appreciate the effort on the Town Manager's part and he appreciates her effort. Ms. Bertram returned to the meeting at this point and Ms. Speidel read a letter from the Director of the Eagle House informing them of the schedule changes at the senior center. The senior center will be closed on Fridays and all Friday activities have either been rescheduled to other days or cancelled. The Eagle House hours will now be Monday through Thursday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Ms. Speidel stated that the Library Board of Trustees are still working on finalizing their plans for FY13. 5. BOS Policies & Procedures - Ms. Speidel will have marked up copies printed this week to distribute to the BOS. 6. Minutes/Warrants/Action File Issues - Minutes: 5/8/12 5/22/12 Warrants - Payroll -$1118.64 $358. 68 Payroll Deductions $407,772.97 Payroll $765,984.88 Accts. Payable $297,406.19 Action File Issues - None 7. Committee Report - Mr. Alonzo reported that the Finance Committee Appointing Committee had five good applicants and they interviewed all of the candidates. They are happy to announce that the three candidates that were chosen are Steve Raboin, Jason Smith, and Theresa Birchfield. They will begin to serve as complete board on July 1s. Ms. Bertram reported that she attended the previous evenings Planning Board where the main topic of discussion was the EPG Solar where they went through the findings and directives. At the conclusion it was determined to table action on approval or disapproval until the Planning Board has an opportunity to speak with Town Counsel because of concerns with how this will work with the new Zoning Bylaw Ms. Speidel said that the Planning Director informed her that they will be meeting with Town Counsel on June 13" and it will be a public meeting. Ms. Bertram said that she had forwarded to the BOS the MPO draft TIP and that Lunenburg is only mentioned once in the TIP. She said that MRPC's "Mr. Mapper" program will tell you what roads are eligible for federal aide and there are several roads in Lunenburg meet the requirements. She then explained the process of how to apply for federal aide to the BOS. Ms. Bertram recommended that they move forward with identifying projects, getting in front of District 3 and start doing some lobbying to get some additional federal aide money for Lunenburg. Ms. Bertram also said that she met with Glen Eaton from MRPC and asked how the Summer St. project can move forward. He suggested that the towns MJTC Representative gets in front of the MJTC and at a minimum reports quarterly on the status of that project. Ms. Bertram spoke about the Planning Board meeting again in saying that she became aware of a grant which has come available for a Request for Service Delivery for District Local Technical Assistance grant. The deadline for filing for this grant is next Friday at noon. She said that the Planning Board is looking at master planning, priority development, and preservation of areas along with commercial growth and that would fall under the eligible tasks in this grant. She said that the Planning Director met with Glen Eaton from MRPC today and they will be filing for the grant. Ms. Speidel said that the DLTA program applied approximately one year ago for funding for reviewing the zoning along the Summer St. corridor in all three communities and that MRC has just completed that project for the town. She said that the Town of Lunenburg has never made terrific use of MRPC and they need to correct that going forward because they are a huge resource that receives a lot of grant funding for the region. ===PAGE 5=== Mr. Matthews reported that the School Building Committee met last Wednesday at the High School where they familiarized new members to the facility and the challenges that are there. They finalized questions they will be using in the interview process with OPM as well as RFP that will be going out. The School Committee will be meeting tomorrow night and will be discussing options for consolidating the schools sooner than later, and how to make better use of the budget to minimize some overhead costs. 8. Department Reports - None 9. Town Manager Reports - Ms. Speidel presented a document to the BOS to sign regarding a pole location which was approved by the BOS on April 9, 2012. Ms. Speidel mentioned that the closing date for the Jones House which was set for Monday June 11" will probably be pushed off for one more week but she will have the final document to be signed for the deed and land development agreement next week. The extra time needed for the closing date is due to the fact that when the title search was done it was found that the solar array that is located on the top of Turkey Hill Middle School, the legal description somehow got tied into the Jones House and needs to be corrected before closing. Ms. Speidel would like to look next at 925 Mass Ave, the abandoned gas station. She would like to talk to Town Counsel about the Town foreclosing its tax title lien on the property and believes the town can take that property without any liability. Her intent is for the town to take the property for the purpose of obtaining a grant for the clean up of the property and to turn it back into something that somebody would like to purchase for business use. Ms. Speidel said that next week is the scheduled appointment of the next Fire Chief, Patrick Sullivan. She spoke of Mr. Sullivan's positions that he now holds in this town as well as others. She said that 25 people applied, they interviewed 4 candidates, and Mr. Sullivan was the best candidate for the job. The current Fire Chief is retiring July 31" and the appointment Deputy Chief Sullivan would be August 1s. The ad for the Police Chief's position has been posted and Ms. Speidel hopes to bring a candidate for this position to the BOS by the beginning of July. The current Police Chief will be retiring on August 10" and the appointment of the next Chief will be on August 11" OLD BUSINESS - None APPOINTMENTS/RE-APPOINTMENTS/RESIGNATIONS - None EXECUTIVE SESSION - None Being no further business, Mr. deBettencourt motioned to adjourn the meeting. Ms. Bertram seconded. On vote, motion carried, 5 in favor, 0 opposed. Meeting ended at 8:45 p.m. UPCOMING MEETING SCHEDULE une 12, 2012 June 19,2012 Respectfully submitted, Susan Doherty, Recording Secretary Board of Selectmen RECEIVED & FILED AUG 27 2012 LUNENBURG TOWN CLERK OFFICE ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2012-06-12-agenda-4810.txt BOARD : select-board DATE : 2012-06-12 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/select-board/2012-06-12-agenda-4810.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_06122012-4810 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1===